Into the Deep by Lauryn April Page A

about it,” I said and we exited the car.
     As I shut the door, I looked up and caught sight of something a row over from where Brant and I were standing. Tiana looked on at me with disgust. I didn’t even have a chance to say her name, to wave, to think anything as she stormed off away from me.
     How could she? I heard her think as she stomped through the parking lot. For a moment all I could do was watch her go.
     Shit , I heard Brant think then.
     I glanced back at him for a moment and then chased after my friend. Ti had made it all the way to the courtyard before I caught up to her. I had been calling her name as I chased after her but she didn’t stop. She didn’t turn around. She was pissed at me. Finally her feet reached the grass and she slowed to a stop. She took a deep breath and then spun around to face me. Her eyes were pointed and fiery with anger, her fists clenching at her sides. I was still trying to catch my breath.
     You are such a bitch , I heard her think.
     “Ti.”
     “What were you doing with Brant, Ivy?”
     “Nothing.”
     “Nothing? He drove you to school, and I saw you two talking the other day, what the hell is that about?” I really liked him and he hurt me.
     “We… we were just…” my mind raced for an excuse. “We got partnered up in Psych for this project, that’s all.” I figured if I was going to lie that I might as well keep to the same one.
     “So what, you were up working on this project at like six a.m. or something? He drove you to school, Ivy. What the hell? I told you he’s an asshole, that… look, I just don’t get why you’re hanging out with him… I don’t get it at all.”
     She spun away from me again and stormed off. I watched her go. Tiana made her way to where Christy and Eliza were talking. Damon was nowhere in sight. I saw her say something to the other girls, and the way their expressions changed to shock and disgust. The three of them stood there looking down on me as if they were the Weird Sisters straight out of Macbeth , deciding my fate and predicting my demise.
     Ivy’s really been falling off the deep end lately , Christy thought.
     What is she thinking, hanging out with a loser like Brant? That was Eliza . She’s got it so good, why would she want to be around him?
     I didn’t approach them. I just stood where I was and looked on. I felt terrible, felt like I’d betrayed Tiana, and like she’d betrayed me. She was over there now, most certainly telling them about how she’d seen me hanging out with Brant and what a lowlife he was, but I’m sure she left out the part where she hooked up with him at Nicolette’s party. There’s no way she’d admit to having a crush on the school bad boy, not to the Queen C, Christy Noonan. No, they wouldn’t understand that she’d had feelings for him. If they knew that, they’d have been looking at her the way they were looking at me, appalled. Ti wasn’t really disgusted with me for hanging out with Brant, not unless she was disgusted with herself for it too. No, she was hurt. She felt like I’d swooped in and gone after a guy that she wasn’t over yet and that wasn’t okay with her. 
     What hurt the most was that I wasn’t even doing anything wrong. I didn’t steal her crush away from her, maybe she still wanted Brant but I didn’t. I didn’t want him at all. We weren’t even really friends, least not voluntary ones. Brant and I were hanging out by circumstance and nothing more, but I couldn’t explain any of that to them.
     “I’m sorry,” I heard Brant say as he walked up behind me. He put his hand on my shoulder but I shook it off.
     “Don’t” I said with resentment in my voice. “Just stay away from me,” and I walked off.
     
I had my Monday/Wednesday classes that Friday, which meant I had first hour with Tiana. I walked into the math room and saw