Bad blood

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Hey" I say while stealing a fry from Kaiden. He glares at me but I
don't budge; I glare right back, ignoring my surroundings and focusing on winning this small battle of wills. My eyes narrow, just a little, my eyebrows arching in a v of concentration. He finally blinks and I smirk in victory.
"Was that necessary?" Ryder chuckles.
"Yes it was;" I grin, "I wanted to show him who's boss, and it worked." I glance around at the canteen looking for something. I don't know what, but something doesn't feel right and when I feel like this I'm usually right.
I look at Ryder, Caleb, Kaiden, Jayden, Jacob and Justin. I had asked them earlier why they weren't at school yesterday. In response, they'd simply looked at each other, that stupid knowing look they do. "We were busy." They must think I look bloody dumb.
Even though we are inside we can still hear the wind howling and the static chatter of the rain on the sheet metal roof. There is meant to be another storm today. Stupid October weather.
Justin holds a solitary fry in front of his face, his brow furrowed in contemplation. "Why do we call them fries?"
He has our attention now, each of us gazing, probably all as confused by him as he is by the fry.
I nudge Justin's shoulder.  "You my friend, are a weirdo." It's enough for everyone at the table to start laughing and for Justin's face to flush with color.
These past few weeks have been some of the best moments since I got kidnapped. The guys make me laugh all the time.
"Crystal?" Turning my head to see who Called me I'm faced with Caleb. After only knowing these guys for a little while, there are little things that I've happened to notice, like how Caleb always has this constant serious expression as he watches me talk, or interact with the others. I hum in response.
"Are you coming with us?" he asks, his expression unchanged.
I can feel the muscles in my forehead tighten in confusion. He does this to me sometimes; no context at all for his questions.
"You weren't listening were you?" He asks, clearly doing his best to interpret my lack of comprehension. "That seems to happen quite a lot. We were wondering," he says nudging Kaiden next to him to get the guys attention, "if we can come to yours and hang?"
I choke on my saliva. They want to come to my apartment? Oh shiznut.
"Um... I guess." I hesitate. "So wait... you're asking if I'm coming with you ... to my home?"
Smiles appear on their faces one by one, probably realising I'm finally letting them in, sort of.
Jayden nods his acknowledgement. "Great we'll meet you after school at your bike, okay?"
I nod, feeling a little blindsided, but shrugging my shoulders. Jayden's face lights up, gleaming.
"Yeah sure then."  I give them a smile before rushing to fifth period because he bell is going to ring. Obviously the guys just went back to talking about guy stuff while I'm walking away.

P.E. A lesson I'm actually good at. after getting changed into my joggers, a tank top and zip-up jacket, I make my way to the gym. I walk in and see blue mats placed around the hall and I head over to the crowd near the teacher. We fidget, waiting to listen to what the teacher has to say.
"Alright class, listen up!" Miss Macklin's voice booms through the hall. She's in her thirties, or at least that's the consensus; blonde hair and a nice slim figure.
"We're going to be doing some combat. If I call your name, I want you to step up and take your stance. You'll be competing by elimination, OK? You're put down on the mat, you're out and I'll call the next contender in. Everyone understand?" She doesn't give anyone a chance to say anything before she continues. "Good. First we'll have Harry and Ben. Everyone else take a seat on the bleachers and no talking; this isn't a social lesson."
We all pile into the bleachers, eager to see who will win the fight.
I take a seat on my own at the end of one of the long metal benches. I don't know anyone in my class. As soon as I take my seat, the bench shakes. I turn my head to see Ryder, Kaiden, Jayden, Justin, Jacob and last but not least Caleb. Not alone.
I shuffle toward them, trying to remain inconspicuous. "You're not in my class," I whisper, "what are you doing here?"
"We are now. We transferred." Justin whispers calmly, the corners of his mouth curling upward in, what I read as self-satisfied contentment.
"Not being rude, but why?" I ask, my gaze darting briefly to the mats, where another two contenders have stepped up to fight.
"Because we are, is that a problem?" Ryder snaps, his cheeks reddening.
I open my mouth to reply but nothing comes out, because I'm too shocked at him snapping at me for fuck all. I turn back to the fight and hope that Macklin puts me up against Ryder, because I'm going to go ape-shit on him and hope to see him squirm.
Then it happens. One of those absolutely pure moments in life when your thoughts become the reality you're living in.
"Up next we have Ryder and... Crystal."
My head snaps up to see Miss Macklin stood there, her eyes fixed on us with a smirk on her face. She's in for a shock if she thinks I'm weak.
I stride confidently down to the mat leaving Ryder in my wake. I bet he thinks I can't fight. I get into my stance in front off Ryder. There's a flash of shock there in his eyes. That's right Ryder, I think, perfect stance... acknowledge. I look over to the guys, smirk and wink. Then all of that confidence and all of that cockiness comes quickly to and end. My head whips to the side and my mouth floods with a flavour I know only too well. Blood.
Thick saliva mixes with the metallic taste, strands slicked from the roof of my mouth to my tongue and teeth while my brain struggles into gear and I register that Ryder has punched me. I can feel the thumping in my neck, my heart pushing everything through me as my body kicks into a different gear. There's a chemical memory of before. Before my freedom, before the escape, it was something I became. I spin rapidly, crouch and kick out to the side, tripping him up. He falls hard, helpless and humiliated. He lands with a grunt, but quickly recovers now we're both on our feet in an instant.
He goes to throw a right hook, but I duck and punch, my hand moving from somewhere beside my head, hard into his belly. He stumbles back, but advances quickly and I'm forced to back up.
He lands a punch on my right cheek, then my left, my stomach and finally my rib. He's fast and strong and that's a good combination.
And just like that I'm sucked into a new world. The underground. It's just me and Ryder. I'm not aware of anything else in that moment. He's my prey and I'm in my element.
Front-flipping over Ryder, I land with my back to him. Fury fuels me. I throw my elbow back, jabbing him somewhere close to his spine, knocking the wind from him. The sound of his moaning places him in the space. I don't even have to look. Kicking my right leg out behind me slamming into his left knee, he crashes to the ground. Spinning around I push him to the ground while he's vulnerable, straddle him and throw a punch to is face. I pin him down, holding his right leg and left arm.
My breath comes out uneven and ragged. My chest heaves up and down. I'm slowly brought out of my trance and look around to see we're back in the hall. Bleachers lined with shocked faces. Even the guys look shocked but I can tell they're holding back a laugh. I mean their best friend just got beat by a girl. I let go of Ryder and spring to my feet as if he's on fire. Without even acknowledging Miss Macklin, I walk out of the gym and get dressed quickly, forgetting that this news is going to spread like wildfire around the school.

 Without even acknowledging Miss Macklin, I walk out of the gym and get dressed quickly, forgetting that this news is going to spread like wildfire around the school

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Song: Bastille- Bad blood

-Abi

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