CLAIRE.I hefted the straps of my backpack higher on my shoulders, walking quickly into school, my eyes quickly roving the mass of bodies to find Evie, who'd left the house early this morning. It was a blessing for me because I didn't have to endure another of her rude banter on the way to school. Becky had been insufferable since I started school again and I didn't have any time for myself once I stepped into the house. Which was why I'd started spending time in the forest with the wolf man. It occurred to me then that I didn't know what his name was. He'd barely spoken during our time together, always silent and watching me with his intense eyes. I stopped at my locker, still lost in my thoughts as I took out my geometry textbook. I slammed the door shut and came face to face with Scott, letting out a little squeak. Embarrassed at the attention I'd garnered from that sound, I glared hard at him, getting angrier when he smiled wide at me. Scott, who I'd known for the better part o
CLAIRE."Brat!" Evie bumped her shoulders into mine as she stepped down from the bus, immediately joining her stupid friends. I rolled my eyes as I adjusted my sweater, coming down from the bus and heading straight to Scott, who stood a few paces away from Evie and her friends. He'd watched the scene that just unfolded and now, his eyes were slitted, gazing at me like he was trying to figure out if I was hurt and if he needed to speak with Evie. I wasn't that kind of girlfriend, so I shook my head once I was beside him, stretching on my toes to give him a kiss on his cheeks. Clearly offended by my weak show of affection, he pulled me into him before the heels of my feet touched the floor again, giving me a kiss squarely on the lips. He let me go and I stepped back awkwardly, my eyes darting around us as some students stared at us in shock. Scott and I had been dating for a month now but it was always a shock for people to see us hanging out together. With our mouths. I was blushing
CLAIRE.They all circled me, looking like sharks ready for the kill, their animosity with me written clearly on their faces. I looked at Evie and tried to reason to her with my eyes but her face was the worst, burning with an unbridled rage. I was most definitely set up by Evie and her friends. That silly bumping into me with Kool aid had been a ploy to get me into the restroom. Alone. My eyes shifted to the bathroom stalls trying to figure out if anyone might be inside, at least the person might report what was about to happen once she got out. When I didn't hear any shuffle of feet from the stall or any sound at all, I knew that I was truly alone with these girls. I was in trouble and I needed to get out of here fast. Mind made up, I dived to the side and when most of them shifted to follow me, I twisted around and ran to my right, heading for the door. My hand had barely grasped the door handle when someone slammed into my body, causing my wrist to twist against the door, my ches
CLAIRE.I spent the rest of school time in the restroom, sitting over the closed toilet seat. Evie and her cronies had left immediately as I'd gotten a fair amount of toilet water all over my self, leaving me to the nausea that immediately swamped me. I'd cried hard after that and even contemplated taking my own life because I'd never felt so unneeded. Someone knocked on the door of my stall and I flushed the toilet, letting the person know that someone was on here. The person moved along and my head went back to resting on my raised knees. My phone beeped from my pocket but I didn't check it, because I knew that it had to be Scott and I wasn't ready to act like I was alright in front of him just yet, my feelings still so raw. And bruised. I think it's been over two hours since I finally left the restroom. I saw the hockey players who'd just finished practice walk down the hallway to their locker room, leaving the hallway to be deserted. Evie would probably be home already and Becky
ALEXAKIS.Okay, so maybe I'd been a bit forward and my actions now bordered on inappropriate. But in hindsight, this plan had sounded sensible to me when it first came to me and I'd rushed down here with everything I needed to get started. Now, with my girl staring at me in confusion, I wasn't so sure if it was a good idea. I'd first thought that making a door for the cave as a form of protection for her whenever she came here was smart. After all, she was always down here, whether it rained heavily or the ground was dry. She'd stay for a few minutes, sometimes reading and then she'd be on her way. I didn't like the fact that she had to sit outside in a place that surely brought her comfort. I didn't also like the thoughts in my head, hence the construction of the door. I'd been obsessed with the possibility of her being in danger in the cave when I'm not around. She needed to be able to take cover and protect herself and a door can be kicked down as it doesn't do much, but still. I
ALEXAKIS.I was late to work the next day, having overslept in the cave the previous night. The den was bustling with regulars - at least they were the same faces I'd seen every day since I started coming here. Liam, one of the bartenders, gave me a cursory glance, before going back to cleaning down his space. I sighed as I ambled slowly through the bodies, heading straight for the locker room. Angelo had put up a 'No smoking' right outside the door but that made it the smoking joint for the punks that frequented the fighting den - even though the locker rooms were technically meant for the workers. Only. My hand pressed into the sign as I pushed the door open, stepping into a cloud of smoke from someone's cigarette. I struggled to hold my breath as I stopped further into the room, throwing my bag on a bench beside my locker. One of the other fighters walked up to me, wrapping bandages around his hands. Timothy, although all the guys call him Motty, had been fighting here since he w
ALEXAKIS."Just the man I was looking for." I looked up to see Angelo staring down at me, a huge grin on his face. One thing I'd learned about the man standing in front of me was that looks could be deceiving and that most times, the sunniest smiles held the darkest minds, because not only was Angelo this charming and handsome man, he was also the head of a fight club. Or a men's club.I couldn't remember what Motty had shakily whispered to me one evening when we'd heard shouts coming from Angelo's closed office. We'd both watched -not just us because the screams had brought the whole den to stand in front of his office- as Angelo pulled open the door, wiping what I was sure was blood on a silk napkin, a sly smile on his face. I felt shivers run through Motty's frame and he'd skittered away when Angelo looked up at us. Now, I could see Motty and a friend of his, not a fighter though as his thin build won't win him any match no matter how hard he practiced, slither away as Angelo ben
CLAIRE.Evie told the whole school that I was addled with some sort of disease and my life had gone worse from then on. I'd been mocked, laughed at, insulted. The only good thing in my life currently was Scott who had been the most supportive boyfriend ever. Infact, he'd started withdrawing from Evie and I could tell that she'd noticed and it angered her because her childish cruelty at home had increased, so much so that I barely ever went to sleep completely, lest she came into my room to do something diabolical. The last time she'd come into my room this week, I'd forgotten to turn the lock, she'd trashed my hidden library. I knew she didn't work alone because Becky was the only one that knew where I had hidden them. I still got angry when I thought about it and I was steaming with anger even before I got to my class. Our English Teacher, Ms. Wells looked up from the book she was reading and I smiled at her, walking past and heading straight for my desk. Just as I stepped past her,