"Time to see what you're made of Miss Alice." Riley turned back to her, flashing an insane grin.
"Wh—what?" Alice stammered, running after him. It was much easier to run in her sneakers, but it was still hard to keep up with the much taller boys.
'Like a bloody herd of giraffe,' she thought, panting as she finally caught up.
"What do you mean? Where are we going?" she asked.
"One of the lads we beat up yesterday reckons he's getting his brothers to deck us," Riley revealed, eyes flashing with crazed excitement. "I'm going to enjoying seeing the look on his face when I destroy his older brothers."
Alice's eyes widened as she nodded. The guy seemed genuinely buzzed about the idea of not only fighting but beating someone to a bloody pulp.
'I really have to make sure this psycho stays away from Adam,' she though
Ste turned the corner of Eastwell Crescent. It meant taking the longer route home but also meant avoiding the walk past Adam's house. Even though Adam had forgiven him, he didn't like the way Mike eyeballed him every time he caught sight of him. That guy gave him the creeps, always had.He took a left down the alley and walked straight into Gary."Sorry," Gary cried, throwing his giant arms up as a reflex. He dropped them as he saw who he was talking to. "Oh. It's you."Ste thought he might have something more to say to him than that, but Gary was a man of few words. He turned and carried on his way without so much as a dirty look."Wait," Ste said, chasing after him. "H—how have things been since—""Since you tried to kill Adam?" Gary finished."I didn't want Adam to get hurt. I swear, man. I just... I dunno..."A
As Ste walked home, he couldn't stop thinking about Felix. He'd pushed his memories of Felix so far down in his subconscious they hadn't surfaced in years. Now, floating atop the murky depths of mind like a bloated corpse, he was forced to confront them.As he'd spent a lot of time watching Jamie during school, he remembered Felix and Jamie had crossed paths a few times. He recalled how jealous he'd been, seeing the pair together.'Maybe Jamie knows something about Felix's motives,'Ste thought. In his heart, he knew this was a sad and desperate excuse to engage with the boy who'd crushed his world. Still, if it helped Adam in any way, it was worth it.He found himself standing outside the front of Jamie's house but couldn't make himself ring the doorbell. His hand quivered as he raised it."Ste?" Alice said. She put down the newspaper recycling bin and walked down the side
As they gathered outside Adam's house, Alice prayed that Mike would take Riley up on his offer. Whatever was written inside the note he'd left on their table three days ago had to be better than the alternative. "Riley, can I ask you something?" Alice said, taking his arm and pulling him to one side. It was a diversionary and delaying tactic, but there was something she genuinely needed to know. Something that had been gnawing at her. "How did you about Adam threatening to gang-rape me?" "A little birdy told me," Riley said, tapping his nose with his finger. When Alice stared blankly, not happy with this level of explanation, he added, "Felix. It was Felix who told me about that. He pretty much knows everything. The guy's both a genius and a major snoop." 'Felix,' she thought. 'But did he get that information from my little brother?' The idea that her little brother mi
"Adam... don't go inside," Alice whispered.The look on her face and the tremble in her voice made him nervous, but he swallowed his fear. "It's my fucking house, Alice."She made a low-pitched whining sound as he barged past her."Don't look. Don't look," Mike cried. He was bent over, holding a bundle of towels.'Is that blood?'he thought, seeing the growing patches of red seeping through the fabric. The wall and mirror also featured a streak of red drips, as well as the new cushion. He remembered standing in the store with Zoe as she'd helped him pick out new furnishings. She'd insisted the mustard yellow cushion was stylish despite it being so damn ugly and bought it for him with a shit-eating grin on her face. Now it sat plastered in blood.He felt hypnotized as Mike lifted the bundle and a brown and furry leg fell out from beneath the folds.
