I'm fine

"I'm fine" Is a lie you tell yourself and other people and most of the time they see straight through it.

If he had to do it he would. He didn't trust Mormon in the slightest. He wasn't someone to trust. He was the worst person to put trust in especially when he's known for betraying everyone he is close to. It's like self sabotage he can't control. The flash drive in his hand seemed like a knife he was gonna embed in his neck on his own. Mormon wasn't someone to take lightly. Zayn could help but feel just somewhat of a small piece of hope that there might be something on here to change his mind on Mormon.

"I still hate you." Zayn says to himself as he pushes the flash drive into his laptop. He could help but suck in a breath as if once it's in he might die. That's how it felt. He wasn't wrong for thinking like that once the names of each file flew onto his screen. All the names, dates, times, things, other people, discussions all popped up on his screen and his eyes didn't know where to go first. What the fuck was all of this? Why would Mormon give him this and how does he use this to its full ability? He felt as if this was a dangerous thing to have.

It really was as he scrolled to his own name. Was he supposed to be in here? He was afraid to even click his name as his mouse highlighted it. No, no, no later. He scrolled back up to Daniela to see what was contained there. The pictures of her at that one party popped up on his screen and he could feel the guilt of not looking out for her pop back into his mind. He felt the anger he carried appear back into him. He wanted to kick Aaron so hard he might not get up. Aaron painted himself as such a good person but he should have known he would always be trash. He didn't even get why he developed a crush on him in the first place. Was it because he was so caring and there for him?

Why was he doing it anyway? Why were they all doing it in the first place? He clicked onto a voice recording that he didn't know would make his blood as much as it did. They did it out of jealousy. Out of some twisted logic for her to "stay in her place." They thought she was liked too much, her family was being praised too much so they had to "shake things up". What the hell is that? He couldn't help but shed a tear at that. She didn't deserve that. She didn't deserve any of what happened.

He scrolled back down to his name to see it more filled than Daniela's to his surprise. Many voice recordings, pictures, videos. He didn't think people could be this cruel or this backwards in their thinking. Did they think everyone should "stay in their place". He asked himself as he listened to recordings of them talking about him being too confident or thinking he was "on the

ladder now." or he was using Daniela to feel like one of them. It all felt angering. Another assumption is that he and his siblings try to fit in this society. He sniffled to himself as he continued to listen and one voice kept sticking out to him even if it was far away from the microphone to hear.

It can't be, is that Aaron? He would hate it to be him. It would just prove to his mind he was as bad as he was starting to think he was. For some reason as his mind processed the contents of these files he felt like blocking it all out. He couldn't correctly understand why this was happening to him so he pretended it didn't happen.

That was the wrong move because pretending something didn't happen makes things even worse.

Lorel even if she was terrible at reading others understood something was weighing on her friend's mind. She knew all that he was going through as she was right there beside him and she knew how straining it was but she couldn't bear to see him like this.

"What's with you? Is this because of the whole Chronicles thing?" She asked him as she sat beside him at the table he chose to have lunch at. "You don't have to frown about it the whole day y'know you can beat the shit outta one of them because honestly I would. He was embarrassed in public by Daniela's behavior and had his privacy leaked by someone who invaded it. He should be screaming and fighting back but he was just sitting there, staring off into space. She was angry for him even if he told her it's not her problem.

Lorel was the eye for an eye type and none of this sat right with her. Zayn's let it be and move in silence attitude worked sometimes but right now made him look weak. People were still talking about him and all he did was sit and listen. "You should be raging!" He wasn't even listening to her words; it was as if it went in one ear and out the other. "C'mon!" He side eyed irritated by her recent nagging. It wasn't helping, nothing was working out and he felt like shit and felt like everything was falling apart fast.

"I am raging! Fighting does nothing for me because I am not you. I don't have parents that will buy a new section for the school library to fix all my problems. I have to bite my tongue and clench my fist because I can't do anything because no matter what I'm somewhat powerless. Somehow your parents can sweep it up but I don't. I don't have parents. I don't know where they are. I can hardly remember anything beyond the time they left. Lorel you don't get it." Zayn swallowed down some of the tears that were escaping his eyes.

"Fuck!" She held her hands over her head trying so hard not to cuss at him. "You're not okay, Everyone sees it and no one but me cares and I want to help."

"Well you can help by shutting up and just dealing with it. I got screwed over because I was an obstacle now I'm outta the way and they have free range. I'm sad, I'm angry, I'm all things right now but kicking and screaming at people will only make me into an instagram post. Fuck me honestly." His eyes looked glossed over in all tiredness. "I'll deal with my problems on my own,

it's not your responsibility. You don't have to feel any type of way for me cause I'm fine. I will deal with it. You have nothing to worry about." He faked a smile for Lorel that she could see straight through but didn't say anything. His phone that he neglected to use recently rumbled the table. He picked it up to see an unknown number contacting him. "Hello?" He asked, annoyed.

"Zayn, It's me."

"Who?"

