Chapter 5 Chapter 5
Quinn POV
There was an unspoken rule at Ashcroft Academy.
No matter how badly your life was falling apart, lunch still happened.
Classes resumed after Headmaster Whitmore’s assembly as though the entire student body had not spent the morning accusing one another of crimes. Teachers stood at the front of classrooms and lectured about constitutional law, nineteenth-century literature, and advanced calculus while everyone pretended to listen.
Nobody did.
Every time a phone buzzed, at least three heads turned.
Every time someone whispered, someone else leaned closer.
The entire academy was waiting for another post from The Velvet Ledger.
Including me.
I hated that most of all.
I hated that some anonymous coward had managed to make me tense every time my phone vibrated. I hated that I kept checking the time, wondering how long it had been since the last post. I hated that every screen in every classroom felt like a weapon someone had not decided whether to use yet.
By the time the final bell before lunch echoed through the hallway, I had copied less than half a page of notes.
I shoved my notebook into my backpack and stood.
Theo appeared beside my desk before I could make it to the door.
“You ready?”
“No.”
“Good.”
I looked at him.
“I wasn’t asking.”
“You never do.”
He bumped my shoulder as we joined the flow of students moving into the corridor.
“You still have to come.”
“I really don’t.”
“You really do.”
“Theo.”
“If you disappear now, half the school will decide you’re hiding because you’re guilty.”
“I don’t care what half the school thinks.”
“You should.”
“I don’t.”
He stopped walking long enough to look me directly in the eye.
“Your family does.”
That shut me up.
He knew it would.
Everything the Sinclairs did eventually became somebody else’s headline. My grandfather had spent decades building a legacy no one was allowed to embarrass. My father had spent his entire life protecting it. I had spent mine learning that one bad decision did not belong to me alone.
It belonged to all of them.
Theo started walking again.
“You can hate me later.”
“I already hate you.”
“Perfect. Then we’re ahead of schedule.”
We crossed the central courtyard toward the student commons. Normally, the paths between buildings were packed with people rushing to grab lunch, arguing over weekend plans, or trying to finish assignments before afternoon classes.
Today, nearly every conversation stopped when I passed.
Some students looked away quickly.
Others did not bother.
A boy from the lacrosse team stared at me so openly that Theo finally turned toward him.
“Can I help you?”
The boy immediately looked down at his phone.
Theo muttered something under his breath.
“What?” I asked.
“I said people should be required to pass a basic decency exam before being allowed in public.”
“Half this school would fail.”
“Exactly.”
Despite myself, I almost smiled.
The student commons came into view at the edge of the courtyard, all white stone, towering windows, and carved columns. Ashcroft called it a dining hall, but there was nothing remotely ordinary about it. Crystal chandeliers hung from vaulted ceilings. Portraits of former headmasters lined the walls. Stained-glass windows cast colored light across polished floors that probably cost more than most houses.
Money had built Ashcroft.
Legacy had polished it.
And people like me had been raised to believe we belonged inside it.
Theo grabbed a tray from the stack near the entrance.
“You eating?”
“I’m not hungry.”
“You said that this morning.”
“That was today.”
“My point stands.”
“It has been six hours.”
“And?”
“That doesn’t make it a pattern.”
“It does when you’re stubborn.”
Before I could stop him, he grabbed an apple and dropped it onto my tray.
“You need vitamins.”
“I need a new life.”
“No.”
The voice came from behind us.
Theo and I turned.
Sebastian Blackwell stood in line holding a tray with the same calm expression he wore through almost everything.
He looked at me.
“You don’t need a new life.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“That sounded almost supportive.”
He reached for a plate of pasta.
“You just need this one back.”
For a second, neither Theo nor I said anything.
That was the problem with Sebastian.
He barely spoke unless he had something worth saying.
Then he said things like that and acted as though he had not just reached inside your chest.
Theo recovered first.
“Well.”
Sebastian glanced at him.
“What?”
“That was unsettlingly kind.”
“It won’t happen again.”
“There he is,” I muttered.
Sebastian moved ahead without another word.
Theo picked up my tray before I could leave it behind.
“You’re eating the apple.”
“I’m not.”
“You are.”
“You’re very controlling.”
“I learned from your father.”
“That isn’t funny.”
“It was a little funny.”
By the time we reached our usual table near the windows, Luca Moretti was already there.
The captain of Ashcroft’s hockey team leaned back in his chair with one boot propped on the empty seat beside him. His tie was loose, the top button of his shirt undone, and his tray contained enough food to feed an entire defensive line.
He looked up when he saw me.
“There he is.”
I stopped beside the table.
“What?”
His grin widened.
“Congratulations.”
“For?”
“You survived the morning.”
Theo pulled out a chair.
