Let Me Know

I didn’t return to the abandoned classroom again, no matter how much Mrs. Ackman made me want to drown in a pool of lava. Just knowing that Waeden not only knew about it but also knew that I knew about it meant there was a chance he would be back, and I couldn’t risk meeting him again. There was something about the two of us there, together, that felt so deceitful and forbidden, yet at the same time I wanted more. Then again, that’s how all of my interactions with Waeden seemed to go.

The truth was, Waeden was like a mystery book to me. I’d desperately read along, thinking that maybe I’d finally figured out exactly who he is, when something would happen that would leave my thoughts in a chaotic storm of confusion. One minute he was kind and charming, the next he was stabbing me in the back. One day he seemed head over heels in love with Chloe, the next he was nearly kissing me in a classroom. I knew I needed to back off before I hit scorching hot territory, but a bigger part of me wanted to keep reading.

I was also extremely curious as to what he was going to say before the bell interrupted us. As much as I tried, I couldn’t get his intensely passionate gaze out of my mind. It was forever imprinted in my memory, the conundrum of a Waeden that I had once discovered in the dark but knew nothing about.

I thankfully didn’t have much time to think about it, though, because the weekend soon came and I was instead left with my mute father for a whole 48 hours. He spent most of his time in his personal lair in the basement, but every now and then I would meet him in the kitchen or the living room. Every time he would turn to see who entered, give me a grunt of acknowledgement, and then promptly escape back to solitude. Sometimes my mom would witness this and try to initiate a conversation, but she only got as far as a few mumbled syllables before we’d go our separate ways.

This irritated her immensely, and after one encounter Saturday afternoon she had a meltdown.
“I just don’t understand why he’s acting like this!” She exclaimed, taking her anger out on the innocent bowl of potatoes she was mashing.

“Mom, you know dad better than anyone. He’s in immature child who wouldn’t let go of a grudge, even if it mean not getting mauled by a pack of starving tigers.”

“I know, but you’re his daughter, and this is ridiculous. I won’t have you two hating each other over something so trivial.”

“Well you talk to him, because he’s not going to listen to me.” While this was true, I didn’t want to talk to my dad because I was as stubborn as he was, and initiating conversation would mean admitting I was wrong. While the tension throughout the house was annoying, I wasn’t going to back down. After my conversation with Waeden, I was positive I was in the right and would leave it to my father to let go of his long-lasting prejudices.

“Yeah, well, if he doesn’t start acting like an adult, I’m going to do a lot more than talking…”

“Will you let us know when you do?” Louis interjected as he and Matt entered the kitchen and took a seat across from me.

“It’s so entertaining when you two fight. Seriously, one video on the internet and we’d be famous.”

“I rolled my eyes, knowing my mom was doing the same as she replied, “Please, like this family needs any kind of publicity.”

“But on a serious note, mom, we could always talk to Dad for the sake of the greater good.”

“Yeah, we’re men, so he’ll accept our words of wisdom and we can talk to him rationally.”

My mom and I shared in impish glance before bursting into a short burst of laughter.

“Please, like dad could ever take the two of you seriously,” I replied after I had calmed down, “He’ll probably pretend to listen to what you’re saying, interject halfway in with something like ‘that’s nice, boys’, then shoo you away so he can return to peace.”

Louis snorted, “Sure, produce an heir and suddenly you become mommy’s favorite and full of infinite knowledge.”

“Yeah, but at least dad’s still talking to us.”

I grabbed a peanut to launch at Matt’s head, but he quickly dodged it beore giving gaping at me, awestruck, “Mom, she just tried to assault me via legume! She’s dangers and should be locked up!”

“Aubrey,” My mom said threateningly, but the hidden smile she gave told me the waring was more against riling up the twins than necessary. Mom’s favorite was right.

“Sorry.”

“Good, now go wash up, dinner’s about ready.” She then sighed as she threw down a towel, “Louis, go get your father. I refuse to let him eat alone one more night. He will eat at the table with everyone, even if I have to tie him to the chair.”

“Woah, mom, no need to get into detail about your after-hours activities,” Louis chided, but before he could continue my mom picked up that towel once more and threw it at his head, expelling him from the room.

