My father barely spared me a glance as I entered his study and flopped down on the couch. "Dad, we're out of milk."

His fingers continued to rustle through his papers. "We can't have that now, can we?"

I scooted closer to his desk with my palm up and my lips pulled to a sheepish smile. "Grocery money please. We're also out of chocolates and bread. Oh, and apple juice."

He raised his eyes to look at me with incredulous surprise and lowered his glasses across the bridge of his nose. "Chocolates? What happened to that ridiculously large bag of chocolates your admirer gave you?

"Dad!" I swatted his arm. "We don't talk about that. I've finished them all."

"Ask him for more, then."

"Dad. I don't even know who he is. Or her. Even if I did, I wouldn't just ask. That's embarrassing."

"Then you need to get rid of that sweet tooth of yours," he told me with a fond smile, shaking his head as he fished out his wallet. "Buy some coffee packets too and tissue rolls."

"Got it!" I chirped happily, accepting the wad of cash he placed on my hand. "See you tonight. Mom said we're supposed to have salmon and Cajun rice for dinner."

My father waved his hand to whisk me away from his office. "Have fun at school, kiddo."

I gave him a peck on the cheek in goodbye and hurriedly stepped out of the office. Zipping open my backpack, I fished around for my wallet, and a flash of red caught my eye as I tucked the money away. My fingers gingerly brushed the softness of the scarf, and I found myself taking it out and wrapping it around my neck, wanting to keep my skin from being bitten by the harsh Northvale coldness. I slung my bag over my shoulder once again and left the house.

My phone rang inside my pocket. "Hey," I answered quietly, walking towards the car where Theo was waiting. "What's up?"

"Thea," Faust greeted. The uncertainty in his voice made me slow my steps. "I don't think I'll be able to come to school for a few days."

"What? Why? We were supposed to talk about that happened last Friday, Faust. You promised. You had family issues yesterday."

He let out a sigh. "I know I promised, but the circumstances aren't in my favor. We'll talk once I get back to school. I'm not feeling so well."

He didn't even sound sick. I pursed my lips. Theo opened the passenger window and gestured wildly for me to hurry. "Alright. Text me when you're free. Rest and get well."

"I'm sorry," Faust murmured, and I had trouble deciphering whether he was being genuine or not. "For what it's worth, I apologize for everything that happened in the game and the fight after it."

"I understand," I said, even though I didn't. "Take care."

"You too."

I put my phone in silent mode and placed it back inside my pocket as I entered the Audi, not missing Theo's raised eyebrow in a silent question of who I was talking to. Before he could open his mouth, I said, "It was Faust. He's sick so he's not going to school."

My brother clicked his tongue as he reversed the car onto the main road. "How convenient."

"Theo."

"What? The pep rally is all the school's been buzzing about since it happened," he explained, keeping his eyes trained in front of him. "People are probably wondering about you and your relationship with Faust—they were expecting him to say no because they knew he had a girlfriend."

I exhaled heavily and leaned back against the seat, brushing my thumb against my lower lip. "People are going to talk about Faust and his affairs whenever they get a chance. I can handle myself, no one's going to do anything to me."

Theo didn't seem convinced. "I was counting on Carter to keep the rumors at bay," he muttered with an angry clench of his jaw, taking a sharp right. "I know you can handle yourself, but without Faust at school, no one can stop the whispers and looks thrown your way."

"Ignoring them is the best thing I can do," I assured him with a smile, reaching over to squeeze his forearm. "You worry too much. I can handle a little fame for a day."

My brother groaned. "You're not supposed to take this lightly, Thea."

"I'm not!" I argued, shifting my torso around to completely face him. "I promise I can take care of myself. The talk will die down soon."

He shook his head with a sigh, a look of resignation spreading across his features. "Fine. I trust you."

"Good."

"Whose scarf is that?"

"What? Oh." I looked down and picked at the material with my fingers. "Actually, I have no idea who owns it so I'm returning it to the lost and found today. It needs to go back to its owner."

