Grievance: Volume 1 Read online

  “Hey, I was going to go check on Kristen, you want to come with?” Connor asked Hannah, pretending to ignore the way Sean pulled her in by her waist. That possessive little move made him want to snatch the jerk up by his throat.

  Hannah tucked her hair behind her ear, which she only did when she was nervous or lying. She looked like she was considering coming, until Sean opened his fat mouth.

  “She doesn’t owe any of you anything. You don’t talk to her for weeks and then you want her help. Fuck off.”

  Connor’s fists tightened and he felt the heat traveling up his collar. That shithead didn’t know anything about their friendship and who the hell was he to answer for Hannah.

  “I wasn’t talking to you,” Connor whispered.

  “Well I was answering for her, now go.”

  Hannah just stared at her lunch tray. Connor wanted to shake her and make her tell him what the hell was going on. This shell of a girl wasn’t his Hannah. She never let a guy speak for her or come between them. He stared at her for a second, but he honestly wanted to help Kristen more than the pleasure he would get from ripping Sean’s tonsils out.

  He couldn’t just walk by Tristin without checking on her. “Trist, you all right?” he asked, placing his hand on her back. She turned around like she was about to snap at him, but she didn’t. She looked almost happy to see him.

  “Yeah, I was just trying to give Kristen these,” she held up the bottle of pills.

  “I’ll take them to her, if you want.”

  “Thanks,” she said.

  Connor caught her glancing in Brian’s direction. Neither she nor Kristen were acting like themselves today and Brian seemed to be at the center of it.

  “You sure you’re all right?”

  “Yeah,” she said looking back at Brian again. “I’m good.”

  ***

  Dax was covering the shelves of cleaning supplies with a throw he’d found in his trunk when his phone started buzzing. There were twenty new emails in the Sun Vlogger’s inbox and it appeared his story of the day had been delivered right to him. The video of KT twins and the scene in the stairwell confirmed his original idea, there was definitely a love triangle going on right under his nose.

  He pulled up his blog to include the new developments, finally feeling good about the day’s post. It was like magic, even when he didn’t have a strong lead story, something always presented itself at the last moment.

  ***

  Two days as Class President and Kristen was already creating a scandal. No matter how good it felt to shove that tray in Tristin’s face, it was wrong. She was supposed to be leading an example for others to follow and instead she was an embarrassment to herself and to the student body. What if they impeached her for this?

  She hid in the auditorium balcony where no one would think to look for her, but when Connor came walking up the stairs she remembered who first brought her there back in the ninth grade. She quickly hushed the thought of yet another failed attempt at a relationship. She was trapped in the land of boyfriends past.

  If people knew the number of make outs and breakups that happened in their group they would think they were having an orgy, but sometimes friendships as close as theirs created curiosity that wouldn’t dull without experimentation. With Emmitt it was all physical but Connor was the good guy; a great listener, and an even greater kisser.

  He was a safe zone during a time when she just needed someone to hold her and she would always love him for that, but ultimately she knew it couldn’t last. He was too beautiful to resist and wasn’t giving it up, so they parted on the best of terms and just went back to being friends like nothing ever happened.

  He sat beside her, staring out at the stage. He had a gift of calming people with his silence to the point they’d just confess things they’d never tell anyone else. It annoyed the hell out of Kristen, because it always worked.

  “What do you want to know?” she snapped and immediately regretted it. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that.”

  Connor looked at her with his beautiful grin that made him look so much older than his age, and took her hand, “I don’t want anything but to be here for you in any way you need me.”

  She felt the lump form in her throat, but she wasn’t going to cry. Who knew how many minions the Sun Vlogger had around school? Kristen didn’t want to give them any more ammo. Still, what she needed was a Connor hug; his hugs were famous for making her feel like the world wasn’t going to crush her. She pulled up the retractable armrest and he opened his arms as though he read her mind.

