I M M A C U L A T E

D E C E I V E R S

____________________

It's been a week since the big blow-out between Mark and Connor and neither one of them will speak to me. Pair that with Callie's silence toward me, and you could say I'm feeling just peachy.

Sarcasm intended.

Lucy couldn't believe the news of Connor and Mark's fight, but I'm sure Callie saw it coming. It was only a matter of time before Mark exploded and told Connor everything. Some people told me what they both said while yelling at each other, and I felt so bad when I heard that Connor wanted to get back together with me, thinking that it's what I wanted too. I mean, I did enjoy the kiss and I did think for a second that I missed being with Connor, but I know deep down in my heart he isn't who I truly want.

The one person I truly want, won't even acknowledge my existence, let alone give me the time of day.

I found myself feeling nervous on this Monday morning. For starters, Lucy moved back into her place over the last week and she told me how many times Callie has gone over to hang out with her. I can't help but think that Callie is trying to plan something against me. She still won't speak to me, and after everything that happened with Mark and Connor, I don't even think it would be wise for me to even try to sit at our original lunch table. I already know Mark won't sit there, but I'm sure Lucy and Callie will, maybe Connor will too.

I slowly started to feel my once perfect life, slipping away rapidly. Though, how could I be upset or hurt? I did this to myself and now I have to reap what I've sown.

I slowly sat up in bed and picked up my phone from the bedside table. I noticed many unread text messages and missed calls from Lucy, which caused my stomach to instantly drop.

Does she know?

I hesitantly called her back, and after the first ring, she picked up.

"Oh my God, Naveah! Have you seen Facebook?" Lucy yelled into my ear.

"No... why?" I warily answered.

"Um... you should. A lot of people are spreading rumors about you." She quietly said.

"What?" My eyes instantly widened, and I told Lucy that I would see her at school before I quickly hung up the phone and opened my Facebook app.

There's a post from one of the kids at our school with a picture of Mark and Connors fight. They both looked horrible. There was blood everywhere. The caption says, "The boys are back today! Who's ready for round two? Let's make bets; I say Mark will finish Connor off. Anyone else?"

I rolled my eyes at the immature post, but when I clicked on the comments, that's when I saw what Lucy was talking about.

A random girl I've never even heard of before, commented on the photo and received numerous reactions and replies. The comment said, "It's all Naveah's fault. That greedy bitch played them both! Savage.", and then she added some laughing emoji's. I felt sick to my stomach.

Everyone from school replied to her thread, cursing my name and adding even more rumor's than what the actual truth was. One girl commented saying that I had a threesome with Mark and Connor, which is ridiculous. Another comment said I dated them both at the same time and then made them both think I hated the other. Rumor after rumor, lie after lie... all about me. The girls called me a slut, and a lot of the boys actually had the nerve to private message me, asking if I would be willing to give them a "taste". I felt disgusted with all of them, but more importantly, with myself.

I assumed Lucy knew that the rumors weren't true, so when a portion of the truth is sitting there staring at her in her face, she didn't think twice about it.

I knew it wouldn't last long, I knew eventually she would realize that something did happen between Mark and I, and that I did lie to her and kept secrets from her. What will piss her off the most is that everyone else knew, and she believed it to be a lie. She's going to be mad about looking like a fool for believing me over everyone else, which is understandable.

I wanted to stop scrolling through the horrible comments, but my thumb wouldn't stop. Finally, I saw a comment from Callie that sent me over the edge.

"Hey Naveah, I wonder how it feels to be such an immaculate deceiver."

An immaculate deceiver? Well, that's an elegant way to put it. I felt anger boil inside of me, but I knew I wasn't even allowed to feel angry. She was absolutely right, and I couldn't even try to deny it.

I wondered if Lucy would read Callie's comment and think twice about sticking up for me. Maybe Lucy just felt as though Callie was listening to the "rumors" rather than me. Though they weren't rumors at all, well a majority of them were , but the main rumor going around couldn't of been any more true.

