Prince Augustus reverted to his old behavior. He became cold, ill-tempered, sullen, and increasingly worse as time went on. Moreover, he hurt and offended me. But that’s nothing compared to the agony he’s going through right now, which is more than double what I’m going through right now, so I guess I deserve it.
And about the kiss, it did spread throughout the school, especially among the teachers. The kids didn’t talk about it while I was around, but their looks seemed to criticize me, anyway. And, exactly as I suspected, the photo of me and the prince kissing was plastered all over the Borstal website. As soon as I see the image, I get a pang of fear in my stomach, fear of what Raeanna may think of me if she saw it.
"When I think back to after the last game, I feel a strange sense of déjà vu."
"I agree; every time I see the image, I can’t help but feel upset."
"If I’m right, Raeanna treats Gemma as if she were her closest friend. She put her trust in the wrong person, and she betrayed Raeanna. Gemma is a slut, no doubt about it!"
"She had the audacity to kiss the prince in front of the whole school."
"I feel sorry for Raeanna."
And now everyone thinks I’m some kind of slut chick, which is ridiculous.
"Hey, Gemma!"
I returned to my senses and realized that I was at the same table as Felipe and others. "I’m sorry, but I’m not in the right frame of mind today."
"Stop reading the comments," Jonah said.
"Gemma, reading negative remarks isn’t going to help you at all," Felipe added.
"They are all witnesses that the prince kissed her, so why should Gemma be blamed?" As Janus said, his brows were furrowed.
"Because they can’t talk shit about the prince, that’s why they’re pointing it out to Gemma," Tal explained.
"Don’t worry, it’ll all be over shortly," Elias said.
"We know what the truth is. Prince Augustus was the one who ran at you and abruptly pushed his lips to kiss you." Jonah said as he aimed his spoon toward me.
"His gaze when he looked at you that day proved my mistake." Jonah made a sneering face. "For a split second, I had the impression that the man I was seeing was genuinely interested in you."
"That turns out to be a part of his devious scheme. Now everyone believes Gemma is a... I’m not even going to say it out loud."
"Slut." I was the one who finished the phrase that Jonah was going to utter. "Enough with the prince."
"No," Janus firmly refused. "Eventually, Gemma, you will come to despise him. The prince was solely responsible for your suffering, and he deserves nothing but hatred from this world... "
"Shut up!" I smashed the table, which caused the whole cafeteria to jolt awake. "Don’t make snide remarks about someone who isn’t even around, Janus. Regardless of how much you despise him, do not speak badly of him behind his back." I rose to my feet. "As far as I am aware, none of you know him."
I left them in the cafeteria and quickly went to the restroom. I turned on the faucet and rubbed my face with the water that was running out of the faucet. I glanced at myself in the mirror while allowing the water to run freely.
After I free my father from jail, I’ll return to my usual life and forget about all that happened here, including the prince.
The heavy slam of the door made me leap in dread. Someone purposely slammed the door shut, trapping me inside. After yanking on the doorknob so many times, I was nearly out of strength. "Janus! Jonah!" I let out a yell. "This isn’t funny at all. Felipe! Tal! Elias! Is anybody out there? Guys!"
The bell sounded, signaling the end of the break. No one has heard my scream until now. Voice loss and hoarseness had set in for me. Even my phone, which had run out of power, is now completely worthless. I can’t call for help.
It’s been an hour, there is still no help, and no one seems to notice my absence.
In the distance, I could hear the sound of someone’s footsteps walking toward the restroom. I rise and begin banging on the door, signaling that someone’s been locked up here. "Hey, please open the door," I begged in a raspy voice.
I breathed a sigh of relief as I heard something outside. Thankfully, this person heard my pleading. I take a step back since I’m obstructing the door. Lincoln stood in front of the comfort room, standing and clutching a piece of wood in his hands.
"Are you all right?" he asked.
I nodded. "I thought I’d be stuck here for a whole day."
Lincoln took my hand in his and dragged me into Prince Augustus’ private room. We caught the prince talking to an unfamiliar girl. Lincoln didn’t hesitate to hit the prince, which surprised both the girl and me. He threw a blow to the prince with his right fist while clutching my arm with his left.
"This is too much!" Lincoln screamed with rage.
The prince responds by flashing a nasty smile on Lincoln’s face.
"Is this the way you treat someone you like?" Lincoln asked, his voice rising in pitch. "I’ve had enough of you, and this time I'm not letting you have Gemma."
I kept my gaze fixed on the prince until he vanished from sight.