Playing Games: A College Bully Romance

by Candace Wondrak

  That begged the question: what happened last year?

  “I got in some trouble with other students,” Mel answered once I asked, though I did tell her to feel free to ignore the question if it was too personal. “There was…an incident, and even though I was the victim, other students made me out to be the bad guy.”

  That could literally describe countless of things, but I knew enough not to push her. By now, I was used to dealing with girls who kept secrets. Ash was the queen of secrets, and I let her be, knowing the truth might just be uglier than the lies. If Mel was going to be my new Ash, my temporary Ash, because I’d never let our friendship die even if we went to separate colleges hours apart, I’d let her keep her secrets, too.

  “People are assholes,” I remarked, causing Mel to smile.

  “Yep,” she said, letting out a sigh of agreement. “They totally are.”

  The campus was mostly empty, save for a few other freshmen who were hurrying around with their families, trying to find their buildings or taking pictures near signs. Memories and all that shit. The air was warm, the sky clear. It was a nice day, and even though Ash wasn’t here with me, I was excited to start this new chapter in my life.

  It was as we walked to the student union, where most of the food places were, that I asked, “So I take it you’re not big into partying?”

  Mel’s demeanor turned sour a bit, and I could tell just by the quick look she gave me after I asked that she wasn’t. That, or whatever incident had happened with other students had happened at a party. Mel and parties did not mix. Okay, got it.

  “It’s fine,” I said. “I was just trying to see if I could drag you out of the dorm room on Friday nights like I used to drag Ash out.” I’d already told her about Ash. Maybe if I begged Ash enough, she’d come visit me and we could pretend like it was old times.

  “Sorry,” Mel said, not sounding sorry at all. “That is not going to happen. You can still go out, though. Just be careful. SCC might look good on paper, but…” Her voice quieted, and she stopped. The union was an oblong building a few stories high, and it stood less than twenty feet in front of us. “Just…watch yourself, especially if you go to any frat parties.”

  Okay, that warning was a little too specific. Was there a fraternity around here that liked to rape girls or something? Of course my mind went there. I was a girl in America. I’d seen the headlines. Girls were blamed for what they were drinking or wearing, and the guys usually got off, especially if they were rich and white. Some days it was so aggravating that I wished I would’ve been born with a dick instead of a pussy.

  I meant, dicks were fun. I’d be helicoptering mine all over the place, jerking off left and right. Me? It took way too long for me to get myself to orgasm—but, uh, probably not something I should be thinking about right now anyways.

  “Thanks for the heads up,” I said, and together we entered the union.

  The union was probably one of the newest buildings on campus, mostly because all orientation was done here. I remembered coming here back during senior year in high school, listening to people drone on and on in the large ballroom, about the perks of coming to SCC and why this was such a good school. I’d nearly fallen asleep, but then I got into a fun little game with myself, marking down every time the guy talking said the word uh.

  Over three hundred times, and that was after I started keeping track.

  Some people were just not natural public speakers.

  The union was pretty empty. Right when you walked in, an apparel shop sat on your right. The bookstore—for all your ridiculously overpriced textbook needs, in case you forgot to order them online early—was right beside it. The auditorium was upstairs, along with a few other big rooms that organizations could rent out. The food places and the cafeteria were on the first floor, and I was about to lead us there, going to offer to buy something for Mel since she’d shown me around campus—I didn’t have money, but I had a meal card, and until that bitch ran out, I’d treat it like it was gold.

  A group of guys stood in front of the pizza place, which was exactly what I was in the mood for, so that’s where I headed.

  I’d leave it up to you to decide if I was in the mood for pizza or dick. Hint: might be both.

  Actually, it was always both.

  “Shit,” Mel muttered. “I can’t go over there.” And then she darted to the side, away from the food places and out of sight from the guys standing near the pizza joint. I stopped myself from rolling my eyes, wondering two things.

  Were those the students she had trouble with last semester? Or did she have a crush on one of them? I’d only gotten a quick glance, but they were cute.