"Oh, you look different today," Hannah said, frowning as Alice arrived to help set up the lesson. They were doing crafting since there was little else to do, and the materials had to split between the tables to stop the kids from wondering. Not that it would work. Half the school was already at home isolating, including most of the teachers."I wanted a more casual look," Alice said. Instead of straightening her hair and putting on a dress and heels, she'd gone the opposite way. A glow-down, some might call it. With her hair in a messy bun, flat shoes, and an old pair of her mother's work trousers she would draw less attention."Well, you look pretty either way," Hannah said, smiling. Alice got the feeling Hannah might be a lesbian but didn't feel she was hitting on her. She was simply being sweet."Thank you." Alice blushed, tucking a stray hair behind her ear."Do you mind picking up some more card
After internet stalking Felix for hours and coming up with very little, Jamie decided to bite the bullet and send him a message saying hello. He didn't expect a reply at all, let alone an immediate one. He was shocked when Felix hit him up after only a couple of minutes."Remember all those fun times in the showers?" Felix replied with a winking emoji. "Did you miss those days?""Not particularly," Jamie replied. He had to be very careful about how he spoke to this guy. Being his true self wasn't an option if he wanted to gather any information on Felix. He'd have to pick a persona. "Your name came up in conversation and I wondered what you were doing these days.""I’m doing 6th form at Rowshill School," he replied curtly. "Will that be all?"Jamie's teeth ground together as his left hand curled into a fist so tight he had to type one-handed.'You arrogant prick,'
When Alice saw Riley and the others waiting at the gate, she panicked and almost turned back. Unfortunately, he'd already spotted her."I have something really important I need to do today," she said, pressing her palms together."More important than me?" Riley asked."Well... yes," Alice admitted with an apologetic wince. "Please may I be excused?"When his only response was to stare blankly at her, she bent her knees and bowed her head. "Pleeeease, please, please?"She heard Riley tut and sigh. "Fine. Whatever. It's not like you're even useful.""Wow," Felix commented. "You're so soft on her. Whatever will people say?"There was a definite shift in the mood as a dank quiet fell over the group—you could almost cut the tension with a blade.It was Riley who broke the awkward silence with a yawn that seemed to re
Alice had almost drifted off when she heard a voice."Well, well, well, what do we have here?"She looked up to see Riley standing over her, surrounded by the usual suspects and a couple of others she vaguely recognised.As a reflex, she pulled her hand away from Adam's like it was hot coal, though she knew it was too little too late. She'd been caught in the act."Riley—""Shush." He crouched and placed a finger on her lips. "You just curl up there. Cover your eyes and your ears, okay?""Oh, please, Riley, don't!" she cried. "You promised. You promised you wouldn't hurt him.""And you broke your side of the bargain." Riley smiled sadly and shook his head. "It was only a matter of time, so don't feel too bad. I was just having a little fun with you.""I—I didn't. I didn't—" Alice stammered, gla
Bonus Chapter Alice shuffled, shifting her feet beneath her on the soft sofa cushions. It was hard to move with the weight of the now fully grown Ivy planted across her lap. Adam, seeing her struggle, laughed but did not offer any help. Knowing him inside and out, she wouldn't expect or want any different. That was Adam. Her Adam. Ste and Jamie sat opposite. Both had fussed the dog for a while before settling in front of the television, entangled in each other, and arguing about the contestants of the show 'Glow Up.' "She's a total stuck up bitch, but I like her," Jamie was saying. "She won't last." Ste shook his head. Zoe was also engaged in the television, but Gary was focused purely on his phone. "Look!" Gary raised his phone to show the others a picture. 'A baby.'Alice frowned, puzzl
Alice sat opposite Jamie as he preened himself in front of a mirror. He moved about the same piece of hair multiple times before deciding it looked better in the first place."Got a date?" she asked.Jamie glanced up from his mirror for a second and nodded. "I didn't think I'd ever get feelings for Ste, but since he rescued me... it's just... different."Alice nodded. She had similar feelings toward Adam. The annoying thing was, he wasn't making any sort of moves on her. If she wanted him, she was going to make it blatantly obvious before he would pick up the hint."I'm glad things are going well for you two," she said, smiling at her brother. It was nice to see him in a happy and healthy relationship.Putting down his mirror, Jamie tutted, sighed, and gave her the saddest smile. "Alice, you're just too nice. I was awful to you, and you're still rooting for me."
"Are you sure you're okay to come back to work?" Hannah asked for the umpteenth time. She'd been fussing over her all morning, making her drinks and going out of her way to make as little work as possible."Honestly," Alice reassured her. "I'm completely fine."Standing on her tiptoes, Alice glanced over the teacher's shoulders at the classroom. The seat where Felix had always sat was now empty. There was something ominous about the way it was angled and edged away from the table—almost as if it were waiting for his return."I always knew he was a wrong'un." Hannah shook her head. "I still can't believe you aren't pressing charges, though. He's going to get away with it."Her mother had said the same thing repeatedly, the thing they didn't understand though, was the trouble she'd be causing for Riley, Adam, Mike, and all the other lads if the prosecution started asking too many questions.
