chapter sixteen

h e h a s t h e a t t e n t i o n s p a n o f d o r y

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Picture: which cover do you like the most? comment 1-4 please :)

Dedicated to @

ByTheAngelItsJosh

who would want to do that prank (if you do, please tell me how it works out xD)

Dedication to the best guess ;) you'll understand this by the end of the chapter, my lovelys.

THANKYOU SO MUCH FOR 100K READS I AM SO SO SO FREAKING HAPPY BECAUSE THIS IS SO AMAZING! WE ALSO REACHED #106 IN TEEN FICTION LIKE I AM FANGIRLING SO MUCH

And let's not forget the fact that I'm going to a Five Seconds of Summer concert - can I cry with happiness yet?

There's a reason why I have the A/N up the top, just to add more suspense ;)

don't forget to vote and comment, they mean so much! :)

UPDATE: I just found 2 kilos of jelly belly's so goodbye I'm going to go fill my stomach with so many jelly beans it pops.

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"Miss, it was purely unintentional," Tyler winced at his own words, probably thinking about how stupid he sounds. That's probably because what he is saying is complete and utter bull turtles.

"So, you want me to believe that you didn't mean to hit Hayden James so hard in the face with a basketball that he now has a concussion?" The principal stared at Tyler and me with a look of half amusement and half disappointment. I have a feeling she doesn't like the Hayden James either.

"Exactly," I produced an innocent looking smile. Tyler, however, sat there with a smirk plastered over his lips, lounging in the chair like he owns the place.

Oh, that's right. Tyler is on first name basis with the Principal. I would say he's a bad boy, but he regularly gets into trouble for either not going to class because, I quote, 'I didn't feel like it'. Whether it be that or the fact that he is a devil reincarnation and likes to make my life hell—he's been in here a few times for torturing me to the point where I lash out big time—he can sit in the Principal's office and feel right at home.

Myself, on the other hand. Well, that's a whole other story.

I'd only ever come to the Principal's office for good things, never for bad reasons like what Tyler seemed to have gotten me into.

"Hayden James is sitting in the nurse's office, knocked out cold, and the both of you are smiling?" Mrs Schanck snorts with laughter. For a principal, she is pretty calm and collected but I have heard that she has a temper on her. Along with the fact that she can easily out-sass you and turn your words around. "I applaud your efforts, but there will be consequences and punishment."

I groaned internally. I really don't want a detention or anything, it sounds painful.

"Since the Drama club is low on people, they need some help to paint new props." Mrs Schanck crosses her plump right leg over her left, adjusting the buttons of her blouse that look like they are about to pop open with the force constricting on it. Mrs Schanck is a plump, middle aged lady with white blonde hair and neutral brown eyes. "Now, it's not the worst of punishments, but if the school is going to have the Annual Drama Week, then they need people to help them."

I turned my head to look at Tyler, trying to decipher what he is thinking. It's a mix between confusion and gratefulness. Detention isn't the best of places here at Octavia, because they actually make you do work. If you don't finish the work they assign you, you have to go to another one and so on. Tyler catches me looking at him, and sends me a subtle wink. I roll my eyes, turning back to look at Mrs Schanck who is dribbling on about the Drama Club.

"They will need you as soon as school ends outside the Drama Block next to the Football Fields. If you don't attend then I will be calling up your parents to talk about your recent suspension. Mr Bradford, I hope I don't see you anymore. This is the first time all year, and I expect that you will be on your best behaviour. You too, Miss Lockheart. I know that you're a good student."

She sends me a stern look, and I know what she's thinking. Tyler's trouble, stay away from him.

Hah. That's kind of hard when he's practically affiliated with me in way too many ways than one.

Let's name these:

I'm tutoring him in Chemistry. We've only had two study sessions so far, and the progress is nil. Tyler has the attention span of Dory.

I fake dated him—that kind of opened a can of whoopee—then that near kiss. I'm half annoyed and half grateful that Tyler hadn't brought it up yet, because I still don't like him. Yeah, he can be sweet in the heat of the moment, but he's still an ass and my enemy.

He lives over the road from me, and comes over to my house every morning to wake me up in the evilest ways possible. This morning, he thought it would be hilarious to put pepper under my nose so that I would have a sneezing fit, then turn the hot water off when I wanted to go for a shower.

Exactly. He's an asshole. Yeah, he may be hot but his personality is like, negative fifty on the attractiveness scale.

"I hate you," I growled at Tyler as we both walked out of the school's office. We were both on our way back to Gym to get changed then to go to our next class. "If you hadn't suggested we knock the living daylights out of my stupid ex, then we wouldn't have to be stuck with painting Drama props. You know how bad that is, right? They treat you like slaves. I don't want to be a slave, I want to sit down at home and finish my TV series."

