~JENNA~
“You’re mad at me, aren’t you?”
Nicolette continued to sip her coffee, keeping her eyes drawn to her papers. I could feel the other faculty members’ eyes on me all day, an ominous tension lingering in the teacher’s lounge. So I knew Nicolette held a grudge that I broke up with Marco. And everyone knew, waiting for the bottle to combust, slight peripheral glances our way, taking their time and keeping their voices down.
I kept my volume quiet, hating that this was a center for gossip. “Listen, I really liked Marco but things changed.” She scribbled something on one of the papers, tapping the edge of her pen then setting it down. For the first time, she looked directly at me with a hurtful glare, opening her mouth to say something then quickly closing them, appearing unsure of her
