Page 18 of Dirty Roulette

Chapter eleven

Payton

It’s nearing the end of French, my last class of the day, when we have to group up and describe ourselves to partners.

When I’m in my second group, we finish early and the guy with a hoodie stands next to me, licking his lips, looking me up and down.

“You’re the chick who broke into the men’s locker room?

” He lifts his chin and eyebrows in sync. “I saw the videos, damn girl!”

What?! I’m mortified.

He’s seen a video? Of what? Me storming the men's locker room? He’s staring at me waiting for a response with his two down-turned eyes about to pop out of their sockets.

It’s not a rumor floating into existence, but he’s seen it.

A terrifying chill runs down my spine, and all the blood drains out of my body and into a puddle on the floor.

“I dunno what you’re talking about,” I say. The lined paper folded in my palms crumbles into a tight ball. For once, can I not be the main character of a red carpet premiere?

“No, it was totally you.” The room shrinks and he stands too close for comfort.

My throat dries and shrivels up like a raisin.

I don’t want to rub him the wrong way and seem rude, but I’m leaning back to avoid his face six inches from mine.

The dark pores on his nose stare into my retinas.

“I think you know what I’m talking about.

” He runs a hand through his spiky brown hair with blonde tips.

“You beat the shit out of Brody, didn’t you? ”

“Payton...” Charlie hisses my name and I spin around and she's waving a hand over to me. Without another word to the guy, I step away and weasel myself into her group, pretending I’m partners with her.

“What the hell is up with him?” She dips her head, with a nose wrinkling.

“Nothing, he’s just being weird.”

“Why? What does he want?” Charlie asks and cocks her eyebrow up at me.

“Weren’t you wearing something else earlier?

” Please don’t tell me she overheard the conversation.

“Is that Ryder’s shirt?” She tugs at the baggy fabric of the shirt with an eyebrow lift.

If other classmates hear about my sleazy video and me crashing the naked dick fest in the locker room, I’ll never hear the end of it.

“You heard him, didn’t you?”

“So, it’s true?” Charlie’s cheeks pucker as if she tasted a sour lemon.

“Damn right, it’s true. The girl is nuts, but she’s from trailer town, so I guess it comes with the territory.” The hoodie guy leans his head back and there is no way to stop me from rolling my eyes like a straight-up bitch.

“Mind your damn business,” Charlie mean-mugs him. “Don’t you have something better to do?”

“I’ll mind my business once you show me those sweet tits of yours.”

“When your balls drop, and you don’t sound like a little girl, maybe I will.” Charlie deadpans, and throws her smug remark back, and the group overhears. In unison, they all chant, “Oooh!” The older crowd huddled in their group shook their heads with annoyed faces.

“Is your brother okay?” He asks her.

Charlie crunches her brows and tilts her head to the side. “What do you mean?”

“The grapevine says Brody is going to jump him.”

“What the hell?” Charlie turns to me.

I tap a pencil against my thigh, my nails stabbing the crumbled paper in my other hand. If I wasn’t already in deep shit with Brody, I’d knee this guy in his slimy wrinkled ball sack.

Professor Hays orders us to switch groups again.

I’m incapable of focusing. The French lines I wrote down on the paper are ruined by the holes I poked through it with a pencil.

When we finish, I sulk back down at the round table with Charlie across from me.

I sit with the woody taste of a pencil in my mouth and jot nothing down in my notebook.

I stare at my bruised knuckles, reminded of my embarrassing outburst hours ago.

Dread coils in my stomach. My brain runs wild with endless thoughts of something terrible happening to Ryder.

I fold the paper and hide it in my palm.

Once the professor turns her back, I slip Charlie the note.

She flips it open and scribbles on it. We take turns scribbling and passing before the professor turns to face us again.

Are you mad?

No... but what the hell is going on?

I got mad at Brody.

If only a time machine existed. Then I could rewind and stop myself from opening that beverage fridge to begin with.

I would have never stolen the bottle of vodka.

The note slides across the smooth table again and I receive the nasty eye.

She unfolds it and I pretend to be interested in the book with an 8-point font.

After two minutes of no response, I glance over my shoulder again and mouth “hello...?”

Charlie shrugs in my direction and whispers, “Will you stop hiding shit?”

She douses lighter fluid on my nerves and lights me up like one of her cigarettes.

She’s right. I can’t admit it. None of it.

What happened with Brody in the locker room is painted on my knuckles.

The kissing session with Ryder the other night is on videotape.

Then I did it again – I kissed him and I hate myself for admitting I want more.

When class ends, I gather my textbooks and trudge along. I need to head back to the dorms and get ready for practice and our first team meeting.