“A true accomplishment.”
Luca lifted an imaginary trophy.
“Twenty-seven minutes without another Velvet Ledger post.”
“A school record,” Theo added.
I dropped into my usual seat.
“You two done?”
“Not even close.”
Sebastian sat across from me without saying anything. He placed his tray down, unfolded his napkin, and took one precise bite of pasta.
Only then did he look at me.
“You do look terrible.”
I stared at him.
“For a second, I thought you were going to say something nice.”
“I considered it.”
“And?”
“It passed.”
Theo laughed so hard he nearly choked on his drink.
Luca slapped one hand against the table.
“I have missed you, Blackwell.”
Sebastian took another bite.
“I know.”
Luca looked at me.
“You know, if you keep making national news, the rest of us are going to have to start charging you for publicity.”
“I’ll send you an invoice.”
“Excellent.”
“I’ll ignore it.”
“As expected.”
I reached for one of the fries on Luca’s tray.
He slapped my hand away.
“Those are mine.”
“You have enough for six people.”
“That does not make them communal.”
I took one anyway.
Without looking at me, Luca reached over and stole it back from my plate.
Theo stared between us.
“Nature is healing.”
“Quiet,” Luca said.
“You’re both disgusting.”
Sebastian continued eating.
“They’ve done this every Thursday since freshman year.”
“It isn’t Thursday,” Theo said.
Sebastian looked at the clock.
“It feels like one.”
For the first time all day, the knot in my chest loosened.
Nothing had changed.
The blog still existed.
The photograph was still everywhere.
My family was still scrambling to contain a secret that had stayed buried for nearly two years.
But sitting at that table with the same idiots I had eaten lunch with almost every day since freshman year, I could almost remember what normal felt like.
Almost.
A tray landed on the table beside Luca.
Evie Ashford stood over him.
“Move.”
He looked at the empty chair.
“I was saving that.”
“For who?”
“My ego.”
“It can stand.”
He laughed and shifted over.
Evie sat, then placed two coffees between us. Without saying anything, she slid one toward me.
I looked at the cup.
“You bought me coffee again?”
“I know your order.”
“You shouldn’t have.”
“I know.”
She smiled.
“But if you collapse from stress before football season, Coach is going to blame all of us.”
Theo pointed at the cup.
“Drink it.”
“I’m not five.”
“No,” Luca said. “You’re acting four.”
I flipped him off.
“There he is,” Theo said happily. “Our Quinn is coming back.”
Evie laughed softly.
She had a talent for making things feel lighter without pretending they were fine. She did not ask what I was hiding. She did not tell me I needed to talk. She simply pushed the coffee closer and looked toward Theo.
“Did he eat?”
“He rejected the apple.”
“I did not reject it.”
“It is untouched.”
“It’s waiting.”
“For what?” Luca asked.
“Retirement?”
Sebastian glanced at the apple.
“At this point, it has shown more patience than Quinn.”
I looked around the table.
“I hate all of you.”
“No, you don’t,” Evie said.
She said it casually.
Like it was not something that needed to be questioned.
For a moment, everything felt exactly the way it had the day before.
Then the noise in the dining hall changed.
It did not stop all at once.
It softened.
One conversation at a time.
Heads turned toward the entrance.
I knew who it was before I looked.
Charlotte.
She stood just inside the dining hall holding a tray with both hands.
Her hair was still pulled into the loose ponytail she had worn that morning. She had reapplied her makeup, but not enough to hide how tired she looked.
For one terrible second, she remained there while half the cafeteria watched.
Everyone wanted to know the same thing.
Would she sit with me?
Would she sit somewhere else?
Would she walk out?
Theo shifted in his seat.
Luca’s grin disappeared.
Evie turned slightly.
Even Sebastian stopped eating.
Charlotte started toward us.
Every step felt louder than it should have.
She reached the table and looked at the empty chair beside me.
Then at the one across from me.
The silence around us deepened.
She chose the seat across from me.
The dining hall slowly began breathing again.
Conversations restarted.
Forks scraped against plates.
Phones lowered.
But the distance between those two chairs felt enormous.
Charlotte placed her tray down.
Her hand moved toward the center of the table.
Without thinking, she slid the bottle of hot sauce toward me.
The same way she always did.
Her fingers stopped against the glass.
She looked at the bottle.
Then at me.
For a moment, neither of us moved.
Finally, she pulled her hand back.
I reached for the bottle anyway.
“Thanks.”
Her eyes lifted to mine.
“You’re welcome.”
The words were quiet.
Careful.
Too polite for people who had known each other as long as we had.
Theo cleared his throat.
“So…”
Nobody answered.
Luca suddenly became fascinated by his fries.
Sebastian looked down at his plate.
