When Trust is Gone - The Quarterback's Regret

Heartbreaking Information

Chapter 6

Addison’s POV

“That was a private moment between two consenting adults and none of your business, Addison. I guess it still hurts you that Garrett picked me over you, doesn’t it? Everyone knows that he made the right choice,” Tammy ground out.

I focused on a part of her statement, as the rest of it was too painful for me to acknowledge. “A private moment,” I scoffed before laughing. I couldn’t hold it in anymore at what she had just said. Once I finally stopped laughing, I managed to say, “Tammy, a private moment is just that, private. You wanted me to see you and Garrett together, and I saw you. I almost lost my dinner after seeing what you two were doing,” I replied in amusement.

“You are jealous, Addison. Admit it. I have Garrett, and you never will. You will always be a sad, disgusting blob. You can't beat me because no one wants you, especially Garrett. All you have left in your pathetic life is to take your anger out on me. I can’t help it that Garrett finds me attractive. Maybe if you lost a hundred pounds, he might also be interested in you. No, that is still wrong. After what you did, he will never trust you again,” Tammy said with a smirk.

That comment was a red flag. “After I did what? What is it that I am supposed to have done, Tammy? It is weird that you seem to know, yet I don't. Especially since it involves me, and not you. So, please enlighten me. Because I have no idea what you are even talking about. What is that supposed to mean exactly? I haven’t done anything to Garrett, and if someone said I did, they are lying,” I replied in annoyance.

“Whatever, it doesn’t matter anymore now, does it? What does matter is that you stay out of our business and our relationship from now on. He is not your friend anymore and never will be again. That is all it would ever be for you anyway, friendship. You are just not his type. He wants to be with someone he can find attractive, and that will never be you, Addison,” Tammy told me. She leaned over to say, “You can never compare to me, Addison. You just don’t match up. Garrett will always be mine for the taking. As long as I want him, he will come running.” she told me before standing back up again. Her irritating laughter rang across the room.

“He was never mine to begin with, Tammy. So, it doesn’t bother me. I don’t have any control over what he does or doesn’t do. It is up to him to pick who he chooses to spend time with. But I can’t help but point out that you have no loyalty, and you are not his girlfriend anymore. I know that, and I don't follow all the gossip around here. We all watch you chase him around like a dog in heat. The shameful part is, that if I know what you are doing, the whole school does. I am always the last to know about this type of thing. I can’t imagine how embarrassing it must be for you that everyone here knows about it. Oh, and if you are really worried about competition for Garrett, you might want to turn around. That way, you can truly see who it is. Since you obviously can’t figure it out on your own. They are lined up behind you like some sort of vacuous lineup. Your so-called friends are much more of a threat and actual competition to you than I will ever be,” I told her candidly.

A chair scraped back, and Holden stood up to stand next to me. He turned around to face Tammy with anger etched all over his face. My stomach rolled to see the interest in her eyes as her eyes raked over his body. She is absolutely disgusting. She has already had s*x with his brother, but clearly, she just can’t seem to control herself at all. Seeing Holden’s expression of disgust at her blatantly checking him out finally snapped her out of her perusal of him.

“Tammy, don’t think you can snap your fingers and Garrett will come running to you. Everyone here knows exactly what you are. My brother is not that selective, but I hope you know that there is a reason he always suits up. I can’t believe that he would go there myself. I see nothing about you that interests me at all. I do not know what my brother is thinking by entertaining you for a minute. I believe Addison. Unlike you, she is a trustworthy person. I know that she didn’t do anything wrong. So take your innuendo and go back to your table. Addie was right. We don’t want you over here, and we won’t be coming to join you and your friends,” Holden told her.

I saw the anger flare in her eyes. He didn’t speak softly, carrying his voice through the cafeteria. He didn’t care about sparing her feelings, and she was pissed. I could see the wheels turning in her mind as she couldn’t fire back at him. He might say something to his parents, keeping her from seeing Garrett. I watched as the wheels slowly turned in her mind. She finally realized that there was nothing that she could come back with, not without pissing Garrett or his parents off. She turned her gaze at me and said, “Happy birthday, Addison,” before knocking my tray onto the floor.

