He smirked. “Stop what?”
I gritted my teeth in annoyance and pain.
I hated him. I hated how good he was at pretending.
From the outside, he looked relaxed and charming like always. He had one arm resting lazily across the desk while he nodded occasionally at the teacher’s lecture. Nobody looking at him right now would ever believe he was deliberately hurting me beneath the surface.
The pressure increased again. A burning ache spread through my ribs.
I forced myself not to react.
Silence had always been survival with Kenny. If he knew something hurt me, he pushed harder. If he knew I cared, he used it against me. I learned that lesson a long time ago. Still, it hurt.
“You’ve been avoiding me,” he murmured.
“I’ve been living my life,” I said through gritted teeth.
His jaw tightened