Evie stirred her coffee even though she had not added anything to it.
The silence stretched until it became painful.
Charlotte picked up her fork.
Then set it back down.
I wanted to say something.
Anything.
I wanted to apologize again.
I wanted to tell her the truth.
I wanted to ask whether she still believed me when I said I had not hurt Noah.
Instead, all I managed was, “Did you eat this morning?”
Her expression changed.
Not much.
Just enough.
“Evie brought me something.”
Evie nodded.
“She ate half.”
“That counts,” Charlotte said.
“It does not,” Evie replied.
Luca looked between us.
“Apparently, none of you understand how meals work.”
“You had three lunches,” Sebastian said.
“I am an athlete.”
“So is Quinn.”
Luca glanced at me.
“Not today.”
A laugh escaped Charlotte before she could stop it.
Small.
Soft.
But real.
Everyone at the table heard it.
Luca sat up straighter.
“You’re welcome.”
Charlotte shook her head.
“You are unbearable.”
“And yet beloved.”
“That remains disputed,” Sebastian said.
For the first time since she had sat down, Charlotte’s shoulders relaxed.
Only slightly.
But enough.
I looked around the table.
At Luca trying too hard to make everyone laugh.
At Sebastian pretending not to care while noticing everything.
At Evie making sure nobody’s cup stayed empty.
At Theo watching me closely enough to know when I was about to disappear into my own head.
At Charlotte sitting across from me even though walking away would have been easier.
The day had taken almost everything familiar and twisted it into something ugly.
But not this.
Not yet.
And I realized, with a fear I did not want to name, that losing this table would hurt more than whatever the rest of Ashcroft believed about me.
The silence didn’t last.
It never did with Luca sitting at the table.
He looked around at all of us before dramatically sighing.
“I miss yesterday.”
Theo nodded solemnly.
“Yesterday was a simpler time.”
“Yesterday,” Luca continued, “the biggest problem we had was Sebastian informing me that pineapple on pizza is a character flaw.”
“It is.”
Luca looked offended.
“It is a topping.”
“It is poor judgment.”
“It is tropical.”
“It is incorrect.”
Theo rubbed both hands together.
“I’m with Sebastian.”
“I knew you were dead inside.”
Evie laughed.
“You knew that before today.”
“I hoped I was wrong.”
Sebastian calmly reached across the table and stole one of Luca’s fries.
Luca gasped.
“You hypocrite.”
“You weren’t eating it.”
“I was emotionally preparing.”
“You had twenty-three others.”
“Twenty-two now.”
“You’ll survive.”
“I won’t.”
“You will.”
“I’ll survive bitter.”
Charlotte shook her head.
“I forgot how ridiculous all of you are.”
Theo pointed toward her.
“See?”
“What?”
“That sounded almost normal.”
Her smile faded into something softer.
“I’d like normal back.”
Nobody had an answer for that.
Not even Luca.
A server passed by collecting empty dishes.
The dining hall buzzed with conversation again, but every few seconds I caught someone looking toward our table.
Some weren’t even subtle about it.
A sophomore at the next table whispered something to his friend while staring directly at me.
His friend immediately turned around.
Theo noticed.
“So…”
He smiled pleasantly at the two boys.
“Take a picture.”
Both of them looked away so fast they nearly knocked over their drinks.
“You enjoy that too much,” I muttered.
“I really do.”
“You realize confronting them doesn’t help.”
“No.”
Theo shrugged.
“But it makes me feel better.”
Luca leaned toward me.
“You know what would really confuse everyone?”
“What?”
“You and Charlotte should hold hands walking out.”
Charlotte nearly choked on her drink.
“Luca!”
“What?”
“Absolutely not.”
“I’m thinking strategically.”
Theo laughed.
“Strategically?”
“Yes.”
Luca gestured around the room.
“They expect drama.”
“They expect tears.”
“They expect somebody to throw mashed potatoes.”
“I think soup today,” Sebastian corrected.
Luca ignored him.
“Instead…”
He clasped his own hands dramatically.
“…public unity.”
Charlotte buried her face in one hand.
“I cannot believe I know you.”
“You love me.”
“I tolerate you.”
“I’ll take it.”
Evie smiled over the rim of her coffee.
“I think that’s the nicest thing she’s said to you all semester.”
“It absolutely is.”
Luca beamed.
“I’m making progress.”
I looked across the table at Charlotte.
She caught me looking.
For just a second…
Neither of us looked away.
There was still hurt in her eyes.
Still confusion.
Still questions I couldn’t answer.
But there was something else too.
She was here.
She could have eaten anywhere on campus.
Instead…
She’d chosen this table.
That had to mean something.
Theo suddenly pointed at my tray.
“The apple.”
“What about it?”
