AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She glances up at me, stunning me with those clear, dark blue eyes. Something heavy and silent passes between us, and I recognize it as her stubbornness to cling to her distance. She’s grateful, but annoyed that I helped her.
Whatever. Maybe it’s a waste of my time to try to smooth things out with her. She’s got something up her ass and perhaps it’s not me. I’m just conveniently around for her to be mean to.
Once we’re on our feet and moving again, she suddenly faces me and blurts out, “Why are you such an asshole?”
I open and close my mouth. So…I’m an asshole to catch you from falling? I hold that retort in and blink. “I—uh, no one has ever said that to my face before.”
She snorts. “First time for everything.”
Here it is. This is my moment to explain and come clean with an apology. “I’m sorry if I was mean to you.” Like being a dumbass and saying you were bitchy, maybe. “I guess I’m not used to people like you.”
She halts, turning to narrow her eyes at me. “People like me?”
I feel like I walked into that one. It sounds like I’m about to label her or commit the crime of mentioning some kind of derogatory ism. But that’s not it. Put on the spot to speak with her, I’m punched with the fact of why she’s so…antagonistic. It’s because I’ve never dealt with someone like her.
“A normal person.”
She rolls her eyes. “Normal. Right. What even is normal anymore?”
“A normal person who doesn’t have anything to gain from me.” That’s the crux of it. Aubrey isn’t a stranger, nor is she a friend. Likewise, she doesn’t fit into my life as someone wanting my money or time. She’s just there, too far from my reach, and I want her closer somehow for reasons I don’t want to admit.
She tosses me a careful look but shrugs before resuming the hike. Slowing down a bit, she lets me walk next to her rather than single file.
“Unfortunately, I’m used to people like you though.”
I arch my brows. “How so? Because you’re friends with Lauren and she’s loaded?”
She shakes her head. “No. Lauren has never been rich, not herself. Unless Caleb’s lawyers can get her trust fund, Lauren’s never had money of her own. It’s all her parents’ wealth.”
“You know what I mean.” Caleb was right. Aubrey doesn’t come from the same background as Lauren, and I get a stronger sense that maybe she’s jaded, hating on or judging anyone who’s wealthy because she’s not.
“I do. Yes, Lauren is loaded, or her family is, but that’s not what I mean. I respect that we have different views on the world from our upbringing, but she’s not a rich person at heart. She’s a good friend to the core despite the topic of money. I’m referring to the wealthy families I’ve met through the elementary school. Children I used to teach.”
“Yeah?”
“Oh, yeah.” She groans. “All those entitled brats. So rich and wealthy. Not all of them. I’m not saying all of them were like that, but many were, and it’s left a bad taste in my mouth.”
“Were they harder to handle at school?”
“Very hard. I wasn’t allowed to discipline anyone for fear of constricting ‘creativity.’ I was pulled in different directions by micromanaging parents who wanted to dictate the curriculum. I was held hostage to appeasing the families who donated a ton of money, and then I was reprimanded for spending too much time with children from scholarship families.”
“That does sound difficult.”
“I was stifled. I was always the bad guy. And I hated the feeling that I couldn’t put my foot down at all, knowing the passive position I had to take was only brewing another generation of kids who won’t know the meaning of hard work or responsibility.”
“No wonder you won’t miss it.”
“But I do. I already do. Like I said, not all of them were bad. It’s just that the bad ones stood out so much. Eighty percent of the children were wonderful. It’s the few rotten apples that skew the whole thing.”
“Then why aren’t you going back?” I ask directly. I know she lied at dinner. Lauren won’t push, but since I’m not a close friend, I see no reason not to. “Why did you leave your job instead of continuing your contract?”
We come upon an overlook that offers a view of water streaming down the slope. She pauses, resting her hands on the railing as she scans the vista. I keep my stare on her, though, determined to get an answer.
She slowly faces me. “I didn’t have much of a choice.”
I shrug. “Why?”
“Jeremy got me fired.”