"Mormon."

"Oh."

"Zayn, I'm under investigation. Every member is under investigation right now by Saintclair. If he finds out I gave you that flash drive, leak it, IMMEDIATELY!"

"Okay? How would he know that?"

"I don't know, he might just find out okay. Zayn just do something if I get murdered." Zayn felt like Mormon was overreacting. Yes it contained some very incriminating stuff but it wasn't that serious, only the parts where they conspired together to ruin a political election but it wasn't that bad in his opinion. Mormon cut off before he could say anything else so he rolled his eyes.

"Who was that?" Lorel asked with her chin resting in her palm.

"No one important." He rested his forehead on the table in frustration and contemplation. Looks like his reason to make a move was coming up.

"I feel like we are all alone." He glanced at the empty chairs around them. It really was just them both. It wasn't exactly lonely but isolating. Even if Lorel wanted to deny it she did miss Daniela and her jokes and confusion to every situation. She knew no one else and wasn't close to no one like that. She still felt insulted by Daniela's words to her in the bathroom, that she felt no love and didn't understand even if it was true it cut like a knife and it wasn't something she wanted to hear from a friend. She didn't have a pleasant interaction with Christian either when she confronted him as well. His audacity made her blood boil.

"Nothing you did was cool?"

"Ok so why didn't he say anything when it happened?" Christian asked, throwing his arms up.

"Because how do you possibly react to the ultimate betrayal Christian?"

"Lo, that's an over reaction honestly. Yes I get it. I made a mistake more than once but I understand and I could fix things."

"Fix what? You're the fucking worst Christian! Who wants to be your friend after that? Do you have other friends? You're his friend yet you're so shitty to him." She glared at him while he chowed down on a sandwich.

"You're no walk in the park either Lorel." He coughed as his mouth was full. "And I do have other friends. Hello! I'm on the lacrosse team. I have to be chummy with my teammates."

"I know my faults and Acknowledge them, you make excuses we are not the same." She was fuming inside but it wasn't good to be yelling as of now.

"Lorel fucking Mendez, You will never understand how it feels to be someone's shadow while they are in yours. To want to be someone so bad and have want they have yet not be them exactly. To like someone so much you steal things to get their attention. You don't get it but you're lecturing me. It's not my fault she liked me. It's not my fault I liked her, it is what it is." She didn't get what he meant and that is what bothered her still. She didn't understand what he said. She wanted so badly it made her angry.

She felt like they all had an understanding of each other but recent events made her doubt that now. They all felt different and acted differently towards her. She just wanted communication but no one cooperated properly.

He was seeing past the facade of everyone he surrounds himself with and throwing away the ignorance and blind eye he gave them. He wanted to believe none of them would discard him but with all the things piling up that was becoming hard to believe so he had to strike. Strike them in his own way and take control of the situation before he has lost all control. It is his worst fear.

"I know someone took the logs. Confess now and I will go easy on you." Saintclair smiled towards the group in silence while they stirred in fear. "I just wanna talk, i will not hurt you." The smile didn't indicate any other feeling than insanity. This man has been driving himself crazy looking into things. He hadn't slept for days over his paranoia but he knew he was right but what he feared was his downfall. He was trying to keep everything together by nipping it in the bud but he could smell his end. Maybe all of this was a bad idea from the start. He made counter measures no matter what and was always one step ahead but he kinda felt he was walking blindly.

Hands flew up and this left the young man unsure. The confusion showed in his face and Ebany smirked. "We are a group, we take responsibility as a group. We took the logs."

"No, that's not what I me- You know what I mean! Who is the one who took the logs? The Real One!" Saintclair asked frustratedly.

"Us." They said in unison. He screeched, throwing the binder he held in his hand.

"Us" means me, her, him, she, he and you. We all took it." Ebany said with a smile.

"You all just want to see me go crazy and get paranoid. What did I do? I'm trying to fix things and I don't trust any of you. When everything leaks don't blame me for your image cuz I tried but it's up to you now. Imagine how hard Matt Venice can go at your parents." Saintclair sat down to ground himself. "Think long and hard now because I'm no longer doing damage control, that's now your own responsibility, As a group." Saintclair mocked with a wide grin. He left them uneasy about his wordings. "As a group your punishment is suspension. I don't want to hear from you till next week. Any input?"

"Why would anyone leak the logs? They'd just be sabotaging themselves as well."Tiffany asked quietly in the corner.

"Same thing I thought as well but it is what it is I guess. I wanted to jump someone today but I guess that's not happening. If you have nothing to add again, this meeting is over." Ebany turned her attention over to her boyfriend who was adjusting his watch.

"You definitely know something you always know." She said quietly to him. He chuckled at her assumption.

"I'm just as confused as you. Saintclair is paranoid again and making up narratives because I backup-ed the logs. He always thinks someone is after him and gives people many reasons to. Let him fight his demons on his own." Mormon quipped to his girlfriend who still held a worried expression to Saintclair. "For now let's just watch."