Chapter 5 - Wakely

I glared at the gorgeous men as they walked past. Each holding onto a girl, except for the last one. He paused near our table and smiled at us.

What did that smile mean? Was he making fun of us? I glared at him.

He glanced one more time over his shoulder at me and then turned back to what I assumed were his brothers. They looked exactly the same except for their hairstyles.

Each brother had a defined jawline and lean muscles. The biceps of the man who smiled at us were straining against his shirt sleeves. I hated to admit it, but the sight made my mouth water.

I shook my head and turned away. Fuck him and fuck his brothers. They were the epitome of assholes and I wasn’t about to engage.

“Who the hell are they?” I asked Cora, even though I planned on steering clear, I wanted to know who they were.

She sat across from me, fanning her face. As soon as one of the guys smiled at her, she practically melted.

“Those are the Walker brothers.”

“Walker brothers?” I asked when she didn’t add to her statement.

“The ones I mentioned before. They are kind of like royalty here. That one with the crazy hair is Waylon. He’s the captain of the swimming team. He’s the strong, silent type.” She sighed as she stared at him. “He’s so hot.”

I snorted at her. “They all look the same.” I picked at the food in front of me.

“They are triplets. Then the one next to the blonde is Whittaker. He’s like super OCD and probably the cruelest of the brothers. But it’s a calculated cruelty. There are some crazy stories,” She said as she leaned closer to me.

I glanced over my shoulder to get a look at the brother Cora was explaining. My eyes locked with Waylon’s, I held his gaze for a few seconds. I fought the urge to look away, I didn’t want him to think I was afraid of him. I needed to show him that I wasn’t afraid of him.

“Then there’s Wynn, he’s next to that bitch Zoey. He’s the more happy-go-lucky brother. Not a lot bothers him. He goes with the flow. And usually, that flow is whatever Whittaker and Zoey want.”

I glanced back again, but then quickly turned away when I saw Waylon staring at me. Again. What was up with him?

“So what…we are supposed to bow down to them because they play a sport?” I shook my head at the thought.

“Well, yeah.” Cora leaned even closer to me. “Not to mention the heinous things that they did to anyone who stood in their way.”

I furrowed my brows at her.

“Last year, they hazed a guy on the swim team so bad that he needed to get checked into a rehab center. He had a nervous breakdown and totally freaked out at a party that may or may not have involved the killing of animals.” Cora shrugged. “I never got the full story, and everyone’s story is different, so it may not be true.”

“And I’m supposed to go along with whatever they want? Act as if they are royalty?” I cocked an eyebrow at her.

“Usually they don’t really pay attention to…” Cora pointed at herself and then at me.

“Girls?” I shook my head, unsure of what point she was trying to make.

“I mean, you’re Wakely Gilford, you aren’t really in my group. But they usually ignore the losers.” She held up her hands. “Not saying you’re a loser, but they usually don’t bother with the academics. At least the ones that stay out of their way.”

I snorted at her. “This is so ridiculous.”

I couldn’t believe that this school practically bowed down to those three and their girlfriends. Albeit they were hot as hell, but that didn’t mean anything.

“What about that one…Waylon?” I asked as I tilted my head back, indicating the brother who didn’t have a girl pawing at him.

“What about him?” Cora asked as she took two slices of bread and smashed Fruit Loops in between the slices.

“Where is his girlfriend?” I didn’t want to sound like I was interested. Because I wasn’t. I just needed to know if there was another girl I needed to avoid.

Cora took a big bite of her sandwich and chewed quickly. “He doesn’t have one.” She said in between chews.

I stole another glance over my shoulder. The man was still staring at me as his brother shoved his arm, laughing about something.

“Yeah, no one knows why. Ever since he was a freshman, Waylon has been known for being single. Not that girls didn’t constantly throw themselves at him. He just didn’t seem to be interested.” Cora said and then took another bite of food.

“Hmm.” That was the only thing that I could muster. I focused on the lasagna in front of me. For cafeteria food, this wasn’t bad.

“Would you be interested in going to the store? I have some things that I wanted to pick up, and I always hate going alone. I feel like around every corner someone is waiting to kidnap me.” She giggled nervously. “I am obsessed with true crime, and it’s made me a little paranoid.”

I smiled at my new friend. “Of course, I have some things that I want to get anyway. As you saw, I have absolutely nothing in the form of décor, let alone sheets for the bed.”

“Eeee.” Cora waved her hands in front of her. “I love shopping.” She clapped her hands together and drank the rest of her chocolate milk.

I liked Cora and was grateful that she was my new self-designated best friend. At least I wasn’t starting the school year alone. And that thought alone soothed me.