“And I don’t know why you keep sitting near me when you clearly hate me.”
Nelly scoffed as she shook her head at me. “Hate you would imply I see you as something more than the inconvenience you are.” She rolled her eyes, and I had half a thought to slap her, so those bitches got stuck back there.
“I’m here for Mac. I won’t let you drag him down socially with you,” Nelly said, eating her cookie along with a cup of tea.
Mac cleared his throat, and I shut my mouth. Why and how were they friends?
“Nelly, that isn’t necessary. I told you I’d be fine.”
“Not if you keep giving her attention. I’m surprised the kings haven’t said anything to you.”
“What would they say?” I asked, angry at just hearing her refer to them.
They hadn’t made a move, but I wasn’t born yesterday. I knew they were going to get their payback. Especially Luxious. The way he stared at me, I could practically hear the villainous laugh coming from him.
Out of habit, I looked around for them, but they weren’t in the lunchroom. They hadn’t been there since the incident on the first day. A part of me was curious, but only because I needed to know where my enemies were the entire time.
Nelly sighed as if I should know all of this. “They claimed you the night of the party.”
I shrugged. “And that means what? As far as I can tell, nothing has happened. It was just some bullshit—”
“You’re an idiot if you think that.” Nelly pointed at me as her perfectly arched brows dipped. “You—”
A group of students walked past us, and the little hairs on the back of my neck stood up straight. I’d learned a long time ago to pay attention to my instincts. They were right eight of ten times.
Two boys plopped down on each side of me. I recognized them from the party but not enough to put names to faces. Mac went stiff, and Nelly shut her mouth but not an ounce of fear showed on her face as she stared at both the newcomers.
“Can I help you?” I was aware the rest of the lunch room was silent.
The guy on my left lifted strands of my hair. “I hope so.” If he was going for seduction, it had the opposite effect on me. I was dry as an overcooked biscuit.
“Keegan, right?” The one with floppy blond hair who gave him the boy next door look smiled at me.
Mac cleared his throat, a grin on his face that didn’t reach his eyes pointed at the two newcomers. “Frances—”
“No one was talking to you, Mr. president, or should we call you the king’s dog?” Frances laughed, and his friend on my other side joined in.
I would talk to Mac about that title later.
“She’s my friend.”
The laughter stopped. I stared at Mac, but the tick in Nelly’s jaw drew my attention.
“Oh yeah, so her little fuck up on the first day you can cover, right?” Frances said as he leaned over the table toward Mac.
I pulled him back. “Mac doesn’t have to pay for shit.”
“Oh, but you’re wrong there,” Frances said. “Everything you do comes at a price, and you hurt the princess.”
At this point, there shouldn’t be anything in this school that surprised me anymore. Yet they kept pulling shit out of their asses.
“As I said, I can pay for my own shit.” I slapped the other guy’s hand away from me as he reached to touch my hair more. Every brush of his fingers felt like ants were crawling all over me.
Frances clapped as if he’d won the lottery. “Oh good.”
“Kee,” Mac stressed.
I wasn’t going to let anyone else pay for anything that had to do with me. I never wanted to be in anyone’s debt. Wakeman was my one and only lesson in that category. Just thinking about him sent a cold dread sinking through all my limbs, making me numb from the inside out.