A/N: Sorry for the delay in update, life has been crazy! Anyway, hope you enjoy! -Cat
Chapter Twenty-Six
Victoria took a deep breath, trying to settle herself down. She had suddenly felt a wave of anger and frustration roll over her. It was so intense it took her breath away. She shook her head, lifting her overnight bag higher onto her shoulder. She tried to focus and came to a stop in front of Sarah's door and hesitated before knocking. She suddenly wished that she and Sarah had decided to meet at Victoria's dorm. What if she knocked and Kate answered? That would be unbelievably awkward.
Victoria stood in a moment of complete indecision before the door opened. Victoria's breath caught in her throat but to her enormous relief, it was Sarah standing on the other side.
"Hey!" Sarah said brightly, her eyes falling on Victoria. "I was just gonna walk down to your dorm, see if you were ready."
Victoria held up her bag, "Ready," She said smiling.
"Wicked, I was up half the night downloading an awesome new playlist for our road trip." Sarah said stepping out of her room, bag in hand, head bobbing funkily.
The girls walked down the hall, "Sweet, but please tell me there isn't any Brittany Spears or anything on there."
Sarah smiled coyly, "You are on a need to know basis, and trust me these are all good beats. We will be jamming."
"Good, I need to unwind, even if it is for only a couple of hours." They stepped out the front doors into the bright sunlight of the afternoon when suddenly Victoria stopped, her breath caught in her throat. "Whoa,"
Sarah instantly froze, "What? What's wrong?"
"I just... I dunno. That was weird." Victoria looked around before looking at Sarah, "It was like I ...used, but in a big way. But I mean, I didn't, it's like-" Victoria stopped short.
Sarah looked at her, eyes huge, "It's like what?" She prompted.
Victoria furrowed her brow, shaking her head, "I dunno, I think... I think Pogue used... In a big way." She looked up at Sarah suddenly feeling worried. "It's Pogue, I know it." Sarah was already digging through her purse. "What are you doing?" Victoria asked curious.
"I am gonna text Caleb, find out what's going on."
Victoria nodded, "Come on, I am parked over here." Victoria lead the way as Sarah fell into step behind her, eyes glued to her cell phone.
"Oh, look who it is Ladies!" Victoria rolled her eyes at the obnoxiously affected voice suddenly coming up from behind them.
Victoria glanced over her shoulder at Keira Schneider, followed by two of her minions, also from the so called varsity dance squad. Victoria came to a halt at the back of her car, as Sarah looked up from her screen, text evidently having been sent. "What could you possibly want?" Victoria asked harshly crossing her arms. This was not what she needed right while she was worrying about why Pogue was using so much.
"I was just wondering, cause you see, Amy here," Keira nodded in the direction of her blonde minion, "had a date with Tyler they had to postpone. But we were wondering if she should bother or were you planning on moving on to him next?"
Victoria felt rage bubble in her chest, "What the hell did you just say to me?!" She started to march across the parking lot but Sarah stepped in front of her, blocking her off.
"What the hell do you know about it Keira?" Sarah snapped, crossing her arms and glaring at Keira.
"Well, half the school is talking about it. Didn't you hear? How freshmen heard Victoria asking Pogue if he enjoyed their night together, straight from the whore's mouth. Oh, did I not say horse's?" Keira cackled a laugh as Victoria felt her mouth drop open.
"Not that it matters what the hell you think. But that isn't what was said." Victoria snapped over Sarah's shoulder.
"Oh, I am sure. Is that why you had to leave that school in London? Sleeping with to many of the boys? Starting wars between best friends? I mean aren't they all sort of like your brothers?" Keira said leaning back on one foot, her minions both laughing hysterically, like she was the funniest thing since the invention of the sitcom.
"You bitch!" Victoria growled. She just wanted to let go. To finally be able to do something with all her pent up tension and frustration, and taking it out on Keira seemed like a great idea. Sarah glanced at Victoria and instantly dodged in front of her.
"No! No, calm down! Victoria leave it!" Sarah struggled against Victoria pushing her back towards the Cobra. "Not here." She hissed, "She isn't worth it."
It took a second before Victoria realised she was using. Sarah's absolutely frantic expression tipped her off. She realised how clear everything was around her. She stumbled back, letting Sarah push her, trying to take deep breaths, trying to calm down.
Suddenly there was a deafening bang and all the girls jumped. Keira turned to look in the direction of the noise and her eyes fell on her cream coloured BMW coupe.
"Oh my god, what the hell?" She squealed.
"Oh my god, Keira did someone slash your tires?!" The brunette minion asked looking at the shredded rubber that used to be Keira's tires.
"Come on," Sarah snapped pushing Victoria towards the Camero, "We need to leave."
Victoria couldn't argue. She turned and meant to just dash to the drivers side of the Camereo but both she and Sarah stopped suddenly when they turned to see Kate. She was about three cars over from them, getting into her Jeep Wrangler, but she was standing stock still looking right at Sarah and Victoria, obviously having just seen everything that transpired between Keira and Victoria.
Victoria felt like she had just been punched in the stomach. This had to be one of the worst mornings of her life.
"Kate," Sarah said stepping towards her roommate and best friend.
Kate's cold eyes travelled from Victoria to Sarah. She simply shook her head and got into her Jeep slamming the drivers door.
"Shit." Sarah said. Kate peeled out of the parking lot at such a velocity that it made Victoria think her jeep might just topple over.
Victoria looked at her, "What?"