"Mom!" I shouted.

A few moments later, she entered my bedroom. "Yes?"

"Do I have to go to school today?" I frowned tears began to build up in my eyes.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?" My mom immediately came over to the edge of my bed and took a seat in front of me. She placed her hand lovingly on my own and gave me her full attention.

"I... I can't tell you. Just please don't make me go, I can't face anyone." I sighed.

"Naveah... when have I ever taught you that it's okay to run from your problems? You need to walk into that school with your head held high and ignore any negativity." She sweetly smiled.

"You don't get it mom! This is high school! It's a lot different than you might remember." I pouted.

"Naveah, I'm not that old." My mom deadpanned.

"Besides, you run from your problems all the time. You never stick up for yourself when dad treats you like crap. I can't listen to any advice from you."

I instantly felt bad when I saw my mother's lips turn downward into a frown. I knew I hurt her feelings, I'm just so mad at everything and the only person to take the blow of my explosion just so happened to be my mom who is now standing and heading for my bedroom door.

"Mom, wait..." I sighed, mentally slapping myself for how harsh I was. She didn't respond and kept walking until I could no longer see her.

Great. What else are you going to royally screw up today?

I didn't even bother to dress up today, that would just give the girls another excuse to call me a slut. I wore a pair of regular blue-jean pants and a top that flowed down over the pants, matched with a pair of black sandals. I left my hair down, but straightened it. I didn't bother putting on any makeup, except for a small amount of foundation to hide the slight redness around my eyes and cheeks from almost crying earlier.

I put my phone in my back pocket and grabbed my bag before walking downstairs. The kitchen was vacant which meant that my mom wasn't making any breakfast. I should have seen that coming. I grabbed an apple from the fruit basket and let myself out of the house.

I plugged my earbuds into my phone and listened to Pandora as I walked to school alone. Upon walking in the schoolyard, I immediately felt every single pair of eyes on me. They followed me all the way, until I reached the front doors to the amazing, Jefferson high.

I took in a deep breath, and let it out as I pulled the doors open, and let myself in.

"Oh my God, it's her."

"I can't believe she actually showed her face today."

"She's got balls, I'll give her that."

"She needs to cut those jeans into shorts, you feel me?"

"Ugh, she should just transfer. Why would she even want to subject herself to the torture?"

I heard it all, but ignored it. I just kept walking with my head held high, as my mom suggested I do.

When I reached my locker, Lucy immediately wrapped her arms around me. I smiled at the gesture, but I knew it wouldn't last long. I still can't believe she is sticking up for me, instead of believing everyone else. Lucy is indeed a true friend, and I don't deserve her.

"I can't believe what's happening right now. All these assholes just can't mind their own business I suppose." Lucy commented as I opened my locker.

"They're juvenile. I can ignore it." I said, not at all confidently.

"Do you want to skip today? I'll go with you." Lucy sadly smiled.

"No, that's okay. I need to deal with this. I can't just run away from it." I shrugged, closing my locker shut and resetting the lock.

Lucy nodded, but then her eyes turned to slits. I looked behind me at what she was looking at, and I almost wanted to scream. Walking inside of the building was Callie and she was with none other than, Marissa Bradley.

"What the hell, Cal?" Lucy said once they were close enough to hear.

"It's okay Lucy." I sighed, though Lucy only shook her head.

"No, it isn't. Why are you with Marissa?" She asked after turning to Callie.

"Because unlike Naveah here, she at least knows how to keep it real." Callie casually replied.

"What are you talking about? Marissa is as fake as they come!" Lucy commented, earning her a glare from Marissa who soon after, smirked.

"Awe, Lucy. It's so sweet how you are the only one sticking up for her." Marissa glanced at me for a second, pure spitefulness in her tone. "But haven't you asked yourself why that is? I mean, everyone has loved Naveah since she moved here. Aren't you at all curious as to why they think she's lying? Perhaps your best friend, hasn't been the best friend you think she is."

