Page 30 of The Casualty of Us (Philosophies of the Heart Duet #1)

Chapter Sixteen

Apparently, hitting someone and/or hitting someone with a book warrants a trip to the dean’s office. Who would’ve thought it?

Aunt Sutton stares at me over the tips of her fingers from across the desk with her palms pressed together like she’s waiting for me to explain or beg for forgiveness.

Which I could, I really could, it’d probably make things easier for me too…but I won’t.

Because I’m not even a little bit sorry. Not about the act itself.

The fact I finally cracked in front of multiple witnesses and security cameras is a smidge regrettable though.

I let my eyes roll over her spacious office that’s done up in the same style as the rest of the school. Dark green walls and lots of leather and wood. The built-in shelves behind her desk are at least three times the size of mine, though, and I’d probably give up all of my—

“Ophelia,” she finally sighs, regaining my attention in time to see her hands drop to the desk. “You assaulted another student.”

I purse my lips at her terminology and automatically correct her. “Self-defense.”

“Excuse me?” Her brows lift with the question and I cross my arms.

“You have a video of it, right?” I nod at the pretty computer on her desk. “Go ahead and take a look.”

“I have.” She pins me with a reproachful look. “Josey didn’t harm you in any way—”

“Oh, is that your threshold?” I snort softly. “Someone has to commit an egregious assault to my person before I can defend myself?”

I can practically hear Ollie’s voice in my head telling me to tone it down , but fuck it, maybe next week, because today…today my fucking head hurts.

Maybe my heart too.

Either way, I’m tired of trying to keep it all in right now.

Sutton’s feature tense, little lines springing to life as she snaps. “Ophelia Fitzroy—”

“I told her to let me go,” I cut in, wanting this to be done. “Pull up the video. I can show you the exact moment that I told her to let me go.”

“Be that as it may,” Sutton lifts a hand, gesturing toward the computer. “Josey told me she was only trying to apologize to you.”

I can’t help the scoff that escapes at that, but discrediting her doesn’t really help my aims right now. “Regardless of her intentions, she was touching me without my permission, and I explicitly told her to let me go.”

“That’s a stretch, Ophelia.”

“Is it?” I cock my head. “Should the threshold be so high that something heinous has to happen before my actions could be considered justified?” A throb from my head has me clenching my fingers around the wood with a sharp breath.

“Not to mention the fact that I’m easily triggered in hostile environments due to my history, and there are clearly extenuating circumstances as well. ”

“Ah yes,” she sighs loudly. “I was wondering about that.” Her gaze flicks down to the computer briefly before coming back to mine. “Would you care to tell me about this situation between Mr. Flynn and yourself?”

My eyes start to drift toward her computer with a mind of their own, some masochistic part of me wondering what it all looks like from a bird’s-eye view before self-preservation has me snapping them back to her.

“No.” I clear my throat and keep it simple. “Just extenuating circumstances.”

“Oh my—” She laughs, the sound not entirely happy. “You may be your mother made over, but you definitely take after your father too.”

I blink. “And is that a problem?”

“No,” she sighs, picking up a pen from her desk and beginning to absently twirl it. “It does present us with a problem, though, if you continue this campaign of not wanting to accept any punishment.”

“I never said that,” I argue back quickly. “Only that my actions were the result of extenuating circumstances, which means that any reprimand should take that into consideration.” Another little throb has me fighting a flinch. “Given that my right to—”

“Yes, yes,” she hurries out. “No one here is trying to take away your rights, Ophelia, dear Lord.”

“Yet,” I can’t help but add, “you’d be surprised what people will try to take away from you if they think they can get away with it.”

“And there’s your mother.” Her lips barely lift before she shakes her head. “Two weeks of on-campus suspension.”

“That’s ridiculous.” I scowl. “One week, maybe, I’ll give you that, but—”

“You hit another student, Ophelia.” She straightens up in her seat, face falling into a stern expression. “I’ve already had her parents calling and demanding your expulsion—”

“No fucking way.”

“Language.” She raises a hand, glaring at me openly now.

“I told Josey’s parents that was an unrealistic request, but you do have to answer for your actions, extenuating circumstances or not.

I believe you were in full control of your faculties when you decided to take a book to the girl’s face, correct? ”

I purse my lips, internally debating the various outcomes of arguing this further before dipping my chin reluctantly. Not wanting to get anywhere near my faculties.

She nods elegantly. “All right, then two weeks of on-campus suspension and probation for the rest of the semester after that.”

