She nodded. “Positive. I was right there. I’m not stupid, I know what was in that plastic bag.”
“Did you tell anyone?”
“Not yet…I confronted Scott.”
“And he denied it, of course.” Spencer wouldn’t expect Scott to own up to the truth.
Callie nodded as if she’d expected more.
“What did you say?” he asked.
“First of all, I threatened to tell Coach and Scott just laughed at me. He said I should go right ahead. Coach isn’t stupid. His team is first in state, and he wouldn’t do anything to ruin the school’s chances of collecting the title.”
Spencer knew Scott was right. Coach would whitewash anything that could destroy their chances of winning. Especially with the rumors floating around that Coach Simmons was being considered as an assistant coach for the University of Washington. It wasn’t only Coach, either. All of Oceanside was excited about the team. Spirit ran high. Everyone in town was behind them. With only a few tourists around at this time of year, the team’s success gave the community something fun to focus on and cheer for. No way was Coach going to destroy that.
Tears welled in Callie’s eyes. “Did you hear me, Spencer? Scott laughed at me.”
“What did you expect?” he asked, not unkindly. “You called him out, and he thinks—the entire team thinks—they’re invincible. Nothing can touch them.”
“I…did something you’re not going to like,” she confessed, refusing to look at him.
Spencer’s shoulders deflated with an exasperated sigh. “What now?”
Callie looked down at the pavement as though she had lost her courage. “You have to understand I was angry and frustrated. Scott acted like this was all one big joke. He didn’t take me seriously. He treated me like I was an idiot and didn’t think I had the guts to tell anyone.”
That she expected anything less was telling. Because Callie was pretty and popular, she believed she could say what she wanted to without consequences.
“What did you do?” Spencer asked. She hadn’t chased after him wanting to let him know she’d been made to look like a fool.
“It was my last resort. I had to do something; otherwise, they would continue to go on as before.”
“Callie.”
She bit into her lower lip. “I did consider telling my parents.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“If I told Mom and Dad that Ben is using, and his supplier is Scott, then they’d go to Scott’s parents. I mean, they’re friends and all, so that’s a natural conclusion, right?”
Unsure, Spencer remained silent.
“And when they did, Scott would say I was making it up because…” She hesitated and glanced at him.
“Because Scott wouldn’t take you back after you went to homecoming with me,” he guessed.
“I didn’t want to go back to Scott,” she insisted. “I was finished with him when he got all aggressive with me when I refused to dance with him. I was through even before the dance. He’s not like he used to be. He’s mean and vindictive.”
“Because of the drugs?”
“I think so.”
“Did you or did you not tell your parents?” He could only hope she had.
“No. My parents might trust me, but not Scott’s. It’s too easy to avoid the truth when it would mean they’d need to take action that would hurt their son’s chances on the football field. They love the attention.”
Callie was right.
“You did something that involves me, didn’t you?” This was what this entire conversation was leading up to.
She swallowed. “I told Scott that I wasn’t the only one who knew.”
“You gave him my name?” Even though he asked, he already knew the answer. Memories of the humiliating Instagram post returned to his mind. That had been even worse than his face in the toilet. The entire school had seen it.
“I’m sorry, Spence.”
“Great. Just great.”
To her credit, Callie seemed genuinely regretful. Her actions told him there was more she wasn’t telling him.
“What else?”
“I tried talking sense into Scott. If he hadn’t been so cocky, I would have walked away. But he was so awful, mocking me and calling me ugly names. I couldn’t let him get away with that.” The blowback must have been a harsh lesson.
“Ben wasn’t there?” Callie’s brother had defended her in the past, and Spencer knew Ben would do it again, no matter the circumstances.