Taking My Penalty

24: Stay In Your Lane

REECE

On Friday night, I left home extra early to Coach Denver's football meeting to make the forty-minute trip to Leland.

However, I've ended up finding Natalia crying and a reason to give Lexie a piece of my mind.

I shoved every other thought aside and my focus hooked onto the glossy-eyed girl in front of me to make sure she was okay after zero contact this week.

Knowing Lexie had fucked up again was enough.

"Reece," Natalia squeezed out as I took steps to find Lexie.

"Please don't do this." She pleaded again with a heart-shattering break in her voice. "She'll go mental with me."

Lexie was always fucking mental. Too fucking much.

I brought myself to look at her.

Her face. All those tears.

I would have usually just listened to Natalia and stopped what I was doing.

Fuck that.

"I'm going to sort her out."

A distant sound from the lunch hall sounded and Natalia's eyes shifted.

Fear broke out.

So I looked over.

Of fucking course.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing, Lexie?" I spat out, my legs moving quicker than my brain.

Lexie stepped up to me with the displeasing smirk that I'd seen far too much. Only this time I felt like ripping it off her face.

She stepped closer, pulling me in with the bottom of my hoodie. "Keeping us the way we're supposed to be."

She's making me sick.

I'd have to smack her face in right now if she wasn't a bloody girl.

I stepped back from her grip in quick response. "Christ, there is no 'us'."

Lexie stared over to the side like a menacing hawk. "Because that bitch is in the way."

This fucker.

"Don't even bring her up again." I rasped, having heard enough of Lexie's blatant bullshit as she rolled her eyes over to the side to where I followed.

Expecting to find something else to bollock Lexie for, I found that she was just watching Natalia.

Her face hadn't changed. If not, she looked worse as another droplet rolled down her pink-rashed cheeks.

Fuck.

Lexie was burning her with a scowl and all Natalia did was look at me.

Lexie was enjoying Natalia's pain too much as if bending her back just to crush the poor girl wasn't enough.

I couldn't let that happen.

"Go."

I watched her eyes wander to the side once I breathed out my words.

Please, don't cry. I hate it.

"Don't tell me you're a softy now, Reece." Lexie taunted. "Her?"

Fuck, yes. Her. Only for her.

"Please, just go, Natalia." I stayed direct to Natalia as her frail body held tight to her shivering arms and ongoing tears.

Don't let her near Lexie again. Don't let her get hurt.

And so, Natalia left.

Now I was back to sorting this village idiot.