Faded Perfection (Beautifully Flawed Book 2) by Cassandra Giovanni Page B

closed my eyes, looking up at the ceiling. “Taking Bobby wasn’t enough?” I asked someone I was having trouble believing existed.
    I let my head fall into my hands as I took three deep breaths and then stood, grabbing my purse and heading to Jesse’s office. I rubbed my damp palms against my skirt before bracing myself against the door and peeking my head into the room. “Hey.”
    “Hi!” he replied, looking over his reading glasses at me. “What’s up? You seem upset.”
    “It’s Adam. He decided to go back to work today…and I thought he was ready…” I answered, heaving a sigh; “he just called and…well…he wasn’t.”
    Jesse took his glasses off and nodded. “Alright,” he said, cocking his head and giving me one of those looks that said he understood, even when I didn’t say anything. “Don’t take it too hard on him, though.”
    “I’ll try,” I said before turning to leave.
    “River,” Jesse said, and I looked over my shoulder. “Don’t take it too hard on yourself .”
    I bit my lip before offering him a pained smile. “See you tomorrow.”
    He nodded, breathing through his nose as his eyes raced over me. I turned, staring out the door and my mind flashed to Adam the night Bobby died. Adam’s was arm linked in mine as we walked out these same doors; our laughter bouncing off of the vestibule as he swept me into his arms before racing to the car in the rain. I stood frozen with my hand on the crash bar as I stared at the sunny day outside, a horrible juxtaposition to the clouds in my mind and the tears I felt dripping down my cheeks.
    When I got to the school, the kids were still outside for recess. Several of them jumped up and waved as I walked up the steps. I smiled back and acted like nothing was wrong. I was becoming way too good at pretending.
    “Hi there, River!” the secretary said from behind her glass. “You know the drill!”
    She passed the clipboard, and I shook my head. “Adam called because he’s stuck in the bathroom–sick to his stomach. Do you know if Principal Michaels is available?”
    She looked at her computer screen, typed quickly and then nodded. “His office is the first door on the right.”
    I was a horrible liar, and I felt my hand trembling as the buzzer sounded letting me know I could proceed. I grit my teeth before walking through and turning to the office where Principal Michaels was opening his door.
    “River, nice to see you!” he said.
    I raised my shoulders up, nodding up the stairs to where Adam’s classroom was. “Adam called me on his cell phone– he’s not doing too good. It seems I may have brought home the flu going around at my work. I came to pick him up. I hope that’s okay?”
    Principal Michaels nodded. “Better at home than sharing it with the kids here. Crazy how these things wipe through places of work and schools.”
    “For sure,” I replied.
    “Well, the next time I see you, hopefully, it will be under better circumstances.”
    “Agreed,” I said. “I should probably get him.”
    I turned to the stairs and headed up them, only letting the breath I was holding out once I made it to the top.
    He bought it. Thank God.
    I headed down the hallway towards the sign for the restroom, and my heels clicked against the marble floors, echoing through the corridors in a way that made the hair on my neck stand up. I always hated it, but at that moment, the noise seemed compounded. I didn’t want to draw any more attention because my heels sounded like a rhino was rampaging in the hallway. I reached the door and prayed it was him in there and not someone else. I gulped in air, feeling it sear into my lungs before I knocked.
    “Adam?” I asked.
    “Riv?” he replied, and I heard the door unlock.
    I stepped into the bathroom and looked at him. His hair wasn’t slicked back anymore and instead fell in his eyes as he yanked at his tie. His hands went into the air, forming fists before he rubbed the back of his neck,