Chapter 4

CHAPTER FOUR

Before Dee and I walked through the double doors I had imagined the place would look alot like the exterior of the campus, an old crumbling mess with a cracked floor and dust raining from the ceiling.

My imagination couldn't have been more wrong.

We were inside of a giant hall with bright fluorescent lights. The creamy beige marble flooring was polished so thoroughly that the light reflected on its surface. The walls were painted an inviting pastel purple decorated with dark violet filigree.

There were four pool tables sprawled here and there throughout the open floor. Several groups of teens took up each table.

To the right was a small stage with a flock of girls chattering animatedly in a circle. A few rows of empty folding chairs sat in front of the raised platform.

Leaning against one of two vending machines that were at the far left corner of the room was a good looking young man with dark creamy skin and braids. He was talking to a girl with bleach blonde hair dressed in a bright pink halter dress. She was smiling coyly, running her nails up and down his arm in a slow caress.

I tore my eyes away from them, determined to finish my observation but a pang of something foreign struck my chest. Maybe it was the fact that I would never know what it's like to touch someone so intimately and carelessly. I shook the thoughts away. Luckily, It wasn't hard to force my attention elsewhere.

The room was buzzing with conversation and a faint melodic sound drifted from the four speakers mounted on each corner of the ceiling.

"Not bad, huh?" Dee said with a touch of pride in her voice.

"Yeah. It's nice." I commented.

I continued my perusal, catching every detail, even the small ones.

When my gaze snagged on a young man with hair as black as coal and skin that was somehow both golden and pale at the same time, my breath caught in my throat and this strange sharp snap pulled taught in the center of my chest. I rubbed the spot absently when I saw the pair of liquid silver eyes that shot into me, they burrowed beneath my skin and traveled through my veins like electric eels.

A not so pleasant shiver traveled down my arms. The ferocious glare the young man had fixed on me twisted his devastatingly handsome features. I forgot how to cycle oxygen in and out of my body. Did I somehow offend him by just existing? Or did he stare at everyone with such contempt?

"Are you ok?" Dee asked, her brows knitted together in concern. For a second I couldn't fathom why she was asking me if I was okay. She cleared her throat and pointedly looked down. I realized immediately that my hand was clamped around her forearm with the force of a vice grip. I released her arm as if her skin had burned me. I must have grabbed it when I was caught like a mouse in a snake's den by Mr. Tall, Dark, and deadly.

"I'm so sorry! I don't know why i did that I'm-." I trailed off helplessly. My cheeks warmed and I averted my gaze, embarrassed.

"Hey, it's okay. What were you so focused on anyway?" She asked. Her eyes flashed with intrigue.

As if he were a magnet my eyes flew back to the young man. My lungs rose from the dead and I sucked in a deep breath when I realized he was no longer staring at me. He was now talking to a young man that had hair so pale blonde that it looked white.

"Nothing.." I murmured when I was finally able to rip my eyes away from the boy and plant them on my old dirty converses.

"Oh.. I see." Dee replied in a knowing voice. Her eyes shifted from me to the young man who was now partially blocked from my line of sight. His buddy had moved in front of him, blocking the majority of him from view. I of course didn't know that because I was stealing glances at him every chance I got. No I wouldn't do that.

"You see what?" I glanced at her sideways.

Dee smirked.

"Don't worry. There's not one female on this campus that isn't curious about Jesse and his friends." She wiggled her brows playfully.

I rolled my eyes. She was obviously enjoying the fact that she caught me red handed staring awestruck at the young man.

"Let's sit. I'll tell you what I do know." She nodded toward the second row of folding chairs.

My stomach did a nervous tap dance.

There was something about those boys that piqued my interest. It wasn't just their looks, or that one boy's deadly eyes. They had an air of mystery and danger, it was like there was an invisible barrier that separated them from the rest of the people in the rec hall. They were given a wide berth. I was dying to interrogate Dee. There was nothing I loved more than a good mystery.

"Allow me to unofficially introduce you." Dee batted her lashes with an overdramatic flair that made me grin. She moved her hands in artful motions like a show girl presenting prizes.

I scoffed. I had a feeling she would make what information she did have as detailed as possible..

"I just want the bare essentials. Like, their names." I pressed.

Dee pouted and wobbled her lower lip.

"Why doesn't anyone ever want to play with me?"

I choked on a surprised laugh. Dee as a roommate was going to make for an interesting year. I could even see us becoming good friends.

The thought of friends made my heart squeeze with pain. I would have loved for Ryan to be here. He would have helped me navigate this new chapter of my life. But, that's another reason why I didn't involve him. I was too dependent on him. I wasn’t going to completely cut him out of my life, but this was something I had to do on my own. I had to rip the band-aid off and deal with it. I'll just remind myself to shoot him a text later.

Dee huffed, resolved to give me what I wanted. Luckily she was completely unaware of my sudden dark mood that hovered over me like a storm cloud.

