Chapter 26: Chapter 26

Talking about anything was easier than mentioning what had happened on Saturday night during the party. Even if I had to confess to being clumsy in front of Axel, it was better than telling him that Chloe had hit me because of a boys’ issue.

“I was at a friend’s house and slipped off the balcony,” I said as I looked at my ankle, surprised that, unlike my face, it refused to heal so suddenly.

“Are you telling me the truth?” Axel asked with his tone of a caring father that he never was. I was tired of getting angry every time he or Lia used that tone with me, so I let it go, but I was still bothered by the idea that no one believed me that I had simply slipped off the balcony.

Do they want to hear a story about abuse? Will they not be convinced until I tell them that a man caused this? What’s wrong with everyone?

“Yes, that’s what happened,” I replied. “Did you want the story behind this injury? Well, that’s it, and I’m sorry to have disappointed you with something so simple.”

Alex must have noticed my discomfort or seen the sincerity in my eyes, I don’t know, but he didn’t say anything else and looked up at the group that was entering the restaurant at that moment. I knew who had caught his attention when I smelled the unmistakable cologne of the twins. I didn’t dare to turn around and remained in my seat. I just glanced sideways when I felt them pass by me, and it was as if my eyes had called out to them because they turned at the same time, as if they were one. They both looked more handsome than ever. I wished I could be captivated by Ethan and Liam’s eyes when our gazes met, but the magic quickly faded away.

I also recognized Chloe’s perfume, and although it no longer made me dizzy like the first time, the sensation in my nose was enough to turn my stomach.

Right at that moment, Jennifer arrived with our order.

“I’ll attend to you right away,” Jennifer said, giving me a knowing look, and I understood that she was thinking the same thing I was at that moment. For what reason had the restaurant become so popular in one morning? “If it keeps up like this, I might have to ask you to put on an apron,” she whispered as she placed my slice of pie on the table.

I smiled even though I felt Chloe’s gaze on the back of my neck, as well as Vera and Amelia’s, who walked a step behind Chloe as if they were her bridesmaids holding the train of her wedding dress.

How pathetic those three turned out to be!

I had to shove the cake into my mouth because I had no appetite anymore, and while I did it, I noticed that the twins were arguing with Jennifer, who insisted on seating them at another table, but they wanted to sit at the table next to mine, right in front of Aly, who at that moment felt equally or even more uncomfortable than I did.

“Are they your friends?” Axel asked after taking the first bite of his pie.

“No. They’re not friends,” I said, trying to speak as quietly as possible.

“Boyfriends, then?” Axel asked, raising an eyebrow.

I don’t know where he got that idea because why would I have two guys as boyfriends, but it made me feel too uncomfortable, and I could tell that the twins had heard Axel’s question. Now they were attentive to my response, and even Chloe and her two companions seemed to be paying attention to what I was going to answer. I couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed by that situation, where everyone seemed to be focused on what I was going to say, like those scenes in movies where the protagonist freezes the other actors.

“What? What are you talking about? Of course not. They’re not boyfriends,” I said firmly, hoping that my answer had been very clear to everyone.

“So, who are they?”

I realized that, for some reason, the twins and the three girls had caused a stir in Axel’s mind, and he wouldn’t be satisfied until I gave him a convincing answer.

“They’re just classmates from school, with whom I share some classes.”

“I see,” Axel replied, now convinced.

I finished my pie, almost forcing every piece into my mouth because Chloe’s gaze continued to follow my every move, and I knew that somehow she seemed to be enjoying my fear since she hadn’t even been surprised to see my face completely healed.

“Can we leave now? I have school, or do you forget?” I said with the sole intention of hurrying Axel’s last bites of his pie because the truth was, I had more than enough time to arrive early to the first class.

“Yeah, let’s go. I’m not that hungry either,” Axel said, confident that I was quite uncomfortable among all those people.

He insisted on paying the bill and approached the cashier. I got up, and in his absence, Aly took the opportunity to approach me as I was about to leave.

“Is it true? Jennifer told me he’s your father?”

I nodded, although I still refused to call him father, but despite my intentions, Axel was what he was, biology didn’t lie, whether I liked it or not.

“You have to call me tonight,” Aly said before giving me a hug. “I can’t even imagine how you must be feeling right now.”

I almost wanted to cry at that moment. Apart from my grandmother, no one had shown me any affection, let alone those who claimed to be my parents. Aly’s gesture touched me, and I knew she was speaking and expressing herself sincerely. I held back my tears and promised her that I would call her without fail.

Aly returned to her table, and as I was about to leave the restaurant, I felt a hand grip my wrist. My arm almost went numb with pleasure when I recognized who had captured it, and a very exciting sensation of tingling and prickling electricity ran through my body, settling in my chest.

“We need to talk, sweetheart,” Ethan said, followed by Liam, who had gotten up from the table to stand beside his brother.

The vision of the two twins shook me. How was it possible that they seemed so charming to me at that moment, when their harpy-like girlfriends were so close, perhaps already with their viper eyes on me, wishing me something worse than death.

“I have to go,” I said, worried about Chloe’s reaction and her two cronies.

Despite Ethan’s tight grip, it wasn’t enough to prevent me from leaving, and he let go of me with a simple reaction of my arm. Liam, who was standing beside him, looked at me with a certain bitterness, as if my temporary absence was very painful for him and he had hoped that maybe he would at least be able to exchange a few words with me.

It hurt to leave, but it was necessary. I had to stand firm in my decision, which, despite Axel’s appearance, remained the same: to leave town on Friday afternoon.

“They still don’t know anything about what happened at the party,” I told myself when my gaze met Chloe’s, who hadn’t taken her eyes off me. “Surely she will come up with any excuse to justify her behavior, that killer coldness she can’t hide when she sees me.”

Axel must have been waiting for me in the car, and I warned him that I didn’t want to talk about what had happened inside. He nodded, as if he didn’t really care, and for the first time, I appreciated his indifference because I didn’t want to have to explain Ethan’s grip and the few words, filled with emotion, that I managed to exchange with him and convey to his brother.

“Now you’re back to your dilemmas,” said that strange voice that haunted me and that I knew I could no longer silence unless I resorted to some medication.

“Perfect, just what I needed, for this voice created by me to now be determined to mock every situation in my life. When are you going to leave? When I leave this town?”

“What are you talking about? What do you mean a voice created by you? Haven’t you realized yet that I’m not you?”

“What are you talking about?” I asked, uncomfortable with the mocking tone of the voice in my head.

“I think you already know. You just have to focus.”

The voice’s last words and the monotonous walk to school made me think about what was happening in my head, and I discovered that ever since I had heard it, and for some reason I didn’t understand, I had given a shape to that strange voice in my head. I don’t know why, but every time I heard it, I imagined a little girl speaking to me; she was somewhat like me, but not me, rather a kind of alternate version of myself. The girl had very dark hair, unlike mine, which was more of a light brown, almost reddish, and her eyes were also quite dark, like raven wings.

“Alright, let’s say I believe you,” I said. “Who the hell are you? Do you have a name?”

“Of course, it was about time you asked me to introduce myself, Sussan. My name is Gea.”