Last Christmas

"Got an A," she replied, tucking a few sheets of paper into her bag. She laughed to herself and tugged her

  plum-colored Miu Miu coat on over her scarf. "Want to get out of here and get some coffee?"

  "I could use a latte." Paige appeared behind Isobel, wearing tan ankle boots and the new low-cut sweater

  dress she'd bought over break.

  "Great," Isobel chirped. "Ariana was going to tell us all about her naughty little vacation." A few seconds too

  late, her manicured hand flew to her mouth. "Oops."

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  Ariana's cheeks flushed.

  "Spare me the details, will you, Isobel?" Paige sneered, without looking at Ariana. "That's my brother you're

  talking about."

  "I-I wasn't thinking," Isobel stuttered.

  "Shocker." Paige yawned. "Let's get out of here."

  Ariana lowered her gaze to the paper in her hands. C+. This couldn't be right. She'd never made anything less

  than an A-minus in her entire life. And Mr. Holmes was supposed to be an easy grader. Anger rose in her

  chest. She couldn't let him get away with this. It wasn't fair.

  "Ariana?" Isobel rested her hand on Ariana's sleeve. "You guys go on," she mumbled. "I have to ask Mr.

  Holmes something."

  Isobel raised a perfectly arched eyebrow. "You want us to wait?"

  Ariana shook her head. "I'll meet you back at Billings."

  "Fine." Paige's phone buzzed, and she pressed it to her ear, hurrying out of the classroom.

  "Don't be long," Isobel teased. "As soon as you're done, I want the filthy play-by-play."

  Ariana forced a laugh. It sounded strange, guttural, in her own ears. "You'll get it, I swear."

  "That's my girl."

  She wedged her clutch underneath her arm and sashayed up the aisle. Pausing briefly in front of Mr. Holmes's

  desk, she ran her fingertip seductively along the sleek wood before flouncing out the door. She thought she

  was so clever. They both did. Thought they

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  were getting away with something. They couldn't have been more wrong.

  Ariana waited for the last of the students to take their papers and dribble out the door and into the hallway.

  Quietly, she slipped into her trench, gathered her books, and headed for the front of the room. Mr. Holmes

  was hunched over the crossword puzzle, muttering some -thing to himself. She stood in front of his desk,

  looking down at him. Waiting. After a few minutes, he looked up.

  "Miss Osgood." He looked genuinely surprised to see her. "You didn't happen to stay behind to give me a

  six-letter word for 'precious jewels,' did you?" He smiled, tucking his pen into his shirt pocket.

  "Bijoux." Ariana let her paper slip from her grip. It fluttered to his desk, landing on top of the newspaper.

  "You gave me a C-plus."

  Mr. Holmes exhaled slowly, leaning back in his chair. "You deserved a C-plus," he said, flipping through the

  pages. "This wasn't your best work, Ariana," he said gently. "You're better than this. We both know that. But

  I had to be fair."

  "Fair?" She laughed bitterly. Reached into her purse, her hand closing around a cell phone. She ran her

  fingers slowly over the keys, happy in the knowledge that she had the power to get exactly what she deserved.

  He nodded. "I know you'll show me something better on Les Miserables, and don't worry about it. You still

  got an A for the first semester." He smiled warmly, interlacing his hands together in his lap. "Any other

  questions?"

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  She nodded, pulling his phone from her bag. "I was just wondering ..." she began as shock and surprise

  passed briefly over his features. Her fingers flew across the keys, and she tilted the screen toward him,

  holding it just out of his reach. "What's a seven-letter word for sex with a seventeen-year-old student?" She

  pressed the button on the side of the phone and smiled at the sound of Mr. Holmes moaning Isobel's name.

  "Stop." His voice was strained. Desperate. "Turn that off. Now."

  "But we were just getting to the good part." She paused the video, batting her eyelashes at him. "Oh. I've got

  it," she announced sweetly, tilting her head to the side. "I-L-L-E-G-A-L."

  The color had drained completely from Mr. Holmes's face. "Where did you get that?" He was trying to sound

  stern, but his voice wavered with fear.

  "Does it matter?"

  He shook his head slowly. "No. Of course not."

