“I’m sorry that I made you guys worry so much,” he said not taking his eyes off Leighton.
“What happened? Why didn’t you respond to any of the messages we sent?” Leighton asked.
He broke eye contact with her. “I was helping my mom move. Things got really bad last night...”
“At home?” Vanessa interrupted.
He nodded, his eyes focusing on his hands. “My dad hurt my mom. So after he left for work this morning, my mom woke me up and told me to pack my things.” He sighed and rubbed his temple with his hand. “We packed everything that we could and now we’re staying at Grandma’s place.”
Leighton squeezed his shoulder. “I’m sorry that happened to you.”
“Yeah,” he mumbled. “Me too.”
He dropped his hand from his temple and his gaze met hers once again.
“Are your parents still going through a divorce?” Vanessa questioned.
“Yeah, it’s supposed to be finalized any day now.”
“Do you think your dad will come after you guys?”
“I don’t think he will.”
“You know,” Leighton began, “we were going to come by and visit you today after school.”
“I had a feeling you would. After we finished moving everything into Grandma’s house, Mom told me to go to school. I think she said that because she wants me to keep my mind off of things at home.”
“Wow. That’s a lot to deal with,” Leighton said.
“Exactly,” he stated. “Which is why I want to go to college. It’s my ticket to get away from all of this.”
“What about your Mom? If you go to a college in a different state, is you mom going to say here in Atlanta?”
He was silent for a moment before responding. “If I went to college here, I think she would stay while I’m in school but if I go to an out-of-state university, I know she will leave. That’s what she really wants. She doesn’t want to be here anymore and I don’t either.”
Leighton and Vanessa remained silent not sure what to say.
“You guys don’t have to worry about me,” he said breaking the silence. “My mom and I will be fine.”
Both girls silently prayed that was true.
Chapter 14
Ariana was thankful that lunch time was finally over. Everyone around her gossiped about Peyton Evers. She could care less about her.
She spotted the library and decided to walk inside. It was extremely quiet, so quiet it was almost deafening. Several weeks had passed since she’d been in a library. She use to frequent the library at The Academy after her father’s death. She’d find a spot where students didn’t frequent and cry to herself.
Ariana didn’t see anyone inside, not even the librarian. She continued to walk down a row filled with books then she made a right all the way back. It was a little darker back there and the sunlight didn’t reach as far. She found a spot and sat down on the carpet pulling her knees to her chest. She wasn’t aware that she wasn’t the only person in the library.
“Are you okay?” a male voice said, startling her.
She looked up and saw a familiar face looking back at her. “I’m okay.” She noticed he was holding a notebook and a pencil in one hand. “I didn’t think that anyone was here.”
He sat down beside her with his notebook and pencil still in hand. “I saw you walk back here and you looked sad so I…” He could feel his cheeks flush.
“Thank you,” Ariana said. She wasn’t going to tell him that she was sad because she missed her father.
He could see her out the corner of his eye. He soon turned his attention to his notebook and his pencil made contact with the paper.
“You’re an artist,” she stated in amazement while eyeing the picture that he was drawing. It was one of the most beautiful pictures she’d ever seen. An angel was sitting on a star and she was gazing upwards, as if she was looking up at heaven.
He blushed even harder but she didn’t seem to notice.
“Don’t we take a class together?” she asked him.
He nodded. “Advanced anatomy and physiology.”
“I knew I recognized you. Oh and by the way, my name’s Ariana.”
“I’m Dill.”
“Do you take special requests?” she said, her eyes still glued to the angel picture.
He gently removed the picture from his notebook and signed his name at the bottom before handing it to her.
“Normally I don’t give out my artwork to people, but I’ll make an exception for you.”
She graciously took it from him. “Normally I stay to myself and I don’t open up to people easily, especially people I don’t know. I just want to let you know that this picture means more to me than you realize.” She looked from him to the picture that she was now holding.
Dill’s heart ached for the young woman. He could tell that something was hidden in those beautiful eyes of hers. He wanted to say something to cheer her up, but he didn’t want to say the wrong thing. He was curious as to why she loved the picture so much. He wondered if the beauty of it was truly appealing to her or if it was something else.
A loud commotion outside the library startled them both. Dill watched Ariana neatly place the angel picture in her purse. Then, they walked outside the library and saw Peyton Evers on the floor, trying to get to her feet.
“Who pushed me?!” she screamed.
No one in the crowd said anything to her but they whispered to each other.
Her gaze flew from Sailor to Gigi. “Did either of you see who did this to me?” They shook their heads. Gigi held out her hand to Peyton; Peyton hesitated before taking it.
“Gigi’s helping her up,” she heard a voice say in the crowd.
“She doesn’t deserve to be helped,” another student added.
Peyton’s body tensed. Any one of these people could have pushed her. Looking in to her classmates’ eyes she saw anger and detachment. Now she was starting to see that she wasn’t liked by her peers as much as she’d previously thought.
“Wh-what’s going on?” Principal Evers asked as she ran down the hall followed by several teachers.
Peyton’s left arm was around Gigi’s neck to hold her steady.
