Chapter 23: He felt no remorse

Moving to the library was the only lie Jessie could come up with, as she intended to excuse herself, so Alyssa and Raymond could sort out their unsettled issues. But since she had no plans to visit, she walked to and fro the school hallway, then decided to rest at the school auditorium.
The school auditorium was brightly colored, and Jessie was certain that even on cloudy days, wreaths of rays shone through the grand windows set strategically at the corners of the room. It had bright granite floor tiles and the walls were coated with shining white paint. There were no handprints or scuff marks on the wall and Jessie wondered how it managed to remain spotless. Perhaps, it was newly renovated, she thought to herself.
As she walked on, she marveled at the oily yellow metal doors inlaid with patterned designs that matched the petal-shaped handles.
What got her fascinated wasn't the expensive materials of the door but its means of concealment.
A passerby not acquainted with the secret would walk by without noticing the door there as the exterior color of the wall neatly blended with the door and the painting above it, even the handles were not visible until a closer inspection was taken.
Sitting there alone, how eyes taking in the features of the auditorium, she had no idea she was no longer alone and had a racing heart when she heard the voice of someone, next to her.
"You are enjoying the view, ain't you?", Jessie jerked when she heard a deep voice speaking close to her ears. She had no idea who was by her side, talking to her. It was a familiar voice that she had not heard in a while, and the scent of a cigarette mixed with mint flew past her nose.
"Oswald", she announced unenthused, turning her head to him.
"How is my Princess doing?", he chimed in, giving off unwarranted smiles that Jessie did not appreciate.
"And who are you talking about, I never knew you were handing over the care of someone to me?", she said in response, her lips puckered up.
"You are quite intelligent, but you talk crazy", Oswald uttered in his pride, not sparing a glance with her, "is it not obvious that I am asking about you?", he turned his face to her. "You did me badly, you know? You asked me to stay away from you, so you can have enough time to strengthen your bond with someone else", he whimpered in mockery, feigning sorrow.
"I don't get it, what are you talking about", Jessie questioned, confused.
"I got some news that you have been hanging out with Charles. I never knew you were this loosed, it is now clear why you hurriedly accepted the dare, not even trying to refuse.", Oswald sneered.
Jessie was already getting pissed off at the rubbish that came out of Oswald's mouth, but she kept on telling herself to chill, counting numbers in her head and assuring herself that she won't do something crazy or say something out of place while taking in deep breaths. Oswald had come again with the one thing Jessie hated about him, his emotional blackmail. He had a way of making you feel like the wrong person when he was the person doing the terrible things.
She concluded in her mind after the freshman party, that Oswald was toxic and she was going to do her best to stay away from him. Not necessarily because of Charles, or the fear of heartbreak. But for the sake of her mental health, and not wanting to cause more trouble for the Ranez, it was a better option. So far, she had observed that people's toxicity rubbed off on her, draining every bit of her soul, which was one of the reasons she thought of killing herself after Jason. She was stupid enough to not pick up the red flag then, but she was not ever letting herself take such chances, ever, Jessie assured herself.
"Oswald, I am sorry if this may offend you, but the last I checked, we were not in anything"
"It's good your memory is working well, though it seems as though you are missing something. The last I checked also, you weren't in any relationship with Charles too. Did you just intentionally keep me waiting, trying to mess with me? Who gave you such right?"
"I have no idea where you are going with all of this, I just know one thing. You have no right, none at all, to interfere with my business. So, I don't appreciate you meddling in things that don't concern you", she said as she picked up her notepad, trying to stand.
"Where are you going to? I never told you that I was done?", he called out, holding back her hands, "you aren't even ashamed, you are having fun with Charles, and letting him get the pleasure. Someone that can't even call you his girlfriend in public?"
"Oswald, I am saying this again and I don't want to repeat myself. It.. is.. none.. of.. your.. business... who... I.. decide.. to mess.. with..", she spelt out, stressing on the last words, "After all, I am not the only one that is not a saint".
"Shhh.., just hush it. You have no shame at all", he cooed in mockery.
"I'm not disputing it, at least I don't get to do my things hidden in the restroom", she voiced out, getting Oswald's attention completely, even as his face still did not fall in shame, "Charles is better than you in every way, so don't even dare to think I was ever going to do something with you", she hissed, then stood up. His hands still tugged hers, so she wasn't able to move.
"Jessica....", He called out, standing up to her.
"Just leave me alone", she said as she forcefully pushed her hands away from him and walked out.
Oswald being pushed back to his chair was left dumbstruck. This little act of Jessie was already attracting glares to him, and it pained him so greatly. Lifting his chin in pride, he left the hall frustratingly, not forgetting to make a call on his way out,
"Hello, I'll send you a picture. Keep an eye on her", he uttered inaudibly.
Even as Jessie acted tough in front of Oswald, the things he said still got to her, and she just wanted to eat him up if it was in her power. Firstly, she wasn't doing anything with Charles, and Oswald was going about saying whatever he wanted to say. She remembered looking at his face when she said some things, he didn't even feel any single remorse when she talked about him cheating. "Why was she even thinking about him, he was not worth it and there was no need to stress about him", she said to herself internally as she poured water on her face, staring at the mirror hung inside the restroom.
The only reason she was walking to and fro that morning was because she had no class that morning, and she had not seen Luciana. If Luciana was around, they could stay together and chit-chat, but it wasn't the case. She was just vexed that her legs took her to where Oswald was. Or was it Oswald's legs that followed hers? She had no idea.
She thought of checking on Alyssa, but in her thoughts, Alyssa was still in a conversation with Raymond and the last thing she wanted to do was interfere. With no ideas flowing, she decided to visit the garden and made her way there.