Page 94 of Tell No Lies

“Nice to finally meet the infamous Aubrey. I’ve heard a lot about you. Sorry for not introducing myself earlier.” He looked down at me with a friendly smile.

Tucker stepped forward, interrupting. “We’ve been pretty busy prepping to win another championship, but now we have more time to play.” He winked at me again.

Gross.

Andy shook his head as if similarly disappointed in his friend. “We’re coming this weekend, so maybe we can hang out there.” He didn’t direct the comment specifically to me, so I just smiled.

Luckily, Mckayla responded. “Yeah, of course. This is Aubrey’s chance to meet everyone. We’ll see you guys later.”

We turned and walked away, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I didn’t want to make commitments to people I didn’t know. I wanted to hang out with my friends this weekend, not worry about making introductions.

This was what I needed to work on though. I needed to be able to stand on my own, even if it made me uncomfortable. Dang, the cost of meeting new people.

We walked back into class moments before the bell rang. Once again, Mrs. Gonzalez barely acknowledged us or asked where we’d been.

I was dreading chemistry. Just a few weeks ago, it had been my favorite class of the day, but that was before Luke dumped me. Now it was an hour of trying not to look at him and pretending there wasn’t an awkward tension between us.

It wasn’t fair to assume, especially since he’d been the one to end things, but I felt like he hated me. One of the girls in my dance class had told me he had gone out with her friend the week after formal, so it wasn’t like he was hung up on me. Apparently, it had been my fault that someone had broken into my apartment and reminded me of my past stalker. Yep, I would totally plan that. The attention I got that night had definitely been worth the lack of sleep and shattered sense of security I’d had since then.

I looked down at my notebook and frowned. We might have only gone out a few times, but I always had fun with him. Things had felt so natural between us. I would never tell the girls, but I missed him.

And his smile.

That beautiful smile.

I didn’t need to ask to know that he wasn’t invited. Things between him and Mike had grown worse for a little while, but now they didn’t even bother glaring each other down like they used to. They simply didn’t exist to each other.

I tried to pay attention to Mr. Steen, but a few minutes into his lecture, I let my mind wander. I thought about the note and tried for the billionth time to figure who could have put it in my room and why. Just like every other time, I came up with nothing.

The final bell rang, and I gathered my things and pushed out the door before Luke could stand up. Interacting with him wasn’t something I could handle today.

I made it to my car quickly and slipped behind the wheel before the rest of the students made it to the lot. Dance was the perfect distraction, and I wanted to get there as quickly as possible. Well, that and I didn’t want to have to talk to anyone. I needed a few moments to compose myself and shake off the feelings that lingered every time I saw Luke.

Three

Despite competition season being right around the corner, the studio was peaceful. Well, what I considered peaceful. A mixture of music floated in the air as I made my way to the back room. I stole a peek into the first class I passed and caught toddlers dressed in light pink leotards, spinning at random intervals. It was adorable to watch them try to master the beginning steps, and the instructor looked like she was doing her best not to laugh.

I continued with a smile on my face. This world was so much easier to navigate. There were no boys who had broken my heart. Nothing to make Brandon stress over me. Here, I was free to let go of my day and be around people who felt the same way.

The changing rooms were all open since I’d gotten here early, so I took my pick and dressed out for my first class.

No one else was here yet, so I turned on the lights and music and started stretching before the other girls slowly filed into the room. Cassie sat next to me on the hardwood and began warming up as well.

“You’re here early. You’re usually rushing in right before class starts.” She smiled like she was joking, but she was right.

“I snuck out of the lot without seeing anyone.”

She laughed quietly. “Ah, so Mike didn’t stop you and ask you if you were okay, safe, happy, warm …”

I couldn’t help but stop her by sticking my tongue out. “Whatever.”

We both laughed but stopped when our instructor walked in. Miss Amy was strict and did not allow any sort of distraction in her class, including amusement or enjoying life in any form. The only thing that made me tolerate her was her choreography.

With competitions starting soon, there was no room for error. Our ballet routine was immensely difficult, but when all the girls were on beat, it could be flawless. We had been warned at our last class that today was going to be grueling.

We ran through our stretches and warm-ups before Miss Amy stopped the music. “In position. Now.”

She didn’t have to yell to get our attention. We scrambled into our opening formation and waited. She slowly made her away around the group, analyzing every detail of each dancer. She didn’t speak as she tapped various body parts with her wooden pointer. I sometimes thought she could use that as a weapon if she wanted, like an old schoolteacher.