Should've Stayed Away- Joseph Descamps

eight

My heart raced as I paced around my new studio apartment, "He's such a dick to me. I mean ever since my first day he's done nothing except be a complete ass and just make the rudest and grossest comments. He's completely terrorized and humiliated me. Yet everyone feels horrible for him and makes these excuses as if he's not a fully grown man!" I finished with a slight unexpected yell and looked over at Annick breathlessly. Any guilt I had felt was replaced by pure unfiltered anger. 

She looked at me from across the barren and somewhat run down room, eyebrows furrowed in concern. It had been two and a half weeks exactly since I told on Descamps and he'd been making my life a living hell. He was so horrible lately the stress of working more and finally renting my own apartment seemed like a vacation in comparison to his wrath. 

The first few days he focused on knocking the books out of my hands, trying to trip me by sticking out his long legs every time I passed his desk, and throwing paper balls at me throughout the day. Then when I refused by some miracle to not react, he escalated everything.

He would wait until I opened my locker to slam it back on me which was painful and annoying but especially so when I was holding a cup of hot coffee in my hand. I had to explain to the nurse why I had scorching coffee stains all over my white shirt, I told her I had tripped. I didn't know why I lied, I guess I knew he would lie his way out of it.

He took all my pencils and snapped them in half right in front of me, a smug and challenging grin on that face. In chemistry he walked past my lab table and knocked over all of my test tubes, completely ruining my assignment. He grabbed my essay and threw it out of the window and laughed as it got picked up by wind, pages scattering around the school. I was smoking in the morning and he walked past me, for a split second I thought he would act like a normal human. Instead he poured water on me and when he got in trouble, he claimed he was "trying to put out the fire". 

I gritted my teeth and glared at him but I managed to somehow keep myself collected. 

Then he put actual bugs  in my shirt. 

I was talking to Simone, Michelle and Annick in the courtyard which was rare for all of us to get a moment to just talk. We were sitting at a circular stone table, each in on our own small bench with our elbows or arms against the cool surface. Michelle was in the middle of recounting her previous date with Laubrac. Apparently he had taken her out to this new Italian restaurant, then they went on the most romantic bridge during sunset and kissed until midnight. We were all mid giggle when it happened. 

I was wearing a loose white polo and when I felt it move slightly I just assumed it was the fall breeze blowing through. It was Simone's furrowed eyebrows across from where I sat that alerted me that maybe something was happening. Descamps stood behind me, quickly pulling the collar of my shirt back and sticking his closed hand down. 

I barely had time to acknowledge the hand down my shirt before the feeling of hundreds of little legs jolted me up. Every part of my body was screaming including my actual mouth as the tiny insects crawled all around. Descamps stood a few feet away with Dupin, covering his mouth while he laughed hysterically. 

Panic over took me and I quickly pulled my shirt off over my head and tossed it, screaming "Oh my god!" over and over again. My entire spine tingled from the cold air and the bugs, I didn't care that half the school was watching me shirtless in a black bra swing around erratically in a desperate plea to get those bugs off. 

Annick quickly rushed over and began swiping them off and it didn't take long before they were gone. I stood there, eyes closed and breathing heavily. Descamps had stopped laughing, in fact the entire courtyard seemed quiet. 

I forced my eyes opened and stared directly at Descamps whose face seemed ghastly white. And it was while staring at him I started sobbing. Hard, shuddering sobs left me and I covered my face quickly in my hands as the cries rocked through my body. I felt the fabric of a cardigan wrap around me and the arms of someone softly guide me away. 

I got to leave early from school and immediately ran home to shower. Burning hot water poured over me and I felt so pathetic. It was just bugs and I'd flashed everyone and cried like some school girl. I rested my head against the shower wall and sighed deeply, my tense shoulders slowly relaxing. 

I remembered how Descamps looked at me then. It wasn't with attraction or amusement or even hatred, it was pity. I hated it more than anything. He didn't get to think of me like that, weak and vulnerable especially when I had worked so hard to avoid that. I'd put on this strong front the entire year and one stupid prank ruined it all. 

I felt hot tears in my eyes again, they rolled quickly to the inner corner of my eyes and dripped into the much larger puddle beneath my feet. He hated me and now I hated him too, more than I hated anyone else. 

I cried harder. All throughout the night I held onto my pillow and sobbed loudly, there was no one else in my apartment to keep quiet for. I eventually dozed off but not before vowing to get my revenge on Descamps, somehow.

"Well you have every reason to hate him. I mean he's a jerk but to you he's just plain evil" Annick responded to my heated shout, popping another grape into her mouth. I nodded in agreement, moving to sit on top of the small counter top in the kitchen area.

"Whatever, he had to apologize to me so that's a start" I muttered, leaning my head back on the plaster wall behind me. It was true, Ballenger had quickly brought Descamps in and reprimanded him for his boyish prank. Soon after I got a very forced apology from the boy as he refused to meet my eyes until the end, when he did he swallowed nervously. 

"Don't tell me your still trying to get your 'revenge'" she said, sighing in disbelief. I shrugged and looked away sheepishly. Since the incident a few days ago, I had been trying to come up with different ways to get him back. Simone suggested stealing his eye patch and Michelle thought I could put a rat in his pants. The eye patch was cruel and just weird while the rat idea meant that I would have to one, hold a rat and two, stick my hand in his pants.

Annick suggested I just leave him alone. Even though at this point he was my least favorite person, the thought of just leaving Descamps alone made me uneasy. I knew deep down he regretted the prank, it was evident in the way he awkwardly looked away from me every time we made eye contact in class. He'd been way more quiet too and actually well behaved in class for once in his miserable life. I also knew some part of me still had that stubborn soft spot for him though it was considerably smaller now. 

"I need ideas Annick! I can't come up with anything. Like the other night, the only idea that I came up with was putting live snails in his food, how lame is that?" I sighed in exasperation. To my surprise, a wicked look came over Annick's usually soft features. 

She gave me a mischievous smirk and I quickly leaned up in interest, "You could get with Dupin..." she said quietly. I looked at her in confusion, I didn't understand how that was my grand revenge. She returned my confused look. "Did you not realize Descamps is into you?"

I laughed, a good hard laugh, "Descamps is attracted  to me, and he would kiss anything with a pulse" I snickered in amusement at the idea. 

"You seriously haven't noticed? He's always staring at you and everything he does although incredibly stupid, is to get your attention. When was the last time you saw him interact with another girl?" 

It was like puzzle pieces were finally connected in my head and I stared at her in shock. My brain felt like it had been electrocuted the way it buzzed with confusion and excitement.

"Okay so he has some kind of twisted school boy crush on me that he likes to alleviate by making my life hell, sounds like he'd be a great boyfriend" I said sarcastically, reaching a hand into the bag she was holding and popping a grape into my own mouth.

"Look I'm not saying he's logical or even humane about it but it's true, he's got a crush on you," Annick teased, "Imagine if you and Dupin started something, it would drive him crazy. That's about the best revenge you can get without ruining your reputation and school record".  I beamed at Annick, she truly was a genius. 

Now all I had to do was get Dupin to be smitten with me and then I could watch Descamps crumble.