On Wednesday morning Faith woke up with a smile. She was ready to put phase 2 of her plan into motion.
"Phase 2 should be able to go down like clockwork. Ryder would be a fool to reject me after this. I wish he didn't have to make winning his heart so hard. Today will hopefully be the day he realises that he truly loves me" thought Faith as she got out of bed & changed into her normal attire. She then grabbed her phone & checked her camera roll. Moments later she found the image she was looking for. The previous day after before going to bed Faith had staged a photo of Ryder with another boy. She made it look like Ryder & the boy were in a compromising & sexually suggestive position as if they were in love. Once she found the image she proceeded to post it on social media. She was hoping that it'd make Ryder fall in love with her so that the picture would be debunked.
"This is perfect. The only way Ryder can prove that the photo is a fake is if he starts dating me. My plan is flawless. Soon me & him will be a happy couple" thought Faith as she smiled excitedly & went to eat breakfast. She decided to have some cornflakes. They tasted corny & wheaty with a crunchy texture that Faith enjoyed. As soon as she finished eating she headed to school. She couldn't wait to have Ryder to herself.
"My 1 true love is calling my name. I feel like a Disney princess that's about to find her prince charming & live happily ever after. What a great day to fall in love" thought Faith as she walked to school while smiling eagerly. Every step she took made her feel even more excited as she got closer to school. As soon as she arrived she went straight inside & grabbed her stuff for 1ST period. Ryder had gone to his locker to do the same & just as he retrieved what he needed for class he was approached by Alex, Julius, Justina & Precious' Owner. They were all curious about the photo they thought Ryder had taken.
"Hey guys. How are you?" asked Ryder with a warm smile.
"We're good. I didn't know you liked boys Ryder" said Alex in a curious voice.
"What do you mean Alex?" asked Ryder as he tilted his head in confusion.
"We saw the picture you posted online. You & your boyfriend must really love each other" said Julius as he smiled naively.
"What photo are you referring to? I didn't take a photo & I don't have a boyfriend" said Ryder as he raised an eyebrow in suspicion.
"You don't have to feel ashamed Ryder. We still think you're the coolest kid in school" said Justina in a reassuring voice.
"Can you show me what picture you're talking about? I have no idea what's going on" said Ryder.
"Here it is" said Precious' Owner as she found the picture & showed it to Ryder. Ryder gasped in horror at what he saw. The photo depicted him & the other boy supposedly engaging in a lewd act. A sick feeling entered Ryder's stomach as he tried to think about how that photo had gotten online.
"Excuse me guys. I need some space" said Ryder as he walked off feeling embarrassed. The fact that someone had posted that image online for everyone to see made Ryder extremely upset. He went to the restrooms & locked himself in a stall as he curled up in a fetal position & cried.
"I can't believe this is happening. I'd never post a photo like that online. I bet Faith did this. It's probably another attempt at blackmailing me into becoming her boyfriend. Why is she doing this to me? I want her to just leave me alone. I'm scared of how everyone will react. I hope they don't get the wrong idea. I feel like locking myself away & never showing my face around town again" thought Ryder as tears ran down his face. The photo had made him feel embarrassed, humiliated, hurt & violated amongst other emotions. After 10 minutes of crying & feeling embarrassed over the photo Ryder left the stall. He proceeded to wash his face to get rid of the tears, but his eyes were still red from how much he'd cried. Ryder stared into the mirror with an uncertain look on his face. He wasn't sure what to do.
"I don't know how I'm going to fix this mess. Since Faith is the culprit I wouldn't be surprised if she'd take down the photo on the agreement I start dating her. I'm not giving her what she wants. I feel too embarrassed to tell any teachers & trying to debunk the photo & any rumours surrounding it will be extremely hard. I must think fast, or else things will be blown way out of proportion" thought Ryder as he left the bathroom. He looked down at the floor as he walked through the halls since he felt too embarrassed to look at anyone. Meanwhile Angel, Elias & Kelly were heading to class. They happened to cross paths with Ryder along the way & quickly noticed that something was wrong.
"Why is Ryder looking so down?" asked Angel as she tilted her head in confusion.
"I don't know. Something happened" said Elias in a concerned voice.
"We better ask him about it" said Kelly as Angel, Elias & herself walked over to Ryder.
"Ryder are you OK?" asked Angel with uncertainty in her voice.
"No. I don't really want to talk about it" said Ryder in a shaky tone.
"I bet this has something to do with Faith. What did she do?" asked Elias as he clenched his fists in anger.
"Haven't you seen the photo?" asked Ryder in a nervous manner.
"What photo?" asked Kelly in a confused manner.
"Check social media. That'll answer your question" said Ryder.