"I - I sorta forgot, with everything that has been going on, that I said I would drive up with Kate, to Boston." The girls watched Kate speed down the road and away from the school. Victoria felt a sinking feeling in her chest, great another relationship ruined because of her. Sarah took a deep breath. "Come on, let's go."
Victoria handed Sarah the keys. Sarah looked up at her, "Please, I am too distracted." Sarah nodded and both girls turned and quickly got into the Cobra.
Sarah's phone dinged and she looked at the screen, "Caleb says everything is fine. Long story. Will tell us when we get there, but everyone is fine."
Victoria slumped into the passengers seat, "Can we not just have one day!?"
Sarah put the car in gear and reversed out of Victoria's parking spot. "Aww, where would the fun be in that?"
It was a fast pool but no one was as fast as the Spencer swim team. They dominated for their final year, all winning gold in their individual swims and then the relay was a piece of cake. Reid considered what a good call it was for Caleb to have switched up their plan and had Pogue gain the lead by starting, followed by Tyler than Reid, than finishing strong himself. Mainly as there was no guarantee Reid wouldn't have kicked Pogue in the face while jumping in the water. It would have been tricky but Reid was confident he could have managed it.
Now it was after hours and Reid wandered down into the hotel's lobby, making a b-line for the bar. He was making a conscious effort to avoid everyone. Victoria, Pogue, Caleb. He didn't want to deal with any of them. Pogue pretending that Reid wasn't worthy to lick the dirt from his boots. Caleb pretending that somehow everything would just turn around and come out hunky dory or even worse, Victoria pretending like nothing was wrong one minute and then running from him like he had the plague the next.
He felt like he was losing his mind. Like he was losing everything. And nothing he did made anything better, so why bother? Victoria wanted to behave like everything was fine, she could live in denial all she wanted. But unless she was planning on coming to him and telling him that the shit with Pogue was nothing to worry about he wasn't gonna chase after her. Especially after his most recent confrontation with Pogue on the drive out. Reid was pissed and couldn't seem to unwind from it.
Reid sat at a bar stool and knocked on the well polished surface. The twenty something bartender, with the pretentiously curled hipster moustache looked at Reid with a cool gaze. "Sorry, kid. No dice. Beat it and go have a milkshake or something."
Reid leaned forward on the bar his eyes shifting into a cold black onyx, "No, you looked at my ID remember? I'm twenty-one."
The bartender's supercilious look melted into one of dopey happiness, "Yeah, I did, didn't I?"
"You did, and you were gonna get me a double rum and coke."
"Of course!" The bartender smacked his own forehead before nodding vigorously, "Sorry for the hold up, this one will be on the house, sir."
Reid sat back on his stool, " 'Course it will."
He glanced around the bar, it was pretty empty even though it was late. After the meet was over Reid had taken off out of the back of the change rooms and just roamed around Boston. Unable to pretend to be excited about some bullshit medals that always mattered more to Caleb and Pogue. Sure he had gotten more into swimming this year but it was a way of releasing pent up energy. It didn't really matter to him anymore. He felt like nothing mattered anymore.
"Hey you," Reid looked up and let his cold gaze fall on Kate as she appeared on the bar stool beside him.
"What the hell are you doing here?" He asked not bothering to beat around the bush.
Kate raised an eyebrow at him, scoffing but answered all the same, "I bought my ticket and paid for the room at the beginning of the year. Sarah and I were supposed to come up together, I mean I have been cheering you guys on for the last four years. Anyway, she decided to bail on me to come up with Victoria. So I thought screw it, and came up anyway."
Reid watched her, "Uhhh..." Reid wasn't exactly sure what Kate was expecting him to say.
She shrugged, "Seemed like a good spite filled idea at the time." Reid couldn't help but chuckle, She shrugged, "Now however, I just wish I was back in my dorm under my comforter." Kate stared at the bar in front of her looking like she wanted to disappear.
The bartender appeared putting a glass in front of Reid, he looked at Kate, "I am sorry Miss, but this bar is for patrons over the legal limit. I am gonna need you to leave."
Kate looked from the drink in front of Reid, to Reid to the bartender and opened her mouth to argue but Reid leaned over the bar, catching the bartenders eyes, Reid felt his eyes flash. "No, she's with me."
The bartender got that slightly dopey look again, before nodding. He smiled at Kate, "What are you having gorgeous?"
Reid looked at Kate and smiled, raising his eyebrows. Kate looked at him, "Uh," She looked back at the bartender, "A Bellini?"
"Certainly Miss," The bartender scurried over to start her drink.
Kate watched him, before looking back at Reid, "Oh my god, how much did you tip him?"
Reid shrugged, "Just used my natural charm,"
"Right," Kate shook her head as she watched Reid take a sip of his very stiff drink. "How are you?"
Reid glanced at her, "Since when did you care?"
Kate shrugged, "I dunno, seems like we are kinda in the same boat."
Reid looked at her, "How do you figure that?" His eyes narrowed. He didn't know what Kate knew and what she didn't.
"Well- thank you." She picked up her drink as soon as the bartender put it in front of it and took a sip, her nose wrinkling a bit. "With the whole Victoria Pogue thing."
"I don't know-"
"Oh don't give me the routine Reid. You know what I mean. The way they started acting together. I just wish they would stop treating us like we are total chumps." She took another, deeper, sip of her drink.
Reid glanced over his shoulder at her, taking another drink. "Nothing is going on between them, if that's what you mean."
Kate looked up from her drink and scoffed, "Not from what I've heard."
Reid narrowed his eyes, turning to face her, "Well, why don't you tell me what you've heard and we will go from there."