  I followed her around the corner. We stood near restrooms. Judging from the look on Mel’s face, she was about to be sick. Her skin was paler, her eyes glazed over. “Hey,” I broke into her thoughts, causing her to quickly look at me. “You okay?”

  “I’m fine,” she said. “I just don’t want to go over there until they’re gone.”

  I took a few steps back, peering around the corner. The guys were having too much fun talking to each other and laughing; they didn’t notice us, or how awkwardly Mel had darted away. “Why? Do I need to punch some dicks? I’m down for it—”

  “No,” Mel said quickly. “No. No dick-punching.”

  I looked back at her, sending her a frown. “Then tell me what you want. I’m feeling the need for pizza right now.”

  “Kelsey,” Mel muttered. “I don’t—”

  “I’m going, so you better tell me right now if you want any dicks punched.” I wasn’t the kind of person to back down. I was as stubborn as they came. Ash would vouch for me, if she was here, but since she wasn’t, Mel was just going to have to learn that fact herself.

  When Mel said nothing, only shot me a pleading look, I shrugged, spun on my heel, and marched around the corner, acting as if I’d just come from the bathroom. I ran a hand through my hair, messing up its brown lengths, heading right over to the pizza place.

  There weren’t many students sitting in the cafeteria, nor were there many at the other food places. It was pretty much only me and the group of guys. Five of them, to be exact. Typical college boys, too. A bit too preppy, a bit too put together.

  What could I say? Me and Ash were the same when it came to guys. We both liked them unavailable, unattainable, and messy. The messier the better. Sex was always better when it was wild, anyway.

  Chapter Three – Levi

  A part of me wished I didn’t come back, but I’d be at SCC for one more year. One more year, dealing with the bullshit, and then I’d be gone. I still had to pick a different college to go to, but I figured I’d have plenty of time between classes to sit down and make the decision. You could theoretically go all four years at SCC, but I didn’t want to. I wasn’t a huge fan of this place, or the people in it.

  That was, I guessed, partially my fault. You were who you associated with, and I associated with people who I would’ve been friends with a few years ago, back in high school. The Sigma Chi fraternity just looked good on paper. It was mainly on my mom’s insistence. Being a part of a fraternity meant I showed a willingness to be a part of a team, or something. I didn’t know. Some bullshit excuse, and since my mom was basically paying for me to be here, I had no choice but to listen to her and do as she wanted.

  I might be miserable now, but when I had less debt than these other losers, I’d be the one laughing.

  I didn’t really get along with my fraternity brothers either. They were dicks, but I guessed that meant I was a dick, too. Oh, well. I didn’t care about that too much.

  I stood with Dean and the others, waiting for our pizzas to be ready. Dean was busy telling everyone what he’d gotten up to over summer break, how he’d hooked up with his cousin’s friend or something. Dean usually told stories like that. He was the definition of a manwhore, and I pretended to pay attention to him, just like the others did.

  The truth, though? The truth was I didn’t
give a single shit about who Dean hooked up with. I didn’t care what his tally was over the summer. These guys…all they cared about was pussy. Pussy was nice, but I didn’t think it merited discussion every fucking hour.

  Like, come on. Have a personality. It wasn’t that hard.

  Dean paused in his story, his black-haired and dark gaze whipping to the side as a girl rounded a corner and headed right for us, probably to order herself some pizza. “Fresh meat,” Dean muttered, causing the others around him to chuckle. I didn’t laugh. “She’s not exactly my type, but…”

  Who was he trying to kid? Every girl with a wet cunt was his type. Dean didn’t have standards.

  Dean said nothing as the girl walked right by, heading to the counter. She placed her order, paid with her meal card, and was about to sit on one of the nearby chairs to wait, but Dean slid in front of her before she had the chance.

  “Hey,” he said, his voice smooth, suave. Combine his voice with his face and his body, and he was a weakness to a lot of girls. “New on campus this year?”