"Marissa, maybe I should share something with the entire school, ya know since you love spreading crap about other people." I challenged, referring to the secret I know about her personal life that Callie and I discovered.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Naveah." Callie chimed in. "For starters, the only thing you're going to accomplish by spilling what you know is making sure that everyone hates you even more than they already do. Nobody will trust you if you tell anyone Marissa's personal business. Besides, how could you make fun of someone over something they had no control over? It's immature and just mean."

I stood there dumbfounded. I had no response to that. It actually made sense. If I outed the fact that Marissa was adopted to the entire school, not only will she come after me in full force, but everyone else will also hate me even more for making fun of her over her childhood trauma.

To be honest, I didn't want to use that against her anyway. I know it's wrong, but I had nothing else to threaten her with to try to get her off my back.

"Whatever." I shrugged, turning to walk away.

"What the hell is going on? None of this makes any sense." Lucy said, her eyebrows furrowed in deep thought.

"Why don't you explain it to her, Naveah?" Callie smirked.

"Shut up Callie." I glared. "Just leave me alone and go on about your pathetic day."

"Pathetic? I think you might be referring to yourself hun." Callie replied, taking a step closer to me. "I told you this would all come back to bite you in the ass. I tried to be a good friend to you, but you just had to keep messing everything up." Callie said, her smirk turned down into a frown.

"Whatever, Callie. You were supposed to be my friend. You were supposed to have my back. You turned against me the second you had the chance, and for what? To be friends with the likes of her?" I glared toward Marissa who just raised her eyebrows, clearly offended. "Like I said, just leave me alone." With that, I turned on my feet and walked away, not bothering to explain anything to a confused looking Lucy who eventually turned and followed me.

Tears blurred my vision, but I never let one fall. I swallowed the lump in my throat and walked into first period, Lucy right behind me.

I sat down, and noticed that she sat down beside me.

"What in the actual fuck was all that about?" She asked, turning to face me.

"Just leave it alone Lucy. Please." I gave her a look, and she nodded.

"Fine, but I will bring it up again." She said while pulling her notebook from her bag.

It isn't until right before the final bell, that Mark decided to walk in.

His face was somewhat back to normal, just a little bit of a yellow-ish bruise under his eye still in the process of healing. He didn't even look at me once as he stomped over to the other side of the room and sat in the last seat at the back.

I discreetly pulled my phone out, and sent Mark a text. A few moments later, I got a reply.

"Will you please just talk to me?"

"Text me again, and I will block your number."

I frowned while slowly putting my phone back in my pocket. I let out a long and loud sigh, knowing he would hear it, as I yanked my notebook from my bag.

Mr. Smith walked in and began his lesson, though I didn't pay attention to anything that he said. My mind was elsewhere, and for good reason.

I heavily debated on whether or not to just come clean right now and tell Lucy everything. I mean, wouldn't it be better coming from me than having to constantly hear it from other people? I'm sure she's confused and doesn't really know what to think.

Maybe it won't be as bad as I think it will. Maybe she will understand and forgive me for everything. It's a far stretch, but I had to do something. I can't go on like this.

The rumors are only multiplying and I needed to put all of the lies to rest, and come out with the truth from my own lips.

Well, this was it. I've made up my mind. I'm going to tell Lucy everything and hope that it doesn't forever damage our relationship.

The next few classes seemed to drag on forever, especially History class with Mark. I wanted nothing more than for him to just look at me and smile, or even come up to me and hug me telling me that everything will be okay. I hated the silence.

The bell finally rang, and I sprinted toward the cafeteria. I needed to tell Lucy now before I chickened out and changed my mind.

As soon as I entered, everyone went silent. I tried my best to remain calm, but the evil stares I received seemed to be overwhelming. I took in a few rigid breaths, as I made my way over to the table Lucy was currently sitting at.