Elias & Kelly grabbed their phones & checked social media to see what Ryder was talking about. As soon as they saw the photo they gasped in horror. Almost immediately they knew that Faith was the person who posted it online. Elias growled in anger. The fact that Faith had humiliated his best friend in such a cruel manner made him want to gouge Faith's eyes out. Kelly felt just as angry. She was disgusted by what Faith had done.
"She's gone too far. She doesn't even realise that what she did is illegal. When I see her, I'm going to make sure she knows exactly how I feel" said Elias as he sneered in disgust.
"Her face is begging to be punched in. Does she seriously think this I going to make Ryder fall in love with her? She's insane" said Kelly in an angry voice.
"What am I supposed to do? I have a feeling the only way Faith will debunk the photo is if I become her boyfriend. I feel way too embarrassed to tell any of the teachers" said Ryder as he shook in fear.
"Don't worry I'll talk to Faith later. It'll be OK Ryder. We're going to make sure she doesn't get away with this" said Elias as he gave Ryder a hug.
"How dare she humiliate you like this. There's going to be serious consequences for her actions. I promise we'll do everything we can to help" said Kelly in a reassuring voice.
"Thanks guys. I'm glad to have such great friends like you" said Ryder as he smiled at Elias & Kelly. Their support made him feel appreciated & loved by people who truly cared about him. Elias & Kelly escorted Ryder to class so that he wouldn't feel embarrassed before heading to their own class. Throughout the entire morning they couldn't stop thinking about how nasty Faith was to set Ryder up in such a cruel manner. Elias & Kelly were furious that Faith would stoop so low to blackmail Ryder into becoming her boyfriend. They planned to confront Faith the 1ST opportunity they got. Ryder did his best to not think about the incident, but it was hard for him to focus on his schoolwork with all the embarrassment he felt.
"I feel like I'm going insane. This whole scandal is making me feel sick. It horrifies me that Faith thinks what she did was OK because it wasn't. She wouldn't like it if I posted a sexually explicit photo of her & another girl online. She has no idea how I feel right now. By the end of the day I don't think anyone will feel sorry for her because I didn't reciprocate her feelings. What goes around comes around & sooner or later Faith will get the punishment she truly deserves" thought Ryder as he tried to think of how to block out any thoughts of the incident & focus on his work. Eventually recess came around. Angel, Elias, Kelly & Ryder looked for Faith in the playground as soon as they got there. It took less than a minute for them to find her playing on the swingset. All of them angrily walked over to Faith demanding answers from her.
"What the hell is your problem Faith? What's wrong with you?" asked Angel as she glared angrily at Faith.
"I have no idea what you're talking about Angel" said Faith in a confused voice.
"Yes, you do. That little stunt you pulled this morning was extremely inappropriate. Are you even aware that you could go to jail for that?" asked Elias in a furious voice.
"I haven't broken any laws. You're just ganging up on me for no reason" said Faith in a defensive tone.
"You distributed child pornography even if what happened in that photo wasn't real. That's a serious offence. Stop acting so innocent & confess. We all know Ryder wouldn't post a photo like that online for everyone to see" said Kelly as she growled in anger.
"Leave me alone. It's not my fault Ryder doesn't love me. He shouldn't feel the need to hide the truth about his sexual orientation" said Faith.
"ENOUGH. THOSE RUMOURS ARE FALSE. THIS IS ALL PART OF YOUR SICK TWISTED PLAN TO MANIPULATE ME INTO FALLING IN LOVE WITH YOU. IT'S NOT GOING TO WORK. I DON'T WANT ANYTHING TO DO WITH YOU FAITH. YOU'RE A PSYCHO" yelled Ryder as he stormed off in tears. Angel, Elias & Kelly glared angrily at Faith before going to make sure that Ryder was OK.
"I don't know what's worse: The fact that Faith broke the law by posting that photo online or the fact that she's trying to make it look like it's Ryder's fault. This is easily the nastiest thing anyone's ever done to him" said Angel as she scowled in disgust.
"I'll say. Faith thinks we don't know the truth, but we do. Soon everyone will see her for the conniving, manipulative witch she really is" said Elias as he clenched his fists in anger.
"Hopefully she gets expelled & thrown in jail. That's what she deserves. Karma's going to bite her in the ass sooner or later" said Kelly as Angel, Elias & Kelly continued looking for Ryder. They eventually found him hiding in the restrooms having heard his cries. Angel & Kelly remained by the bathroom door as Elias went into the restrooms. Ryder had locked himself in 1 the stalls & was crying his eyes out.
"WHY WOULD SHE DO THAT TO ME? I DON'T DESERVE THIS. I WISH I COULD JUST DISAPPEAR" cried Ryder as tears ran down his face.
"Ryder, I promise you that Faith will be punished for what she did. We'll make sure of it" said Elias in a reassuring voice.
