I snickered. “Feisty little one, aren’t you?”
She shoved me one last time, then released my wrist. I turned around, rubbing at my shoulder as she made her way quickly down the steps. Well, well, well. Rae Cleaver was just full of surprises, wasn’t she?
It only spurred me on, made me want to rush to her side. I got there just in time to open the bottom stairwell door for her, then ushered her through. She glared at me, causing me to chuckle as her face scrunched up. Those insane freckles on her face always moved at the slightest twitch of her muscles, causing her eyes to ignite. She reacted more than anyone I’d ever picked on. And I enjoyed the way she attempted to defend herself.
Especially when
she put her hands on me.
I like them a little spicy.
I strode after her, shouldering her as we made our way for the principal’s office. She scoffed and moved away from me, but I brushed against her again, trying to see how angry I could make her before we got to our final destination. And when she shoved me with her hands, the strength behind her push damn near knocked me off my feet.
I stumbled. “Wow. Got some power behind that push.”
“And don’t you forget it.”
I grinned. “Never thought a goody-good like you would get sent to the principal’s office. That’s usually my forte.”
And while she ignored me, I knew she couldn’t for long.
“Those shorts look good on you. Though your legs could use a fresh shave.”
“Do your bras always look this terrible on you?”
“Why the hell didn’t you just take P.E. our freshman year? You look ridiculous in that getup.”
“Whose jacket is that anyway? Let me see.”
I pulled the jacket off her shoulders and that’s when it happened. She spun around, ripped it clear from my hand, and pressed her fingertips against my chest. She backed me all the way into the wall as I held up my hands, playfully grinning at her as she glared up at me. Her brown eyes went from black tar pits of desolation to glowing amber gems. Lit up by an exploding sky and pulsating with the anger of a thousand rabid dogs.
I’d never seen this side of her before. And it was intriguing.
“Listen here, you waste of space. You’re pathetic. You get underneath people’s skin because you can’t stand your own life, so you have to make everyone else miserable just like you are. I know how you operate, because my mother’s the same way. The two of you are no different, which means I’ll treat you no different. So keep being a manwhore and keep putting out and keep trying to deflect from the sadness you feel inside. And while I’m reaching for the stars, enjoying my life, you’ll be struggling to climb out of the hell hole you’ve dug for yourself. Got it?”
Her nostrils flared. Her eyes grew wider. Her cheeks flushed with a deep red tint, accenting the freckles they backdropped. I almost couldn't take my eyes off her. I almost couldn't slip away from her grasp. But when she shoved my chest one last time, it shocked me back into reality.
“Did you just call your mother a whore?” I asked.
“Ugh!”
She stormed through the front foyer of the school, and I watched as she left. Just… left. She didn’t pass go. She didn’t collect her two hundred dollars. And she sure as hell didn’t follow me to the principal’s office. Oh, that would get her detention. The goody-good who tried her best to be as rich as her best friends would sit her ass in some lonely room for the rest of the week. Which made me salivate with excitement. I mean, there was nothing more fun than ruining someone’s day.
But when I watched those same people ruin their week just to get away from me?
I mean, it was practically a fucking Christmas gift.
5
Raelynn
I sucked air through my teeth as my pencil doodled along the edges of my notebook. After completely bailing school a couple of days ago, I’d been called into the principal’s office first thing yesterday morning. I mean, I didn’t even get through the damn front doors with Michael and Allison before the principal beckoned me with his crooked finger. It made me irate that I was having to pay a price by simply standing up to Clinton Clarke. It was sickening to me that I was being punished after saying what I knew the teacher even wanted to say to him!
And now, here I sat, doodling in my notebook and waiting for the time to pass.
The principal gave me detention after school for an hour for the rest of the week. As recompense for my outburst, for shoving him into a wall—which was wonderfully caught on camera for people to behold—and for storming out of school without a note. Great. Fucking grand. It was me, the nose picker, the born-again meth head, and the drug dealer.
The only good thing about detention was the fact that Clint hadn’t actually showed up. He wasn’t there after school yesterday, nor was he there today. And while I knew he’d pay a hefty price for it, it wasn’t like he cared. Kids like him never cared about that kind of shit. The only thing he cared about was his image, the pussy he wanted to slay, and how he looked riding his bike.