“Someone pushed Peyton and she fell,” Gigi explained.
Principal Evers ran her hand over her daughter’s forehead.
“But no one’s talking,” Sailor added.
Principal Evers found herself gazing around the students faces in the crowd surrounding them. “Who is responsible for this?” she demanded to know.
No one responded to her. They were all just as angry and detached from her as they were Peyton.
“Fine then. I guess I’ll have to punish the entire school for the deed of one person…”
The loud speaker came on and a mechanical robot’s voice began to speak: “Peyton, did that hurt? I really don’t care if it did or didn’t. Isn’t it obvious? No one here cares about you except your mother, Sailor, and Gigi. As long as I’m around, they are not safe. Now that I’ve had fun with you, I think I’m going to plan a fun day filled with loads of activities for your mother and me. And if you are not sure what I mean by ‘loads of activities’, I suggest you ask your mother.” The robotic voice stopped.
Peyton gave her mother a worried look.
“Don’t worry. Everything’s going to be okay,” she assured her daughter.
But Peyton didn’t believe her. Everything was far from being okay.
Chapter 15
Leighton greeted her mother and the other clients inside the beauty salon. She grabbed a broom and began to sweep the floor clean of hair. She didn’t mind doing it because it meant that she’d get to be near her mother. Since she was usually sleep by the time her mother arrived at home, she didn’t see her as often as she’d like to. And she blamed it on herself for trying to run away from her own problems with Peyton.
“Where’s Zayley?” her mother asked.
“She’s—I think she’s next
door at the coffee shop.”
Leighton watched her mother style her client’s hair. She was waiting for the last client to leave. She wanted to speak to her mother alone about something and she knew she probably wasn’t going to be happy about it.
Ariana was outside leaning against Leighton’s SUV staring at the artwork Dill had given her. Tears stung the back of her eyes. In the picture, the angel who was sitting on the star reminded Ariana of herself. She yearned to be near her father again. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t even hear Sage approaching her. She peered over her little sister’s shoulder. The artwork made her smile. “That’s very beautiful,” she remarked.
“Did you draw that?” Ariana’s bright and it wouldn’t have surprised her if she was a talented artist.
“No, I didn’t draw it,” Ariana replied as she placed the artwork in her purse again. “Someone gave it to me.”
The smile was still present on Sage’s face. She was pleased that Ariana had made a new friend.
Ariana glanced to the side of Sage. “Where’s Zayley?”
Sage looked from side to side before meeting her sister’s eyes. “She was just behind me when we were walking out of the coffee shop. The two sisters looked at the door that led into the coffee shop. The door opened and out came Peyton Evers herself—as if she didn’t have a care in the world.
Ariana was beginning to think that maybe she did send that lengthy text about herself and her mom to everyone just to get attention.
Peyton glanced in the sisters’ direction before turning her nose up at them. She was better than them in every way possible and she wanted them to know it. Following closely behind Peyton was Sailor and Gigi. They both looked as if something had been bothering them. Peyton swung open the door to her brand new four door sedan while Sailor and Gigi took the backseat and sped off.
Shortly afterwards Zayley walked out of the coffee shop with a serious look on her face.
“Hey,” Ariana spoke to her once she approached them. “What happened in there?”
Zayley sighed. “Peyton wants to get even with the school.”
“Because of that letter?” Sage asked.
Zayley nodded. “Peyton is claiming that she’s not the one who sent that text. I don’t know who did but whoever it is really has it out for her. So now she wants to get back at everyone since she doesn’t know who’s doing this.” She lightly chuckled. “Gigi asked Dill if he would help them find out who sent that message and he said no.”
“Dill who?” Ariana questioned.
“I can’t remember his last name but he’s the only Dill that goes to school there. At least I don’t think another one goes to school with us.”
“She’s playing with fire,” Sage stated. Her eyes met her younger sister’s eyes who added, “And she’s going to cry when she gets burned.”
Chapter 16
Zayley ran a hand through Leighton’s newly dyed blonde hair. “It’s so pretty and soft.”
“Thanks.”
“Now you look like the Leighton Kressel I know.”
Leighton blinked in confusion.
“You didn’t look like yourself with the red highlights,” her little sister explained. “But you liked it so I didn’t say anything about it.”
She didn’t tell Zayley that she didn’t like the highlights as much as she thought she did.
“Girls!” their mother called out from downstairs in their home. “A little help setting the dinner table would be nice.”
As Leighton and Zayley walked by the guest room, they could hear voices coming from inside.
“But Mom I don’t understand,” they heard Sage say. “I thought we were just here to visit.”
“I know, honey. I know.”
“Is something wrong at home?” Ariana questioned.
“I know things have been bad since Dad died but they’re getting better now,” Sage stated.
“I know,” their mother, Lola, said soothingly.
“I just need you girls to stay here just a little bit longer. I’ve already talked to your Aunt Irina about this and she doesn’t mind having you two over. And I know how close you are with your cousins, Leighton and Zayley.”
Then all was silent.
