Pretty Monster

by Somers, Jill

“Trustworthy?” Quinn nearly spat at her. “Haley, Dash isn’t trustworthy. He’s lying to me—has been for weeks now. Same with Ridley, and now Drax, Charlie and Pence. Who’s next? You? Trent?”

  Haley sighed. “Quinn, what Savannah told me… I’m sure it was just her own fear talking. Trying to keep us all in check. I’m sure Charlie and Pence were just looking out for me—trying to make sure I was safe. Even if there was more to it than that, it wouldn’t mean they’re out to get you or me. Who’s putting these thoughts in your head? Is it Reese?”

  Quinn knew she sounded crazy to someone who didn’t already know, which gave her the sense that Haley really wasn’t involved in whatever was going on. She appreciated that. But she also felt confident that she wasn’t crazy. After all, they had all admitted it, to some extent. Maybe they couldn’t say what they were involved in, but it was definitely something big.

  The real question was, which side was everyone on?

  “Look,” she said to Haley. “I know not to trust Reese. I know not to trust Dash. I know not to trust anyone, just as I always have. So don’t worry about me, okay, Haley? I’ll be fine.”

  • • •

  Dash wasn’t wearing the same glare he had been wearing as of late when she came to power tech the next day. She was the last to arrive, and if she wasn’t mistaken, she saw concern on his face, and possibly even relief when she arrived. Not that she cared. Any care she had for him was long gone.

  He stood silently as the rest of the class chatted amongst themselves. Charlie and Pence tried to have a word with her—nothing serious; there was nothing serious they could actually say to her; they were just trying to lure some semblance of politeness out of her. Good luck there, she thought grimly, completely ignoring their comments and watching Dash with cold, expressionless eyes. Finally, Trent arrived. He approached Quinn, expression surprisingly supportive.

  “You okay?” he asked her, offering her a small smile.

  Quinn liked that smile. She liked his question, too, even if it meant Haley had been warning everyone in the YA that she was losing it. Trent’s question felt like the only genuine thing she’d experienced in days—like he was the only one not lying to her.

  “Am I ever?” she asked him jokingly, but he didn’t get the chance to respond before Dash was speaking.

  “Listen up, everyone.” Quinn hated his voice. It was too perfect. “Here’s today’s assignments. Pence, Haley. Charlie, Tommy. Trent, Izzo—”

  Quinn raised her hand, not really sure what she was doing, but deciding to wing it.

  Dash ignored her, continuing with his list. “—Shade, Drax—”

  Quinn cleared her throat, intentionally projecting it so loudly, not a person for two blocks would miss it.

  Dash sighed, turning his gaze to her. “Yes, Quinn?”

  “I’d like to work with Trent today. Please.”

  “That’s nice, but that’s not who I have you paired with. Last I checked, I’m the one who decides these things.”

  “I know you’re used to calling all the shots around here. But that’s not what I want. If you pair me with anyone else, I’ll just send them into a nice, immeasurable pain again, so really, you’ll be saving them all the headache. Literally.”

  He glared at her. “Then I’ll just have to pair you with myself.”

  “You could. But given the romantic evening we had the other night that was abruptly cut short by the reminder of your never-ending lies and secrets, it might not exactly be appropriate.”

  The humming murmur that had been keeping the field abuzz instantly died. Everyone stared from her to him, utterly shocked. Trent, she noticed, was the only one who didn’t seem completely bewildered. He responded with something between a laugh and a gasp.

  She couldn’t read Dash’s expression, but she didn’t really care. She was going to have the upper hand for once, no matter what the cost.

  “For what it’s worth,” Trent offered cheerfully, “I’d love to work with Quinn.”

  “See?” Quinn asked Dash smugly. “Easy.”

  Dash held her gaze for another second. She couldn’t quite decide if there was nothing in his gaze or everything; was it a combination of anger, sadness, love, and fear, or was it simply that he had stopped caring?

  “Fine,” he finally said. “You win.”

  Equal parts pleased and disgusted with herself, she took Trent’s arm and pulled him off into the trees.

