I wanted to violate her body in a hundred different ways. I wanted to keep her safe.

There was no limit to how fucking confused I was right now, but one thing was for certain. She wasn’t trash.

Over the years, she’d endured a lot of harassment because of me. People are easily manipulated. They want to be accepted, and gossip is taken as gospel. Tell people that someone has their clit pierced or that they eat dogs, and you just have to sit back and watch the school flood with talk.

However, by junior and senior year, my childish rumors were about as effective as a broken condom. I’d wanted to keep guys away from Tate, but that wasn’t working so much anymore. They saw she was beautiful, and now, after the locker room incident, they saw her as a slut, too.

And for the first time, I wasn’t getting any peace from tormenting this girl. I just wanted to wrap her up in my arms and see her smile.

My eyes narrowed, and I wished for a perfect world where I could toss darts at this guy’s dick. “Don’t talk to her again,” I commanded. “Go.” And I jerked my chin off to a corner he should go fucking hide in.

Was I better than him?

No. But I’d deal with that shit later.

Tate let out an aggravated sigh as Nate walked off, and I turned my eyes on her in time to see her lips tighten. I saw the scowl, knew it was meant for me, but didn’t even have a chance to figure out why when she spoke up.

“Don’t do me any favors,” she sneered. “You’re a miserable piece of shit, Jared. But then, I guess I’d

be miserable, too, if my parents hated me. Your dad left you, and your mom avoids you. But who can blame them, right?”

I stopped breathing, and the room shrunk in on me.

What the fuck did she just say?

I stared at her, feeling torn apart and dead, knowing that it was completely un-Tate to say something like that but knowing she spoke the truth.

I didn’t forget to breathe. I just didn’t want to anymore.

It felt like every eye in the room was on me and people were whispering behind their hands, laughing at me. I was exposed, and everyone knew my shit.

But when I glanced around, I realized no one was even paying us any attention. My eyes sharpened on her, and I remembered exactly why I hated her.

She was packaged up to look like a good girl, but make no mistake—there was a bitch in there. “Okay, class,” Mrs. Penley called out, walking through the door.

I said nothing and continued to my seat.

“Please take out your compasses and lookup your East. When I say ‘go’, please take your materials and sit next to that person for today’s discussion. Feel free to move desks side by side or face to face. Go.”

I sat there, and Ivy Donner was on me before I even had a chance to pull out my compass. But I barely heard her chatter.

Tate was joining Ben Jamison, and they were moving their desks face to face.

Strange thing was, I felt nothing looking at her. Like I was numb. The need I felt two minutes ago to hold her and tell her I was sorry was completely gone now.

And what’s more? I didn’t even feel angry, either. Tate was lost to me. I didn’t care.

I was shit. I didn’t care about that, either.

She looked at me every once in a while. I didn’t want her. I didn’t hate her.

I. Just. Didn’t. Care.

“Stop!” K.C. laughed. “You’re cheating!”

“I don’t cheat.” I stood there, smirking and leaning on my pool cue. “I made the shot. I get another one.”

Date: 2015-02-16; view: 597