  She rested her head against his chest as she powered on her iPad. The safety she felt in his arms was the one thing she was glad they still shared. He was an amazing hugger. His arms didn’t just wrap around her, there was a squeeze to his grip, protective and consoling all at the same time. It only took seconds for her shoulders to relax as she inhaled his Axe body spray. Everything about Connor was calming, which was probably why people felt like they could tell him anything.

  “He slept with her,” Kristen whispered, without even thinking. Connor responded by holding her even tighter.

  Chapter Five

  Emmitt/Dax

  Emmitt pushed his books aside and logged onto the Sun Vlogger’s site. He had, like, ten missed calls from Dax, but between the email and Kristen he never got to hear the dirt Dax found on Sean. The benefit to knowing the Sun Vlogger’s identity meant Emmitt had the chance to control the amount of crap that got out about him and his friends, but he only used it as a last resort.

  The situation with Hannah had him feeling so desperate that he needed to do something. He wished he could just walk across the street and bang on her door. He knew she would open it for him, but instead he was trapped in his own version of a coffin. It was nice when his friends came to see him, but he knew eventually they would start asking why he never came out.

  It wasn’t like he didn’t want to, it was the attacks. Every time he tried to leave, his throat would close as if he were being strangled by the air. He always collapsed before he even got a foot out the door. Luckily, his parents hadn’t seen it or else they would’ve had him committed. There was no room for the weak in the Lawson family. Emmitt was expected to be strong, even his friends saw him that way. The truth was that he was scared. He blamed himself for what happened to Ellie, and he was willing to do anything to keep from losing Hannah too.

  The Sun Vlogger was late. Emmitt was just about to go back to studying when the live stream finally opened.

  ***

  “Hey there, Sun Gods, I hate to be tardy to the party but there were some very recent developments I had to address. So, let’s get right into it. I’d like to dedicate today’s vlog to relationships. Not the cute little puppy love ‘you hang up, no you hang up’ crap,” Dax said, twirling his lime green wig. “I’m talking about these whirlwind Bella, Edward, Katniss, Gale, earth-shattering, defectively altering, spiralling hell pits we call relationships.

  “Because, frankly, you all need a good kick in the ass for lovely little scenes like the one I received just before logging on.”

  A jumpy video of Kristen smashing her tray in Tristin’s face streamed.

  “By itself you’re all probably scratching your heads, wondering what this has to do with today’s theme? Especially, if you’ve been around long enough to see the KT mud fight of 2013, please feel free to search my archives for that hidden gem.

  “I am sad to report that the unspeakable has finally happened. It appears that not only are these two hot for the same guy, but the ever popular and strictly lezzy Tristin has in fact Jolie’d her sisters BF overnight. Which makes me wonder…what’s your girlfriend going to think about this new development, Tristin? And Brian, talk about being the envy of every guy in school, apparently you’ve got the magic stick that turns lesbians straight.

  “Trust me, Kristen, you aren’t the only one with an unfaithful partner. There are tons of you sitting next to s
omeone who’s cheating on you and you know what? I feel sorry for you all. For those of you so desperate for physical contact that they would lower themselves to the poor company of the lowest form of human being on our social meter, you think no one will ever find out, but it always makes its way to my inbox. My advice should be to stop yourself from ruining anymore lives, but then I wouldn’t have the pleasure of outing you and trust and believe, I will.

  “So how do you know if your loving partner is getting it from somewhere else? Well that’s easy. If they aren’t getting it from you, they’re getting it from someone else. And that’s not my guessing, it’s a fact. The number of virgins walking among us is small, but the funny thing is virgins are rarely ever single. If you’re making the holy choice to abstain, don’t be surprised when you learn your partner is doing the backseat bounce with someone else.”

  “All right enough of my preaching, now onto the other side of craptastic relationships. How do you know when your BF or GF is sucking the life out of you? And not in the good way. Well, take a look at this little before and after,”

  Photos of Hannah pop up and Emmitt clenched his fists. He told Dax to focus on Sean, not Hannah.