  • • •

  “I have to ask,” Trent said when they reached their destination and turned to face each other. “Did you really choose me because you wanted to practice with me? Or was your real intent to make out in the woods?”

  “How about this—you versus me. Only ability I’m allowed to use is my own super-strength. If you win, then we make out in the woods.”

  He watched her, utterly taken with her. It was a refreshing change, she decided. She’d had just about all she could take of both of the brothers. “And if you win?” he asked.

  She glanced backwards, sensing that Dash, along with the rest of the class, was still watching her.

  “We make out in the woods.”

  He smirked. “You’re on.”

  And so they began.

  Quinn didn’t practice her super-strength often. Despite having accidentally broken a table earlier that day, she didn’t normally find herself exceptionally strong. Sure, when she focused, she could lift objects as heavy as a car or truck without breaking a sweat. But generally, it was an ability that fell lower on her radar—behind compulsion, fire, and electricity.

  She waited for him to make the first move, deciding to see what he had before unleashing her own abilities on him. She didn’t doubt that he would go easy on her at first, but that would change quickly.

  Sure enough, his first attack on her was simple. He grabbed her by the arms, forcing her back against a tree and pinning her to it. It was more sexy than painful, she mused. But, not quite ready to give in to the prize just yet, she shoved him right back, pushing him against a tree of his own.

  “Not bad,” he offered, grinning. “But I’m just getting warmed up.”

  He pushed her back off of him, this time grabbing her in a headlock, his face inches from hers, forcing her down toward the ground.

  “This is fun,” she whispered to him, breathing easily through the mediocre force of the headlock, “but I get this feeling you’re too chickenshit to hit me.”

  And she twisted out of the headlock with ease, deciding it was time to throw the first punch.

  He flinched at the punch but didn’t stumble, watching her calculatedly. She could tell he was debating whether or not to hit her.

  Naturally, she hit him again. Harder. And then again, until, finally, he was stumbling.

  “Trust me,” she told him, starting to enjoy herself, “this will be a whole lot more fun if you hit me back.”

  And he did. Lightly, at first. Barely enough for her to feel it. But then she caught his second punch, twisting his arm backwards and giving him a kick to match. That was when they noticed them—the eyes all around them, watching them. People were watching her kick his ass.

  So, he fought back.

  He could hit hard, she discovered as both of them began to increase their momentum. Hard and fast. Before long, they were both hitting so hard, they were getting knocked to the ground, breathing becoming choppy, blood collecting in their mouths and noses. The rest of the class had stopped everything they were doing at this point, all eyes on the two of them.

  “This is about fifty percent for me,” he told her after throwing a particularly nasty punch that sent her spinning and falling to her arms and knees, catching herself and jumping back up within seconds.

  “Ten,” she fired back. “Come on, Trent. At least get me to twenty.”

  His eyes lit up with the drive to meet her challenge, and before she knew it, he was on top of her, pinning her to the ground, hands on her arms.

  She rolled on top of him easily, pinning h
im beneath her, but she could feel his energy rising and his strength growing. He pushed her off of him completely, sending her flying backwards onto her back and reclaiming his position on top of her.

  She grinned up at him. “Now we’re just acting horny.”

  “Fun as this is, if the same thing happens whether you win or I win…”

  “Right,” she said, flipping on top of him again, “but we have an audience, and it’s very important for me to keep up appearances as the strongest one around.”

  He held her gaze, clearly loving every second of this interaction. “Fine. But if anyone asks, I just didn’t want to hit a girl.”

  She laughed out loud. “Think you’re too far gone there,” she teased, but he was grabbing her and kissing her before she could say another word.

  • • •

  It had felt good, kissing Trent, she decided as she left power tech. Dash had come and broken it up within a few minutes, the rest of the class just behind him, eyes wide, intrigued. Dash wasn’t intrigued, of course. He simply shouted that class was dismissed and to get out of his sight. She wasn’t sure she had ever seen him that angry, and it pleased her. At least, it should have.