  He pulled a pen from his pocket and lowered his shaking hand to her paper. Deliberately, he crossed out the

  C+ and scrawled a large, red A across the center of the page. He didn't even look at her as he handed the

  paper back. But she never once took her eyes off him.

  "Thank you. I assume you'll update your grade book as well?" she said with a smile. "Of course."

  "By the way, for what it's worth, I really enjoyed the book." She stuffed the paper into her bag. "It taught me

  a lot."

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  "Good." He nodded, still looking down. "I'm glad. Anything else I can help

  you with?"

  "That's all for now." She hovered over his desk for a few moments more, daring him to look her in the eye.

  He didn't. "But I'll let you know."

  She dropped the phone into her bag. Before she stepped into the hallway, she stole one last glance at Mr.

  Holmes. He was hunched over his desk, raking his hands through his hair. Destroyed. But she didn't feel the

  slightest bit guilty. He'd gotten exactly what he deserved.

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  STUPID

  ***Ariana hurried toward Mitchell Hall later that night, just minutes before Mr. Barber's world history class

  was supposed to end. Her chest rose and fell in anticipation as she ran up the stairs and threw open the doors.

  The hallway was empty, and she could hear the muffled sounds of scraping chairs and laughter coming from

  the end of the hall. Her timing was perfect. She slowed to a stroll-a Billings Girl couldn't be caught running

  in the halls-and stopped outside the last doorway on the left.

  The door was open a crack, and she felt a flood of warmth as she heard Thomas's voice leaking from the

  classroom. He'd be so happy when she told him. Told him that she'd taken care of everything, that their plan

  was no longer in jeopardy.

  They could still be together in the fall. No one would stand in their way.

  She wound a lock of hair around her index finger and smiled. She

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  had it all figured out. Finally, her life was unfolding the way it was meant to unfold. Thomas was her happily-

  ever-after.

  The classroom door opened, and Ariana ducked out of the way. Students shoved past one another into the

  hallway. She flattened herself against the wall, hoping to catch a glimpse of Thomas in the crowd. Finally, she

  saw him, a soccer ball wedged under his arm. He tossed the ball up above his head and the kid behind him

  swiped it out of the air.

  "Give it back, asshole." Thomas laughed, shoving the kid against the wall. He grabbed the ball and hung back

  while the rest of the class continued down the hallway. In one smooth movement, he dropped the ball to the

  floor, dribbling it slowly toward the double doors.

  Ariana loved watching Thomas. There was a vulnerability in him that no one at Easton had ever really seen.

  To them, he was the player, the elusive bad boy. Just another entitled kid with a screwed-up family. But

  Ariana saw the real Thomas Pearson. She saw it in the way his face relaxed completely when he slept, and in

  the way he stuffe
d his hands in his pockets when he got nervous. In the way he smiled to himself when he

  thought no one was watching.

  She crept up behind him and covered his eyes with her hands.

  "Guess who," she whispered, her lips close to his ear.

  Thomas whirled around, surprised. "What are you doing?" He swooped down and lifted the soccer ball from

  the floor.

  "If I didn't know better, I'd say you weren't happy to see me," Ariana said, her shoulders tensing.

  "It's not that." He took her wrist and tugged her into an empty

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  classroom, closing the door behind them. When he turned to look at her, his expression was serious. His eyes

  darted to the slim window in the door as if he was afraid someone would peek in. "You need to be more

  careful. You know how fast gossip travels around this place. And now with Melissa..."

  Ariana grinned. "I'm not worried about Melissa anymore."

  Thomas blinked. "I'm confused. Yesterday you were all freaked about her."

  "That was yesterday," Ariana said coolly, tracing her fingertip on the smooth surface of one of the oak desks,

  making a little heart. "As of today, your little girlfriend won't be bothering us anymore."

  Thomas eyed her quizzically. He wasn't getting it.

  "I took care of her," Ariana clarified.

  She watched him carefully, waiting for the relief to surface in his expression. Instead, the muscles in his face

  tensed. His jaw clenched and Ariana felt the briefest flutter of uncertainty.

  "What do you mean, you took care of her?" he asked, taking a small step backward. "What did you do,

  Ariana?"

  Ariana stared at his muddy sneakers. Why had he stepped away? That one movement had thrown her

  completely. Taken her confidence.

