Page 43

FORTY-THREE

ROSE

Danni isn’t answering my texts, so I seek out Eleanor’s bedroom. Eleanor is just the person you want if you need someone to bounce ideas off, because she’s not particularly opinionated, but she is remarkably encouraging. When I arrive there, I find Molly already inside, which is all the better for me. If anyone has a vested interest in forming a plan to rescue Danni, it’s Molly.

“Danni told us what happened,” Molly says. She’s sitting in Eleanor’s desk chair, wearing her school uniform still. Eleanor’s already changed into jeans and a jumper.

“How are you doing?” Eleanor asks, sitting crossed-legged on her bed.

“Oh, wonderful,” I say, throwing myself on the floor to sit with my back to the mirrored wardrobe. “I have exciting news, actually. I’ve agreed to get engaged to Alfie.”

Eleanor drops her phone and bursts out laughing. Molly looks at me as though I’ve just announced I’m running away with the circus. “You what ?”

“William drives a hard bargain,” I say. I try and fail to smile.

Eleanor, who seems to have only just realized I’m serious, sits up straighter. “In exchange for what?”

“In exchange for him speaking to the headmaster about Danni. Amongst some other things.”

Molly’s eyes are practically bursting out of their sockets. She begins to pace back and forth, waving her hands. Eleanor and I follow her frenzied pattern with our eyes. “No,” she says. “Nope. Bad idea. Terrible idea. Rose, you’re a lesbian .”

“Am I really? Why didn’t someone tell me earlier?”

“You can’t get married to Alfie! You can’t undo that kind of stuff. Not easily.”

“Is that so? And here I was thinking marriage was one of those easily reversed binding legal contracts.”

Molly gives me an exasperated glare. “I’m glad you think this is so funny,” she says. “Rose, seriously, don’t do this. Call William and tell him you aren’t marrying Alfie. Now.”

“I feel like you’re more upset about this than I am,” I say.

“I just found out my best friend’s sold herself off as a child bride, so yeah, I’m a bit upset.”

Eleanor snickers at this. I just lean against the mirror, my elbows resting on my knees. “That’s a little bit sensationalistic, don’t you think?”

“Don’t be a martyr.” Molly stares me down. She looks as though she’s about to cry.

I give a helpless shrug. “Does it really make a difference? Really? I was going to have to marry someone I don’t love sooner or later.” I can’t help laughing a little as I finish that sentence, and Molly looks even more alarmed. I get ahold of myself. “Danni will lose Bramppath if I don’t.”

“Which sucks. Of course it sucks. But, come on. Think about what you’re saying.”

“Does Alfie even want to marry you?” Eleanor asks.

But I barely hear Eleanor. Something about Molly’s words caught my attention. “So what you’re saying is it doesn’t matter if Danni gets expelled?” I ask slowly.

“I didn’t say it doesn’t matter—”

“Because it sounds like you’re saying you don’t want William to help her,” I continue.

“I don’t think it sounds like that,” Eleanor says meekly.

I ignore her. There’s something about Molly’s expression that’s bothering me.

“Not if it means you have to get engaged to someone you don’t want to be with,” Molly says, folding her arms.

“I have to sooner or later. Why not sooner?”

“We’re all gonna die sooner or later, too, but do you think we should hurry that up?”

“Danni’s supposed to be your friend,” I say. “Shouldn’t you be all for something that could stop her from getting expelled?”

Molly looks at Eleanor helplessly. Eleanor gives her a small, almost imperceptible shrug. “She is my friend,” Molly says. “But… come on, Rose, you and I have been friends for most of our lives. What do you want me to say here? That I don’t care if you screw up your future so Danni can stay? This is exactly the kind of thing I was worried about last week.”

I think of Alfie’s warning. I think of Oscar, and how Molly has every reason to want revenge on me. To take away my most important person, just as I took hers. I think of how well she knew Danni’s schedule, and mine. How the online rumors have been fueled by footage and photos from her social media account for the most part. I think of how much she knows about going viral, and influencing the masses.

And—with a pulling in my stomach—I think of her mother, who sits on the alumni association.

Too many others disagree with me, and my hands are tied.

“Do you remember at my birthday, when you found out about Danni and me?” I ask.

Molly seems hesitant, but she answers. “Yeah?”

“How did you know we were together?”

Eleanor watches Molly warily as her face twists. “I didn’t know before you told me,” she says. “But it would’ve been hard to miss that something was going on with you two. No offense, Eleanor,” she adds.

I nod, keeping my face passive. I don’t know if I quite believe her, but I’m not certain enough to accuse anyone of anything. How can I discern between genuine suspicion and the paranoia securing its hold on my mind? How much evidence do I need before I turn against my own friends?

“Alright,” I say in a hollow tone.

Molly bites her lip and stands up slowly. “You think I’m the one who outed you and Danni to your family?”

I remain silent.

She clasps her hands in front of her in a mockery of gratitude. “Awesome. Thanks, Rose. Charming. You know what? Do what you want with Alfie. I don’t give a shit. Good luck.”

She leaves with a final, scathing look in my direction. Eleanor picks up her phone, sucking in her cheeks. “Well, that was awkward,” she says.

I let my head fall against the mirror, succumbing to a wave of shame and exhaustion. “I’m sorry,” I say.

“Hey, don’t apologize to me,” she says. Her tone is light, but I don’t miss the reprimand. Even Eleanor, the famous neutral party, thinks I’m in the wrong here. Now I’m even less certain of where I stand than I was before.

I wonder whether, if I squeeze my eyes tightly enough, I can make all of this disappear.