The pain in Alice's stomach would intensify every so often before tapering off and becoming ignorable for a time. It emitted a grumbling sound, making her blush and apologise.Damien laughed. "I just watched you pee in a bucket. There's no need to worry about a few bodily noises.""You said you weren't looking." Alice narrowed her eyes, giving him an evil stare.Damien laughed and shrugged. "These might be my last hours. I should make the most of them, don't you think?""Okaaay." Alice let out a strained chuckle, unsure what to say to that. If looking at her bum made his last day even a tiny fraction better, she would allow it, as weird and perverted as it seemed to her. "Knock yourself out."Without warning, he took her hand and spun her into his side. Licking his lips, he stared down at her. "Since we have nothing else to do..."Alice pulled away, feeling h
Jamie listened to the sounds of their footsteps crunching down the driveway, waiting until they were well out of earshot before moving toward Felix.First, he wandered off into the kitchen and poured some warm water into a bowl. Then he went upstairs to get the first aid kit from under his mother's bed. Their kit was pretty extensive and well-stocked—one of the perks of having a nurse for a mother.Returning to Felix, he paused halfway down the stairs to still his heart. Seeing the way the smaller boy had defeated Adam so completely and utterly was...Jamie smiled to himself.It was... euphoric.The more he learned and remembered about his adversary, the more in awe he became.This guy was a genius who couldn't feel pain. He seemed to feel nothing at all, which made him godlike in Jamie's eyes.After gathering his senses
"I don't care what you do to me. I'll never tell you." Felix spat blood into Adam's face and grinned, showing a row of broken and red-smeared teeth. "I'm not like you, Adam."'He's right,'Adam surmised.'I was begging for mercy at this point, and he's not even broken a sweat.'Becoming frustrated, Adam grabbed the hammer. He raised it in a tight fist, gearing it toward Felix's skull before turning and bashing the molars he'd painstakingly extracted.'Good luck reattaching these now.'He smirked to himself, feeling his recently removed teeth with his tongue. They felt different to before, and he couldn't stop pushing his tongue into the gap."How is this not hurting him?" he muttered to Jamie. "I remember it well. It was torture.""One sec," Jamie uttered. His fingers tapped away at his laptop keyboard as his eyes darted about the s
When Alice woke up, her arms were numb from having to sleep in an unfamiliar position. She had no idea if it was morning or how much time had passed because of the darkness. It was so thick she could barely see her hand in front of her face.Shivering, she rubbed her arms before feeling about her surroundings in the hope he'd been kind enough to leave a blanket.He hadn't.'No big surprise there,'Alice thought.She was hungry, thirsty, and cold, but most of all, she was afraid. Afraid of slowly dying in this cold and dark tomb.Her heart jumped when she heard a clang in the distance. Could it be Felix returning? And would he feed her or kill her?After a moment she heard footsteps approaching but as she strained her ears, the sound dissipated.'Did I imagine it?'"Felix? Felix
When Alice awoke, the first thing she remembered was Riley's words:'This is a great way to get over my ex.'It felt like someone was kicking her in the stomach.Then she remembered Felix and the taser and she really felt sick. She rolled over and tried to move but couldn't. Chains rattled as she struggled, but it was too dark to see her surroundings.Using the sounds and her sense of touch, she eventually figured out her wrists were bound by a metal chain that was wrapped around a metal pole several times. She patted the soft and springy floor beneath her and guessed she'd been placed on a mattress or bedding of some description. it was giving off that sour water smell, as though it had been sitting in the damp for some time.She filled her lungs, preparing to shout, and noticed how cold and damp the air felt in her mouth.'Am I underground?'sh
Alice stared into Riley's eyes, unsure what to do.Her body was telling her to rip off her clothes and throw herself at him, but was it what either of them truly wanted? Or were these merely the lust fuelled urges of two people who'd survived a trauma together?She felt his fingers pulled around the bottom of her T-shirt and lifted her arms to let him slip the clothes from her body. Once her shirt was a messy pile at her feet, he reached behind and pinged her bra. Her breasts shifted and bounced out of the cups as they fell forward. Instinctively she raised a hand to cover them as the bra dropped to the floor.Riley chuckled lightly as he pushed her grip away, replacing them with his larger hands. Her nipples became instantly hard as he pinched them between his thumbs and index fingers.She moaned gently as he squeezed and took a step forward, pressing her back up against the wall.&