Speechless(58)

                I instinctively put myself between her and Asha, opening my                     mouth to respond with something like All I smell is                         bitchassery and acne cream, but then I close it when I remember I                     cannot, of course, say anything. Still, I do a pretty mean glare, and for a                     moment Tessa’s smirk falters. Asha doesn’t react, just calmly bends down to                     collect her scattered papers. I kneel down and help, ignoring Kristen and                     Tessa’s looming presence. Just as I grab one of Asha’s math worksheets, Kristen                     steps on it, causing the paper to tear in half as I pull upward.

                “Oops,” she says flatly.

                I rise to my feet so we’re face-to-face. I’m so angry I’m                     shaking with it. The urge to haul off and punch her in the face is strong, but I                     swallow the temptation; I don’t even know how to throw a punch, and while it                     might feel satisfying in the moment, it won’t solve anything. The worst is the                     way Kristen stares back at me, so unaffected and smug, like she knows I can’t touch her.

                “What are you going to do? Glare me to death?” she drawls. She                     looks from me to Asha and back again. “This is sad, even for you. Do you really                     have to drag the queen of the loser brigade down with you?” Her tone goes                     ice-cold. “Don’t you think you’ve ruined enough lives already?”

                “You better watch your back,” Tessa warns Asha. “Chelsea will                     throw you under the bus in a heartbeat. Trust me.”                     She casts a bitter glare my way just in case I didn’t get the intended message.                     I’m itching to spill to her who was really behind                     the blackmailing, but there’s no way she’d believe me over Kristen anyway.

                Asha tucks some loose papers inside her binder and smiles at                     them, big and fake. “Thanks for the super helpful advice,” she says. “I’ll take                     it into consideration.” She starts down the hall, barely slowing to glance back                     at me over her shoulder. “Coming?”

                I take one last look at Kristen before turning and falling in                     step beside Asha. My heart is still pounding like crazy as we disappear around                     the corner out of their sight. When Asha stops at the water fountain, I lean                     against the wall with my eyes closed, taking deep breaths and trying to calm                     myself. I hate that I’m letting them get to me this much when I promised myself                     I wouldn’t. I hate that I just stood there and let them talk to Asha like                     that.