story, then maybe you should look past yours as well.”
There’s nothing really that I can say back to that and I try to focus on finishing my breakfast, the eggs tasting worse than they usually do now that the room is full of our grief.
It was much easier to hate him when I thought he was just a pissed off, jealous asshole Bond without a story of his own.
When I finish up with my plate and grab my bag to head off to our first class, Gabe follows me, the easy grin back on his face as he greets guys around us with his usual carefree energy. I stop myself from brooding on how much I hate this place for a second and just watch everything around us both instead. The football guys all love him, the girls they’re with all stare at him with heart eyes, and even the professors all greet him warmly.
None of them look twice at me anymore.
Sage meets us both at the doors of the Econ class, her eyes flicking between us, but she doesn’t comment. When Gabe sits next to me instead of his usual three chairs away, she raises her eyebrows at me but doesn’t say a word.
There’s a reason she’s my best friend.
I wait until the class starts and everyone is intently focussed on taking notes before I lean into him and whisper, “I don’t want to bond but I’ll stop going for your throat if you do the same.”
It’s the only olive branch I can give him right now, and it might be a bad idea to even go that far.
He huffs out a breath and doesn’t answer me until the class is over, hovering over Sage and I as we pack our papers and books away.
“That’s called being friends, Oli, and I’ll give it a shot if you will too. We can figure out the bond shit later.”
I scoff at him and sling my bag over my shoulder. “If this is some ‘nice guy’ ploy of pretending to be my friend just to fuck me and get your bond, then I’ll dick punch you right now and walk away without another thought.”
Sage bursts out laughing, slapping a hand over her mouth that does exactly nothing to smother the peals of laughter shaking out of her body. Gabe shoots her a look but it’s mostly exasperation. “At this point, Fallows, you’d have to beg me to fuck you. Friends with zero benefits, except that I’ll be watching your every move and you’ll be looking for a chance to run away from us all.”
I shrug at him and knock shoulders with Sage as we walk out together. “Sounds fine, but the first rule of Reject Club is that we hate Giovanna and want to murder her. If you can’t get behind that, then you’re out already.”
He shakes his head at me as Sage starts protesting, constantly putting herself down over that nightmare of a girl. “We don’t want her dead, we just wish she’d hate me a little less.”
I snort at her. “Fuck that, I want her dead. I’ve called dibs on her in the apocalypse. Gabe can take Riley out, and you can fuck Felix instead, he has my vote.”
We turn the corner to find Felix standing there, grinning like a freaking devil, and Sage instantly turns beet red.
“I knew running off to heal you would work in my favor. Thanks, Fallows,” he calls out as we pass by him, winking at Sage who is trying not to look as though she wants the ground to swallow her whole.
Gabe bursts out laughing with me and it’s freaking eerie to be standing around with him and not planning out his death. I know it won’t last, but even for a moment, it’s a weird position to be in.
Sage digs an elbow into my ribs and mutters, “It’s not up for a vote. We should hurry up, we’re about to be late for History and Nox will start a whole new smear campaign against you, Oli.”
Ugh.
Kill me.
I learn something very important the moment Gabe sits down with me in History and that is exactly how much power he has at this school. The moment people see us talking quietly with each other, there’s an immediate shift, like they’re all changing the way they’re talking about me now that he’s ‘forgiven’ me.
They don’t need to know the details to change their position, and Zoey finds herself very suddenly alone.
Sage spots it first and points