Ruby

Hurriedly, Celery got off the man who was looking equally shocked.

At that moment, my brain finally processed the fact that a shutter sound pierced the tense air earlier and I wondered which of my friends took a picture.

"Someone please tell me I'm dreaming," Abby whispered, the disbelief etched on her face now taking over her voice.

"I wish we were," Jake replied and I just stood there, my lips still apart.

When I caught myself and realised I might be looking weird with my lips separated, I clamped them and swallowed hard.

"So..." Abby was surprising me with her ability to talk. I was still trying to process the scene we saw earlier. "Is someone going to tell me what's going on here?"

Celery shifted in discomfort, her arms going around her half-naked chest.

"Is this man really your father?" Jake asked.

The person being asked a question shifted her eyes to the side, showing reluctance. "You had better talk if you don't want the whole school to learn about what we've just seen. "

" No! " Celery cried. Of course, she wouldn't want her reputation ruined. Neither would her supposed father.

My eyes travelled to the tall man whose foot was tapping the ground nervously. "Is this man really your father?" I found my words and repeated Jake's question.

" Well... " She shared a look with the man who communicated something to her with a single blink. "The thing is..."

"He is your father, right?" Abby asked with a scorn in her voice.

" Yes, " Celery replied shyly.

"How interesting. So you are fucking your father. The all-so-mighty Caitlin Bounce gets screwed by her father. This is something."

" You don't have to be so loud," Celery tried to patronize Abby who was shaking her head in amusement. " We should settle this quietly."

"Dude, you weren't quiet when you came stumbling into this place with your horny dad. I am pretty sure someone heard the loud bang you caused with the door."

"I don't-"

" Let's all relax and try to reach a common decision."

" Mr. Bounce, are you talking right now?" Jake was back with his firmness. " You should be ashamed."

" Jake, let's leave the shamed to feel ashamed when they get to their home," Abby said while eyeing the duo in front of us. "We need to use this opportunity in a way that will benefit us and a lot of people who have suffered because of this girl."

"What do you want us to do?" Mr. Bounce eagerly asked. "Don't worry, Jake, you won't go to prison, so let's make sure-"

"What?" Jake's voice mocked the man. "Now you are not so high and mighty?"

Mr. Bounce sighed deeply. He must have realised how much he was going to be dragged. "Let's just-"

"This is what we are going to do," Abby interrupted Mr. Bounce. "You two obviously don't want anyone to know about the... thing between you. We don't want Jake to go to jail and we also want Bryan to pay for what he has done to Ruby."

"Consider it all done."

" Mr. Bounce, I wasn't done talking."

" Oh, do go on." He was so complying, it would be easy to ask him to eat his shirt like a goat.

" Your daughter has a task to carry out," Abby continued.

" What is it? " Celery scuffled towards us, her hands joined together in an attempt to plead. "I'll do anything, please don't let anyone know about this. I'll do anything."

Abby ran her hands through her hair and I wondered what was on her mind. Hopefully not something extravagant. "I can't do this."

She announced in a defeated manner.

" For a minute I thought it would be nice to blackmail you but I don't have the strength to. Listen Celery, all you have to do is get Bryan to confess to killing Maddison. I can't help but feel that you know something about it since you two are so close."

" But I don't know if he did it," Celery returned soberly. "We don't talk about that kind of thing."

" So what?" Abby scoffed. " Do you fuck him too?"

" Why you-" I glared at Mr. Bounce and the strong rebuking tone he was about to take on relaxed.

" Don't forget you have to get Bryan Lockwood on his knees, apologizing to Ruby," Jake added from where he was and Celery wore a hardened look.

" He did not leak those nudes. He did not."

"The nudes were fabricated not leaked. Make him apologise and maybe we will keep quiet about what we just saw." Jake murmured something to himself after his response and took a few steps backwards as though to say he was taking a break from the situation.

Truthfully, I was feeling the same way. The whole thing was already causing me to have a headache. Just when I decided to stay strong and push through the whole situation I was already in, Celery and her father had to come with their drama. And something within me tells me the shocking discovery we made might lead to something bigger if not tackled well.

"Listen Celery," I decided to finally, fully contribute to the whole situation. "Getting Bryan to confess will determine whether I post the picture of you making out with your Dad or not."

" What? You- you took a picture?" Celery asked and I threw her a smile while waving my phone in the air. "You can't do this to me."

