Chapter Five

I followed her gaze to find Chrissy and her two blonde friends walking toward our table, smirks on their faces. 

In my peripheral, I saw a tall, muscular figure entering the dining hall with a whole entourage of girls trailing after him. My gaze fell on Ryder directly, startled to find him glaring at me. I tore my focus from him to find Chrissy was already standing beside me. Her hands were on her hips, paired with a sour look on her face. “So, you’re the new girl?”

I peered up at her, aware she wasn’t here for pleasantries. “Stating the obvious.”

“Oh, well,” she snorted a laugh, glancing from one friend to the other, who both mimicked a fake laugh. “She’s as unpleasant as she looks.”

From across the table, Hattie sat as still and stiff as a plank, as if she feared any movement would draw Chrissy’s attention. I didn’t blame her. 

“If I’m that unpleasant, why are you standing here?”

She huffed. “Just to lay down some rules for you, as you already seemed to have broken two.”

“Huh?” I blinked up at her. “Could you elaborate?”

Chrissy reached out and grabbed a fistful of my hair, pulling hard. “First rule you broke. Your hair. Why is it not tied up?”

“Wait, what—Ow!” I grabbed her hand, fighting to untangle her fingers from my hair. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

“Didn’t anyone give you a list of the rules?” she hissed at me. 

“Let go—ugh.” I shot up to my feet, managing to tear her hand away, losing a good clump of hair along with it. “Have you lost your mind?”

She glared at me. “Did you, or did you not, get a list of rules?”

“No!”

“Harley,” Chrissy sighed, holding her hand over her shoulder with an expectant look. “List. Now.”

One of the blondes shot past her toward their table, grabbed a backpack, and rushed toward us while she unzipped it. She stopped beside Chrissy, pulling out a sheet of pink paper and putting it into Chrissy’s hand. Chrissy shoved the paper at my chest. 

“Another rule you broke.” Her head turned toward Ryder across the cafeteria, then back to face me. She smirked. “It’s on the list. The most important rule. There’s a punishment for breaking the rules.”

I stared down at the list, my mouth dropping open. 

CHRISSY’S RULES.

Stay away From Ryder Dane. He belongs to CHRISSY WELLS. 

Girls are not allowed to wear anything from the designer, Kellabeigh Moon, except for Chrissy. 

Girls must wear orange at parties, except for Chrissy, who can wear her favorite color, baby pink. (Orange is so not flattering on anyone.)

No girl (except for Chrissy, Harley, and Kimmy) is allowed to wear their hair down unless it’s shorter than shoulder length. 

I peered up at Chrissy, sputtering a laugh. “Are you freaking kidding me?” At that moment, I realized that I was the only girl in the room with my hair down besides Chrissy and her two blonde friends. 

I peered at the list again, unable to contain my incredulous laughter. 

Stay away from Ryder!!!

On Fridays, three selected girls will tend to Chrissy, Harley, and Kimmy and their needs. This includes the opportunity to do their nails and hair, clean their room, and do their laundry. You’re lucky if you get picked!

Three girls will be selected each week to serve Chrissy, Harley, and Kimmy food. 

Ryder Dane belongs to Chrissy Wells. 

No touching Ryder Dane.

No talking to Ryder Dane. 

No staring at Ryder Dane.

If Chrissy tells you to do something, you listen. You can be rewarded by her grace or receive a suitable punishment. 

No one except Chrissy is allowed to eat chocolate bars in the school. All chocolate bars go to Chrissy’s stash.

Ryder Dane will never be yours. Look away, cupcake. 

Do not say Ryder Dane’s name. 

Do not—

I stopped reading. There were thirty rules, where about twenty of them were about Ryder and how he belonged to Chrissy. “What other supposed rule did I break?” 

Chrissy lifted a hand and stabbed a finger over rules 9 and 10. No talking or touching Ryder Dane. “Well, come to think of it. You broke three.”

“You are literally the most unhinged person I’ve met.” And that was saying a lot, as I’ve dealt with my fair share of crazy. “And you really expect everyone to follow these dumb rules?”

“Chrissy is the queen of this school,” Kimmy stepped in beside Chrissy, giving me a flat stare-down. “What Chrissy says, goes.”

“Yeah? Well, no can do from me.” I crumbled the paper into a ball, resulting in a low hush of “oohs” and “uh-ohs” across the dining hall. When I was done, I tossed the paper ball at Chrissy’s chest. It bounced off one boob and landed on the floor. 

Chrissy’s face turned an ugly shade of pink, and I could tell she was a heartbeat away from losing her shit. “Pick. It. Up.”

I crossed my arms to my chest. “No.”

“No?” Chrissy tilted her head to the side as if she was convinced she misheard me. “Come again?”

“You heard me.” I glared at her. “I said no. I’m not picking it up.”

She suddenly straightened, a mean grin working on her lips. “Well, I guess the punishment is due.”

Hattie leaped from her seat and picked up the paper ball, handing it to Chrissy. “She’s sorry. She’s new, and she had no idea—”

Chrissy waved her off. “Guess she’s about to learn the hard way, then.”

Not a second later, someone grabbed my hair from behind and shoved me forward onto the table. My hands blocked my fall just in time, preventing my face from planting in my burger. I barely processed what happened when a large, solid chunk of my hair fell onto my meal. It was no longer attached to my head. 

Someone moved in behind me. It was Chrissy as she snapped. “This is a warning. Next time, I won’t be so easy on you!”

A splat sounded, followed by a cold wetness pressing down on the back of my skull. White and green gunk dripped over my hair-cloaked burger. Someone just dumped a bowl of sour-smelling coleslaw over my head. 

“Teach your new bestie some manners!” I heard Kimmy shout as they moved away from our table. The dining hall was dead quiet, but I didn’t need to raise my chin to know everyone was watching. 

I swallowed back a sob, refusing to show a flicker of emotion. Instead, I wiped off as much coleslaw as possible, only to discover my hair was trimmed to my skull, with a few long stray strands in the mix still present. 

My hair was gone. 

I’m fine. I’ll be fine. 

I will not cry. 

I straightened, offering a stiff smile to Hattie, trying to let her know it’d be okay, and marched out of the dining hall as if I didn’t have a care in the world, my gaze colliding with Ryder’s. His expression was as blank as a piece of paper, but I knew he saw this whole thing go down.

Not that it mattered. He hated me anyway—I just wish I knew why.  

Will. Not. Cry.