The Pretender - Cora Brent Page 0,39
He’s not sitting in their circle but he is close enough to hear whatever they’ve been saying. He’s looking at me with a mixture of embarrassment and apology because he’s actually a decent guy and whatever garbage has come out of Todd’s mouth is obviously foul. Then he shoots a glare at Todd and Company and growls, “Knock it off, guys.”
“Fuck you, King.” Todd scowls, confident in the fact that he’s got sufficient backup in the room to take on anyone. He turns an ugly smile in my direction and my stomach performs an unpleasant flip. “Things are getting freaky down in the valley, huh? Maybe it’s worth taking a field trip down the hill to slum with you and your hometown girls.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“You and Beltran.”
A sour taste rolls through my mouth. “You’re crazy.”
“Oh yeah? Fuck boy was shooting his mouth off in the cafeteria. He offered up his finger for a sniff and I said, shit, I remember that.”
Howls of laughter follow and I hear the teacher crossly remind us that the last bell has not rung and we should be working quietly. She says my name when I stand and gather my books.
“Rest room,” I choke out and sprint through the door.
I know Todd’s laughing harder than ever but if I’d stayed I might have burst into tears and nothing would have been worse than that. My chest hurts and my head is cloudy.
“It is just us, Camden.”
He wouldn’t lie to me about that.
He wouldn’t jump at the first opportunity to gloat about getting me on my back.
He wouldn’t ridicule me for the sake of getting some laughs from the biggest lechers in school.
Or would he?
The halls are nearly empty and I don’t seek sanctuary in the girls’ bathroom. Instead I make a beeline for the one location at this damn school that I feel at home; the headquarters of the Black Mountain Academy Bulletin. The room is a small one, located all the way at the end of the long corridor past the gymnasium. There are two rows of computers set up and a large smart board stretches across the front wall. At the moment the only person inside is a sophomore named Rodney. He writes the music and entertainment columns and he’s typing away on a keyboard at the far end of the room while bouncing his head in time to whatever music blasts through his earbuds. I receive a silent nod when I enter and then he returns to his screen, leaving me free to sink into a chair at the opposite end of the row and lay my head down in my arms like a small child.
I don’t want to be wrong about Ben.
More than anything else in the world I want to believe that I can trust him.
Todd’s taunting laughter echoes in my ears. It mushrooms and expands until I can’t hear anything else, although dimly I’m aware that the last bell has rung.
Footsteps approach and a hand lands on my shoulder. “Camden?”
I raise my head to find Trina staring at me with concern.
“Are you sick?” she asks. “I can handle the meeting this afternoon if you want to go home.”
“I’m not sick,” I grumble and roll the chair away from the desk.
“What’s wrong then?”
“Nothing. I’m just tired.”
“No wonder.” She pulls up a chair, inches closer until our chairs are touching and tosses her black curls over one shoulder before shooting me a conspiratorial grin. “When you asked me about Ben Beltran you might have mentioned that you guys are a thing.”
“What makes you think that we are?”
She playfully shoves at my arm. “Nice innocent act. Kent heard it from Ben at lunch. So fess up.”
“Kent heard it from Ben,” I say and I’m picturing how it must have happened; Ben occupying the spotlight among a cluster of Black Mountain jocks and handing out details about his sexual exploits.
I stand up so quickly that I manage to knock a keyboard off the table. “I’ll be right back.”
“Wait.” Trina is alarmed and gets in my way. “You sure you’re feeling okay?”
“Yeah.” I’m already backing through the door. “I just need to get some air.”
The after school frenzy has turned the hallways into a storm of bodies. They cluster and they hug and they shout and they get in my way. I know I’m short on time. The first bus leaves approximately ten minutes after the final bell and Ben is going to be on it. I don’t know what