  The girl’s full lips puckered into a frown, and she checked him out, blatant about it. It was…odd to see a girl look so pissed off and intrigued at the same time. “Yeah, but I’m guessing you’re not since you’re acting like the big dick on campus.” Her bluntness caused some of the guys to laugh.

  Me? I merely checked her out in a new light. I couldn’t say whether or not I’d ever heard any girl talk to Dean like that. Usually they fell on top of each other to get to him, eagerly spreading their legs. This girl…this girl seemed different, although I supposed only time would tell.

  Dean was clearly caught off guard, for all he managed to say was, “I only said hey.”

  “True, but it’s your attitude.” The girl did a hair flip, causing her long, wavy brown hair to fall down her back instead of over her shoulder. She had tanned white skin, dark eyes that could see everything. “I don’t need to talk to you longer to know it’s true.” She shrugged, moving around him and plopping herself down in a table not even five feet from us. “And besides, why would I want to talk to you at all when you’re clearly overcompensating for something?”

  Everyone else found her statement to be the most hilarious thing they’d ever heard, although Dean managed to frown.

  “Bye, Felicia.” The girl waved us off.

  It was probably a good thing that our order came up right then, the worker calling out Dean’s name and stopping him from saying something else that would only end up getting him in trouble.

  Dean said nothing, going to grab a few of the pizza boxes, the others picking up what he couldn’t. I stood in the back of the group, waiting for them to leave. I lingered near the table, causing the girl to glare at me.

  “What are you hanging around for?” she asked. “Are you waiting for me to tell you what’s up too? Tall, dark and brooding might’ve worked ten years ago, but in today’s age, you’re just creepy.”

  Bold and defiant. I decided I liked her.

  I leaned down, setting my hands flat against the table in front of her. I was well over six feet, so with her sitting position, I towered over her easily. I also worked out a lot too, so I knew my body was intimidating. Try as she might not to notice it, she did. Her eyes, narrowed as they were, studied me and my hunched-over position.

  “Careful,” I warned her. “Dean might be overcompensating, but I’m not.”

  She had a comeback ready, “If there’s one thing you should know about me, Blue, it’s that I’m not careful.”

  Blue? Calling me Blue because of my eyes? That was a first.

  I gave her a slow smile, hoping it affected her greatly; I didn’t whip out my smile for just anyone. These days…I hardly had the energy. I hated it here, but maybe this year could be better than last year. Maybe this year could be a turning point for me. Everything that happened last year…I wanted to forget.

  Sigma Chi was a shitty fraternity, and its members were not the kind of people you’d want as friends. Let’s leave it at that.

  “You should be,” I warned, meeting her dark eyes. She refused to back down, staring right at me like she owned the world, even though I stood in the superior position. “You should be very careful when it comes to me.” I didn’t know this girl’s name, and yet I was warning her to stay away from me.

  Warning her to run for the hills. Warning her to turn tail and head in the opposite direction, to leave the room whenever I entered it. I’d only end up hurting her, just like I hurt everyone else. Still, I couldn’t help but feel like this girl, whoever she was, would be a fun challenge.

  No. I wasn’t like Dean. I had to remember that. Sometimes it was difficult, putting distance between my instincts and what was right. I’d lost myself last year, and this year I needed to turn a new leaf. No fucking up this year. No hurting anyone.

  “Trust me, whatever you’ve got, I’ve seen already,” the girl stated with a shrug. She glanced over her shoulder, at my so-called friends who waited for me near the side entrance to the union. Dean was busy glaring, and the others were gesturing for me to hurry it up.

  I straightened my back, no longer leaning on the table near her. I gave her a smirk. “You’ve never seen a man like me before.” I knew she’d have another comeback ready, and that’s why I chose that particular moment to walk away, not giving her the time or the opportunity to say it.

  Walk away before things got messy, that was something I needed to learn how to do.

  Unfortunately for the both of us, fate had tied us together from that brief encounter, and I was about to learn that this year would be just as bad, if not worse, than last year.