"Ok. Well, let's start with Jesse Tyler. He's been here longer than I have and I started here my freshman year. No one knows anything about him, he doesn’t talk to anyone besides Ash and Ky. Not to mention he's practically on a first name basis with the headmistress, he lands himself in her office nearly every day. By the way, He's the one you were having that wacky stare down with. Girl y'all gave me chills!" Dee snickered.

I was surprised. I didn't realize she had witnessed... well whatever that was. However, unlike her I didn't feel amused. My cheeks flushed and my mouth dried. I was trying to bury that strange interaction into the earth and let it rest in peace.

"Next." I blurted, my cheeks turned a darker shade of red. Dee gave me a quirky smirk. That was one thing I was starting to like about the redhead. She seemed to know when to and when not to press something.

"The guy with the white hair is Asher Coals, but he goes by Ash. The other one that makes up their deadly little trio is Kyzer Grayse, he goes by Ky. He's the brown headed one. If Ash is around, Ky is not far behind. They arrived about three months ago. It's some sort of work-ship program, they won't be attending the whole year but they will be here until their program ends. They are just as standoffish as Jesse."

I nodded my head absently, cataloguing the information and tucking it away in a special compartment in my brain.

I stole a quick peek, I didn't realize that a third guy had joined the group.

"There's a rumor going around that Jesse and the other two are in some sort of gang." Dee said thoughtfully. She snuck a peak at the guys, which told me she was just as curious as I had been.

I tried to picture Jesse being in a gang. Sure he was all cold angles, murderous eyes, and had an air of danger, but that hardly qualified him as gang material. The other two, Ash and Ky, were a different story. They screamed bad news. We weren't far away from them at all, we were close enough that I could see most of their defining features. Both Ky and Ash had strange tattoos, but the reason I considered the markings strange was because their body art was identical. Maybe they were close, like Ryan and I.

I pulled my thoughts away from the three young men, facing Dee's thoughtful face.

"So, is there anything besides the local bad boys that I need to know?"

Dee pondered for a moment twisting her lips. Then a slow tight lipped smile spread across her face.

"Beware of Malibu Barbie. She doesn't take kindly to girls that are more attractive than her. I wouldn't be surprised if she already has your demise planned out." Dee looked riveted. It wasn't hard to tell that she loved drama and that she also wasn't a fan of this so-called Malibu Barbie.

"Does the plastic doll have a name?" I retorted.

Dee grimaced. It looked as if she were almost physically pained to talk about this particular subject.

"Stacy Brinkley. She hates any female that isn't one of her pets." Dee said with a brittle smile.

Dee, catching me off guard, jumped to her feet in an instant. Her eyes widened in shock.

"What's wrong??" I asked, furrowing my brows.

Dee's eyes were pleading.

"I really hate to do this to you.... But, I promised My boyfriend that I'd meet him. I'm already fifteen minutes late." She looked horrified as her eyes scanned her wrist watch.

I felt like I swallowed at least ten medium-sized rocks, and they sank to the bottom of my stomach, weighing me down. I quickly changed my expression to one of understanding, it wasn't Dee's job to occupy me. She had done more than enough without me even asking.

"I get it. It's ok. I'll stick around here for a few, then I have a few things to unpack." I forced a smile.

Dee's lips curled in relief.

"I'll catch you later." The red head waved awkwardly, then made her way for the exit.

After five minutes I decided I would feel less awkward if I just went back to my dorm. It was better than sitting alone in a room filled with unfamiliar faces.

Unfortunately, before I could take one step, an annoyingly high pitched voice welded my feet to the floor. I cringed both physically and mentally. The unflattering sound made my ears scream in terror.

"So your the new girl"

I squeezed my eyes shut. I mentally willed the presence behind me to disappear. But the girl began to tap her foot impatiently. I prayed that the bottled blonde wouldn't trigger my anxiety.

Ever so slowly I turned around. I was a little surprised to see a malicious glare set on a beautiful girl's flawless sun kissed face. I realized that it was the same girl flirting with the young man by the vending machine earlier. Something told me this was the malibu barbie Dee had warned me of.

The description was quite accurate. It seemed like the only color she had in her wardrobe was different fabrics of various shades of pink. Her face was so plastered with makeup it nearly looked like plastic.

"And you are?" I answered with a sweet smile that was faker than the girl's eyelashes.

"I'm Stacy." The girl in question scrutinized me with cruel fascination.

"I honestly don't see what the fuss is about." She continued haughtily.

Pools of citrine narrowed at me, reminding me of an ill tempered cat.

Stacy flipped her platinum blonde locks back and scanned each detail of my appearance with a wicked gleam in her cold yellow eyes.

I was under no illusion. I had plenty of flaws that Stacy could use for fuel. I was short with hips wider than Texas and a small waist. But my appearance never truly mattered to me. The only thing I would change if I could was my childlike height.

"Can I help you with something?" I crossed my arms over my chest.

Stacy's eyes slitted and she stepped closer and closer until she was only a few inches away from my face. Silently, I bad-mouthed my height. It was definitely another level of frustration that Stacy had to look down at me as she taunted.

