“No. If someone hurt you, I want to know who, so I can make sure they never do it again.”
“No one hurt me,” I blurt out.
“Those scars prove otherwise. Some of them are fresh. Who is it?” He glares.
“Me.I did it to myself. Are you happy now?” I cover my eyes with my arm.
He freezes. “What did you say?” he whispers.
“I do it to myself.”
“Why?”
“You wouldn’t understand.”
“Of course I don’t understand. Why would you want to hurt yourself? What about the people who care about you? Do you even care?” He blows up.
“Don’t lecture me. I’m a nobody. Another kid from the wrong side of the tracks doomed to follow in her parents’ footsteps. There’s no getting out for me.” I pull on my hair, breathing hard. “I don’t have some fancy college waiting for me at the end of school. I’ll be lucky to get a job and make enough money to keep me off the streets and fed. That’s what I have to look forward to. I don’t have a mommy or daddy waiting at home to hear about my day. I’m the kid that fell through the cracks. So tell me, who the fuck would care if I ceased to exist?”
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. You have people who care about you. This pity party doesn’t look good on you,” he says as he moves off of me and gets off the bed. Chase cracks his knuckles as he paces the room.
I stand, pulling my pants back up and slip on my shirt before moving into his space.
“Really? If you’re so sure someone cares, why can’t you name them? Hmm?”
“I care about you. Me. My brother. Hailee. We would care if you ceased to exist,” he snaps, jaw twitching.
I roll my eyes, letting out a humorless laugh. “You don’t care about me. You feel bad for me.” I let out a self-deprecating laugh. “I stuck my nose where it didn’t belong and got mixed up with your drama. The only reason I’m still around is because you feel bad that my life is in danger. Honestly, you should’ve let me go from the beginning. Maybe that guy would’ve killed me, or maybe not. Either way, it’s not your problem or your concern. Once this is all done, I’ll go back to my pitiful excuse for a life and you’ll forget I even exist,” I say bitterly, crossing my arms.
I flinch as his fist meets the wall, leaving a hole behind. “You don’t knowanything.”
Pulling his arm back, I see blood dripping from his hand.
“Fuck. You’re bleeding. Let me grab you a towel.” I move toward the bathroom, but he brushes by me.
“Don’t bother. It’s obvious you don’t care about anyone, not even yourself.”
He stalks out of the room as I follow behind.
“Where are you going?” Nate asks from the couch.
I hadn’t even realized he made it back.
“Out,” Chase snaps, slamming the door.
“You’re either really fucking stupid or blind.”
Turning to Nate, I narrow my eyes. “What are you talking about?”
Nate crosses his arms, his lips turning down. “That whole fight that you just had. You really think we don’t care about you?”
“I’m used to not being cared about. Why would you be any different?”
“Seriously? So you’re stupid. To think I used to think you were the smartest girl I knew.” He shakes his head in disgust.
“If you have something to say, just say it.”
“Fine. You know what. You’re right. I’m tired of keeping everything a secret. Let’s get it all out in the open, why don’t we.”