"Luc, we need to talk." I said, a little out of breath.

"Okay, but hang on. Marissa is up to something."

I followed her gaze toward the front of the cafeteria and saw Marissa standing on a table with Callie right beside her. She had an evil smirk on her face as her eyes pierced into my own.

"Hello everyone! While I have your full attention, I'd like to make a very important announcement." Marissa began. I looked over to Callie, who almost looked guilty, but tried her best to hide it under a fake smile.

"For starters, so it isn't brought up again in the future, I wanted to let everyone know that I am in fact adopted." A few gasps were heard around the cafeteria, but a lot of people didn't really seem bothered by it. Who would be? Many kids are adopted, and it doesn't change who they are as a person. I don't know why I ever thought it would work as blackmail.

Marissa smiled sweetly again. "Now that that's out of the way, I'd like to continue on with my announcement."

The entire cafeteria was so silent that you could have heard a pen drop. I wanted to run away, but somehow my feet were rooted to the floor. I couldn't move. I needed to know where this was going.

"As many of you know, Naveah Olsin recently broke up with her long-term boyfriend, Connor Gaines. I'm sure many of you have heard some reasons as to why, but I bet none of you know the real reason."

I felt my heart slowly begin to sink. My eyes slightly widened as I realized what Marissa was going to do. I discreetly glanced over at Lucy who was watching Marissa and Callie contently. I wanted to get to Lucy before anything like this could happen, but apparently, I was too late.

All I could do now was wait for the dam to break and try my best to keep my head above water.

"I, however, do know the real reason. So here I am, ready to tell all of you what that reason is." Marissa gave me one final smile before she unleashed the ruthless paradox.

"Naveah Olsin is a two-faced liar. She was secretly hooking up with Mark Chase for about a month while she was still with Connor Gaines. They would meet up in the janitor's closet near their history class every single Friday before lunch to hook up. Naveah's been lying to everyone, even to her best friends Callie and Lucy. Callie here actually found out when Naveah tried to confide in her, but even after Callie told her it was best to stop the cheating, Naveah seemed to only make matters worse."

Sweat began to form against my forehead as I tried to steal a glance at Lucy. Her face seemed expressionless, but I noticed her foot taping against the tile floor underneath the table.

Marissa continued as everyone kept their eyes locked onto her.

"But that's not even the best part. The best part is Naveah decided she still didn't want to make things official with Mark after breaking it off with Connor. Instead, she waited until Connor moved on with me, to decide she was going to kiss Connor to get him to cheat on me. Naveah is ruthless and disgusting. All she does is cheat and then lie about it. Oh, but we have to give her a big round of applause. She fooled you all into believing what a great girl she is, and how much of a role model she is. You all fell right into her trap. Not me though, I could see right through her bullshit."

Marissa's words tore threw me like glass against paper, and yet here I stayed, glued to my spot beside Lucy's table.

"So, without further or do, I'd like to formally introduce you to Jefferson High's very own immaculate deceiver: Naveah Olsin!" Marissa smiled contently as she extended her arm out toward me. Everyone's eyes immediately turned to me and I felt so small under their strong gazes.

Most of the girls just glared at me, probably thanking God that I didn't decide to cheat with one of their boyfriends. A lot of the boys are laughing and clapping, a few are even whistling at me. I looked up just in time to see Mark storm out of the cafeteria. I wanted to cry at the fact that he didn't even come to my defense. What he did was no better than what I did, but everyone only saw him as a victim of my cheating wrath.

I brought my eyes over to Lucy, who kept her eyes trained on her lunch tray. I took a daring step toward her table and her eyes instantly snapped up to meet my own.

I didn't even realize that I had tears falling from my eyes as she gave me the most disgusted look I had ever seen. In fact, she looked almost as hurt as when she found out her mother passed away.

"Lucy, I..."

She didn't say a word, she only stood up and turned around, walking toward the exit and out of my life.