CHAPTER6
Finally, the last bell sounds. The accursed day of school is over. I never thought today would be so hellish, but honestly, it could have been worse. It's not as if they physically hurt me. Yes, I had been groped, but it wasn't as if that had been the first time, and I'm sure it won't be the last.
More than the bullying, I’m frustrated that I didn’t do a better job of keeping my head down, my mouth shut, and being invisible. I know it’s stupid, but I made a mistake by trading barbs and reacting. That’s what they want. If I do want to try the ignoring route, I need to ignore and ignore and ignore no matter what they say or do.
But considering Brett’s already felt me up, if he escalates more, there’s no way I can handle accepting that. I’ll knock him flat on his ass and succeed this time.
I have homework already, so I grab everything I’ll need to do it. I’ll have to take advantage of the local library. I haven’t been there yet, and I don’t have a card. No place of residence. No driver’s license with a local address. Still, I was able to use their computers to forge the paperwork that landed me a spot in the high school. I can use it for homework and for applying to colleges when I figure out where else I want to go. Maybe on weekends, I can go look around and check out the local ones.
It's amazing to think that I’m taking steps to secure my future, one where I won’t have any males breathing down my necks. A small voice in the back of my head worries that there will be assholes there, maybe even bullies, but I’m not going to live a life of fear. I’m going to do what’s best for me.
Always.
I opt to leave the fries in my locker for lunch tomorrow. Library and then the grocery store. Yes. Homework first. Schoolwork is most important. That's why I'm here.
My books aren’t too heavy, but I walked to school today. My arms will get tired by the time I reach the library. Oh, well. I’ll make do.
Thankfully, I don’t see any signs of the Mutineers as I get ready to leave and walk away from the school. Under the bright warm sun, I feel like I can breathe for the first time. I’ve never been to California until now. When I ran away, I just ran and never looked back, never had a destination in mind. It’s almost random that I settled on Elk Grove in the first place. During my travels, at a diner, someone left behind a newspaper, and there had been an article about how highly rated the academy was. Why shouldn’t I go there?
It’s too early for me to actually make a determination if the teachers are as great as the article proclaimed. And I suppose that most schools suffer from bullies. Whatever. I’ll deal, and I really need to stop harping on the Mutineers. Yes, they’re all hot look wise, but personality matters more to me.
Not that I always thought that way, but all girls go through a bad boy stage, right?
No more. I'm past that. Bad boys never grow up, and they never mature. They're bullies who think they can get away with murder.
One day, though, their past will come back to haunt them and bite them in the ass.
If I ever get the chance to do that for my father, I won’t hesitate. To stay safe, though, I need distance, at least for now.
At a busy intersection, I have to wait to safely cross. I tilt my head toward the sun and close my eyes. Right now, at this very moment, I am totally and completely at peace.
Not that peace ever lasts.
I’m not even halfway down the next block when a car horn honks and honks and honks. It might just be my mood, but I swear the noise gets increasingly hostile and irritating, and I glance over, ready to shift my books to one arm so I can flip the driver the bird.
The driver is none other than Brett fucking Russo.
And he’s not alone. All of the Mutineers—Tyler Tremaine, Corey Jarvis, and Shane Dalton—are sitting in the silver Porsche, top down. I’ve learned the others’ last names just by walking about in the hallways. The kids really do act like they’re all gods, and it makes me sick to my stomach.
Why is society like this? Why do we put athletes and assholes on top, and why do we tolerate their bullshit? We have no one to blame but ourselves for putting them on pedestals, letting their terrible behaviors and attitudes go by unchecked. That's why so many commit crimes. They think they're untouchable, that their prestige and name will wipe away any issues their poor choices will make. But some of them do wind up in jail. Plenty, though, get away with their crimes.
“Look at her,” Brett crows. “So poor she can’t even afford a backpack. How do you think she manages to go to the academy and pay the tuition?”
"Not sure," Shane snaps. "Either she laid on her back, legs spread for the principal, or else her mom did."
I stiffen and speed up, but it doesn’t matter. They’re in a car and go just a smidge faster to keep up with me. Cars drive around them, seemingly not caring that they’re crawling.
I do not want them to know where I’m staying, and I long to get away from them ASAP, so I turn down the next street even though I shouldn’t.
They follow me.
Of fucking course.
“Actually, I’m starting to think that the only way she’ll get laid is if she crawls up a chicken’s ass and waits,” Corey says.
The others all roar with laughter.
My books weigh too much. I can’t run away. There’s nowhere for me to go right now. Every building I’m marching by is an office building of some kind, huge skyscrapers. Farther up the street, if I squint, I think I see some restaurants and stores up ahead. Just gotta get there. Then I can duck them. I don’t think they’ll park and follow me inside… will they?