Despite my mother’s best efforts, dinner that night proved nothing more than the fact that neither my dad nor I were going to give up easily. He spent the entire meal in pouted silence, speaking only when spoken to with short, mediocre responses. I however, wasn’t afraid to show that he was the only one I was mad at, and talked animatedly with everyone else. After all, I was right, so I had no reason to hide in shame and anger.

The boys, in retaliation to our earlier statement, tried to ‘talk men’ with my dad, but it only helped in proving my mom and I right. My dad refused to listen to anything they had to say, his only responses to their conversation being head nods and bored ‘mmhmm’s. At one point he excused himself to the kitchen just to avoid the sound of their voices, leaving my mother and I with grins on our faces. By the end all three of them were sulking in silence.

Once dinner was over everything went back to what had become normal in our house. My dad escaped back to the basement with the excuse of a game on television, and I retreated to my bedroom to soak in my thoughts.

I just didn’t understand why my father refused to let this go and give Waeden a chance. Sure, he was my parent, and the rule was that dad’s always right, but wasn’t everyone always telling me how mature I was for my age? Not to mention the rest of my family was accepting of him, surely they couldn’t be wrong.

I thought about calling Chloe to vent, but I stopped before I hit the call button. It was Saturday night; she was probably somewhere with Waeden or wedding planning with her sister. Brandon and Michael were at a game an hour away, and the twins were off to see a movie with some friends. For a split second I even thought about calling Abby, but that would lead to an awkward conversation and Aunt Katie far more into my business than I liked.

I sighed as I collapsed onto my bed. This was it. This was my life. While everyone else was out having lives, I was stuck at home as the pregnant girl no one wanted to deal with. And Waeden wanted to do this for the rest of our lives? No thank you. Instead of having fun, partying, or even going on dates, I’d be stuck at home reading mother goose to a two-year-old.

Still, Waeden did have a point. There must be something gratifying about having kids, otherwise my
parents wouldn’t have had so many of them. To have something that depeneded on you, loved you unconditionally, and looked up at you with cheeky, wide-eyed smiles was appealing. I just wasn’t sure I could handle it. In ten years I’d be more than willing to have kids, but at seventeen? It was stressful just thinking about it.

After convincing myself that I couldn’t do it a few more times, I finally immersed myself in homework and the amazing world of television. At least the on-screen problems were over after their 30 minutes were up. Mine would stay with me, only forgotten by a momentary lapse of sleep.

When I woke up Sunday morning, I made a rational choice to forget the problems that would greet me on Monday. Baby? What Baby? Who was Waeden? Those words were on my forbidden list for the day. My family was gone for the day, so I didn’t have to worry about avoiding my dad. My time was spent staked out in the living room, book in one hand and a monstrous bowl of cereal in the other. It was like my days of I kid, when my brothers and I would spend hours watching cartoons in our pajamas, oblivious to the outside world, my parents not caring because it was one of the only times we didn’t fight. I didn’t have any worries back then, and I wouldn’t today.

Unfortunately, the ideal getaway I had plunged into was shattered by the ringing of the doorbell. I thought about ignoring it, lest it be Aunt Katie her to tend to my needs, but soon decided it would be best to answer than have her overreact and break down the door.

When I opened it, though, I was surprised to see it was Ryan on the other end.

“Hi!” He exclaimed, beaming at me

His smile melted my heart. It was so nice to see him happy instead of critical or worried as he’d been around me since Christmas. It was probably due to his upcoming nuptials, but I instead chose to believe it was because he got to see me.

“You realize that Ethan doesn’t live here anymore, right?” I joked as I leaned against the doorway.

“I know. I came to see you.”

My heart leapt for joy for a moment before reality set in. There was no good reason for Ryan to show up at my doorstep, no matter how much I wanted to believe it was to confess his undying love for me. To make matters worse, the last time we spoke was at my uncle’s birthday party, when everything collapsed from underneath me.

“Sure come in,”” I replied, trying to sound positive. “Everyone’s out of town, they took the boys to see Blake and look at the college.”

“Wow, it’s so weird to imagine them graduating. Seems like only yesterday they were begging Ethan and I to play with them.”

He slowly drifted off, and I immediately knew what he was thinking. It was only yesterday I was doing the same, yet here I was, pregnant and creating a new generation of Hughes.

“So…” He continued after a few moments of silence, “You and Waeden…”

I glared at him. That name was on my prohibited list, and he ruined it in five seconds. “Look, Ryan, I appreciate the visit, but if you’re here just to talk smack about him, you can just leave.”