I had managed to control my anger in the office, but now I was absolutely furious at the stupid boy.

It was his idea to hit Hayden in the head—I'm nice, I wouldn't do that. We were all playing Basketball as it was our transition from Sex Ed to Gym class, and Hayden became my target, instead of the hoop. I think I hit him so hard that he had little birdies flying around his head.

Rest assured, I think he learnt his lesson.

I can't tell if it was from the huge black and purple bruise on his forehead—that is growing by the second—or the humiliation that a girl knocked him out cold, but I know for sure that I am proud but annoyed because now I have to face community service with Tyler.

Ugh, kill me now.

"Oh well," Tyler threw his hands up in the air. He walked backwards in front of me, staring at me straight in the eyes. "It's a little bit of community service. Just think. We just absolutely smashed your ex-boyfriend so hard he was knocked out. I don't know about you, but I'd feel fûcking refreshed after that."

That's true. I do feel like a weight has been shifted off my shoulders. All it took was me being unorthodoxly violent.

"You've got a point there," I laugh.

We continue walking to the Gymnasium with small talk. Someone, we got back to the ice cream debate from yesterday, except this time Tyler had switched from double choc chip to mint choc chip. Sometimes, I wonder if he argues with me just because he wants to.

After we parted ways and finished getting dressed, I made my way—slowly, might I add—to my next class, boring old Ancient History, Tyler going god knows where.

I struggled to stay awake in Ancient History; the droning sound of Mr Poedlin's voice bored me to sleep. Learning about War had never been interesting for me. I'm much more infatuated with visual and hands on activities rather than learning about the Cold War and such.

Thank god someone woke me up.

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"We need this painted, like, really bad," Kieran Matthews sighed dauntingly, staring ahead at the backdrop with only a pencil template on it. Kieran is head of the Drama Club and a homosexual at heart.

I've sat next to Kieran a few times in class and he forever comments about how he would ride some of the boys like a pony. For that, I think he is absolutely hilarious. Not to mention his undeniably amazing acting skills. He, without a doubt, is going to go far. From what I've heard, multiple girls are sad that he's gay because he is hot.

Not Tyler hot, but he's still attractive with his quiffed blonde hair which he dyes silver, and amazing eyebrows. I'm super jealous of his eyebrows because they are perfect.

I hum in understanding to Kieran. I see Tyler nod in my peripherals. We had arrived at the same time with the same amount of exhaustion on our faces.

"The paint cans are over there," Kieran nods to a stack of small paint tins, "They're labelled which colours they are, along with the prop. It has the colours written in the sections so you should be good with that. Thanks again, even though you guys were, like, forced to do this."

I snort lightly. Yeah. Forced . . .

It was our fault we are here. No, I still blame Tyler. So, it was Tyler's fault.

"Hurry up Cake Batter," Tyler called out from over his shoulder, using his new nickname for me. He says that I'm so obsessed with cake batter ice cream that I may as well be named it. I didn't protest. I mean, who wouldn't want to be the most amazing ice cream flavour in the world?

Everyone would want to eat me.

Okay, that sounded so wrong.

I flipped him the bird, but started walking towards the medium sized wooden board which we would be painting. The Drama Club had laid it on the floor with sheets underneath it with paint cans and brushes sprawled haphazardly around it. The instructions said that we are supposed to be painting a 'meadow scene' with blue skies and green grass.

We both got to work silently, starting with the light blue sky. Tyler looked so out of place with a paintbrush in his hand. Every time he would flick it, bits of paint would hit him on the face and a growl would threaten to be unleashed from his throat.

After Tyler made even more mess, I sighed, grabbing his hand which was bearing the paintbrush. I painted the board with his hand, "Like this, idiot."

"Oh," Tyler stops painting once I let go of his arm, "Thanks."

I shrugged, brushing off his mannerisms.

"So, tell me about you and Hayden."

I stiffen, nearly dropping my paintbrush because of the sudden lack of movement. I had been on a roll, painting back and forth in even and neat lines so that there was perfect coverage before Tyler dropped the bomb. "He cheated, what's more to say," I say emotionlessly. I hate letting people in about what Hayden did to me.

Firstly, it's embarrassing, and secondly, they would think that I must have been a horrible girlfriend if he cheated on me. The worst part was that he had the nerve to do it at a party with nearly all of our school attending.

That's why I hate parties. Too much conflict, too many things to worry about. Parties are the cause of relationships being ruined, friendships are demolished and common sense is flown out the window. That's the main reason why I hate parties, but as much as I don't want to, I have to go so I can be the designated driver for Nate and Emily, fellow alcohol drinkers who go to parties to get intoxicated.

