RIVER
I stood there, frozen, my gaze fixed on Paige. She sat stiffly beside her mother, and her mother nudged her sharply enough that I noticed. Paige shifted uncomfortably in response before rising to her feet. "I'm… I'm sorry," she said, her voice wobbling. “For what I said about you. And your family."
I stared at her for a second, unable to process her presence or what was happening. My mind had prepared for an attack about Lexi's grades. And that's when I noticed Paige's eyes were red, as if she had been crying.
I didn't know what to say. First and foremost, the entire situation caught me off guard. Second, anyone with working eyes could see that Paige was being forced to do this. Her mother most likely found out and dragged her here, not because Paige cared, but because her mother