Theo raised his eyebrows. "So why, dear sister, are you using it?"

I grinned. "Not much harm can be done by warming myself up. Besides, people can look at it and realize that it's theirs then ask me to return it. No need to go through the hassle of walking across school buildings to go to the lost and found."

"They can come to you and accuse you of being a scarf thief," Theo countered with a shrug. "Maybe you need to consider that. The weather's still brutal."

I huffed and crossed my arms. "Your face still looks brutal."

"Rude," he said, blindly reaching out an arm to nudge my shoulder. "About that. You need to tell Carter to apologize to you about Dispatch. And to me for ruining my face."

I leaned forward to poke his cheek. Theo swatted my hand away with a grunt. "Nah, I think it was already ruined way before Faust put his hands on you."

"I can kick you out of this car," he warned.

I gasped. "Is my little brother threatening me?"

"For the last fucking time—"

"I'm still older by a minute."

Theo scoffed. "You can't pull that excuse out of your ass every time we bring this up."

"It's not an excuse, it's the truth," I told him, folding one leg underneath me. "Oh, by the way, I also wanted to tell you not to get butthurt over the article I wrote about Faust because our issue was released a few minutes ago. And we need to go grocery shopping after school."

He rolled his eyes as we entered the school's parking lot. "I'm not a kid, Thea. My ego's not so easily bruised."

I threw my head back and laughed. "That's the funniest thing I've ever heard."

"Shut up. I'm not paying for the groceries."

"Understandable. Dad's got it covered."

"Dad's covering for your unhealthy obsession with chocolates?"

"What he doesn't know won't hurt him."

Once Theo parked the Audi and shut off the engine, I stepped out and basked in the cold wind that blew wisps of my hair away from my face. I was thankful that the scarf and the thick jacket I wore kept me warm. Some students hanging around in the lot gave me glances, but when my brother rounded the car and drew himself to my side, they quickly reverted their gazes.

I snickered and shook my head as we started walking towards the school's entrance. "Everyone's scared of you."

"They should be," he muttered, adjusting the strap of his bag over his shoulder. "Maybe I should follow you around all day like this."

"Don't you dare."

"I was kidding, sister," Theo said with a scoff. "Text me if anything happens."

The subtle concern written across his face made me smile and my heart warm. "I will. Bye, loser."

"Bye, spithead."

Resisting the urge to roll my eyes, I made my way towards the direction of the staff room in higher spirits and ignored the unnecessary attention I was receiving. I reached my destination, excited to hear feedback about our latest issue when Sutton burst open the door and almost collided with me had I not taken ahold of her arms. "Whoa! Easy, are you alright?"

Her eyes widened as she scrambled to stand properly on her feet. "Thea! You're early," she said in a shaky voice, forcing a smile onto her face. "Let's get some coffee. My treat, come on—"

"Wait, what's going on? Why are you acting weird?" My eyebrows drew together as I gripped her hand, confused with the expression of panic Sutton was desperately trying to hide. "Is there something wrong?"

"Thea, let's just get coffee," the blonde pleaded, pulling my arm. "Please, come on."

"No," I said firmly, pushing the door open. "I want to see what's going on—"

All eyes turned to me once I stepped in the room. All wide, shocked, and horrified. The members were frozen, huddled around one of the computers where our online publication was up on the screen.

"What're you guys looking at?" I asked cautiously, slowly moving towards the computer. "And why do you all look like you've seen a ghost..."

"Killian," Sutton hissed from behind me. "Delete them."

The boy looked positively scared. "B-but the evidence—"

"Delete what?" I demanded, hovering behind Killian as I set one palm against the wood of the desk. "What evidence—oh."

