2

2

I didn’t pay any mind to what Zade had said, he wasn’t important now that he was no longer in my life. I’d never really liked him from the time joined the school in 2 years ago, but it became worse when he was picked as captain over me after I’d worked my ass off for the position. He was a throne in my flesh, so imagine how I felt when I found out he was the reason we were one of the lowest ranking schools in the every tournament despite how hard we worked our asses off.

 For a long time he had everyone fooled, thinking we were unskilled spoilt brats that played to pass time when some of us poured our hearts and souls into the sport—and by some of us, I mean me. To me polo wasn’t just some game, like my grades, it was my legacy and he wasn’t going mess with that, well he already had and that’s why he was going to pay for it.

Call me vindictive, but I don’t care, I was going to do anything to make sure the results of everything I did were exceptional, and I didn’t care if the school liked or hated me for it, so after months of investigating him and what he was up to, 5 weeks ago with the help of my best friend I logged a complaint against the captain of my polo team, Zade Emerson for fixing our matches. And a week ago, I laid the undeniable evidence I’d collected for months against the disciplinary board during the hearing when I was called to justify my claims which lead to him not only being pulled off the team, but getting expelled from the school.

Was I remorseful for possibly ruining his life? No. He’d been messing with mine for far too long for me to feel sorry for him, he was an asshole and now he was paying for his sins, it was inevitable, as the saying goes, nothing remains hidden under the sun, especially illegal things.

“Why did you not tell me that jerk approached you?” Elizabeth, my best friend said panic and annoyance laced in her tone as she walked up to me in the cafeteria.

“There was nothing to tell.” I shrugged taking a sip of my fresh juice.

“Did he hurt you, what did he want?” She bombarded me with questions as she slammed her tray onto the table ready to assess my body but I quickly moved away.

“Beth, stop it.” I raised a hand in protest. “I’m fine, that asshole wouldn’t dare touch a hair on my head.”

“And yet he grabbed you by the arm.” She retorted crossing her arms over her chest.

“Who told you that?” My eyebrows furrowed.

“My sources.” She shrugged. “Now tell me what did he want?”

“Nothing, he was just throwing a fit saying I’d messed with dangerous people or something like that, I couldn’t really keep up, you know how I get after training.” I said casually.

“Is it true?” Her expression changed from smug to concerned in a second as she sunk into the seat beside me.

“What is?”

“The people he was dealing with, are they dangerous?” She said in a duh tone.

“I could care less.” I shrugged.

“Sienna Leighton-”

“Elizabeth Harrington.” I retorted. “I have far more pressing issues to focus on than whether the threats Zade of all people was making are true or not.”

“For Christ’s sake Sie, what if it’s true and they come for you?” Her eyes widened as she stared at me.

“Firstly, this isn’t some thriller movie, and secondly, I don’t care if it’s true or they come for me,” I stated. “Like I said, I have far more important things to focus on.”

“Like what, beating your brother?”

“Yes.” I nodded and she sighed.

“Sienna-”

“This is my last year in school Beth, and I will make it count, daddy has to see that I’m better than his golden boy, and the first way of doing that is making sure I win that championship.” I cut her off knowing fully well she was going to recite the same words she’d been repeating since we were in middle school after I broke down in the bathroom at a charity gala.

Elizabeth and I had been friends for years, she was the only one that knew what happened behind closed door, the real Sienna was behind the tough girl façade that everyone else got to see, and above all, she was the only one that knew the real reason I’d worked my ass off to expose Zade.

Sighing, she sunk in her seat and changed the topic, she went off about the new article she was publishing and how she was almost done with the one of me become the first female team captain of the polo team at this school.

Somewhere along the line, she stopped eating and talking.

“Why does the new guy keep staring at you?” She asked.

“Ignore him,” I mumbled.

“Wait,” She gasped fully turning her body to face me. “Do you guys have some sort of history I don’t know about?”

“I said ignore him Beth.” I grumbled hoping she’d just do what I said for once despite her overly curious nature.

“That’s a hard ask, have you seen that jaw, and ahh, the lips.” She gushed.

“I don’t know that boy, and I don’t intend to outside the field.” I stated irritated that she noticed how handsome he was just like every other girl within the corners of this premises.

“From the way he’s staring at you, one might think you two know each other on a deeper level.” She stated shoving a spoonful of salads into her mouth.

She was right, Diego who sat the other end of the room surrounded by the popular kids had been staring at me since I got into the room, I didn’t know it was him at first, but when the feeling that I was being watched became uncomfortable, I searched the crowd looking for the cause of my discomfort and lo and behold I found him, shamelessly staring at me. One would have thought that he’d look away upon getting caught, but no, instead he even leaned back into his chair and watched me like I was an interesting show on the screen, only his eye didn’t say they liked it—hell they said nothing at all, they were just cold and blank.

Normally I’d have liked the thought of being watched, I didn’t mind being the center of attention, but something about the way he looked at me was unsettling, he wasn’t staring with admiration or resentment like most of the other students would, he just sat there burning holes through me.

“Ignore him.” I said more to myself than to her.

“If you say so.” She shrugged and proceeded to tell me some the drama that happened during her history class.

I tried my best to focus on the details of what she was saying but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t follow my own directive and forget about his unnerving stare, and when it got too unbearable, my body moved before my brain could think and before I knew it I was making my way to Diego’s table with Elizabeth hot on my heels.

“Stop it.” I stated trying my best to seem calm and confident when inside I felt the opposite.

My actions prompted some heads to turn towards us, especially the girls who clearly didn’t like it.

“Leighton-”

“I’m not talking to you, but out.” I scowled at one of the boy before he could finish his statement.

“And the rest of you should mind your own business.” Elizabeth said to everyone looking at us and they immediately looked away. Yes, she had some influence, people were scared of having themselves written in her column.

“Stop it, I won’t say it again.” I said eyes fixed on Diego’s empty ones.

“What exactly am I stopping?” He asked tilting his head to the side as the corner of his lips tagged up into a smirk, like he had succeeded at something.

“Looking at me.” I bit out now hearing how crazy it sounded once said out loud.

“And what makes you think I was looking at you?”

“I felt it.” I said before I could think.

Chuckling and shaking his head, Diego got up from his seat walking up to me till I was a hairsbreadth from him and I had to crane my neck to look him in the eyes.

“Firstly, you’re not as special as you think.” He said voice so calm I almost understood why the girls swooned. “And secondly I can do whatever the hell I want with my eyes, if you don’t like me ‘staring’ at you, then you can leave.” He air quoted the word like I was imagining things.

“I won’t repeat myself.” I warned standing my ground, cause I wasn’t crazy, he was looking at me this entire time and it was getting creepy.

“I don’t take orders from you.” He scoffed.

“Too bad, I’m your captain.” I retorted but he immediately made me eat my words.

“Not for long.” He said under his breath and I nearly missed it.

“Excuse me?”

“See you at training, Leighton.” He said raising a hand and leaning in which instinctively made me move back but that didn’t stop him, instead he reached forward and wiped something off the corner of my lip with the pad of his thumb and placed the digit in his mouth to lick it clean.

Gross……

Winking at me, he walked off and everyone’s eyes followed him, mine included till the glass cafeteria doors closed behind him.

“What the hell just happened?” Elizabeth asked as I stormed back to our table and grabbed my things.

“I hate him.” Was all I said.