Chapter 2
“Dude,” a burst of bubbly laughter comes tearing down the corridor behind me. “What the fuck was that? I know you’re new and all, but fuck. You just threatened to go to war against Slade Cruz.”
“Slade Cruz,” I repeat feeling how his name sounds on my lips as a fiery little brunette steps in beside me, probably the only natural brunette at this school.
“I’m Maze, and you’re a fucking idiot. What was that? Do you have a death wish? Because that’s what you just got.”
“Please,” I scoff. “Guys like him need to be put in their place every now and then.”
“I’m not denying that,” she says. “But you just took on an impossible one and he’ll come through on his promise. He’ll make your life a living hell. From now on, you need to watch your back.”
I stop in the middle of the corridor and stare down at the girl who doesn’t seem to know when to shut up. “What is this? Are you here to introduce yourself and get on my good side or are you one of his little sheep, here to warn me to back down?”
“You’re kidding, right? As if I’d be here advocating for that dick. Don’t get me wrong, he and his friend, Damian, make all my lady bits scream in the best kind of ways, but he’s an ass. Besides, he’s not the type of guy to send someone to do his dirty work. He likes to get dirty himself. Real fucking dirty.”
“Okay,” I say, roaming my eyes over her face to see if I can get a good feel on her, but surprisingly, she’s as closed off as I am. “So, what is this? Why are you here trying to be my best friend?”
Maze tilts her head as she watches me. “I like you. You stood up to Slade. Nobody ever does that and that tells me that you’re different and different is a fucking breath of fresh air around here. Besides, I get the feeling that shit is going to hit the fan and I want to be up close and personal when it does.”
I consider her, just as she had done to me, and I realize that I feel the same way. I like her. She seems like the right person to have on my side if I’m going to take Slade Cruz down. The only question is why? I don’t understand it. Why did he come at me like that? I barely walked through the door two minutes ago. It’s not like I could have offended him yet. I haven’t slept with anyone’s boyfriend and I haven’t thrown red dye at anyone’s bleached hair. Is he protecting someone? Himself? I don’t know, but I’m going to find out.
“You know what?” I tell Maze, turning to face back down the corridor and pick up my pace. “I think I’ll give you a shot.”
“Really?”
“Only if you lose that peppy, school spirit vibe you’ve got going.”
“Sorry, I get a little excited sometimes.”
“I see,” I tell her, slipping my class schedule out of my jeans pocket. “Now first, tell me where the hell I need to go, and then you can give me all the dirt you’ve got on Slade Cruz.”
Maze’s face brims with a devilish excitement. “It’ll be my pleasure.”
I grin back at my new friend, feeling somewhat proud of myself. Apparently, Blake doesn’t need to worry about me after all. I’ve made a friend just as I promised and all before the first class of the day.
Aston Creek High isn’t going to be the fresh start I was hoping for, but maybe there’ll be some hidden treasures along the way.
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I walk into the cafeteria, glancing around the tables as I go. Every school is always the same. On the right we have the cheer table where you require a fucking golden pussy to be able to sit down, then there are the secret drug addicts, the loud and proud drug addicts, the debbie downers, and of course, the mean girls. To my left, we see three tables of jocks; football, swimming, and basketball. There’re the man-sluts, the girl-sluts, and then there’s Slade Fucking Cruz.
His eyes pierce into mine with a lethal stare that almost makes me lose my breath. How is it possible for a man to have this effect on me? He’s a nobody, just some guy who happened to step in front of the wrong locker this morning.
I can’t figure out if he was lucky or if I was lucky that we’ve made it through to lunch and still avoided being in any of the same classes. Surely, it wouldn’t have ended well, and don’t get me wrong, I’m all for a showdown, but there’s only so much the teachers will put up with on a girl’s first day. Despite how much I don’t want to be here, I kind of need it.