It seems like all my friends want to just get so wasted they black out, while I want to go places, do things where I know I will remember every waking moment. Nowadays, it's all about popularity, drinking and who banged who.

I hate it.

"You still care about him, don't you," a defeated look passes across Tyler's face. He's stopped painting as well, sitting on his derriere with his legs crossed in front of him. Usually, I would laugh at the sight of the blue painted flicked across his features, but now is not the moment to.

I bit my lip, refusing to answer to him. I don't love him anymore, but I still care about him. He was my best friend, my boyfriend and my world. You don't just forget those people. He made my life better through all the conflict with my parents, and it touches a nerve whenever I think about him kissing that other girl.

All I can think of is that there's got to be something behind it. Like, maybe it was forced? But then I look back, and realise that what I'm thinking is stupid, because you can't force a guy with muscles like Hayden to kiss you.

I make a mental not to look back at the picture Emily had sent me, which I stupidly saved onto my laptop for keepsake. It sounds stupid and obsessive, but I kept it just in case I ever wanted to prove it to him again.

"Yeah," I whispered to no one in particular, picking up the paintbrush and furiously stroking the board.

I didn't want to bring up all these unwanted emotions, but they had already escaped.

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We need to talk. Meet me at my house as soon as you can.

I toyed with my fingers, debating whether or not I should send the text. Part of me thought it would be a good idea to get it off my chest, while the other, more sensible side of me, told me that it is a bad idea.

I ignored my sensible side.

I pressed send on my touchscreen phone, immediately locking it afterwards. I sighed shakily.

Half an hour later, and Hayden James, as promised, had showed up to my house. He shut the door of his banged up Toyota Corolla, taking fast paced steps towards my front door. I quickly ran downstairs so that I could reach the door before Austin did.

I opened the door as Hayden was in mid knock. "Come in," I spoke sternly.

Hayden obliged, wearily making his way into my house. The bruise was prominent on his forehead; his floppy hair covered half of it. He looked tired, with bags under his eyes and his pale-ish complexion looking washy.

He followed me as I walked upstairs and into my bedroom. It's the only place where I could get some privacy from Austin who is obnoxiously on his Xbox as per usual.

"Why did you do it? Who was it?" I bombarded Hayden with questions. I was sitting on the bed while Hayden lingered awkwardly at the foot of my bed.

"What do you mean who was it?" Hayden frowned, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. I used to think it was cute—still do, but not as much—but it showed so much emotion that it confused me right back. "I thought you knew . . ."

"No," I dragged the word out. "All I know is that Emily took a picture of you kissing another girl. She sent it to me; I saw it with my own eyes."

Contrary to his deflated and tired looks, he produced a large grin, snorting out a laugh along with it. "Wow," he shakes his head. "Look at the picture again, and then get back to me. I'm leaving," he starts walking out of my room, "Look closely Nova, then maybe you'll realise that all the evidence has been in front of you all this time, in the form of a lying bitch."

Huh? I furrowed my eyebrows as Hayden walked out of the room without further ado. What does he mean by looking closely at the picture? What was with it, that I didn't pick up? A lying bitch? It doesn't add up.

I quickly scrambled around my room to get my laptop. It was slower than usual, making sure to piss me off just as much as I already am. Meanwhile, I jittered on the spot, thinking about all the different conclusions there could be.

When my laptop finally powered up, I went immediately to my pictures, scrolling way down to get to my old, old photos.

I gulped, clicking onto the photo that, at the time, ruined my life. It was a landscape picture of the party. There was people dancing with red cups in their hands and some teenagers kissing in the far difference, but what stood out was the couple mid locking lips to the side of the frame.

Oh god.

Here we go.

I breathed deeply, zooming in so that I could see the two. It was definitely Hayden, with his floppy brown hair and that blue and white shirt I had bought him for his birthday and Vans that never seemed to leave his feet.

Then, I looked at the girl.

She was blonde and tall. Her face was hidden by the shadow of Hayden's face, but I could just make out her ears and slender, long arms. She wore a pretty lilac coloured skirt that stopped around mid-thigh and a tight black moulded crop top that sat a few inches higher than the hem of her skirt. She wore ankle boots that made her legs look even longer than usual.

Her hair was thin, pin straight and longer than the average girl's hair length. I searched the girl for any sort of evidence or clues, but stopped short when I looked at her arm.

Nestled on her left wrist, was a pile of familiar bracelets.

On first instinct, I gasped.

Then, I screamed.

Then, I threw my laptop off my bed.

Then, I nursed my poor laptop as I'd nearly broken it.

Then, I cursed the world.

Fûcking turtle monkey nemo dory sausage brain potatoes.

Hayden was right.

The evidence really had been in front of me all this time.

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