The Psycho Is Innocent | ꪜ

Chapter 12: Jet

Present

          SHE WOKE UP with one thought in mind: making Lewis pay for wasting her time. Ariel barrelled down the hallway, shoving through the crowd of students who stood in her line of vision. She was like a raging bull on the verge of bursting through its metal cage; its prey already locked in sight, just waiting to be devoured by its gaping jaw. Lewis was unaware of Ariel's animosity towards her at this very moment, so when she caught sight of Ariel sauntering her way, her mouth curved into a smile by default.

          "Hey, Ariel did everything go well with Larson?" Ariel outstretched a hand out towards Lewis and at first, it appeared as if she were going in for a hug but when she was less than a foot away, she pressed her palm against Lewis' chest and shoved her into the locker harshly, ignoring the eyes that swivelled in her direction or the painful yelp that burst through Lewis' mouth. "What the hell is this!?" Ariel spat down her neck, her voice was chilling, almost soul-crushing to the point where Lewis cowered in fear.

          "You–you found it I–"

           Ariel slammed her other hand against the locker beside Lewis' head. The bang echoed through the crowded hallway loudly, drawing in more eyes than she cared for. She sneered through her gritted teeth and placed the bag between both their faces, so closely that it rubbed against Lewis' skin, "I told you if I found out this was a personal vendetta you and I would have a problem, Lewis. You never cared for Tobias, you never gave a shit about proving that he was framed, you only cared about getting revenge on Larson because he broke up with your pathetic ass."

          Lewis' lips quivered as Ariel barked down her neck but the sight didn't move her, instead it fuelled the anger bursting through her veins, spilling from every corner of her skin, she could barely contain the desire to pummel her fist into Lewis's face. "This isn't a game, Lewis, I don't like playing games, Lewis. Tobias is running on a clock and you want to play GAMES? Tell me right now what I should do with you for wasting my time, huh? You had me running around like a headless chicken for weeks spying on Larson and conspiring against him when I could have been looking for someone or something else!"

           Lewis raised her trembling hands in the air, surrendering to Ariel but at this point, the act was almost futile. "A–Ariel, please. Okay I–I'm sorry I lied but Larson–Larson was, he–I love him okay!? And he just ended things o–out of the blue and–" Ariel scoffed, a scoff that was riddled with disbelief, disgust and anger. She leaned down, her eyes barely centimetres away from Lewis'.

          "Love, you call that love? You call framing someone for murder love? No, no I have to give you credit Lewis because your pea brain forgot to calculate the result of me finding this! So I won't even consider this framing of any sort because it would have never panned out with me nor investigators. The least you could have done was use real blood even if it was your own.

          If you wanted real revenge you'd have done so and the police would be inclined to look into this as potential domestic violence. But you don't have the balls to actually hurt him, so you used paint and a synthetic wig then roped me into this because regardless, you still wanted to hurt him somehow.

          You wanted to feel validated for the shit you did to him so you chose me of all people: Larson's ex-girlfriend and my vulnerability in regards to Tobias' arrest to get back at Larson because you knew that whatever lead I had I would follow it if it meant Tobias being free. I'm sorry for not giving you enough credit Lewis because that was brilliant. Just freaking brilliant. You better watch your back, bitch, because I will hit you when you least expect it."

          Ariel shoved the bag into Lewis' hands, her gaze smouldering, ripping through Lewis' flesh like a laser beam. The last time she had felt this ounce of anger was ironically the day she witnessed Larson and Lewis making out in the hallway. It was the day she decided to let Tobias into her life by simply opening that bathroom stall door and allowing his words to take route in her life. Maybe just maybe this all started with Lewis, and hopefully, it would end with her. Before Ariel could slip away, Lewis wrapped a hand around her arm tightly.