Chapter Sixteen

It's been a week since I have spoken to the guys since the W(B)itches came to our table.

It's not like I was avoiding them or something. Infact, they were the ones avoiding me.

When we had history class, I looked at my back at Clark's seat and gave him a wave. He only gave me a cold look before writing down what the teacher was saying.

After class, I hunted down Caesar who was in the library.

"Hey." I greeted. He looked up at me and went back to the book he was reading.

"Fred said we shouldn't talk to you. In his words, you shattered his heart into tiny pieces."

"What? Why?" I exclaimed.

"Tippy top secrets. Also his words." He stood up and walked to the shelves returning the book he just read and taking new ones just by looking at the spine.

"Alright. Are you guys coming over to my place?"

"Why?" he asked taking a book from the shelf and dropping it on the pile of books on his arms.

How does he do that? I would have dropped by now.

"Movie Night. It's my turn to host."

"Oh! I dunno. Fred is still angry and Clark doesn't even wanna look at you."

"And you?" I asked.

"Well, we are talking aren't we?"

"Yeah." he stopped his search and turned to look at me. I stepped back a little. Why? I don't know. "Look Tracy, if they knew I was talking to you, they'd stop talking to me too and as much as I'd love that very much, they kinda remove the in- in insane."

I deflated.

"OK. Well, thanks Caesar."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

I was already walking away from him when he called me. I turned back, hope shining in my eyes.

"Clark said you should stop coming to teach Solane and Selone. He already got a teacher for them."

What??????

I could only nod.

-*-

"And who rocked your boat?" Dustin's voice asked. School was over and I was resting on his car waiting for him to finally come, which he did.

"Fred and co."

"Oh. What happened?" he asked as we entered the car and buckled our seatbelts.

And I told him everything.

By the time I was done, we just left our school's very big parking lot.

"I'm sorry. If it makes you feel better, I blame Hermione."

I laughed at that.

"If you want to."

He smiled and focused on the road.

"I shouldn't have spied on them in the first place."

"What did you say?"

Did I say that aloud?

"What?"

"You said 'I shouldn't have spied on them in the first place.' What does that mean?"

I did say that out loud.

"It's a long story."

-*-

Clark's POV

I was returning the bolts back to the new tires I just got at a mechanics shop just close to our house, when I heard Selone shout, "mom."

That was the warning call. The one I told them to say when mom was back.

I quickly hid the car under the tarp and rushed out of the garage to my room.

The moment I closed his room door, I heard mom's voice.

That was close.

Now for that quick shower.

I didn't spend up to 5 minutes in the bathroom. Didn't want my mom to get suspicious. She already was.

You are probably wondering what I am doing that I am hiding from my mom.

Well, her birthday is June and I wanted to get her a new car. Not that dingy she drives around town to and fro work. And since I didn't have the money for a new car, I bought a really used car and decided to fix her up. So far, it's going good. Thanks to Fred and his many people at his disposal.

When I was sure no oil was on my body, I walked out of my room.

"Hey mom."

She looked at me and smiled.

"Clark, how was school?"

"Same old."

Except that I didn't talk to Tracy. I have been avoiding her.

Why you ask?

Simple. She told out our secret.

Last week, when her best friend and three other girls came to sit with us, she was acting all fidgety.

So later that night, at the party Allison invited us too, I finally found out why.

"Why did we come?" I asked Fred who was looking at the house we parked in front of with glee in his eyes.

"Because Allison invited us and it would be rude not to come." he answered shifting his gear to park and turning off his car.

"Dude, she wouldn't notice us. Not with all this people and the obvious booze." I said.

"What if she does. She might still be sane and sober for all we know." he retorted.

I closed my eyes and looked at the back where Jayden and Caesar were sitted.

"Did you want to come?" I asked Jayden.

"Not the slightest. I have an assignment due Thursday which is what I was doing until I was harassed and hauled out of my own room."

I gave Fred a pointed look before looking at Caesar. I asked him the same question.