I still can’t get past the way Slade looked at me this morning. I’ve never felt ugly in my life. The woman who raised me made sure I knew to always look my best, always be the most beautiful in a room. Even as an awkward teen, I still felt like the prettiest girl in my class…until now. He looked at me with such distaste, it’s as though casting his eyes upon my body was a chore, it was like he found me repulsive and for some reason, it doesn’t sit well with me.
I don’t understand it. There have been plenty of times where I haven’t been a guy’s cup of tea. I couldn’t seal the deal with Brandon Sylvester at sixteen and he told me point blank it was because he didn’t like the way I looked. It crushed me, but I never questioned myself. I never let it affect my self-esteem, but one wrong look from some dick I just met and my ugly ego decides to rear its stupid head.
I join the long queue of students waiting to get themselves something mortifyingly horrible to eat when a large body steps into my back. “What do you want, Blake?” I grumble, not bothering to turn around as the smell of his cologne singes my nostrils.
“I heard you made a friend.”
“I heard you’ve already screwed Kathleen Harris in the handicap bathroom.”
Blake chuckles at my back and I feel the vibrations right through my chest. I let out a sigh as I realize the rumor is true. “What can I say?” he says with a smile in his tone. “I’m not one for turning down a good opportunity, and believe me, it was definitely a good opportunity.”
“Yuck, Blake,” I groan, slamming my elbow back into his stomach and enjoying the way he doubles over, clutching his stomach. “How can you be such a whore at sixteen?”
“Call it a gift,” he tells me, stepping in beside me. “I heard something else about you.”
“Really? What a surprise. It’s only been half a day and the rumor mill has been going strong. What are the peasants saying about me now?”
“That you declared war with Slade Cruz.”
“That’s a bit of an exaggeration.”
“Really? So, you didn’t stand in front of hundreds of students and tell him ‘if it’s a war you want, then it’s a war you’ll get’ then finish it off by declaring there was ‘a new boss in town.’”
A grin rips across my face. I really have the flair for the dramatics at times. “Yeah, okay. I might have said that, but technically, it was a warning, not a declaration of war and if the guy is smart, he’ll see it for what it is.”
“You don’t seriously think the guy is smart, do you?”
“Nope. I know he’s not.”
Blake runs a hand through his hair. “Skylah,” he groans, lowering his voice to a whisper. “Can’t you just play nice this one time? Just enjoy school. You know you could be the most popular chick around here if you were just nice to people.”
“I don’t want to be nice to people. It’s fake and you know more than most that I’m not fake. Not anymore.”
“I know,” he sighs. “I just want things to be easier for you.”
“Trust me, things are easier this way. People learn not to fuck with me from day one and it pays off. I won’t be a doormat like I used to be. I’m not weak, Blake.”
“Believe me, after what happened this morning, no one thinks you’re weak.”
I beam up at him. “Good, then my plan is working.”
Blake rolls his eyes and wisely shuts up but I don’t get peace and quiet for long when a long “Dammmmmnn,” sounds beside me. Maze steps in front of me, not giving a shit about the students who curse her out for cutting the line. “Who’s this?”
Maze looks up at my brother with a hungry expression and I turn her to face
the front of the line. “No one that you’ll be sinking your claws into.”
Blake doesn’t seem to realize what I’m doing and throws his arm over my shoulder while offering Maze his other hand. “I’m Blake Daniels, Trouble’s little brother.”
She grins wide. “Well, well, well. You look like a scrumptious treat.”
“Maze,” I demand. “I’m serious. You can forget about being my little protegee if you plan on getting into bed with my brother. That’s not what I’m about.”
“Chill out, girl. I can look but not touch, right? Besides, what’s wrong with a little shameful flirting?”
“Umm, besides the fact that you’re going to inflate his ego until he can’t be saved, absolutely everything.”
“Oh good, so you approve then,” she smiles before stepping around me until she’s by Blake’s side. She slips her arm through his and beams up at the jock star. “So, tell me about your dysfunctional self. Surely having a sister like Skylah, you must have some pretty dark secrets.”