“You still haven’t eaten it.”
“I’m working up to it.”
“You’ve been working up to it for twenty minutes.”
“I like to build anticipation.”
Luca nodded thoughtfully.
“The apple deserves closure.”
Charlotte reached over, picked it up, and held it out toward me.
The entire table watched.
“So eat it.”
I stared at the apple.
Then at her.
“Seriously?”
“Very.”
“You’ve joined Team Theo?”
“I was drafted.”
Theo looked ridiculously pleased with himself.
“I’ve been recruiting.”
I took the apple from her hand.
“There.”
I took one bite.
Everyone stared.
I swallowed.
“Happy?”
Theo leaned back in his chair.
“Immensely.”
Luca clapped once.
“I’ve never been so emotionally invested in fruit.”
Sebastian looked at his watch.
“We should commemorate the occasion.”
“I hate every single one of you.”
“No,” Evie said gently.
“You really don’t.”
She was right.
Again.
Sloane appeared beside the table carrying a tray and her ever-present notebook tucked beneath one arm.
“There you all are.”
Theo smiled.
“We saved you a seat.”
“I noticed.”
She slid into the last empty chair.
Luca looked at her notebook.
“Tell me that’s not coming to lunch.”
“It goes everywhere.”
“I’ve begun to suspect you sleep with it.”
“I don’t.”
She paused.
“It stays on the nightstand.”
“I was joking.”
“I wasn’t.”
Theo laughed.
“I believe her.”
“I do too,” Charlotte admitted.
Sloane looked around the table.
“You all look better.”
“That’s because Quinn ate an apple,” Luca explained.
She blinked.
“…I’m sorry?”
“It was inspirational.”
“I think I missed an important chapter.”
“You did,” Theo agreed.
“It was a whole character arc.”
Sloane looked at the half-eaten apple on my tray.
Then back at me.
“I’ve walked into stranger conversations.”
“Not many,” Sebastian said.
“But a few.”
She smiled faintly.
“Fair.”
Nobody mentioned the investigation.
Nobody mentioned the email she’d received.
Nobody asked about The Velvet Ledger.
For a few precious minutes…
We talked about hockey.
Theo complained about Coach’s conditioning drills.
Luca insisted hockey players were superior athletes because they willingly ran into walls wearing knives on their feet.
Sebastian reminded him those were skates.
“They’re still blades.”
“They’re attached to boots.”
“Deadly boots.”
Charlotte rolled her eyes.
“I cannot believe this is a real conversation.”
“It isn’t,” Evie said.
“It’s lunch.”
Even Sloane laughed at that.
I found myself watching them.
Theo arguing.
Luca gesturing so wildly he nearly knocked over his drink.
Sebastian quietly moving the cup before disaster struck.
Charlotte finally looking like she could breathe again.
Evie smiling because everyone else was smiling.
Sloane observing all of us while pretending she wasn’t.
This…
This was my family.
Not by blood.
By choice.
The realization hit harder than I expected.
Because families could be broken.
My phone buzzed.
Then Theo’s.
Then Luca’s.
Then Sebastian’s.
One after another.
Four phones lit up almost simultaneously.
Luca frowned.
“That’s… weird.”
Theo pulled out his phone.
“So did mine.”
Sebastian looked down at his screen.
His expression changed.
Mine buzzed again.
I unlocked it.
ASHCROFT ATHLETICS
Mandatory meeting.
All team captains report to the Athletic Center immediately.
Attendance required.
I looked up.
Luca was already reading the same notification.
“So…”
He slowly pushed back his chair.
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”
Theo stood.
“We’ve never had a mandatory meeting during lunch.”
Sebastian slipped his phone into his pocket.
“Not once.”
Charlotte looked from me to Luca.
“What do you think this is about?”
I shook my head.
“I honestly don’t know.”
Theo sighed.
“I don’t like surprises.”
“You don’t like cardio either,” Luca reminded him.
“I can dislike two things.”
“Fair.”
I looked around the table one last time.
Nobody was smiling anymore.
Whatever brief sense of normal we’d managed to reclaim over lunch disappeared the moment those notifications arrived.
Luca picked up his tray.
Then looked at me.
“You know…”
“What?”
“If this somehow turns out to be your fault…”
I stared at him.
“…I’m going to be incredibly annoyed.”
Theo nodded.
“I was thinking the same thing.”
For the first time all afternoon…
Charlotte smiled.
A real smile.
Small.
But real.
I sighed.
“I hate all of you.”
“No,” Evie said softly.
“You don’t.”
She was right.
I didn’t.
And somehow…
That scared me almost as much as everything else.
Because The Velvet Ledger had already come after me.
I had a feeling…
It wouldn’t be satisfied with just one target.