His face fell as my hostility made itself known, “No, that’s not why I came here. I’m just concerned.”

As much as it pleased me to hear that he cared about me, I couldn’t ignore the situation at hand, “I’m fine, Ryan, you just need to trust me.”

“It’s not you I don’t trust, Bre, it’s him. I can’t shake the feeling that he doesn’t care about you, or even Chloe for that matter. Not to mention he’s got quite the reputation.”

Who was he to make judgments? Ryan knew even less about Waeden than my father. “He has a reputation or his father does?” When he didn’t respond, I knew my point had been made. “Exactly. Everyone focus on who his father was and how he acted when he was in school, but you don’t bother to get to know who Waeden himself is. Brandon, Chloe, and I all have, and we know he’s nothing like you imagine. You need to trust our judgment.”

“You’re right, Aubrey. It’s just hard when all I’ve seen from him is bad” The memory of him kissing me on New Year’s briefly flitted through my mind. If only you knew, “But for your sake, I’ll try and keep an open mind.”

“Thank you,” I replied, smiling at him. If only it were this easy to get the message across to y father. Now, what did you really come here for?”

“Oh, right,” I watched as he sat up straight, a huge smile on his face, “I know this is usually the woman’s job, but I asked if I could do it. Olivia has been thinking, and she wants you to be a bridesmaid in our wedding.”

“Me? A bridesmaid?” The image of me standing on the altar in a dress that didn’t fit, watching as Ryan married Olivia flashed through my mind. Hadn’t he tortured me enough? “Ryan, I really appreciate the offer, but I’m not sure. I mean, I’ll be huge by then, and it’ll just ruin all her picture, the ceremony, everything.”

“Bre, she knows and she doesn’t care. You’re important to both of us, so you should be there, pregnant or not.” He looked me in the eyes as he grabbed my hands, and I felt my heart flutter, “This isn’t about judging one another, it’s about family, which you most certainly are.” He then gave a soft chuckle, “But I can’t like, two of Olivia’s friends are standing as well, and she’s hoping you’ll be able to calm Chloe down when she gets angry at them.”

I internally sighed. With that kind of persuasion, plus the addition of my weakened defenses due to Ryan’s endearing hold on my hands, it was impossible to decline. “Of course I’ll do it.”

He leaned over and gave me a massive hug, “I knew you’d say yes. Besides I can’t have my wedding without you in it. You’re my little sister.”

Funny how our ideas were so different. In my ideal wedding, he was the groom saying I do and living happily ever after with me. Instead, I was going to have to stand there as he whisked away with my cousin. If there was a God, he had a cruel sense of humor.

“Well, I’ll leave you to yourself; I know it’s a luxury you don’t get very often.” He sighed as I followed him towards the door. Stopping just short of the doorstep he turned to face me, “I’ll keep in touch. Take care of yourself, Bre.”

“I will.”

He then gave me one last smile before disappearing into the January wind, leaving me feeling colder than the snow outside.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next school week passed by rather effortlessly. The overall status of Aubrey gossip had nearly diminished over the weekend, leaving me with only a glance here or there. Eventually everyone got bored talking about me and moved on to fresher, juicer topics. Even Mrs. Ackman seemed to give up trying to torture me, and I was once again allowed to sit through History in peace.

After hearing from her sister that I was going to be in the wedding, Chloe spent every moment she could to rant about it. One day she’d go off about the color scheme they had chosen, the next would be filled with complaints on how she had to write a speech.

“Don’t get me wrong, I love my sister, and I’m really happy for her, but she knows I hate all that sappy stuff, not not to mention I’m terrible at writing” She ranted to me one day at lunch. Chloe sighed as she threw her fork down in anger, then looked up at me as realization crossed her face, “Bre maybe you could-“

“No, Chloe, I’m sorry, but absolutely not.”

“Why not?” She whined.

“Because, everyone who will be there knows us, and even your sister will get suspicious when you sound remotely intelligent. Just stop worrying about it, Chloe. You have three and a half months before you decide what you’re going to do.”

Pouting, she slumped down in her seat. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. At least you and Waeden will be there to keep me sane.”

I turned to look at the aforementioned boy who was talking to Brandon across the table. Like a sixth sense he turned to me as soon as my eyes met him and smiled softly before continuing his conversation. At least the two of them were talking again.