“My gift to you is saving you two thousand unnecessary calories. You're welcome. Maybe if you go through the line again, you can pick up a salad,” Tammy said before turning on her heel and walking away.

Holden knelt beside me and helped me pick up the mess on the floor before dumping the ruined meal into the trash. He then grabbed more napkins for me to clean the floor up. I almost wished he hadn’t helped. I felt like crying. I fought the tears back as hard as possible. I knew that I needed time to get them under control. I will not let her see that she has upset me. She would enjoy it too much.

She is the most hateful person I have known in my life. I don’t know what it is that Garrett sees in her. I had to focus on wiping it up and then went to throw everything away. I already knew my cheeks were red and flushed. I could feel the heat on my face. I want to get out of here now, but I won't give her the satisfaction of chasing me out of here.

“Addison Vilario, please come to the principal’s office,” an announcement came through the speakers.

“If Tammy tries to get you in trouble, tell them to call me. I will tell them what happened,” Holden told me with sympathy in his eyes.

“Me too. Tammy is getting out of control. Someone needs to stop her,” Kate agreed.

“She hasn't had time to get her father involved. This is probably from the incident this morning. Mr. Collins will back me up if it is about that run-in,” I told them both.

“My brother is such an i***t,” I heard Holden mumble as I walked away from our table. My stomach was growling, and I hated that I wasn't able to eat at least that cupcake now. It was from one of my favorite shops. As I passed Tammy’s table, I gave them a wide berth. I wasn’t just going to allow her to hurt me. I knew just how she operated. I stopped when she threw her leg out to try to trip me.

“Tammy, I hope you enjoy your last week of high school. I am no fortune-teller, but I believe this is where you peak. It’s all downhill for you from now on,” I scoffed as I stepped around her outstretched leg.

Gasps rang out from the nearby tables. Some of our classmates were laughing, and some were already on their phones texting their friends who had different lunch periods. I didn’t care what she told her father. I was going to set the records straight. Plus, my classroom this morning had a camera in it. It would be easy for them just to look at the footage and see who the aggressor was.

I waited a minute in the outer office, waiting to be called in. This was not my first go-around with Vice Principal Daniels. He liked to make me wait. He didn’t like dealing with me, as he wasn't more intelligent than me. I didn’t cause trouble at school, unlike Tammy. I had no disciplinary write-ups for any of my school years, including my senior year. I can say that this was the last thing I would miss about high school—the sheer pettiness of it all. I didn’t ask for any of this. After a five-minute wait, I started to doodle on my tablet.

My mother was a clothing designer. When I was younger, she let me draw on my pad as I pretended to design dresses alongside her. These days, I do all my designs on a display tablet. I just like to come up with designs, as it soothed me. I usually just do designs for myself. Not to sell, just to work with my mother. She has made designs for the last ten years. It allowed her the freedom to stay home with me, and she loved to do it. Her major in college was design. She would go out to her gazebo outside and use the colors of nature to make beautiful evening gowns.

When she saw that I had a knack for it, she encouraged it. She loved the fact that we could work together. I liked it because making designs was very calming. It made me forget my issues or a hard day at school. It allowed me to use my brain, but still decompress from a hard day. I was using it now to relax while I waited. I wasn’t worried about my being in trouble, as I hadn’t done anything wrong. I watched as Mr. Collins and Mrs. Middleton hurried past me without stopping. That made me frown. They always greeted me. They never ignored me. Now, I am getting nervous.

“Addison, could you please join us in my office?” Principal Carson asked me. His voice was always very soothing to me. He was always so calm and collected. I quickly put my tablet into my backpack and stepped into his office. I was surprised that vice-principal Daniels was not present, but there was a man in a suit and a state trooper in the room. What is going on? What has someone alleged I did to get the state trooper here?

Principal Carson stepped forward and said, “Please have a seat, Addison. We need to speak to you.”

“What is going on?” I asked as I sat down. I placed my backpack on the floor and looked around. Nothing about this was normal. This was serious. I knew before he spoke that my life was about to change, not for the better. The room was heavy with emotion. I was glad that I hadn’t been able to eat lunch.

“Addison, I don’t know how to say this other than just to come out and say it. Your mother died in a vehicle accident this morning. Is there anyone you can call to come and pick you up and help you make plans for your mother?” Principal Carson blurted out.