Welcome to Chapter 90. Remember to vote on your way in...

Thank you @_j.o.a.n.martha for this lovely, fun poster. And happy Eid Mubarak to everyone celebrating!

Chapter 90: Anonymous

My mind is a sludge puddle of emotions. Guilt for what I've made Luke go through. Fear of the punishment that was waiting for us. And sadness for the argument we just had.

I would do anything to reverse time and undo this terrible day.

I grew up on the idea that a trusting, loyal relationship does not exist in real life. I haven't seen a single one work. But I want us to. I would love for us to be different.

I don't know how stable relationships work and maybe that's obvious from the way I've acted. I've been insecure because... I've never been secure before. I don't have a stable history of relationships to build off of. Has he?

I guess I have wounds I didn't even know I had. I try to think that my parents leaving me doesn't affect me... I try to think that being cheated on or teased and mocked at school doesn't affect me...

But it does.

It's hard to grow together. No one is perfect and, in a relationship, you start to see those imperfections. What we do, affects each other.

Luke's happiness is so important to me. Even though we were fighting a few minutes before, the idea that he could get expelled terrified me. He had so much more to lose. I'd rather take the fall.

I was starting to hate these hallways. Ever since I met Luke, I've wanted to run away from all of this with him. And I hate my urge to run – because I want to be the type of person that faces my own problems head on.

Like he does.

Luke calls it out, while I hide. I deflect and I don't recognize when I'm wrong. I lean on his strength. He's always so capable, so certain that everything will work out in the end. I admired that. Maybe I even envied that.

But now I understood that, sometimes, even he needs someone to lean on.

And I haven't been there for him in the same way he's been there for me. It's hard for me to realize that even strong people have their weak moments.

Was I too late?

I looked over at Luke, wanting to wrap my arms around him, to shelter the sensitive side that he'd shown me. But that side of him was gone. 

His expression was cold as he talked to the teacher who was escorting us to the principal's office.

"I told you Mr Dawson, that she has to come," Mr Laghari looked frustrated, "No amount of threatening or convincing me is going to work."

"I haven't gotten to the threatening part yet," Luke said.

"Yet?" the teacher snapped, "Luke this isn't the time for your backhanded comments. You and your girlfriend are in a boat load of trouble and the Principal will decide what happens."

Luke exhaled an audible sigh, "Just let her go. She has nothing to do with this."

I warmed at that. Even though we were in a fight, Luke was still defending me.

"She does," Mr Laghari said, "And like I said, I don't make the rules, so stop trying to kill the messenger."

"Who else am I going to kill then?" Luke replied with a smirk.

That little-

Did he learn nothing from our conversation?!

But hearing Mr Laghari say that we were in a boat load of trouble really sank in. Pun intended.

My mind went from freaking out over my future with Luke to freaking out over our futures, period. Luke's college offer and my 'not-now-but-hopefully-one-day' college offer...

Breathe, Millie, breathe

Was it because they caught me drinking at school? Or was it about what Luke did to Kaden? Both?

I've never been to the principal's office before.

I've never been suspended before.

This is not part of the plan. I don't have much of a plan, but if I did, this wouldn't be it.

We stopped outside the door to the reception area. It was becoming all too real now and my thoughts went into overdrive. Where do I go if I get expelled?

When Mr Laghari stopped, I stopped. Like a robot, my hands were clasped firmly by my side. I didn't move an inch. If I stand really still maybe I can blend in with the wallpaper.

"Millie," Luke whispered behind me, "Breathe."

He called me Millie.

I wish I could hold onto him and feel the comfort of his presence behind me. I'm not sure if he wanted me to do that anymore.

"Right," I exhaled. How hard can it be to breathe?

I've been doing it my whole life

Mr Laghari walked into the room first. There was a busy reception desk and chairs by the wall, where students sat to await their fate. There were offices on the other side. I saw the vice principal's office, the school therapist's and the largest door at the end had the word "Principal" on it.

Maybe I can plead insanity?

Mr Laghari used his clipboard to point us towards an unmarked room, "You can wait in here until the principal calls you in. Your parents are on their way."

"You called our parents?" I repeated.

Good luck finding mine

I love how he thinks calling my parents is a threat. If the school can locate my parents, I'd award them a medal myself.

I was way more afraid of Luke's parents than mine. His are intimidating. And they'll probably blame me for being a bad influence on their star son.

Am I being salty? Probably.

Mr Laghari hovered in the doorway to make sure we walked inside the room and stayed there.

Luke asked him, "You want to babysit us some more or you heading out?"

Mr Laghari muttered something before closing the door on us. If he wasn't trying to keep his job, I'm sure he would've cursed Luke out. Or at least tried to. Luke seemed so unaffected.

How my boyfriend can go from passionate in one second to cool in the next...

"Oh," I said in surprise as I noticed the others in the room, "It's a reunion."

Chad, Austin, Arturo and Cearra were all sitting there.

They were on their phones or leaning against the wall, chatting quietly between each other. They all looked up now.

I guess Luke and I were the last ones to be found. Makes since, since we were out in the parking lot.