It seemed that over the weekend, Waeden had decided to let go of his baby interrogations and become a happy, normal teenager. He’d great e with a smile or a not, exchange a few pleasantries, then continue going about his day. There was no parenting talk, no awkward glances like there was something to hide. It was almost as if he suffered from amnesia and completely forgot the events of the past few weeks.

On one level, I was relieved. It was as if the whole school had an assembly and decided that, after enough torture, it was time to leave me in peace. It was a touchy subject I had been trying to ignore, and I especially didn’t want to talk to Waeden about it. My wish had finally come true, and I could live a normal life for a few weeks. On the other hand, I couldn’t deny that this baby was our main topic of conversation, and without it we were stuck in silence. I liked talking to Waeden in a general sense. Just because I didn’t want him badgering me about it every time we met didn’t mean he couldn’t ask me how I was doing. For someone who desperately wanted to keep this kid, he sure wasn’t interested.

Nevertheless, it was nice to be able to sit and talk with everyone about trivial teenage matters like our English essays that were due or the latest movie coming out. The tension and ill-will that once filled the air was replaced with laughter. I couldn’t help but feel that, from her, things couldn’t get any worse.

I was interrupted from my class Thursday afternoon when one of the office lackeys knocked on the door.

“Excuse me, Mr. Steins, but Aubrey Hughes is wanted in the office.”

There was a simultaneous whistle of air as every head turned to look at me and I sighed in frustration. Great, another reason for everyone to continue talking about me. This would be everywhere by next period, and the Ludacris reasons why would soon follow. The twins and Michael will have a field day with this one.

“No reason to stare,” I muttered as I stood up, but if someone heard me they ignored it and continued to watch me as I walked out.

“Do you have any idea what this is about?” I asked the messenger by as we made our way to the office.

He looked at me before shrugging, “No, they just told me to get you. Maybe you’re getting expelled.”

I rolled my eyes and walked ahead, refusing to respond. It hadn’t even been five minutes and someone was already creating stories. Yes, my vacation from the public’s eye was definitely over.

To say I wasn't intrigued about my reason for being called out of class despite my extreme joy, however, was a lie. As far as I knew I'd done nothing wrong, so I was sure I wasn't getting yelled at. Maybe Principal Moore had decided to check up on me, make sure that everything was going okay, or even to see if I had decided what I was going to do after my nine months were up.

In truth, it was the last one that scared me the most. Sure, I had told everyone including Waeden that I was giving the baby up, despite his attempts to change my mind, but conforming and actually going through the process was terrifying. Every now and then, second thoughts would pass through my mind, but I'd quickly shut them down. This baby had already caused a truckload of Chaos in my life for the two months it was here; I couldn't imagine another 19 years.

As I entered the office, the receptionist looked up and smiled at me. "Ah, Aubrey Hughes, there you are. You have a visitor." She said, motioning to the side.

I turned to see who it was, but I hadn't turned more than 90 degrees before freezing in place. Suddenly, Mrs. Ackman's class seemed a lot more inviting.

The man stood up and reached his hand out in politeness, his lips turned up in what some might consider a smile, “Aubrey Hughes. I’m Erasmus Sorenson.”

I didn’t need to hear his name to know who he was. The similarity between him and his son was remarkable. He had the same sleek, ash blonde hair, though his had darkened with age, same strong jaw line, and the same long, narrow nose. The only difference I could instantly see was that while Waeden’s grey eyes were filled with kindness, his father’s were a cold dark blue, almost black, and his expression was that of a serious businessman, despite his attempts at smiling. It was easy to see how my father and the others got the two of them confused.

“Hello,” I replied politely as I hesitantly took his outdrawn hand. While I would defend Waeden, I had no evidence disproving what my family had said about his father, and there was no good reason for him to be here much less dragging me out of class.

“Let’s go to the other room where we can talk privately,” He gestured towards the small conference room across the hall. For a moment my mind raced with images of what would happen to me when the door closed and I was away from any eye witnesses, but eventually I calmed down are realized that not only were we in school, but plenty of people saw him with me. Taking a deep breath, I walked into the unknown, Erasmus following close behind.