  “Sorry, Hannah-bear. I’m really not trying to pick on you, but have you seen yourself lately. I mean seriously, either the girl is terminally ill or someone needs to get her away from her leech of a boyfriend. I’d like to direct this message to those ‘so called’ friends of girls like this. What the fuck are you doing? Don’t sit around and watch your friends wither away for the purpose of staying out of it.

  “I’m sure you can tell by now I’m severely annoyed by all of you and the topic you call relationships. Take a moment and think about the buyers beware before jumping into the shit pile of love. And on a final note, whatever happened to good old-fashioned hooking up? I am seriously throwing in my vote for the return of free love, stringless hookups, and guarded hearts. At least then we wouldn’t have to get all ’Young and Restless.’ Let these three girls be your examples of what not to do.”

  ***

  Kristen, Tristin, and Hannah’s pictures took up the screen and Emmitt turned off his monitor, visibly upset. He grabbed his phone and shot off a text to Dax to back off Hannah, and just before he hit send, his computer speakers chimed. He turned on the monitor to see an instant message notification.

  CCitizen17: Trust me, I wouldn’t contact you with this if I didn’t have proof.

  Em2016: So let’s hear it.

  CCitizen17 Sean’s been on Steroid’s for almost a year now. I know because I dated the person who gets them for him.

  Em2012: He’s not even on the team anymore.

  CCitizen17: I hear his dad’s been shopping him around for the minor leagues. Look, I have to go, but know the photo is real. And I’m sorry about what happened to your sister.

  Em2012: But what about the drug test?

  CCitizen17: He wouldn’t be the first athlete who cheated a drug test.

  Emmitt didn’t want to believe Ellie’s death was more than an accident. Sean was upset with Hannah for breaking up with him. What if he backed into Emmitt’s car on purpose?

  Emmitt rushed to his bedroom door, but when he gripped the knob he felt pressure around his neck. Falling to his knees, out of breath, he was too determined to give up. He opened the door and a rush of air from the hall attacked him, knocking him on his back, his heart beat erratically, too many thoughts ran through in his head. He was convinced it the attacker was a ghost. What if it was Ellie trying to kill him for not leaving when she asked him?

  His soul felt like it was separating from his body and he didn’t know how to hold on. “I’m sorry!” he shouted, but it only came out as whisper. His head and shirt were soaked with sweat as he choked on his own spit. This was his worst attack yet. Even if he did leave his room, what was waiting out there for him? What if there were more ghosts trying to kill him? What if he wasn’t allowed to live without his twin? What if he was already dying? He’d read stories online where the surviving twin just randomly passed away. Maybe it was for the best. He hadn’t managed to live much without her anyway.

  His consciousness was slipping. Emmitt reached out his hand and slammed his bedroom door, just before he blacked out.

  Chapter Six

  Dax/Emmitt/Kristen/Connor

  Dax decided he couldn’t sit around waiting for the proof to come to him. Sean and Noelle managed to dodge his cameras. He knew he had a chance of catching them if Sean dropped Hannah off without going in, so he followed them and waited to see if he was right. He also hoped to catch of glimpse of Emmitt, who he hadn’t seen since Ellie’s funeral. Unfortunately the Lawson house seemed unusually quite in the thirty minutes it too for Sean’s the passenger door finally open.

  “It’s about freaking time,” he whispered as he started his engine, but he paused when he saw Kristen across the street. She was lugging bags toward Emmitt’s bedroom window and Dax was fully engaged. “Could this be why I haven’t gotten a call back?”

  His initial thought was to be pissed. Emmitt never asked Dax to bring him stuff. In fact, he’d never even been invited over to hang out. Yes, he was fully aware that Emmitt was straight, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t be friends, even best friends.