"I was practicing a play that I had to present tomorrow." was his answer.

"See Fred. We all had something to do."

"You don't."

"I do. My mom's car remember."

I saw an emotion on his face but it flashed before he could think about it.

"Fine. But let's just see how it is."

"It's like every teenage party in America and worldwide." I said.

"Alright fine. 20 minutes and we are out."

"20?" I asked.

"Yeah. I promise on my dead dog's collar."

Okay, that seals it.

But it feels like we are missing something. Something's just not right here. I looked at the three of them. Wasn't something wrong to them?

We got out from the car and walked inside the house.

You want me to describe the party?

Well think of the party in Netflix's Kissing Booth and add like 80 more people.

You got the party

"Fred. You made it." a really sane Allison said.

Guess she wasn't drunk.

"Are you drunk baby?" he asked her.

Since when the 'baby' talk enter their conversation?  They just met today.

"A little. But sane enough to drive everyone out once 12 hits." she answered. "And you brought your friends. Hi guys."

We exist.

We waved at her.

"Uh, I'm gonna get some water."

"Whatever you do. Don't take that from anybody. Every drinkable thing is spiked. You can take a bottled water from the fridge. If the cap is easy to open —"

"It's spiked too. Got it." I said and walked in the direction I hope was the kitchen.

I went to the kitchen where at least 3 couples were making out. Holding back a gag, I went to the fridge and checked every single bottle until I found one that wasn't.

Opening it at one go, I drank the contents until I heard the bottle squeezing against my breath.

"Lucky." I heard someone behind me say. Turning back, I saw it was Tracy's friend. Hermione.

"Excuse me?"

"That bottled water. I kept it there for myself but you beat me to it." she said, a sad smile on her face.

"I'm sorry?" I said, it was obviously a question but she seemed to take it as an apology

"It's okay. So what brings you to our humble party."

I snorted.

"My ole buddy over there dragged me here. Didn't want to be here."

"Oh." she said, her mouth opening and closing like a fish.

We stood there in a really awkward silence.

"Where are your friends?" I asked taking another swig from the half emptied bottle.

"Well, Allison is flirting with Fred and Joyce is hooking up with the second day of the day. Katrina? I have no idea where she is. Hey, where's Tracy?"

That was what was wrong at the car earlier. Tracy wasn't here.

"We forgot about her." I said with a grimace.

"Wow. Not surprised though." she said.

"Wait, what?"

"Well, I'm sure you know by now."

"Know what?"

"That I know you and your friends aren't who you say you are." she said with a shrug.

I walked closer to her and gave her a smolder I'm sure The Rock would be proud of.

"What do you mean?"

"Well Tracy told me, you guys are actually virgins and you are just telling everyone you aren't because all the boys in our school are and it will be weird to be the only ones who are virgins." she said whispering the last one out, a smile on her perfect lips.

I felt anger pulse through my veins, blocking every sense organ in my body.

"Why do you think she was acting all weird and fidgety the day Allison invited you guys to the party?"

I knew we shouldn't have trusted Tracy. We should have killed her when we had the chance.

I didn't even say goodbye to Hermione when I left the kitchen. I saw Jayden sitting on a chair and trying to push a girl away from his body who was trying to give him lap dance.

The situation would have been funny if I wasn't pissed off right now.

I flinged the girl from his body. She was too drunk to even notice.

He gave me a look of gratitude. "Thanks man."

"Where's Caesar?" I asked.

"In the bathroom practicing his lines. Wait, what's wrong?"

"She snitched. Find Fred."

"Wait, who snitched?" he asked confusion evident on his voice.

"Tracy. We are getting out of this motherfucking party." I said.

I searched all the bathrooms before I found him in the downstairs visitor's bathroom.

Why didn't I checked there first.

That night, Fred cried. He hadn't cried in a long time. Then he stopped and had a look, way, way worse than Caesar's.

That night, I hated a girl called Tracy Bouts.

That night, I lost my best friend.

-*-