Luke picked up two chairs from the side of the room and dropped them next to where the others were sitting. He offered me one and sat further away.

The look he gave me wasn't as warm as I was used to. We both didn't know how to handle this limbo. We needed to talk, but right now we physically couldn't.

His unapproachable vibe was back, and I couldn't help but feel like the invisible girl whose name he never remembered – that's how I used to feel at the beginning.

I guess we had to put aside our personal feelings right now because this was a big deal. Expulsion is a big deal. I couldn't believe Mr Laghari threatened us with that.

"My parents are going to kill me for this," Cearra said, sitting nervously on her hands, "Whatever you guys say, make sure you tell everyone how I did not participate in this."

She was wearing a blue shirt that matched the blue ribbon twisted in her box braids and I wanted to tell her how good she looked... but this didn't feel like the right time.

"Are we sure this is about Kaden anyway?" Chad asked, "Maybe they called us here to elect us to student body council. This school needs a facelift."

"It is about Kaden," Arturo scowled from his corner of the room, "That nerd has done nothing but drag me into messes."

Arturo had once been the up-and-coming basketball player that Luke was mentoring. Since his 'jersey deal' with Kaden, all of that fell apart and he's faced nothing but a cold shoulder from the entire team.

"We all saw how fast that snitch ran out of there," Art continued, "He probably came straight here to report it."

Luke was leaning back in his chair, texting with one hand resting against his lap. I was always drawn to him.

Who was he even texting right now? Didn't he realize he was in the most trouble out of all of us?

Chad laughed, "I keep forgetting Millie dated this guy."

Luke paused in mid text and looked at him.

Chad apologized.

I don't get how Luke was so calm about this. He punched another student on school grounds. He tied Kaden up, threw basketballs at him like he was a net and then punched him – in front of a dozen witnesses.

Luke was not only facing expulsion, but he could also lose his college acceptance. His whole dream would crash in front of him. His future...

I was finding it so hard not to hyperventilate. It looked like Cearra was right on the edge with me.

"I need water," she pulled her hands out from under her legs and looked around, "Water?"

Austin checked his bag. He pulled out my empty whisky bottle, "Uh... no, sorry."

"Austin!" I gasped, "Put that away! We're in the principal's-"

The door opened and the Vice Principal walked in with an incredibly angry look on her face. 

Austin zipped up his backpack and, with the back of his shoe, nudged it under his chair.

She announced, "We have a zero-tolerance bullying policy at Preston Oakes and you have all been reported for violating that policy."

"Well I'm shocked," Chad spoke out, "And we're going to need our lawyers present."

Our lawyers? Who else has a lawyer on speed dial? That Chad... never mind. I'm not surprised anymore.

"Mr Chadwick, there will be no need for lawyers, only parents," the Vice President said, "We will be asking you about an incident that took place today in the basketball courts. The student will remain anonymous as we get to the bottom of these claims."

"There's nothing anonymous about it," Luke replied.

The Vice President was taken off guard.

"Unless you don't know his name," Austin said to the VP, "But we can call him Kaden for short."

Sometimes, I don't understand these boys. Chad, Luke and Austin's reactions had completely surprised her, and she did not look pleased about it.

Luke had dragged us all into this mess and now he and his friends were playing up to it, like it was no big deal. Some of us don't get second chances.

The flustered VP started pulling files out of her large binder, "My assistant has collected all your files here. When I call your name, please stand up."

"Roland Chadwick the third," she said, pulling her pages in order, "I have your transfer files from Callington Prep here somewhere..."

I leaned over and whispered to Austin, "What's Callington Prep?"

"It's a really posh school that Chad used to go to," Austin replied, "He transferred sophomore year."

Why?

"Austin Taylor," she pulled out a second file that was much thicker than the first and struggled to balance it with the other papers, "OK, one second, bear with me. Your file is very heavy."

What was in there?

Austin didn't seem surprised by her comment. She had to place his file on the table to continue and I saw pages and pages bound together.

It felt odd to me that even the Vice Principal knew who these boys were. She was saying their names before she even got to their files.

"Luke Dawson, I'm surprised to see you being called in here. You are, after all, a symbol for the school," she said, flicking through until she got to his, "It will be a shame to have to take that away."

This was not going to be easy on him.

I saw my name on the next file she pulled out and I braced myself for what she would say. She picked it up and read out loud, "Mildred Ripley-"

Chad burst out laughing in the most obnoxious way possible.

Everyone was laughing. Even Luke had his lips curved up in amusement.

"Sorry, why is that funny?" I asked, feeling my face heat up with embarrassment.

"Mildred..." Chad repeated between his laugh, "Was everything a lie?"

I cleared my throat and said to the Vice Principal, "It's Millie."

"Right," she dismissed it, flicking through my file as she was noticing my existence for the first time, "I can see here that you're quite accomplished at math and... well, not much else. You applied to be a tutor-"

"That's long gone," I muttered.

I'm on the brink of being expelled, so that has to be the final nail in the coffin. My dreams of becoming a tutor were long gone.

"Cearra Akil," she said, pulling out another file.

Everyone leaned in, enjoying the commentary. This Vice Principal was way sassier than I expected.

