chapter two

MARIAH

My jaw dropped when I saw Reynold Davidson standing at the door. The gaze he fixed on Ralph suddenly softened when his eyes flickered in my direction.

I could feel my heart race faster than usual when our eyes met.

“Fuck off!” Ralph's growl brought me back to the problem I was in. Reynold's jaw clenched and so did his fist as he moved forward slowly.

“Let her go,” he blurted out the same words, calmer now.

Ralph hissed and slammed his fist on the locker again, causing my heart to lurch in fear. I gasped out as he leaned closer to me, his other hand reaching to grip my waist while a sinister smirk stained his face.

I turned pale and my belly turned inside out when I realized what he wanted to do.

“Stay away from me,” I whispered in a trembling voice, glaring hard at him.

He chuckled darky, leaning even more closer than he was.

“Not when he is here!” He whispered and my breath caught in my throat.

Was he trying to use me to get the rage out of Reynold? Why would Reynold even bother to get concerned over me in the first place? I just had to accept that Ralph was a pervert. A deranged pervert.

“I told you to step away from her,” Reynold snapped again.

Ralph craned his neck back, his lips slanting even lower.

“You have to make me,” he muttered.

My body trembled in dismay as I watched his eyes turn dark.

His dark, frightening gaze shifted from him to me. He stared at me like he was apologizing for what he would do next.

I didn't know what was going on in his mind but I hoped and prayed that he wouldn't abandon me with this psycho.

“Please help me,” I whispered as I felt Ralph's hand begin to glide up to my neck. My body tensed as he pulled a strand of my hair back and brushed his fingers across my skin.

“Get away from her!” A deafening growl hit me, followed by a vein popped fist that met Ralph's jaw.

My brain went blank for a moment and my body froze as I tried to process how quickly Ralph was knocked off my body. When life flickered back into me in the next second, the first reaction of my body was to let out a horrified scream.

I watched Ralph crash into a desk with his nose hitting the edge of the desk before he collapsed on the ground.

I clasped my hand over my lips as Reynold moved towards him again, flexing his bloody fist.

“I warned you to stay away from her, didn't I?” He groused as he stood over Ralph.

I heard Ralph curse over his broken nose.

Reynold knelt down before him and gripped his shirt, jerking him up.

 “You should have listened, scumbag,” he spat and rammed another hit on his face before letting him go.

I gasped out at the blood on Ralph's face, goosebumps spreading over my skin.

“Are you okay?” I jumped back when I felt Reynold's hand on my skin.

“Yes… yes!” I blurted out and took a deep breath while he stared at me with such a gaze that I felt cactus in my belly.

“Thank you,” I whispered and he finally looked away from my face. My chest tightened and I regretted muttering those words the moment the contact broke.

“He didn't hurt you, right?” He asked, narrowing his eyes over me like he was searching for a scratch.

“No, no, I'm fine,” I muttered and clung to the lockers behind me. I had always wanted to know what his hands felt like but now, I was running from the touch.

He took a step back, perhaps realizing that I didn't like how close he was. But the truth was, I didn't hate, I was just nervous and afraid that I would embarrass myself before him.

“Ralph isn't a good person but he'll never hurt me,” I blurted out before I could stop myself.

Regret filled my body the moment the words escaped my quivering lips. I cursed under my breath and bit my lips.

I heard him huff and felt my chest drop.

“Of course, he won't hurt,” he huffed again and shook his head.

Silence reigned over us as we stared at each other in silence, lost at words and action.

I needed to run away like I always did but I couldn't. It felt like I was stuck at the spot. Turning around to pick up a book even felt like crime at that moment.

I wanted him to leave and pretend like he had never seen my face before but he wouldn't. Instead he remained in the empty classroom with me, staring like he was looking for something stuck in my mind.

“I've never seen you around though,” he suddenly blurted out and my heart skipped a beat.