The comments section was alive—a new one popped under the last in a matter of milliseconds, but that wasn't a hindrance from being able to read the nasty words addressed to me. Some were about the pep rally—congratulating the winner of Dispatch for making Faust's girlfriend look pathetic and stupid in front of the whole school. Some about my wearing the letterman jacket during the quarterfinals—that I must've put a spell on Faust to be able to grasp the jacket in my hands and wear it, that I wasn't worth the jacket and Faust's attention, that I was bragging how much of a slut I was. Some were threats that made me sick to my stomach—that they were going to come for me, that they were going to do things to me. Each word I read was nauseating, disgusting, and appalling. I couldn't imagine how people could do this and I didn't think it would come this far. The worst part of it all, the part that I hated the most—was how affected I was by all of it.

"Alright, that's enough," Sutton ordered in a clear and authoritative tone, pulling me away gently from the computer. Even in a dazed state, my body followed her willingly as she helped me stand. "Disable the comments section. Take photos of every single one then delete them. We're reporting this to the principal. Thea, hey. You still with me?"

The tears were burning in my eyes. "I, uh, need to be alone for a sec."

"Thea," the editor-in-chief called before I could bolt out the door, "don't believe any of them. You know what's true and what's not. This is a bunch of bull and you know it."

I did. It wasn't any less painful. "Yeah. I know, thank you. I'll see you guys tomorrow."

With that, I rushed out of the staff room. No one stopped me, and I was glad.

Skipping first period wasn't exactly the solution, but it was one I needed right now. I kept my head down as I darted through the empty hallways until I reached the parking lot and made a beeline towards the exit, wiping the few tears that colored my cheeks with the back of my hand. Before I could cross the street, waiting for the stoplight to turn green, a grab at my wrist made me gasp in surprise.

My eyes were met with playful, dark ones. "Didn't think you were the type to cut class, sweetheart."

"JJ." I sighed in relief, clutching a hand to my chest in an attempt for my racing heart to slow down. "You scared me."

The curly-haired boy laughed and let my wrist go. "I'm sorry, Thea. You were such in a hurry. Where are you headed off to?"

Hugging myself, I looked down at the ground and kicked an imaginary pebble. "I was going to walk around aimlessly until I needed to get back for second period. What about you?"

"Sounds like a solid plan." JJ grinned. "Wanna grab something to eat? It's on me."

*

"This is ironic. Why are we eating frozen yogurt when it's twenty-eight degrees outside?"

"Throw it away, then," JJ said, scooping up a spoonful of his dessert and shoving it into his mouth without finesse. "I'd say you're enjoying it."

I shrugged and took another bite of my own. "It is brownie batter. Why did you order a plain one when there are so many different flavors to choose from?"

The jock raised an eyebrow, his lips still pulled to a smile. "This is the one I want."

"Boring," I teased, leaning back against the sofa of the cozy booth. "Bet it doesn't taste as good as mine. You wanna try?"

He shook his head. "I'm good. I'm just glad you like it."

"I do," I answered with a smile of my own, feeling a lot less lighter. "Thank you. I...really needed this. Thank you for not—talking about the...you know. Thanks."

JJ reached over to ruffle my hair. "Don't mention it. Eat up. You're treating me next time."

A comfortable silence fell over us as we savored the treats, and later, on the walk back to school, JJ offered to go with me to the lost and found to return the scarf still wrapped around my neck. I'd refused and said I didn't need him to accompany me, but the boy was incredibly insistent when he wanted to be. I suspected it was so no one would approach me either, but nonetheless, the gesture was appreciated.

The curly-haired boy was also smiling down at his phone as we walked, and I felt that he was talking about me. However, knowing JJ, I decided to brush it off and told him to wait for me outside as I stepped in the office.

The warmth from my face was gone in an instant, and my fingers hesitated to let go of the cloth. I left the office before I could change my mind and really become a scarf thief.

JJ was laughing at something on his phone. He looked up and pocketed it, the grin apparent on his face. "Done?"

"Yeah. Are you alright there?"

"What? Oh, yeah." He scoffed, shaking his head. "Some dumbass was texting me. It was funny. Come on, I'll walk you to your next class."