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For the rest of the weekend, Jack and I communicate through text and text only. He says he's piecing together some sort of a plan and asked that I just trust him. I have no problem doing that, since I think my trust is something he has finally earned, but now it's Monday afternoon and I'm itching for news.

I tug on the straps of my carrier and shift my hold on the number of back-breaking textbooks in my arms. Astrix and I walk across a crowded hallway, on our way to our lockers before heading over to lunch.

I still have not directly spoken to Jack since last Friday, and I'm wondering about that and about him and what he's doing...When I get my answer.

I hear a shrill, high-pitched, earsplitting cry. Astrix and I stop in our tracks and share a look before racing down the corridor and peering around the bend for the source of the noise.

A small crowd has gathered around Jack and Paige, and she looks absolutely furious.

Her face is streaked with mascara, but her hair is still perfectly intact. She grabs on to Jack's arm, but he shakes her off and turns his head.

"Paige, it's over. I can't keep up with your demands."

Cody holds onto Jack's shoulder and whispers something into his ear. Jack vigorously shakes his head and moves back down the hallway.

He catches my eye and smirks, but I'm too stunned to acknowledge it.

Astrix nudges my shoulder. "What's that? What's he doing?"

I shake my head. "I-I don't know...He hasn't told me..."

Paige throws her arms down and screams, wiping her eyes and spinning around. She crashes into me and immediately retracts with a gasp.

She narrows her eyes and crosses her arms, pushing me out of the way.

"You. You are going to pay for this."

I open my mouth in shock. "Me? What the hell did I do?"

She seethes. "You got yourself involved. Everything was perfectly fine until....Until...."

I cross my arms. "Until what? You never acknowledged me until Jack got here, so if anyone's been getting involved into something they shouldn't, it's you."

Paige's cold glare flicks between me and Astrix. She scoffs.

"That's the last straw. You know...I tried being nice. But dogs belong on a leash, and I'm going to tie your knots double."

She sneers and then stalks off. Kelsy and Peyton follow her with a flourish, shooting me a nasty look in the process.

Astrix places a hand on my shoulder and steers me away. "Don't listen to them. They can't run your life for you, only you are capable of that. Forget about it."

I furrow my brow. "I can't just forget about it when social security comes knocking on my door and drags me away, can I? Or when I hear from an attendant on a plane that Delilah won her stupid case?"

Astrix shakes her head. "That's not going to happen. I suspect that Jack has a plan behind all this. He wouldn't make any sort of move unless he did."

Begrudgingly, I have to agree with her. Jack isn't impulsive. Everything he does is calculated.

I shake my head and shift my hold on my textbooks.

"Let's just get to lunch. I feel like getting drunk on Pepsi."

...

The news of Jack's abrupt break-up with Paige spreads through Glen Wood like wildfire. Through the rest of my afternoon classes, I feel like I can't go anywhere without hearing the whispers.

"I heard she cheated on him with another guy and got pregnant."

"I heard Jack got her pregnant and doesn't want the baby."

"Really? I heard Jack's a bi and he's crushing on Aiden..."

Honestly, some of the rumors running rampant are so ridiculous, I don't know whether to cry or to laugh.

I'm just happy they're not gossiping about me. I'm surprised Paige hasn't released a new chain thread about me and my past and how I'm living illegally. I feel like I'm waiting for it to happen, and my fingernails are already bitten to their beds in paranoia.

The end of the day drags on longer than usual, and by the time we're dismissed to go home, I leave the school with a major head-ache.

Jack stops me at the parking lot and I look up at him in surprise. There are still a few stragglers and a whole lot of the student body milling around and making their way to their cars.

"What are you doing," I hiss. "Not. In. Public."

He shakes his head. "The cover doesn't matter anymore. Paige isn't going to release a word about you, and she'll keep her mouth shut for sure."

I raise an eyebrow and look around nervously. People are starting to stop and stare.

"How do you know that?"

Jack smiles. "Paige isn't the only one with blackmailing skills."

"Blackmail?"

I tug in my eyebrows and look up at him. "What could you possibly blackmail her with?"

Jack smirks. "You know Mr. Vern, the English teacher?"

I slowly nod. "Yeah...What about him?"

Jack scratches his neck. "Well...Paige is failing English, no surprise there...So she's been making it up to him with extra credit..."

He pauses and looks at me. "I think you can guess what kind of extra credit he's asking for."

I widen my eyes and cover my mouth with my palms.

"Paige and Mr. Vern...Oh my god...That's-"

Jack cuts me off by placing a finger to my lips.

"A secret for a secret."

Before I can move, he bends down and presses his lips to mine. I forget about the stares and the on-lookers. Instead, I let him place his hands on my waist and just enjoy it.