  “Focus on the story,” Dax said to himself as he buried the delicious images of someday making out with Emmitt. He really needed to find someone of his own world to fantasize about and all he could come up with was Jake, the closeted baseball player he hooked up with during summer break. But as always Jake chickened out, and Dax hadn’t spoken to him since. The life of a journalist was an isolated one, but at least he had trials of the children to keep him occupied.

  “Hold on a second…” Why would Kristen be running errands for Emmitt with everything she had going on at school today? Had their mutual grief brought them together? Dax liked the idea of the two of them together. If he was going to lose Emmitt to any girl it would have to be someone fabulous like Kristen. What if Emmitt asked him to keep an eye on Sean to keep the trail off him? He watched Sean drive off, but waited to see if Kristen would come back out. After a couple of minutes he started to rethink his overactive imagination. This whole freaking day was just one huge reminder of how much his love life needed a jolt. Hell, even a spark would do.

  So he was a little more involved with other people’s lives than he was with his own, it would pay off some day. Once he got to college and started his own gossip column, TMZ would see his vlog reel and offer him a job in his freshman year. Okay, maybe his imagination was hyperactive, but it could happen. He had students from every high school in the district following his vlog. He was envisioning his E! True Hollywood story, but it was interrupted by Brian rushing towards Emmitt’s window.

  Brian looked too on edge as he stepped over the bushes and looked in the window. Maybe Kristen and Emmitt were hooking up, which would be a much bigger story than Sean and Noelle. It was quickly turning out to be his best school year ever.

  ***

  Emmitt felt hung-over when he finally opened his eyes. He thought the tapping sound was just in his head, but when it got louder he peeled himself off the floor and crawled to the window. The sun blinded his sensitive eyes as he pulled back the curtain.

  “Are you all right?” Kristen asked as he opened the window. “I was just about to give up.”

  “I was in the bathroom.” Emmitt took the bags and helped her inside.

  “What did you need all this stuff for anyway?”

  Memory of the attack looped in his head as Emmitt stared at his bedroom door.

  “Emmitt?” Kristen called shaking his arm.

  “Huh?” He was still a little dazed. The attacks usually left him that way for hours, but he had to pull it together for Kristen’s sake.

  “I said what did you need all this stuff for?”

  Emmitt checked the bags and grinned with his back to her. “It’s not important.” He stood, taking her hand. “If I
had known, I wouldn’t have asked you to do all this.”

  “I didn’t want anyone to know, and I don’t want to talk about it.”

  Emmitt’s phone buzzed. “No problem. We can just hang.” He read his new text message.

  On my way over. You need anything?

  No, I’m good, but let me

  check with Kris.

  “Looks like Connor’s coming over to hang out too. He’s taking orders if you need anything.” When he looked up at Kristen, she didn’t look excited. “What’s wrong?”

  “Are you sure I won’t be in the way?” Kristen asked.

  “Since when would we not want you around?”

  She looked like she was about to say something, but her face went pale when she turned to the window. Emmitt followed her view to find Brian staring at them, his expression was just as broken as hers.

  Kristen backed up until she was in the corner near the bathroom door. Emmitt held a finger up for Brian to hold on.

  “Do you want me to tell him to go?” Emmitt asked Kristen. She shrugged even though she looked like she was going to hurl. Emmitt walked around the bed and opened the window, while Kristen backed up even further into the corner.

  Brian climbed in, and Emmitt could already tell it was a bad idea. He looked out the window for Connor, but he spotted Dax, sitting in his car across the street. He glanced back at Kristen and Brian. They both looked like they were torturing each other by being in the same room. Emmitt took the silent moment to text Dax.

  Quit Spying.

  Seconds later Dax pulled off and Emmitt closed the curtains, just to be sure.

  “Kris, I’m not stalking you,” Brian said. “I just need you to hear me out.” He approached her, and with nowhere else to go, Kristen bumped into Emmitt’s bookcase. Emmitt climbed over his bed to get between them.

  “Um, maybe you should have a seat over there,” he said to Brian, pointing to a bench across the room.