The VP scanned Cearra's file, "Suspended once before for organizing a strike in the cafeteria."

Austin whistled.

I looked over at him to see if he was giving Cearra any discrete glances. I think he liked that about her.

"I stand by it," Cearra muttered, looking embarrassed, "Our cafeteria staff need to be better paid."

"Student council is a more appropriate forum for that discussion Miss Akil, but we do pay our staff minimum wage plus benefits," the VP said and raised her finger as Cearra was about to argue, "Moving on to Arturo Rojas."

"It's Rojas," he corrected her pronunciation.

She was about to try again when the door opened and a man popped his head inside, "Their parents are here-"

"Make them wait," Chad called out, "We're in the middle of something here."

I wanted to lower my head. Chad had no concern at all for the situation we were in. He was enjoying this way too much.

The VP glared at him and collected her files, "You are all in serious trouble and the principal will be seeing you shortly."

She left the door wide open behind her and we heard her heels clicking down the hallway to the Principal's office.

Luke got up and walked out of the door.

I stared after him. I thought we were all meant to stay here...

The others took a moment to react, but they followed him, breaking the one rule we had all been told to obey.

I didn't want to be left alone in this windowless room, so after they left, I ran out as well, dread sinking in my stomach as I saw the parents.

Cearra's parents were most visibly fuming, and her mom's voice immediately raised three octaves to call her daughter out. She dragged her daughter to one side and loudly scolded her.  Cearra stared down at the ground, embarrassed and avoided saying anything that would escalate her mom's anger even more.

I saw Luke talking to his parents, with his back towards me. He was facing his dad, head on, but they were discussing quietly. His parents didn't want to make a scene.

Mr Dawson looked over at me and I almost jumped back, even though I was far away. He was about to say something when I saw Luke reach out and stop him. He physically stopped him.

I wish Luke would turn around to look at me. I wish I could talk to him.

The look in Mrs Dawson's eyes was enough. They thought this was my fault. I tore my gaze away from the Dawson family, because I knew it was not good news for me.

A moment later, the doors banged open.

And I went from depressed to getting the biggest shock of my life.

In walked my own mother.

The woman who gave birth to me.

She's alive.

I don't know whether to be overjoyed or worried or disappointed or what. She looked really put together in a cream turtleneck and navy chinos. She must've come from work.

And walking two steps behind her was a man I didn't recognize.

He was dressed very differently to her, in a tank top and ripped jeans. He had a bit of a goatee. I could only guess that this was her boyfriend.

I hadn't seen much of him except for the pound of weed we'd been taking care of for him. But why she thought that now would be a great moment for me to meet him... I'll never understand.

Everyone else had their parents and here was a guy I'd never met in my life.

I walked towards my mother, wondering how she would greet me. In front of everyone here, would she be kind? Would she disown me? Would she come back home now? Is she disappointed in me?

On my way, I saw Austin grinning at something, but I didn't have time to ask him.

"Hi mom," I said nervously.

~Luke's POV~

I saw Millie's mom walk into the room, slamming the doors behind her. I didn't expect her to come, but for Millie's sake, I was glad she did.

Though Mrs Ripley and my parents in the same room was not a good idea.

"Honestly Luke," my mom whispered, squeezing my arm as she stared at my girlfriend's mom like she was the plague, "Why are you doing this to our family? They're dragging you down with them."

She pinched my arm harder when she saw I wasn't paying attention to her. Who was the guy with Millie's mom? Her dad?

Why isn't he wearing a proper shirt?

I moved my arm out of my mom's grip and took a few steps back. I turned around and watched Millie walk past me. She went over to her mom, so I walked towards Austin and Chad instead.

Austin was grinning from ear to ear.

"What's the joke?" I asked, walking up to the guys.

When I confronted Kaden earlier this afternoon, I didn't expect to cause the big reunion here. I didn't expect Kaden to be a snitch either. It's not going to serve him well when we get out of here.

Austin turned towards me and his grin grew wider. "Is it weird that my dealer just walked in?"

The three of us turned around to look at the guy with the goatee.

"Millie's mom is dating my dealer," Austin repeated slowly, like it was some kind of epiphany.

Maybe he'll get a good price now.

Before we could joke about it, Chad's phone rang and he said, "It's my dad's assistant. They can't find the principal's office."

Austin's grin disappeared faster than the Knicks at the playoffs. "Your dad's coming?" he asked.

Chad nodded, though he'd already answered the phone and was talking to the assistant.

Austin looked like fear had struck him down. He looked over at Cearra and then back at me, "Cearra's parents are about to meet Roland Chadwick. The real Roland Chadwick."

"The non-Swedish one?" I asked.

This entertainment was priceless. We were all about to go down in flames.

By the end of today, I don't know if I'll still have a college to go to, a girlfriend to be with or friends that still have their balls intact.

A/N: And that's a wrap. This chapter was kind of a long one, I must say. Vote, vote, vote! And tell me what you think of it :)

By the way, here are the poll results from my Instagram (@natalieinacorner):

I'm going to grab another coffee and get settled down to read the comments here and on IG...

See ya next week!

<3 Natalie