Zenon's Game Chapter 287

She was wearing a purple beanie over her braids.

"You're Candace Turner, aren't you?" she asked me, like I was asking a stupid question.

"Yes," I said, confused by how she was on a full name basis with me and I was on a no name basis with her. "What's your name?"

She hadn't come alone and I recognized the girl standing behind her. It was Stacey.

I hadn't seen Stacey in a while, but she was a senior and she'd been a counselor at summer camp with Zenon and me. We didn't have the fondest of memories together. After she unzipped my fleece, stuck a $1 bill in my b-ra and took a photo of me sleeping...

I have trust issues for good reason.

"Hi Candace," Stacey waved, a couple steps behind, "We heard about your grand trip to Dubai. You really glowed up this semester, am I right? Anyway, Oma finally uploaded the pics. Cute, huh?"

The best response is silence. I was sure of that.

This beanie girl said, "Bianca had some interesting insight that she shared in the comment section," she pulled up her phone like she was verifying facts.

What is it with seniors and their interest in my love life?

I knew these girls hated me, so this fake kindness act was not going to get them anywhere.

"B commented on a photo of Zenon Albert and you," the girl spoke about Bianca like they were friends, which I doubted. She stopped scrolling and read it out, "Puppy love."

That's it?

If they're talking about this right now, then the Kaden news hasn't hit yet.

"OK," I said, waiting for a worse part to come.

This isn't bad - Puppy love is not bad. Maybe Bianca's being... nice? She did send me a friend request.

Stacey followed up with the next question: "So you're not giving Zenon any?"

Sorry, what? Did I miss something?

"Must be hard for a guy like him," the other girl - who still hadn't introduced herself - said, "Don't you ever wonder if he's getting it on the side?"

I don't know your name. Why would I answer that?

I was so taken aback, I hadn't expected this at all. My reaction made them both smirk.

Respect to Bianca for that sly move. No one can call her out for being rude, since the comment was technically nice, but it did imply that Zenon and I hadn't done the full shabang. Why does Bianca have to spill my personal life out on social media?

Stacey said, "I've been telling people how surprised I am by this. You seemed so desperate, I was sure you were falling all over him in that cabin."

Excellent.

Even when I try to get away from Zenon... I can't.

I hid in the computer room. Joe wasn't here, but the few people who were, were sitting with giant headphones on. They didn't register my presence.

I felt relief at escaping all the toxic gossip outside. From one drama to another, this day was getting harder and harder to deal with.

I dropped my backpack to the floor and sat at one of the computers. I didn't log on, but placed my phone in front of the keyboard instead.

I found Oma's album on Instagram. From all the action in the comments section, I could see it was causing a stir.

I scrolled through the photos, admiring her photography skills. She'd taken an incredible action shot of Axel on a dirt bike, with his pearly white smile and unruly hair.

And a group photo of us all at the beach party on New Year's Eve. Everyone's outfits were incredible, and our arms draped over each other. Bryce was spraying a bottle into the air and the drops looked like stars in a black sky. Champagne showers.

Then I found a picture of Zenon and me facing each other, so close we were practically kissing, with the sand dunes in the background. Shades of yellow. His cap was down over his eyes and the hot sun glinted against his biceps.

He looked so fine - I hate how that makes it harder for me to stay mad at him right now.

And the comment section was blowing up. Every time I refreshed, there were new comments and a dozen more likes. I had to scroll to find Bianca's:

puppy love

I clicked on Bianca's name and accepted her friend request. Then, with a boldness I didn't think I had, I DM'd her:

Hey, what's up with that comment?

I stared at my message and instantly regretted it. Should I delete it? Did she already get the notification? I was about to click unsend when the blue dot popped up and I saw she was online.

I immediately closed the conversation and freaked out.

Bianca was scary. And she did not like me. Why did I-

My phone buzzed and I looked down. Bianca had responded:

Sensitive much?

I typed back: It'd be nice to keep everything low key

I kept my message vague on purpose. I didn't want to create a bigger fire than there already was.

A few seconds later, Bianca's message popped up in response: They call you a prude and they call me a s*l*u*t. So what?

I didn't know what to write next. I didn't expect us to be having a full-on conversation in our DMs, but here we are. I watched the three dots appear and waited for her next message.

Bianca: Girls project their insecurities on people they're jealous of. Take it as a compliment

I thought about what that meant, looking around the computer room as if I expected the answer to pop out. So many times this year, I've found myself wondering what people's lives are really like. Bianca was a queen B, and with that comes a lot of jealousy - is that why she's harsh? She dishes what she takes?