To say I wasn’t nervous would be lying. I had never met Waeden’s father before, yet here he was pulling me out of class to talk privately. On top of that, his pristine appearance and distinguished mannerisms intimidated the hell out of me. He was one person that I did not want to get on the bad side of, but I had a feeling I already had. Waeden obviously told his father about the fact that we were having a baby, as I couldn’t see any other reason why he’d be here, and that fact wouldn’t make any parent happy.

Get a grip, Aubrey my subconscious scolded. You’re asking your dad to give Waeden the benefit of the doubt, shouldn’t you do the same? I resisted the urge to snort amusingly. True, but this man radiated terror, and he had a reputation that would make the innocent cry.

“I’ve heard quite a lot about you, Miss Hughes,” He said as he closed the door behind us and took a seat. “Waeden has spoken of you often as of recently.”

I wanted to ask him if he was thinking of the right Hughes, because I couldn’t imagine he spoke of me more than his own girlfriend, but decided to keep my sarcasm in check, “Well, Waeden and I have become friends over the past few weeks.”

An ugly smirk crossed over his face, “He’s also told me about the predicament you’ve gotten yourself into. Now he’s assured me that he’s the one involved, and while my initial instinct is to doubt any accusations without proof, I’ve decided to trust my son’s judgment and therefore you.”

I narrowed my eyes. That was it. There was the reason to hate him and throw my benefit of the doubt out the window. In one sentence he called me a harlot and a liar, then expected me to be grateful for his saintly decision to see past it.

“Well thank you for putting your faith in me,” I replied sarcastically. All respect and politeness I had vanished. I wasn’t going to sit around like a lifeless being as the man insulted me.

He looked taken back for a moment, but then shook his head and snorted, “You are definitely your parents’ daughter.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

He clasped his hands together and leaned forward, “Yes, well, back to the reason I am here. Miss Hughes, your family is in the same business that I am, so you can imagine how difficult it can be at times. You have to provide outstanding quality service while maintaining an impeccable image. Now, you family is incredibly large, so there are a number of sons or daughters that may one day take over the company name. But I have just one son, and he will undoubtingly inherit what my grandfather had built.”

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. It was just the other day that Waeden was telling me how he didn’t necessarily want to follow in his father footsteps, yet here this man was showing his assurance of his son’s future. I wanted to correct him, but no matter how much I momentarily hated the man, it was not my place. This was something the two of them had to work out on their own.

Suddenly, an idea hit me. Maybe the reason Waeden wanted this child so badly was because it provided him with an escape. If there was another heir, the pressure to take over the company would be taken off his shoulders, and Erasmus was here to coerce me into the decision. Well, that wasn’t happening.

“So you see, my son requires that he have an upstanding reputation, and you can understand how…well, your situation can be a problem.”

Nevermind.

“Mr. Sorenson, I don’t know if Waeden has told you, but I plan on giving the baby up. You don’t have to worry about teenage parenthood putting a dent in your family’s name.”

“Yes, well, that’s fine for now, but what happens years down the like when it wants to find it’s real parents? It’s a huge hassle that can easily be avoided.”

I didn’t like where this was going, “Sir, what are you trying to say?”

“Well, to put it simply, I’m suggesting we exterminate the problem before it can begin.”

I stared at him in incredulation. Did this man really have the audacity to suggest what I thought he was? “Are you saying that I…?”

“It’s really a quick procedure, and I would compensate you. It would be our little secret; no one else would have to know. After all, accidents do happen, especially with young girls who don’t take care of themselves.”

I sat there seething with anger. It took everything in me to not reach across the table and punch him in the jaw. How dare he try and pay me to kill his own flesh and blood because it would hurt his precious reputation and offer to pay me for it. Just the idea made me feel dirty. My father was right; he was a heartless man who only cared about himself.

I stood up rashly and threw my chair under the table, “You can keep your dirty money because I have no need for it.” I turned to storm out of the room, but turned around one last time, “And before you go doing what you think is best for your son’s future, you should see what he really wants,” I then slammed the door closed, shutting out his cold, glaring eyes.

As soon as I was alone, I ran as far away from the office as I could. I didn’t want to see that man ever again, and just knowing that he was still here set me on edge. I wasn’t until I got to the other side of the school that I stopped and leaned against the lockers.