Of course. How would he notice me if I was almost non-existent in the school? I guess the teachers only get my name right because they see it in that register every time.

“Oh, I've always sat here,” I stuttered as I waved my hand over my seat.

The room felt suffocating and thick. It felt like there was no air in the room and I was slowly dying from the suffocation in the room.

“Are you coming to the after game party?” He asked.

My lips parted and slammed shut as my mind screamed yes.

I gripped my hands tightly, battling with my thoughts and emotions. I was supposed to be on my way home not accepting invitations to a party. His party.

“I… I don't think–”

“She will come!” Ophelia's voice cut me off and my gaze raised towards the door.

She was standing at the door, her jaw dropped and her eyes wide as saucers and right behind her was… damn.

My heart sank when I saw the girls behind her. Their jaws were dropped open as well and their eyes wide but unlike Ophelia's excited glee, they had horror flooding their eyes.

I gulped hard and leaned against the locker, wishing it would swallow me up.

He turned to look at me, his lips slanting into a smirk.

“Make sure you're there,” he muttered and brushed his hand against my arm. I felt sparks run down my bloodstream when his hand touched my skin.

My heart raced and my mind threatened to shut down as I watched him dump his gloves in his locker and stroll causally towards the door like he didn't just smash someone's face.

He paused at the door, and craned his neck in my direction, a smirk on his face.

“I'll be looking for your face, Mary,” he said and disappeared out of the classroom.

My jaw dropped open in shock and I felt so light that I feared I would faint.

Thankfully, Ophelia was quick to reach and grab me before my body surrendered to the dizziness.

“Why did he call me that?” I whispered as Ophelia led me out of the classroom.

I could feel the eyes of everyone on my back as I moved.

“Your name is right here on your shirt,” she blurted out as she ran her finger over the left side of my shirt.

I looked down at my shirt and felt a wave of embarrassment hit me.

“My name is Mariah,” I muttered. Ophelia paused and looked down at the name scribbles in tiny letters on my chest, like she had forgotten my name.

“Why do you even have your name on your shirt?” she mumbled but I was so engrossed in replaying the five minute encounter with Reynold that I didn't bother to explain for the twentieth time why my mom wanted my name on my shirts.

The smile that was beginning to form on my face slowly disappeared when I raised my head and realized that all eyes were on me as we walked down the hallway. Eyes that held different reactions and feelings. I could hear the snide remarks at the corner and the whispers of disbelief.

I gripped my hand tightly, dropping my head in anxiety. It felt like everyone was crashing their emotions on me and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't shake off their glares and hatred.

“Ralph must love your face. He's quite obsessed with breaking it.”

My head jerked up when Ophelia's words hit me. She was grinning down at me in pride. I forced a smile and nodded.

“Everyone likes you,” she leaned in and whispered.

I dared not take another glance at the faces of the students in the hallway with us. She was wrong. None of them liked me.

“Oh…” that was all I could come up with.

“It's quite surprising that Reynold will defend you,” she chuckled and I felt my belly knot.

“I'm sure he would do that for any girl,” I muttered.

She paused and looked at me, her brows raising.

“You think he would?” She asked.

“Yes,” I nodded.

We walked to the changing room in silence, listening to the chatter of my encounter with Reynold, every group telling a different version of it.

“Don't listen to what they say,” Ophelia muttered at a point when the gossip of a secret affair between us wheezed past our ears.

“I hope the attention stops soon,” I whispered as we walked into the changing room.

My feet stopped moving and I felt my breath fade when all heads turned in our direction.

“I'm afraid it won't,” Ophelia leaned down and whispered.

My breathing was shaky and my skin pale as I stared at the sea of different shades of eyes staring at me in the girls’ changing room. The room suddenly felt tight and short of air as I stood there, drowning. I hated the attention. Every single one of them.

But as Reynold's last words rang in my ear, I slowly realized that this certainly won't be the end. I fear there will be more encounters of Reynold Davidson in the future.