"I'VE NEVER FELT SO HUMILIATED BEFORE IN MY LIFE. I WANT TO DIE. IT HURTS TOO MUCH" cried Ryder.
"Don't you dare think like that Ryder. Imagine all the hurt you'd cause if you committed suicide. Everyone in this town loves you. We've all got your back. Everyone's going to stick by you throughout this entire ordeal" said Elias as he began to tear up. Ryder continued to cry while screaming in agony. The embarrassment & humiliation was starting to overwhelm him. Elias sat by the door to the stall Ryder was in & burst into tears. His heart was aching in sorrow for Ryder.
"I feel so bad for Ryder. It breaks my heart to see him like this. He's a truly wonderful person & doesn't deserve to be subjected to such nasty behaviour. Once everyone in town finds out the truth they'll be livid. Faith is a nasty piece of work. 1 way or another she will be exposed for her appalling antics. She's not getting away with this" thought Elias as he wiped away his tears. He waited patiently for Ryder to calm down so that the situation didn't escalate any further. 10 minutes later Ryder emerged from the stall. His face was stained with tears & his eyes were red from all the crying.
"I want to go home. If I stay here I'll only feel worse" said Ryder in a shaky tone.
"Come here buddy" said Elias as he gave Ryder a hug. Ryder felt both happy & sad. He was sad that Faith was putting him through so much psychological trauma, but he was happy that Angel, Elias, Kelly & the others were being supportive in their attempt to help Ryder deal with the situation. Elias & Ryder then left the bathroom. Angel & Kelly gave them a hug knowing that they were both deeply troubled by the incident.
"What do we do now?" asked Angel with uncertainty in his voice.
"Ryder wants to go home. I think it's for the best. That way Faith won't bother him anymore" said Elias.
"Good point. Want us to go with you Ryder?" asked Kelly in a soothing tone.
"No thanks. I should be able to get permission to leave by myself. See you guys later" said Ryder as he headed to the administration office to ask for permission to leave. The bell then rang to signal the beginning of 3RD period. Angel, Elias & Kelly headed to their lockers to grab their stuff for class. While they did they planned to reveal the truth to everyone in class.
"Everyone needs to know the truth about what's going on. It's important that they know how deeply affected Ryder is by this incident" said Angel.
"Agreed. If we don't let people know about the truth the rumours will only get worse" said Elias with concern in his voice.
"Faith is about to get the biggest serving of fumble pie ever" said Kelly as Angel, Elias & herself headed to class. Once they arrived & were let in they stood at the front of the class. Everyone was confused about why they weren't at their desks.
"Why are you 3 standing up?" asked Miss Spearwood in a confused tone.
"We have to address the class about a serious issue regarding an incident from earlier today" said Angel.
"Oh OK. Don't take too long" said Miss Spearwood.
"We won't. I'm not sure if everyone is aware of this or not but there's a photo on social media that supposedly shows Ryder & another boy engaging in lewd acts. Ryder didn't post that photo. He'd never do anything that crazy. That photo has led to rumours that he's gay. Those rumours are false. I fully support people who identify as LGBT but ultimately Ryder has become extremely upset that someone would do something so cruel to him. All day he's felt embarrassed, humiliated, hurt & violated by the photo. The photo was more than likely staged by the culprit. Who is the culprit? Simple: Faith Myerson" said Elias as he glared at Faith. Everyone gasped in horror as they turned to look at Faith. They were all shocked at what she did.
"They're lying. All day they've done nothing but come after me. I don't know what they're trying to achieve. I'm innocent" said Faith in a panicked voice.
"Save yourself the trouble & confess Faith. We're not stupid. We know it was you. For the last 2 days you've done nothing but blackmail Ryder into falling in love with you because he rejected you on Monday. You're the only person we know who has a motive to do something like this. You thought that the truth wouldn't come out & that you'd get away with this but you're wrong. Very soon you will be punished for your behaviour" said Kelly as she scowled at Faith.
"I refuse to be intimidated like this. If that's how you're going to be then fine. I'm not going to sit here & get attacked for doing nothing" said Faith as she got up & stormed out of the room. Angel, Elias & Kelly shook their heads & rolled their eyes. Faith's reaction only strengthened their claims.
"Speaking of Ryder, where is he?" asked Miss Spearwood.
"He went home because of the scandal created by the photo. It overwhelmed him" said Elias.
"OK. Now that you've gotten that off your chest you may take your seats. For today's lesson I'd like you all to write a short story about a medieval knight that tries to save a princess. You'll have the entire lesson to get it done" said Miss Spearwood.
All the students began writing their stories in their books. Elias & Kelly struggled to focus since the issue with Faith was still playing on their minds. Nonetheless they did their best to get their work done. Throughout the next 2 periods there was an awkward vibe in the air. The truth about what Faith did quickly spread around school & soon everyone knew the truth. At lunch Elias & Kelly discussed the incident with their friends.
