Give Me Something To Hold On To

Chapter 2

"Simmons...." something in Damarion's eyes settles down, Lukka's surname odd in his mouth. Suddenly I see Lukka's hands ball into fists on his side, his back visibly tensing. Oh God, don't you dare hi-

Suddenly all I see is Lukka's body shift to the side a bit and his arm draws back, his hand balled up into a fist. I quickly shift my body towards him and grab onto his bicep, drawing it back hard. He doesn't seem to care and changes to another move: lunging towards Damarion. For fuck's sake.

Again I act and jump in front of him, for the first time seeing the wrath and hatred in his eyes.

"Lukka stop!" I push his chest with my hands and elbow, his body still fighting against me.

"Stop!" I yank his head down to look at me, holding his chin firmly with my hand. His eyes take time to move from Damarion to me, and when they do, I place my hand on his cheek and shake my head slowly, speaking to him through body language. His body loses a bit of its tension and I drop my hand down from his cheek, but keep the other holding him back. Everyone is staring as us, now barely realizing that we had drawn a crowd. I spot a teacher heading in our direction and I pull Lukka away from Damian.

"We have to leave now." I pull him some more, his body still resisting. His eyes are locked on Damarion, who for some reason the whole time didn't try to fight back.

"Now Lukka." Something seems to snap in him and he lets me drag him out of the cafeteria, not once ripping away from Damarion.

    I pull Lukka all the way to our talking spot, which is located in storage classroom all the way to the south side of the school where no one really goes. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if people hooked up in this room. I take the key from under the rug and open the door, vigorously shaking the key to take it out. I pull him inside and close the door, crossing my arms on my chest afterward.

    "What the fuck was that all about, Lukka?" He doesn't look at me as he paces around the dusty room, here and there running his hands through his hair.

    "Lukka!" He snaps his head towards me and sighs, then leans against a set of aligned desks, resting his hands firmly on the edges.

    "I literally saved your ass from getting suspended again. I think I deserve an explanation." He sighs again and brings his eyes up to me, his expressions mottled.

    "His dad..." I raise my eyebrows, still waiting.

    "His dad screwed over my dad into this huge debt and now I don't even know how much we have left to support ourselves. That son of a bitch deceived my dad and somehow ended up owning my dad's company." My eyes widen and now I completely understand his anger. But I also don't understand all of it, what does Damian have to do directly with this?

    "I don't think I'll be able to graduate here, much less go to college. We're broke Misi." My throat clenches.

    "No. Don't you dare say that. You can't lose hope now! We're graduating this year! We'll find a way to make this work, we always do. Don't lose hope on me just yet." I push myself toward him and grab his hands, squeezing them in reassurance. His face doesn't seem to change, a weak smile on his lips.

    "I don't know, Misi. This seems bad, really bad. My parents can't afford to pay for this school anymore, and I'm not gonna be selfish and push our luck with money just because I don't want change." I clench my jaw and sigh, leaning my forehead against his chest.

    "I'll figure something out. I always do. Latina power, remember?"  I can feel him smile and bring his large arms around me, hugging me tightly. I bring my head up and look at him, examining his sad eyes.