  "It doesn't matter," she said quickly, waving a hand. She stepped toward him, closing the space between them

  once more. "All that matters is that we can be together now. She can't hurt us anymore."

  Ariana reached for him, but he flinched away. Her heart fell into her stomach like a stone, and tears instantly

  welled in her eyes. He

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  was supposed to be relieved, not angry. He was supposed to be thankful. Ecstatic. Didn't he realize what she

  had done for him? For them?

  "What the fuck did you do to her?" Thomas shouted, his voice cracking.

  Ariana's heart stopped. For the first time, she felt scared of Thomas.

  "I... I did what I had to do. She was going to ruin everything for us, Thomas. But now-"

  "Did what you had to do? How stupid are you, Ariana?" Thomas blurted, shoving his hands into his hair. His

  face was contorted with fear and rage. "Who do you think they're going to come after? They're going to come

  after me!"

  Ariana struggled for breath. She had never seen him so angry. So out of control. "No, they won't. I thought of

  that. I made sure you had an alibi. You were in class. Fifteen other people will be able to back you up."

  Thomas glanced at her, his nostrils flared. "You're sure."

  "I'm sure," she said, her pulse calming as he started to relax.

  Thomas took a deep breath and blew it out, looking at the floor. "What about you? What's your alibi?"

  "They won't ask me," Ariana said with a scoff. "I have no connection to the girl. She was just some townie."

  "But what if they do, Ariana?" Thomas asked. "What if someone remembers seeing you two together that day

  she confronted you? What are you going to do?"

  Ariana smiled. He was so concerned for her. He was just upset now

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  because he was scared. Scared for her. For them. She knew he loved her.

  "I was in the library with Noelle. I went to get a book and to check something online and came back an hour

  later, but she won't remember that. She'll just remember we studied together that day," Ariana said, lifting a

  palm. "Noelle will tell them I was with her."

  Thomas nodded slowly, but he still kept his distance. How could he stand to

  be so far away?

  "I did this for us, Thomas. You know that, right? Because if anyone ever figured out what we did over break,

  if Mel ever told... that would be the end. Of us. Of you at Easton. Of my mother."

  It seemed to take forever for him to look at her. But when he did, his eyes were clear again. He understood.

  He understood her better than anyone. He knew she would stop at nothing to get what she wanted. She would

  stop at nothing to protect what they had.

  He came to her, cupped her face with his hands, and looked into her eyes. "I'm sorry I overreacted. It's going

  to be okay."

  Ariana went weightless with relief.

  "So you're not mad?" Ariana asked. "We're going to stick to the plan?"

  Thomas swallowed hard. There was something in his eyes that she couldn't quite place, so she chose to ignore

  it. "We're going to stick to the plan," he said firmly.

  The certainty in his voice sent a pleasant, confident warmth through her veins.

  "Good. Because I can't wait to be with you. In front of everyone,"

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  she said, closing her eyes and kissing him softly on the lips. "I love you, Thomas."

  She waited for his response. And waited. Her heart started to shrink in on itself and she opened her eyes to

  look at him. He had been staring past her, but quickly focused on her face.

  "I love you, too," he said.

  Ariana breathed in. She knew it. She knew he loved her.

  "And next year, when things are back to normal, we'll be together. For real." He twisted her gold chain

  around his finger and ran his thumb over the subway token he'd given her. "I swear."

  Ariana nodded happily. Staring into his eyes, she unfastened the chain from around her neck, slipped the

  token off, and dropped it in Thomas's pocket. She didn't want Daniel asking questions about it, and Thomas

  could give it back to her in the fall, when she could wear it proudly. September seemed like it was eons away,

  but she didn't need to worry. Because she knew, deep down, that she and Thomas were meant for each other.

  This wasn't the end. It was just the beginning.

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  EPILOGUE SEPTEMBER OF SENIOR YEAR

  ***Ariana stood motionless while the herd of students swept past her in the quad. They were all making their

  afternoon classes, laughing, texting, fiddling with BlackBerrys and iPods. And no one really saw her. It was

  as if she were part of the landscape. One of the silent, ancient campus buildings that held so many secrets.

  "Ariana, are you coming?" Noelle asked.

  "What?" Ariana blinked, startled out of her thoughts.