Fuck me. She couldn’t be more right but I don’t need to worry about my secrets, Blake is more loyal than he is protective. All my secrets, the good and the bad, are safe with him.
Quickly realizing that Blake isn’t going to spill the goods, Maze moves on to giving us the rundown of the school and I listen intently to every last detail, knowing I may need it later.
We step forward in the line as Maze gets lost in her explanations. “So, you met Slade, and as far as Aston Creek High goes, he’s the top dog, the absolute hero that everyone throws their panties at and worships,” she begins, glancing over her shoulder at the guy only to find his eyes already on us, more specifically on me. “He’s an asshole and watching him being knocked down is going to be the highlight of my whole high school years. Though, you better not let me down. If you can’t pull through with this, I’m going to be extremely pissed off.”
“Trust me,” Blake scoffs as though her lack of faith in me is outrageous. “If my sister says she’s going to take his ass out, then that’s exactly what she intends to do, and believe me, she ain’t no quitter.”
I beam proudly as Maze meets my eyes with an excited grin of her own. “Good. Now, after Slade, there’s a mix of Vanessa, his on-again/off-again cock tease and Damian. It’s like a constant war between them, always fighting to be Slade’s number one. But let’s face it, Damian has always had his back whereas Ness only seems to rise up whenever Slade needs his dick sucked.”
“Which I’m assuming is more often than not.”
“You got that right.”
I glance across the cafeteria, scanning my eyes over Damian. “What’s Damian like? Is he going to be a problem?”
“You bet that tight ass of yours, he is. He’s all about being the funny guy, until he’s not. He’s dangerous. You need to be careful with him.”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s not scared to get his hands dirty. Don’t get me wrong, Slade isn’t either, but Slade has a real shot at going pro, where Damian just seems to play for the fun of it. He’s not scared to do the things others won’t and where those two are concerned, those things could be pretty fucking bad.”
Blake steps in close to my back. “Maybe you need to rein it in,” he warns me. “I don’t like the sound of these guys. I can’t have you getting hurt, Sky.”
“I can handle myself,” I remind him, already wondering how I can play Blake’s connection to the basketball team seeing as though my gut tells me that Slade Cruz is most likely captain. Though I wouldn’t want to hurt Blake’s opportunities in the team, but then, he’s that talented that they’d be stupid not to use him to his fullest potential. I look back at Maze. “What about Vanessa, Nessy, Nessa…whatever you called her.”
“She’s Vanessa but most people around here just call her Ness or Nessa. She’s an A-class bitch. She’s the mean girl that the cheerleaders couldn’t even handle. She’s either going to see you as a threat and charge full steam ahead or she’ll see you as trash and won’t even bother with you. There’s no in-between with her. If she thinks you’re after her man, then your ass is as good as fried.”
“This gets more exciting by the second,” I say as we finally hit the front of the line. We all shut up and work on getting our lunch and the second we’re done, Blake kisses my cheek. “Stay out of trouble,” he demands before striding away.
I watch after him as he heads off toward the table filled with the rest of the basketball team, everyone except Slade and Damian. Blake drops down in between the guys and they welcome him in as though he’s been a part of the team for years.
Pride surges through me. He’s going to do really well here. Come his senior year, I’m sure he’ll be taking over as Captain and dominating this school just like Slade is. Though hopefully, he won’t take on the asshole tendencies that the current king deems acceptable.
That pride fades away the second some chick steps in front of Blake and drops down onto his lap. “That’s Kathleen Harris,” Maze informs me. “I heard they’ve already been screwing. That brother of yours works fast.”
I shake my head and let out a sigh as Maze pulls me along. “As long as he doesn’t knock her up, I guess it really doesn’t matter.”
“Well, keep your eye on her then. She’s the type to hold on and never let go and something tells me your brother is the kind to use her until he gets bored.”