"What do mean? You brought this upon yourself. I didn't ask you to find pleasure in being horny because your dad looks like a snack." I then faced Mr. Bounce who arched his brows. "I am not flattering you, sir. So, Celery, just do as you are asked. We are not even asking for much. Just get Bryan to confess and let everyone get a good rest. "

" But-" Celery's face which always looked vibrant and jolly was now completely drained of its colour. "What if he didn't kill her?"

"I am sure he knows something. He is most probably the last person Maddison talked to, I saw that much."

I crossed my arms, my poise stronger than ever.

"So, which is it going to be Celery? Are you going to get your beloved friend to confess or do you want to ruin your image as well as your Dad's? "

" I-"

"She'll do it. She'll get Bryan to confess," Mr. Bounce butted in and the look on Celery's face in reaction to her father's rushed response didn't escape me.

And that got me wondering what the deal was. Why was it so hard for Celery to agree to nab Bryan?

"Well," Abby picked up from where she left. "In that case, I believe we have reached a common ground."

We shared a look and I nodded. " So... Can we all disperse now? I am getting sick of this."

Mr. Bounce wore a patronising smile and leaned his upper body forward as though wanting to take a full bow. " I am so glad we have reached an agreement, you are all mature than you look. You will make excellent-"

" Yeah right," Abby shut him up and made for the exit. "Just make sure your daughter does the needful. And make sure to teach her to think twice before calling someone else a slut."

Without a reason, I grinned at the flustered duo and made sure to wave my phone which definitely did not hold the picture they think it had. Then, I went after Abby. Jake did the same seconds later.

After minutes of walking without a word being uttered, I broke the quietness in our midst with a swear word, and that caused the two to stop walking.

"What is wrong, Ruby?" Jake asked.

"I shouldn't have left the broken beer bottle up there, my prints will be all over it." I damned myself for being that careless.

" Don't worry about that. I'll go back before the cops arrive to clean it up." Jake assured me and I passed him an appreciative smile.

" Why did you say you had a picture though? I was the one that took a picture," Abby finally talked and I shrugged in response.

"That card was bound to be used anyway. But who could have thought? Celery and her father..."

" I know right? I mean, sure everyone has their dirty secrets, but it is amazing how these secrets are on levels. There is always that one secret that just blows your mind in a scattered way no matter what." Jake shook his head after his little speech.

" Funny thing is..." Abby stood akimbo. "At the end of the day, the not-so-dirty and the dirtiest secrets will be tagged using the same name. It's such a crazy world we live in."

I exhaled deeply and took a look around. The corridors were bare and a voice within me reminded me that we had decided to skip class. That prompted my next sentence.

"I don't think we should be standing here like this, the corridor is so empty and-"

The bell rang and my fear of being caught by the crazy Maths teacher, Mr. Robinson subdued.

"Anyway Ruby, I am so glad you are back in school. How did your break go? What did you do?" Abby asked.

" I went out with my Dad."

Her eyes widened. " What? Was... Was he really angry? I can't imagine him being angry." She shuddered. " He looks scary enough."

I shook my head amusedly. "Can you stop painting my father as some kind of masquerade? He isn't scary at all."

" Easy for you to say, you are his daughter," she replied with a depressed voice. " So, where did you guys go? Don't tell me he took you to write an entrance exam for a private boarding school."

Her face wore a displeased look which was so comical, it made Jake and I laugh.

As my shoulders shook , I said, "We went to a party."

"Uh?"

"It was that high society kind of party."

" Ugh..." She reached out and held onto my arm. " It was boring, wasn't it? Oh, my baby." She cooed and pulled me into her side with her other hand.

" My poor baby, you must have been bored out of your mind."

"Well..." I recalled the little drama that happened. " It had a little thrilling moment."

"That's it!" Abby stomped her feet against the ground. " We need to get you to a proper party."

"You won't just let the topic slide will you?" I asked tiredly.

" No." Jake let out a scoff and shook his head at the engaging drama Abby was acting. "To get your mind off the crazy shit that happened earlier this week, I decided to make sure to get a party venue slated for this Friday."

" But Friday is our movie night," I argued.

" It's not like we watch the movies. Friday night is now party night and that's final."

" But-" She looked down at me and gave me her warning glare. "Okay, ma'am."

"Good, we need to give you a proper high school experience. Do you agree with me, Jake?"

Jake, who I expected to still have a nonchalant attitude towards Abby's party plan, gave a thumbs up with a cheerful look on his face. And I have to say, never have I felt so betrayed.

But Abby had a point, I need a different high school experience. Hopefully, that experience won't entail something more dramatic.

My life is already dramatic in its own way.