Dark Wolfe

4- Choking on the power

(Song of the chapter:The Way You Make Me Feel - Michael Jackson)

RHYS

"Hey Rhys, who was that?" Jasper, one of my best friends, asked as he came up beside me, tilting his head in the direction the girl had just run off in.

Girl. It was a girl...and she had bruises on her arm. That guy she was with had given them to her. My blood started to boil just thinking about it, but I replied calmly.

"I have no idea," I told him honestly.

I peered at the school doors she'd gone through for a few moments, then turned away dismissively.

"This school seems weird to me already. Can we turn back now?"

"Hey, don't piss on it before you've tried it," Lilith spoke up, sauntering over to us but glaring specifically at me. I stared back, unfazed.

She suddenly broke out in a smile.

"This is America, and we're about to enroll in an American high school." She bounced on the balls of her feet, barely containing her excitement. "Do not ruin this for me," she warned me.

Behind her, Brandon sighed.

She'd been so excited about it that none of us wanted to deter her from her sudden quest for education. To be fair, the fans had dared us and we ourselves figured it was probably time to get back into school, but no one had jumped on board as much as Lilith had. We'd been left with no choice but to go along with it.

"Who knows, something good might actually come out of this," Brandon spoke up. Lilith turned to him, nodding gratefully.

My lip twitched as I stared at Brandon. Lilith always failed to notice that Brandon frequently took her side, and I'm not sure Brandon noticed either.

I darted a glance at Jasper, who looked amused. My best friend made it a point to act like a buffoon on a regular basis so people would fail to notice the sharp intelligence in his eyes. Something like Brandon's little crush on Lilith wouldn't have made it past him.

He assured me, though, that it wasn't serious and just stemmed from being so comfortable with her. I believed him.

I blew out a breath, then slid my shades back on. Direct light hitting my eyes was the most annoying thing, and that went for sunlight and paparazzi flashbulbs.

"Come on, then," I told my friends. "Let's get this over with." We turned around then, as one, we headed into the school building.

AVALON

Was he bothering you?

Ocean Eyes' – his name I'm sure was probably Rhyland – words haunted me as I made my way to my first class. I was tardy for the first time in my life, but I was too dazed to even care.

The look in his eyes, the way he'd stared after Jacques... it was almost surreal. In that moment, he reminded me of some avenging angel. Or some protective knight

It was almost like he... cared.

I've been bullied since the fifth grade... it had steadily gotten worse in middle school, and during that time no one – absolutely no one – had interfered or helped me up whenever my tormentors knocked me down.

People would either stare or smile whilst throwing insults, adding those to my injuries. Some – a few – would look at me with pity, or at least relief that they weren't in my shoes.

But no one ever asked if I was okay or extended any words of care. That was how far Jacques' influence reached. I'm sure my stepsister had something to do with it as well.