In a split second the exhaustion and anger overcame me, and it took every ounce of willpower to not burst into tears as I slumped against the lockers next to me. The reality of what had just occurred began to set in, and I still couldn’t believe it. The idea that a grown man would try and pay me to kill his grandchild simply out of convenience made me physically and emotionally ill. Now I understood why my father reacted the way he did. I had only met Erasmus once and I never wanted to again. I couldn’t imagine growing up with him.

“Aubrey?”

I looked up to see Thomas standing just a few feet away.

“Look, Thomas, I’m really not in the mood right now.” Ever since the news about my pregnancy came out, I’d been avoiding him as much as possible Thomas certainly wasn’t the smartest person I’d ever met, but even he could put together a timeline. His curious glances whenever we crossed paths told me he had many questions to ask, so I made a habit to busy myself with someone else and escape from his path as soon as possible. I knew that wasn’t going to be possible today, and I really didn’t want to hear what he had to say after the conversation I just had.

“What, having pregnancy problems.” I looked up and glared at him. “So it is true?”

“Yes, unfortunately, it is.”

“…It’s not…is it mine?”

I laughed coldly, “Thomas, don’t be an idiot, you know that isn’t possible.”

In just a few moments he was standing over me, his gaze overbearing, “So what, you cheated on me then?”

“No, I didn’t. It happened after we broke up, now, if you’ll excuse me-“ I stood up and attempted to leave, but he cornered me back against the lockers.

“So you pushed me away the whole time we were dating, but then you go and jump in bed with some dude the minute we break up?”

“Oh, please, don’t act like I broke your heart. You’re the one who broke up with me. Now let me go.”
I tried to escape once again, but this time he put his arms on either side of me and brought his face only inches away from mine, “I just didn’t realize you were this easy. So, what, do I have a chance now that we’re not together? Is that more your style?”

I gave him a deathly glare. I’d already been insulted enough for one day, I didn’t have to go through this again. “I’m not listening to this, just let me go,” I attempted to push him away, but he didn’t budge.

“Just answer the question, Bre, that’s all I want-“

“Hey!”

We both turned to see a girl standing in front of the stairway. It took me a few moments to realize it was Emily, Brandon’s newly formed girlfriend.

“You should listen to her,” She continued as she walked in our direction.

Thomas put his arms down but didn’t step away from me. “Who are you?”

“I’m the witness who won’t be afraid to tell a teacher you were harassing her.”

He continued to stare at her for a few more minutes, almost as if he was testing her bluff, but eventually he turned and gave me one last accusing glance before reluctantly walking away.

As soon as he was out of eyesight, I sighed with relief, releasing the nervous breath I had been holding, “Thanks for that, I was worried I was going to have to resort to giving him a swift kick between the knees.”

She smiled back at me, “Not a problem, you looked like you could use a hand. Guys can be real jerks sometimes.”

“Emily, right?” She nodded, “I’m sorry we’ve never actually had an opportunity to talk until now.”

“That’s alright, I haven’t really ben around too long. I’ve heard quite a bit about you.”

I gave a short chuckle. Who hasn’t? “Some good, I hope.”

“Oh, all good. I really don’t pay much attention to the rumor mill.”

I watched her intently for a moment. This was not what I would have expected from the Emily I’d seen in class. She always seemed so proper, someone who looked down on partiers and teen moms. I was honestly afraid that she would chide me for my decisions, but instead she laughed and treated me like a normal human being.

“Yeah, well, Brandon speaks pretty highly of you, and anyone that’s important to him is important to me. If you ever need anything, just let me know. I do owe you one, after all.”

“You’ll be the first person on my list.”

“Well, I should probably head back to class before everyone sends out a search party for me. I’ll see you around.”

Emily smiled and nodded, “Yeah, you will.”

I went to leave, but I’d only taken a few steps before I was called back.

“Aubrey?”

I turned back around to face her as she continued, “I just wanted to let you know, I think you’re really brave. Not many people would be able to go through what you are, face everyone without being affected by what they say. I wish I could be as strong as you.” She then gave me a small smile before walking away, leaving me dumbstruck and awed.

That was something I’d never heard before. Sure, I’d been getting lines of support ever since this started, but for her, a complete stranger, to say she admired me was different. It was nice to hear that someone thought I was doing the right thing, especially after the day I’d already had.

As I walked back to class, my mind wasn’t focused on Waeden, his father, Thomas, or the whispers that would follow.