  It wasn’t just about pissing off Dash. It was about kisses being simple again. With Dash, there was literally so much power behind their kisses, she had no choice but to lose herself. With Trent, they were what they were supposed to be: fun, but easy. She was able to stay in control.

  Trent tried to follow her, but she dismissively told him she’d text him; she had things to do. She wanted to meet up with Rory again. Ever since learning that Rory might be a seer, her fear for the girl had tripled. If Savannah, or Dash, or any of them were to find out about it…

  Quinn spotted Haley on the way back to the dorm, realizing Haley must have left class before her.

  “Hey,” Quinn shouted to Haley, catching up to her easily. “Haley. Hold up.”

  But Haley didn’t stop, nor did she look Quinn in the eye. She kept her eyes cast downward, increasing her speed.

  Quinn stared over at her, fearing the worst. “Not you, too.”

  Haley glared up at her for the first time. Quinn was shocked to see that there were tears in her eyes. “No, Quinn, I haven’t joined your little made-up cult. I just can’t believe you would do that to me.”

  “Do…?”

  But Quinn trailed off when she realized what Haley was referring to: Trent. Quinn and Trent.

  “Oh,” Quinn managed, her voice becoming faint.

  “Look,” Haley said, coming to a stop and facing Quinn. “I know we never talked about it much. And I know you haven’t really had a chance to figure out what friendship is. But, Quinn, that was a shitty thing to do. And not just to me. It wasn’t fair to Trent, either.”

  Quinn knew Haley was right. She had used Trent to make Dash jealous, and in the process, she had hurt her closest friend—who, of course, was in love with Trent. What had she been thinking?

  About yourself. Just as she always did.

  “Haley,” she said, shaking her head. “I’m sorry.”

  Haley nodded, eyes sad. “I know.”

  And she left.

  • • •

  Quinn’s friendship with Haley had been one of the last things that mattered to her at Siloh; with that gone, her spirits sank lower than ever. Her relationship with Rory became just about the only thing that kept her going.

  Rory’s handle on her electric abilities got better and better by the day, though she still didn’t quite seem to have a handle on her micro-visions. She explained to Quinn that though the advice had helped her focus, the visions were still only brief flashes, and didn’t make any sense. Some of them, she explained, seemed to be from the past—distant memories she had almost forgotten.

  Quinn wanted to give the girl better advice, to help her see things more clearly, but she wasn’t sure how. For all of her influence over others’ thoughts, she had never experienced anything more than a vague feeling about the future. Now and again, she thought she could sense which decision someone might make, or which action someone might take, but never anything like what Rory was experiencing—never a vision.

  She told the girl to keep focusing, keep inviting the visions with an open mind, and most importantly, not tell a single other soul about it.

  She and Rory were on their way back to the dorm when they passed Ridley. He wasn’t after them this time; that much was clear. Still, when he saw them, his expression changed. He looked frustrated.

  “Ridley,” Quinn said, voice cold and distant.

  “Quinn. Haven’t seen much of you lately. Doing Dash’s job again?”

  “Dash refused to do his job when it came to Rory,” Quinn snapped at him, hating the mere mention of Dash’s name. She stood protectively in front of Rory, glaring at him. “And to be honest, I’ve had just about all I can take of the lot of you—Dash’s little fan club.”

  “Dash’s fan club?”

  “Oh, don’t act like you’re not. Like you’re not keeping secrets from me. Like you haven’t been his cheerleader from day one. Thanks for the encouragement there, Ridley. You pushed me right into that mouse trap, didn’t you?”

  “Mouse trap? Quinn, I told you there were things you didn’t know, not that we’re all out to get you. Who’s been poisoning your head with these ideas?”

  “Well, let’s see. Dash, for one, when he chose kicking me out of his bed over actually tell me the truth.” She knew she shouldn’t say so much in front of Rory, but she couldn’t bring herself to care. “You and Drax, and now Pence and Charlie, for all taking his side and refusing to be honest with me, just like him. You know, you’re all quick to point fingers at Reese and tell me he’s turning me against you, but you’ve all been doing that all on your own.”