"This is my school. Learn your place and I'll take it easy on you. Step out of your boundaries and I'll make you wish you had never been born. " The blonde brat smiled a terrible smile.

But I wasn't afraid of her or of her diminishing my social status before it had even started. If anything I would be thrilled by it. I would love to be invisible and just go on with my life in my own impenetrable little bubble.

"Well, this has been enlightening. Can I leave now?" I sneered.

Stacy was unsatisfied with my reaction. She was obviously the type of girl that wanted to bring me down to her level. The girl's face sagged, making her look both older and wicked. A yellow fire of hatred ignited in her eyes.

I however have had practice at perfecting my game face over the past few weeks and maintained a nonchalant air. I wished Stacy a good night and turned on my heels.

I could hear Stacy muttering curses behind me, but I knew if I stayed a moment longer Stacy would no doubt be triumphant.

Anxiety was a loaded gun and the trigger had been pulled. Any stressful situation seemed to spark the fire of my overactive fight or flight response. My heart was already thudding like a war drum. I could feel the heat in my blood rising. I was aware that I was moments away from a full blown panic attack.

After my hasty exit from the rec hall, I was ashamed of myself. I barely made it out of the double doors. I took a few steps and slumped against the wall of the boys building.

I shut my eyes and leaned my head back, Mentally chastising myself for not being stronger, for not being able to hold back the never ending war inside of my head. I just wanted peace from the constant fear. I drug in a deep breath then counted to ten and exhaled. I repeated the exercise around five times. Then, there was that strange snap again, a strange sensation just behind my sternum. It felt like a gentle tug.

"Are you okay?" A voice made of velvet asked with annoyance.

I was startled. I didn't hear anyone approach me but that wasn't saying much. I was too busy trying to get my heart to return to a normal rhythm. My eyes flew open and I almost gasped in surprise, but I clenched my teeth.

Hair blacker than coal hung over a pair of electric silver eyes. Every feature Jesse Tyler had was almost too perfect, as if he had been carved by a skilled sculptor or ripped straight out of a magazine. The only thing that half convinced me that he was real was the fact he was standing right infront me, glaring silver arrows at me.

As if my mortification wasn't at its peak, I saw bright galvanic blue flickers of electricity spark off of him. The hallucinations had reared their ugly head. This time though, I wasn't afraid. It wasn't black slime or slithery shadows, it was just a beautiful light.

I was mesmerized by the color that danced along his body in small flashes. I almost forgot he had asked me a question.

His eyes were cold and flashed with frustration. He seemed unhappy with my examination. He must have thought I was completely dense. I was just staring at him like a complete moron.

"What do you need?" He demanded.

His annoyance seemed to grow by the second. He drew in a deep breath as if he were trying to rein in his temper.

I felt my cheeks burn with embarrassment. The fact that he was extremely attractive didn't help my galloping heart.

I pulled myself together, narrowing my eyes at the young man. I didn't want his help, he was so prickly.

"I.. don't need your help." I hissed in a breathy voice. Jeez that was even more morifying.

I ignored the spark of humor mixed with curiosity that glimmered in his eyes and gathered what little dignity I had left. Without a word I stomped off heading straight for my dorm. I could feel the heat of his gaze as I left him behind.

When I got to my dorm room, I decided the least I could do was send Rick an email and text Ryan before I started unpacking. I was feeling pretty guilty about leaving Ryan without saying a final goodbye, and I should thank Rick for driving me here.

I'd start with Rick, then I would deal with Ryan because I would need to apologize and give him an explanation.

I drug my teeth over my bottom lip and began to type.

From: Lyla Daniels

Subject: Thanks.

Hi Rick. I just wanted to give you my thanks for taking the time out of your day to bring me to Wickerland. I can't explain how grateful I am for all you have done for me. You don't have to respond unless you want to.

Love, Lyla.

I clicked send and sighed. See? That wasn't so hard... I gave myself a mental pep talk. I knew my best friend's message would make my heart squeeze.

I sucked a gallon of oxygen into my lungs, I let it soak into my chest, then exhaled.

Me: Hey Ry. I'm sorry I couldn't say goodbye to you in person. You made me feel so guilty about leaving and I had to leave. Ordinarily I could never refuse you. You mean everything to me, I know it may not seem that way lately.. but you will always be my bestfriend and I hope you can forgive me someday. I promise I will text you every day. Maybe I could even facetime you sometime. Till then I will be telling you every detail of my new journey.

With all my love, Lyla.

I blinked, trying to relieve the awful burning sensation in my eyes. I couldn't help but wonder if he would ever talk to me again. I knew if the situation was reversed I would have been hurt if he dropped off the face of the planet without saying one last goodbye. I swallowed the thick lump that threatened to choke me. I knew it was better to do this while Dee was out. I couldn't have handled it if she probed and prodded for details.

I shut my laptop and slid it back into the old creaky desk. I turned off my phone then I started to unpack.