“Fine.”

“All your classwork will be sent to your tablet, and you can eat at the isolation table in the mess hall. No talking to anyone.”

“Fine.”

“No visitors in your dorm, and any visits to the library have to be prescheduled with a professor to supervise you.”

“Fine.”

“And Ophelia?” I stare at her as she pauses, seeming to debate something before her lips almost lift again. “It’s none of my business, but you should know that Mr. Flynn came to see me after what happened and argued quite passionately on your behalf against any kind of reprimand.”

“Oh.” The quiet sound escapes before I realize it and has me quickly crossing my arms, tucking away the surprise to unpack later with everything else. “I see.”

“It’s not my business.” She lifts her hands with a far too innocent face. “I just figured you’re the kind of girl who likes to have all the facts.”

“I am.” I clear my throat, begrudgingly giving her. “Thank you for the information.”

“Now off to your dorm.” She waves a hand at me. “Your suspension starts immediately, and I now have to call your mother and inform her of all this.”

Oh fuck.

I try for a grin. “Would you mind not mentioning the Hayes part of—”

“Not a chance.”

“Damn.” I scowl. “So much for you being the cool aunt.”

I’m lying in bed later that evening, staring at my ceiling just like I have been for the past few hours, when the door cracks open and my eyes drop to see a hand appear holding a white napkin.

“Ha ha,” I snark, instantly knowing it’s Ollie. “Very amusing.”

“I try.” He pokes his head through, crooked grin in place. “And it never hurts to be careful.”

I roll my eyes as he slides through my door, sporting his usual sweats for this time of day, and shuts it quickly.

“So.” he lifts his brows at me, and I automatically scoot over to make room for him as he walks over to the bed. “I heard that the madness won today, huh?”

“Says you.” I snort softly, rolling onto my side with a glare as he plops down and stretches out next to me. “I have noticed the random bruises in varying stages of healing on Hayes.”

“No idea what you’re talking about.” His eyes widen innocently. “It really has gotten bad hasn’t—“

“I’ll fucking end you.”

“Oh fuck, I’m right,” he scoffs, curiosity quickly overtaking his face. “So it was really that bad, huh?”

I pause, turning my head back to blink at the ceiling before settling on. “I think that depends on your point of view.”

“Something I’m sure Hayes would agree with you on.”

“Stupid fucking Flynn.” I scowl at the shadows stretching across the white paint while muttering, “He just couldn’t cooperate.”

“Yeah, I had a feeling.” Ollie chuckles. “Just to be clear, I told him to go with it.”

“Thanks.”

“Of course,” he sighs deeply. “That’s not what I meant, though.”

I turn back to see him eyeing me nervously, and my brows immediately fall further. “What do you mean?”

“So I was in the locker room around the time I got a text from Marley saying that you went off the deep end.” He pauses, and I quickly nod to let him know to get on with it. “And, uh, a couple of minutes after that…”

His brows lower as he trails off slowly, making me snap. “Out with it, Ollie.”

“Hayes came hauling ass in there, looking for me, I guess, but Thomas said something shitty to him about you and he clocked him before anyone realized what was happening.”

I hold my breath as the gears in my brain launch into motion again, staring at him and absorbing for a second before confirming. “You’re saying he hit him?”

“Oh yeah.” He jerks a nod. “Boyfriend number two had to pull him off.”

“Neither of them is my boyfriend,” I correct, rolling back to stare at my old friend, the ceiling, and lifting my hands up to rest on my stomach. “Which you know.”

He chuckles quietly. “Try telling either one of them that.”

“Graham is my friend,” I argue back sullenly. “We both know the game here.”

“If you say so,” Ollie starts, sounding entirely too much like our mother for my liking. “You know he likes you.”

“Graham likes me the way a clownfish likes an anemone,” I sigh, closing my eyes as the pounding in my head starts to come around again. “We’re mutually beneficial to each other, and we’re both smart enough to recognize that. He has something else going on too, but I don’t know what yet.”

A finger boops my nose. “Whatever you say, baby sister.”

“I do like him,” I admit quietly. “Just not like that.”

“Well, regardless.” Ollie clears his throat. “Your honor was fought for valiantly.”

“As if I need Hayes to fight for me,” I add, trying to push the thought away even as it springs up. “Fucking dumbass.”

“You have to allow your suitors to prove themselves worth—”

“I will still fucking end you.”

“Fine, fine.” He manages to keep the chuckle under his breath this time. “Understood.”