  Ridley shook his head, eyes thick with disappointment. “I’m sorry you feel that way,” he told her. “I can see how you would be feeling alone right now, Quinn. But there is a lot more going on here than just you or Dash. If there wasn’t, I’m sure it would be a very different story.”

  “Who cares about me and Dash? How about me and you? You were my first friend here, Ridley. And now I can’t even get a straight answer from you.”

  He sighed. “This would all be so much easier if not for Reese.”

  “What would be?”

  “Look, Quinn, there’s only so much I can say, and I’ve said it. I’m sorry you’re hurting. At this point the only advice I can give you is to make a choice who you trust, and to choose carefully. Everything else depends on it.”

  “I choose not to trust anyone, just as I always have.”

  He deflated, visibly defeated. “Then the next time you find yourself feeling isolated and alone, and you want to blame us, I suggest you remember those words.”

  She stared at him, speechless.

  “You made your choice,” he said, and walked away from them.

  • • •

  Quinn was surprised to learn that Rory remained on her side. If she had to choose between Dash and Reese, she told Quinn, she would choose Dash; then again, if she had had the kind of life Quinn had, she would probably know better than to choose anyone but herself.

  “I swear,” Quinn said to her as they parted ways, “sometimes I think your real ability is wisdom.”

  “Well, we know I’ve got more than one,” Rory said, winking at her. “Could be.”

  And they took their leave of each other.

  Quinn made her way back to the bedroom, but Haley was nowhere to be found. Quinn showered and changed for bed, hoping Haley would be there upon her return, but still she was gone. Quinn reached for her phone, wondering whether she should text Trent if only to avoid being alone, but decided against it. As Haley had said, the Trent situation wasn’t fair to anyone.

  She thought about what Ridley had said to her that night and well into the morning. You made your choice. She had chosen isolation. She had done it to herself.

  The thing was, he wasn’t wrong. T
he difference was, every other time in her life she had chosen isolation, it had been what she wanted. Now, it was driving her insane.

  She was unable to focus on anything during math that next morning. Zerrick tried everything to get her to work with him, but it was useless. As much as she liked him, she hated school. She didn’t belong. She didn’t belong anywhere near there.

  She tried to talk to Haley after class, but Haley avoided her like the plague, taking an intentionally longer route to their next class just to stay away from her.

  Quinn tried not to overthink it, but she couldn’t help it. Haley had been devastated by Quinn’s behavior with Trent, but she had still been willing to talk that night. Avoidance wasn’t her style. Avoidance meant something different.

  Quinn decided to approach Trent.

  She wasn’t even sure why she did. It wasn’t to flirt, and it wasn’t to make anyone jealous. It wasn’t to apologize, either. It was just that she felt so incredibly alone.

  But to her dismay, he gave her the same treatment as Haley.

  “I can’t talk right now, Quinn,” he said, avoiding her gaze and repelling away from her.

  “Oh, come on. Trent, I’m sorry if yesterday meant something different to you than it did me. I was just having fun. I really—”

  “It’s not that,” he said. He still avoided her gaze, but he seemed a little more willing to give her answers—almost like he felt bad for her. How was that possible? After she had wracked herself with guilt over him all day?

  “I don’t think we should hang out any more,” Trent told her. “Things are changing here, Quinn. I need to grow up. I need to make some tough choices.”

  She could read between the same vague lines that had been drawn for her by about a dozen people in the past week.

  Trent was in on it, too.

  Haley, Trent, Ridley, Dash, Pence, Charlie, and Drax.

  She tried to remind herself that this was why she didn’t let herself trust people. But the truth was, she was hurting as if she had trusted them all along.

  10. THE RESISTANCE

  The week dragged on at a steady decline. Quinn’s productivity in her classes became worse and worse. All of her teachers were worried about her, but their speeches made no difference. Haley was no longer willing to be her partner in power tech, for obvious reasons; Trent and the others, for less obvious reasons. Since Quinn still refused to work with Dash, that left her partnered with Shade.