  Chapter Four – Kelsey

  I didn’t know who the hell that guy thought he was, but I knew his type. He was the kind of person who thought he could never do any wrong, the kind of guy who thought his dick held all the magical qualities any girl could ever need. A magic dick. A penis of healing. Addictive semen or something.

  Honestly, at this point, I didn’t know why certain guys thought they were hot stuff, but I was inclined to tell them off constantly. The popular guys were never my type, anyway. Fun to mess with, sure, but anything more? No fucking thank you.

  Still, I might’ve made fun of his looks, but that last one especially was attractive. Drop-dead gorgeous in a way no girl with eyes could deny. The kind of guy who immediately made your panties wet and your gut warm with possibilities. To which I’d only say: down, Bessy.

  I sat by myself for a few minutes. I saw Mel peek her head around the corner further down the union, and I gestured for her to come over. The guys were gone, having left—including that hot straggler—so there was no reason for her to act so…weird. Like she wanted to avoid those guys at all costs. I’d have to ask her about it, for sure, but since it was only our first day together, I knew cracking her open would take some time.

  Hey, if she needed someone to do some dick-punching, I’d do it. Gladly. I was guessing the one who approached me first was named Dean. I had no idea who the others were, but that last one…oh, that last one was definitely my type. The others? Not so much.

  Mel was slow to approach me, tugging at the hemline of her shirt as she scooted in the chair opposite me. “Did they try to talk to you?” she asked.

  I nodded, waiting for her to ask her next question, because surely there was more to it.

  “What did they say? Did they see you with me?”

  “I don’t think they saw you, if that’s what you’re worried about,” I told her, meaning it. “The guy in the middle though, Dean? He seemed like a grade-A douchebag, so I might’ve told him off a bit.”

  Mel simply blinked, as if she couldn’t believe what I told her. “You told him off?”

  “A little bit, yeah. I don’t like douchebags. He’s definitely not my kind of guy.” I ran a hand through my hair, recalling that last one. I hesitated to call him a boy, because he was most definitely a man. He might’ve been tall, dark, and broody, but his face was perfectly chi
seled and his body defined in all the ways that screamed muscles.

  “Those guys, I’d stay away from them if I were you,” Mel said. “Nothing good happens around them. They’re…bad.”

  Bad. Right. Very descriptive, wasn’t she? I let it slide, not wanting to pick the bone much. Besides, it was my first day here. There were bound to be bunches of other guys I could drool over and distract myself with. In my classes, even in the same dorm building.

  “Gotcha,” I said. “Since you didn’t tell me what you wanted, I just ordered a plain pizza.”

  “I’m not hungry anyways,” Mel muttered. She was a thin girl, and I hoped that wasn’t because she starved herself. Me and her would get along great, provided I didn’t see her trying to hurt herself like that.

  Women had it bad in today’s society, being told how to dress, how to act, taught from an early age what to expect from a man and to always carry your keys as you would a weapon. We drew the short end of the stick, definitely. It sucked ass.

  “You’re going to eat,” I told her.

  And that’s what I made her do. Once the pizza was done, I made her chow down on it right then and there. We didn’t even bring the pizza back to the dorm. I made her eat two pieces. Yes, two pieces, and the way she muttered under her breath, you’d think I was the devil himself for making her eat.

  The more I looked at her, the more I thought she was too skinny. It wasn’t just her height. I bet she weighed less than I did, and that was saying something. Then again, I grew up around Ash, and that girl was just as skinny as Mel. I was always the curvier one of the two of us, ever since we were kids. I never lost my baby fat, it just went to my hips and my ass.

  Once we were done with the pizza, I tossed the box and we walked back to the dorm. We took our good old time walking, too. I told Mel a little about me. We were roommates, after all. We’d get to know each other fast, spending a lot of time with each other. It didn’t sound like Mel went out much, which was why she didn’t have many friends. She had people online she messaged, but in real life, she didn’t have anything. Vague as she was about it, she said after what happened last year, everyone pretty much abandoned her.