  "If we're late, one of us runs the risk of having to kick off the whole 'what did you read over the summer'

  discussion. Hint?" Noelle batted her eyes sweetly. "It won't be me."

  "I'll catch up with you," Ariana assured her.

  Noelle narrowed her eyes and shrugged. "Your funeral." She turned on her heel and strolled through the quad,

  groups of lower-classmen parting in front of her like the Red Sea.

  Ariana shook her head and sighed, scanning the crowd that was

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  pouring through the cafeteria doors and into the sunshine. There were times when she felt that Noelle didn't

  really know her any better than anyone else at Easton. She'd felt the same way about Daniel when they'd

  been together last year. Had felt that no matter how many friends she had, no matter how many people

  surrounded her or how many girls wanted to be just like her, she was still alone. That
no one saw her.

  But then there was Thomas. He knew her. Really knew her. She could tell by the way he looked at her when

  they'd meet in Gwendolyn Hall. It was a mixture of intrigue and attraction. And love.

  She'd had it all planned out in her mind-their big reunion, him sweeping her up in his arms, finally able to

  touch her in public. No more sneaking around in dark corners and basements. No more hiding. They could

  finally be a real couple.

  Her breath caught in her throat when she finally spotted him, strolling around the corner of the cafeteria

  building. She smiled as she took in everything about him: his tousled hair, his crooked smile. He paused near

  the door, leaning back against the wall, as cool and detached as ever. Ariana started to raise her hand in a

  wave.

  Then that new girl, Reed Brennan, emerged from the cafeteria.

  Thomas pushed himself away from the gray stone wall and fell into step with Reed and her little redheaded

  friend. He slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled it out again, holding something up for Reed to see.

  Ariana leaned forward, squinting in the sunlight. The realization of what Thomas was holding settled over her

  slowly. She watched

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  as Thomas pinched the small piece of metal between his thumb and forefinger.

  It was a subway token. Just like the one he'd given her.

  Prickly heat raced over Ariana's skin and stung her eyes. She pulled out her delicate gold chain, where the

  token had once hung next to her fleur-de-lis, and twisted it tightly around her finger. All summer she had felt

  the absence of that token, the symbol of her and Thomas. All summer she'd looked forward to the day he

  would return it to her and she could feel the cool weight of it against her skin again, reminding her of

  Thomas's devotion every second of every day. Now she watched as Thomas rolled the token carelessly

  between his fingers, grinning devilishly at Reed while he held it in front of her. Just out of her reach.

  This wasn't happening. It was not happening. Thomas loved her. She knew he did.

  But there was no denying what she was seeing. Hot rage bubbled up inside of her. She watched as a warm

  pink blush surfaced in Reed's cheeks. Watched Thomas laugh and joke with her. Watched as they stopped at

  the edge of the quad. As Thomas peered into Reed's eyes. Ariana was close enough to see the way he looked

  at Reed. A mixture of intrigue and attraction.

  Ariana's heart pounded wildly. Her dry throat started to close and she had to force herself to breathe.

  In... two ... three ...

  Out... two ... three ...

  He couldn't be interested in Reed. This common sophomore. This was some kind of mistake. It had to be.

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  He loves me. He's been waiting all summer to be with me.But then Thomas handed the subway token to

  Reed, and the world screeched to a stop around Ariana. He stuffed his hands into his pockets, backing away,

  still smiling at the new girl. Finally, he turned away from Reed, toward Ariana, the satisfied smile still playing

  about his lips. Dash and Gage fell into step with him, and they shuffled through the quad, passing just a few

  feet away from where Ariana was standing.

  She had to do something. Had to stop this. The situation was hers to control. She had to be in control.

  "Thomas," Ariana called out, her voice strained.

  But he didn't see her. Or chose to ignore her. Either way, the pain was unbearable.

  Suddenly, Mel's words from that awful encounter in the diner echoed in her mind.

  "Everything was perfect. We loved each other. And then one day, he told me that he still loved me, but that

  things were too complicated between us. And then he found you."

  Ariana's gaze snapped back to the new girl, still blushing as she gazed down at the token with her friend as if

  in awe. This new girl had no idea she held everything that was Ariana's in the palm of her hand. He was

  leaving Ariana just like he'd left Mel.