A laugh bubbles up my throat. “A stage five clinger? Maybe I should encourage this after all. Watching him squirm while trying to get rid of her is going to be fun, it might just teach him a lesson.”
“Oh, geez,” Maze laughs. “I’m so glad I don’t have any siblings.”
With that, she pulls me along to a table filled with girls who spend their lunch break chatting but truth be told, with Slade’s impenetrable glare on me the whole time, I don’t think I heard a single word.
Chapter 3
I walk through the door of my new home after having to catch the bus. The bus. Can you believe it? I’ve gone from millionaire mobster princess to catching public transport. This would have never happened in my old life, though aunt Shaylee and uncle Ben have promised that my own car will be coming soon.
I shouldn’t complain. They didn’t need to take us in and on such short notice, but they have and their whole lives are being turned upside down. We were lucky that we found them in the first place.
Blake and I haven’t exactly had an easy life. The first few years, we started just like everyone else and it quickly went south. Our lives were filled with all sorts of horrors that I’m so damn pleased Blake wasn’t old enough to remember. Me on the other hand, I relive the memories nearly every night despite thirteen years having passed.
Shit went even further south when we ended up with a new family. How we got there wasn’t exactly done legally and our brand-new ‘parents’…well, they’re the kind of people who should be rotting behind bars until the day they die.
I walk through to my bedroom that not a week ago used to be Shaylee’s home gym and dump my bag on my bed. I don’t know how I made it through the day without causing any more trouble, yet here I am. Maybe it’s for Blake’s sake that I kept my mouth shut or maybe I simply didn’t intercept any more dickheads.
Slade made his case known and I guess no one else is willing to step in. I’ve been declared his enemy and anyone else attempting to take me down is classified as a traitor to Slade’s desires. He wants to be the one to scare me off so I guess that means I’m safe from the rest of the morons at Aston Creek High.
Blake waltzes down the hallway behind me and braces his hands against the top of my door frame, reminding me just how tall he’s gotten over the past six months. He’s shot up and for the past few years we’ve always met eye to eye, but now, he looms over me like some kind of giant. I wonder if our dad was tall like him or if he gets it from our mother’s side.
“You got any plans for tonight?” he asks, leaning into my room.
I shake my head as I
open my closet doors and remember that I don’t have an endless supply of clothes. “Nah, I was just going to chill here. It’s not like I’ve got friends to hang out with.”
“Yeah, well whose fault is that?” he chuckles to himself. “Are you alright here if I go and chill with the boys?”
“What boys?”
Blake rolls his eyes. “The boys on the team.”
I stop what I’m doing and turn to face the giant hovering in my doorway. “Will Slade and Damian be there? You need to be careful around those guys. They’ll try and use you to get to me.”
“I don’t know,” he groans, always hating being questioned. “Maybe they’ll be there, maybe they won’t. It’s not like I’m heading over there to suck their dicks and be their little errand boy. I’m not fucking stupid, Sky. You come first, I’d never betray you to someone who’s out to hurt you.”
“I know you’re not stupid, but neither are they. If there’s something they can exploit, then don’t doubt that they will.”
“Okay, I’ll be careful,” he promises, dropping his hands and striding into my room. He flops down onto the end of my bed and instantly lays down, snuggling into the comfort of my bed. Guilt pours through me. Shaylee and Ben didn’t get time to clear their second bedroom so Blake has been sleeping on the couch ever since we got here.
I insisted that Blake should take my room and I take the couch, but he likes me to feel safe, to feel protected, and demanded that I take the room as the door comes fully equipped with a lock. Hopefully, this is the kind of home where I’ll learn not to need a lock at night, but old habits die hard. I’ve never been so grateful to my little brother; he’s sacrificed everything for me. I just wish there was some way I could pay him back.
“You’ll be alright though?” he mumbles into my pillow as he squishes it under his head. “You know, here on your own.”
Ugly Girl: Aston Creek High (Book 1) Page 2