ARIA’S POV
I spend the entire day looking for Xander.
I check his locker between every class. I look for him in the cafeteria during lunch. I even ask some of his teachers if they’ve seen him, but no one knows where he is.
It’s like he’s completely disappeared.
I keep replaying what happened this morning in my head. The look on his face when he saw Miles kissing me. The hurt in his eyes. The way he turned and walked away without giving me a chance to explain.
I need to find him. I need to tell him that it wasn’t what it looked like. That I pushed Miles away. That I don’t want anyone but him.
After school, I know exactly where to look. There’s football practice today, and even though Xander isn’t on the team, he sometimes hangs out at the field with his friends.
I walk across the campus to the football field, my heart pounding with each step. I can hear the sound of practice in the distance – coaches yelling, whistles blowing, the thud of bodies hitting each other.
When I get to the field, I scan the bleachers and the sidelines, looking for Xander’s familiar figure.
He’s not there.
But some of his friends are. Jake, Marcus, Tyler, and unfortunately, Caleb. They’re sitting in the bleachers, watching practice like they have nothing better to do.
I take a deep breath and walk over to them.
“Excuse me,” I say, trying to keep my voice steady.
They all turn to look at me, and I can see the smirks starting to form on their faces.
“Well, well, well,” Jake says. “Look who it is.”
“I’m looking for Xander. Have you seen him?”
“Why would we tell you?” Marcus asks.
“Because I need to talk to him.”
“About what?” Tyler asks with a grin.
Before I can answer, Caleb speaks up. “Why are you looking for him? You can’t get enough of his dick?”
The others gasp and then burst into laughter. My face burns with embarrassment and anger.
“That’s disgusting,” I tell him.
“Is it? Because from what I heard, you’re pretty eager to spread your legs for him.”
“You’re sick.”
“Am I? Or am I just honest?”
I turn to leave, not wanting to deal with this anymore, when I hear footsteps behind me.
“Where are you going, fat girl?” Caleb calls out. “I thought you wanted to find your boyfriend.”
I keep walking, but his voice follows me.
“You know, I have to give it to Xander. He really committed to the bit.”
I stop walking and turn around. “What are you talking about?”
“The whole romance thing. Really had you fooled, didn’t he?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Sure you don’t.”
That’s when I hear another voice.
“Shut your mouth, Caleb.”
I turn and see Xander walking across the field toward us. His face is dark with anger, his hands clenched into fists.
My heart leaps at the sight of him, but I can tell from his expression that he’s still furious about this morning.
“Xander,” I say, taking a step toward him.
He doesn’t look at me. His eyes are fixed on Caleb.
“I told you to stay away from her,” Xander says.
“I’m just having a conversation,” Caleb says with a smirk.
“You’re being an asshole.”
“Am I? I think I’m being educational.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Caleb looks at me, then back at Xander. “I think she deserves to know the truth.”
“What truth?” I ask.
“Caleb, don’t,” Xander warns.
But Caleb ignores him. He looks directly at me with a cruel smile.
“Do you know why Xander suddenly developed interest in you?” he asks.
“Caleb, I’m warning you.”
“You think it’s because he likes a fat girl like you?”
“Stop calling me that,” I say.
“Of course not. He wanted to sleep with you because we asked him to.”
The words hit me like a physical blow. I feel like I can’t breathe.
“What?” I whisper.
“That’s a fucking lie,” Xander says, lunging at Caleb.
His fist connects with Caleb’s jaw, and Caleb staggers backward, laughing.
“Is it a lie, Xander?” Caleb asks, wiping blood from his lip. “Because I seem to remember differently.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Caleb turns to the other guys in the bleachers. “Am I lying? Didn’t we put him up to a bet?”
Jake looks uncomfortable. “Caleb, man, maybe you should—”
“Answer the question. Did we or did we not bet Xander that he couldn’t get the fat girl into bed?”
My heart stops beating.
“Tell her, Marcus,” Caleb continues. “Tell her about the five hundred dollars we put up.”
Marcus shifts uncomfortably but doesn’t deny it.
“Tyler? You were there. You remember the bet, don’t you?”
Tyler looks away, but his silence is answer enough.
I step backward, feeling like the world is spinning around me.
“It’s true,” I whisper.
“Ari, no,” Xander says, turning to me. “It’s not what you think.”
“You made a bet about me.”
“No—”
“You made a bet about sleeping with me.”
Caleb laughs. “Oh, this is rich. She actually thought you cared about her.”
“I do care about her,” Xander says through gritted teeth.
“Right. That’s why you took pictures of her naked body.”
“I didn’t share those pictures.”
“But you took them. For proof. For the bet.”
I feel sick. Everything makes sense now. The way his friends talked about me that night at his apartment. The way they kept making comments about the bet. The way Xander tried so hard to get rid of them.
“The picture,” I say quietly. “You took it as proof.”
“No,” Xander says desperately. “I took it because I thought you were beautiful.”
“You took it to show your friends that you won the bet.”
“That’s not true.”
“Isn’t it?” Caleb asks. “Isn’t that exactly why you took it?”
“No.”
“Then why did you take it, Xander? What possible reason could you have for photographing a naked girl you barely knew?”
Xander opens his mouth to answer, but no words come out.
Because we both know the truth.
“Oh my god,” I breathe. “It was all fake.”
“Ari, please—”
I look around at all of them – Xander with his desperate expression, Caleb with his cruel smile, the other guys with their uncomfortable faces.
“How long?” I ask quietly.
“What?”
“How long have you all been laughing at me? How long have you been making jokes about the fat girl who was stupid enough to think someone actually wanted her?”
“Ari—”
“How long?”
No one answers.
“Since the beginning,” I say, answering my own question. “Since the very first day.”
I step backward again, feeling like I might throw up.
“You’re all sick,” I tell them. “You’re sick and cruel and I hate all of you.”
“Ari, wait,” Xander says, reaching for me.
“Don’t touch me.”
“Please, let me explain.”
“There’s nothing to explain. You won. You got what you wanted. You wanted to humiliate me. And you did. Congratulations.”
I turn and run across the field, leaving them all behind.
30