"I hope Ryder's doing OK. Now that everyone in school knows the truth Faith's going to regret what she did" said Elias as he growled in anger.
"I don't feel sorry for her anymore. She doesn't deserve any sympathy after everything she's done over the last 2 days" said Ace in a blunt manner.
"I bet the pups know the truth as well. It's only a matter of time before everyone in town learns about Faith's wicked ways" said Carlos.
"She might get expelled & possibly arrested for what she did. Serves her right for making such a stupid decision" said Kelly as she scowled in disgust.
"I'll say. What was she thinking?" asked Danny with confusion in his voice.
"She probably wasn't thinking at all. I can't believe she's trying to deny everything she did. That's how remorseless she is" said Katie in an angry tone.
"No matter what she does Ryder's not going to fall in love with her. She might as well give up while she still can" said Mayabella as she & the others continued eating. Soon Faith entered the cafeteria. Everyone started booing & jeering at her. They were all disgusted with her.
"SERIOUSLY? STOP BELIEVING ALL THESE STUPID LIES BEING MADE UP ABOUT ME. I SWEAR YOU'RE ALL OUT TO GET ME" yelled Faith at the top of her lungs.
"What's wrong Faith? Are you upset because everyone knows the truth?" asked Elias in a mocking tone.
"ALL I WANT IS TO BE RYDER'S GIRLFRIEND. YOU'RE TRYING TO KEEP US APART" yelled Faith.
"More like we're calling you out on your BS. You made a huge mistake putting that picture online" said Kelly as she glared angrily at Faith.
"I'M GOING TO GET YOU" yelled Faith as she stormed over to where Elias & Kelly were sitting. All the students began throwing food on Faith while continuing to taunt her. Faith screamed like a banshee as she began jumping up & down in anger.
"LEAVE ME ALONE" yelled Faith as she continued jumping up & down. Principal Summers then entered the cafeteria.
"Faith Myerson I'd like to speak to you in my office" said Principal Summers in a blunt voice.
"This isn't over. You haven't seen the last of me" said Faith as she headed to Principal Summers' office. Everyone was glad that she'd be disciplined.
"I think it's safe to say she's getting expelled" said Elias as he smiled in satisfaction.
"More than likely. Good riddance to her. I'm not going to miss her at all" said Kelly in a satisfied tone. Soon last period came around. Everyone got on with their schoolwork while thinking about how satisfying it was that Faith had been caught for her cruelty to Ryder. After school Angel, Elias & Kelly headed to the Lookout. They were all hoping that Ryder was feeling better.
"Ryder will be pleased to know that Faith has been brought to justice. Now he'll be able to go about business as usual without feeling scared since the rumours have been debunked" said Angel in a hopeful tone.
"Do you guys think Faith has been taken into custody for the sickening crime she committed?" asked Elias in a curious voice.
"Probably. What she did was illegal & she deserves to be locked up. That'll reduce the risk of her doing anything else" said Kelly.
Angel, Elias & Kelly soon arrived at the Lookout. When they arrived, they noticed a note on the front door.
To anyone who comes by
I'm having a day off from everything. The lewd photo controversy has made me feel extremely hurt & sad. I apologise for any inconveniences this causes. Tomorrow I'll be able to resume my duties.
Yours Truly, Ryder
"Looks like it's affected Ryder really bad" said Angel as she whimpered sadly.
"I'm sure the pups know about happened since Ryder more than likely told them. I think we should give him some space so that he can take it easy" said Elias.
"Good idea. Let's go home" said Kelly as Angel, Elias & herself headed home. Meanwhile Faith had returned home furious. She'd been expelled from school for posting the lewd photo on social media & had been warned that if she continued mistreating Ryder she'd be arrested. Faith went straight to her room & began throwing things around while screaming in anger.
"IT'S NOT FAIR. THIS IS ALL ELIAS & KELLY'S FAULT. THEY STOPPED ME FROM HAVING A RELATIONSHIP WITH RYDER. I'M GOING TO MAKE THEM PAY" yelled Faith as she continued throwing a tantrum. 15 minutes later she collapsed on her bed in tears. Her room was in complete disarray from everything she'd thrown around. She spent an hour crying on her bed feeling angry, hurt & sad.
"What did I do to deserve this? If Ryder hadn't rejected me this wouldn't have happened. This is all just as much his fault as it is Elias & Kelly's. If they think it's over they're wrong. Tomorrow I'll make them wish they never crossed me. Hell, hath no fury, like a woman scorned" thought Faith as she got off her bed & began planning out her next scheme. For the rest of the day she remained in her room plotting her revenge. Once she finished planning everything out she decided to go to bed. As she drifted off to sleep she thought about how satisfying it'd be to make Elias, Kelly & Ryder pay for ruining her plans.