Leighton and Zayley resumed walking quietly down the hall, not wanting to give themselves away. When they finally entered the kitchen, their mother was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed.
“What took you two so long to get down here?”
“We were just talking about…things,” Leighton lied.
Irina shook her head. “Please, just set the table.”
A platter of footsteps sounded on the stairs. Sage and Ariana entered the kitchen appearing to be upset. Their mother’s eyes were a little red from crying.
Leighton set the last plate on the table. “Hi, Aunt Lola.”
She rubbed her eyes. “Hello, Leighton.”
Leighton threw her arms around her neck. She didn’t have all the details but she knew enough to know that something was wrong. There was a reason why her aunt didn’t want Sage or Ariana at home. She was just as curious as they were to find out why she didn’t want her daughters to return home.
Zayley jumped in to hug her aunt as well and Sage and Ariana followed.
Irina stood watching them with tears in her eyes.
Lola felt as if she was in a circle of love. She was aware that her two and only daughters wanted to return home. However, she had some business to take care of first.
She took a deep breath once the girls let go of her. They didn’t want to let her go.
“You let the red highlights go,” Lola said to her niece, Leighton.
Leighton nodded with a smile.
Her gaze then landed on Irina.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Lola turned around and grabbed her purse from the counter.
“Wait.” Irina said from behind her.
“Aren’t you staying for dinner?” She shook her head. “I can’t. I have some things I need to take care of first.” She waited for Irina to say something.
“Girls, you can go ahead and eat dinner without me.” Then, she and Lola walked outside and spoke in nearly a whisper.
“After school tomorrow,” Sage began, “I’m going home to see if I can find out why Mom doesn’t want us there.”
“I’m going too. But what if she’s there?” Ariana asked.
“Then we’ll wait for her to leave.”
The four girls sat down at the table and began to eat but Sage and Ariana were still concerned about their mother. After dinner was over, Leighton and Zayley cleared the table and put the dirty dishes in the dishwater.
Leighton felt exhausted as she climbed the stairs to her room. She selected a pair of clean pajamas and walked down the hall to the bathroom she shared with her little sister. The hot, steaming, water relaxed her but she was too tired to enjoy it. She turned the shower nozzle off and stepped out of the shower, grabbing a towel to dry herself off. She clothed herself in pink pajamas with pink and purple hearts on them.
She stared at herself in the mirror as she ran her fingers through her blonde hair. She looked like her old self again.
But there was still something that she was doing that the old her didn’t do. She opened the medicine cabinet and eyed the bottle of sleeping pills inside. If her mother knew what she was up to, she’d probably kill her. She picked up the bottle and opened it. She didn’t get a chance to take a pill last night because Ariana interrupted her. Even though there was one pill in her hand now, she still wasn’t certain of whether or not she would take it. She set the bottle down on a shelf in the medicine cabinet and closed it. She balled up her hand into a fist to hide the pill before she opened the bathroom door. Then she balled up her other hand into a fist and crossed her arms while she walked down the hall to her room.
As soon as she walked in her room and closed the bedroom door, Ariana walked out of the guest bedr
oom and into the bathroom in the hallway. Once inside she closed the bathroom door and opened the medicine cabinet. She opened and counted the sleeping pills first before opening another bottle.
One pill was missing.
Chapter 17
Leighton awoke the next morning with the sun in her eyes. Her hand roamed underneath her pillow and she could still feel the sleeping pill she didn’t take. She didn’t need it. She was able to sleep just fine without it. Her plan was to return the sleeping pill to its bottle.
She opened her bedroom door, with the pill in her balled fist and her fist in her pocket. She saw Ariana exit the guest bedroom already dressed. She slowly began to walk down the hall to Leighton’s room. With her frozen in place, Ariana walked into her room and said, “You might want to close the door for just a few minutes.” Leighton shut the door and wondered what was the cause for Ariana’s behavior.
Ariana was standing near the window, looking outside. Without throwing a glance Leighton’s way she said, “I’m worried about you…just as much as I am my mother.”
Leighton walked closer to her. “Why are you worried about me?”
Ariana turned to face her older cousin. “I know that you’re the one who’s taking the sleeping pills.”
Leighton’s heart dropped. She knows? “Are you going to tell my mom?” was the first thing that came out of Leighton’s mouth.
Ariana was surprised by her response. “So you don’t want your mom to find out and yet you’re still taking the pills?”
“I’m not taking the pills anymore,” she admitted.
Ariana’s jaw tightened. “Don’t lie to me.”
“I’m not lying.”
“I counted the pills last night and one was missing.”
“That’s because I took the pill from the bottle but I didn’t consume it.”
“Then where is it?”
Leighton removed her hand from her pocket and opened her hand with the pill inside. I use to take these to help me fall asleep faster. I didn’t start taking them this year until…” Until Peyton started bullying me. “Anyway I haven’t taken any in a few days and I haven’t had any problems sleeping so I don’t need them anymore.”
Ariana reached for the pill. “I won’t tell your mom.” Her eyes landed on Leighton’s again. “I just want to hear it from you. When did you start taking the sleeping pills?”