Chapter 9

Renae looked around to see hardly anything had been touched since before the attack.

"You know, you can go back to school when you want but I'd be a lot more comfortable if you took your time before starting campus security." Jarrod spoke up breaking the silence as he walked in the front door.

"How about I start school tomorrow and since today is Tuesday, I'll start campus security on Thursday but no later than Friday. I just want to get back to normal." Renae turned to Jarrod.

"Well... Fine, I guess that's okay." He sighed with a concerned look shining on his face.

"Dad, I'll be okay. I just want-"

"Normal, I know." He interrupted her with a heavy sigh. "I know you can take care of yourself, I just wish... no, I won't question what you want. Go get changed and get some rest okay?" He kissed her forehead "And maybe go take a shower. You're a little rank." Jarrod made a face while he pushed her away.

"Hey, I was in the hospital for like two weeks and I was passed out for most of it except four or five days. Leave me alone." She smacked him. After a few laughs back and forth, Renae went into her room and got ready for her shower.

-

Renae woke up to her room dark, a blanket was draped on top of her and her door was slightly cracked letting the only light in the room seep in. As she sat up and turned on one of her lamps she saw the blanket and the dirty clothes she left on the floor were gone. She turned her head to the door and saw a small box next to the door. She got up and picked it up, a note attached read 'I'm sorry I wasn't able to get you anything before this, but I hope this is the beginning to make up for it. ~Love Dad.'

Renae smiled and opened the box to see an opal bracelet inside. Renae placed the box on the night stand and stretched as she started walking towards the living room. Jarrod was sleeping on the chair with a book in his hands. Upon looking at the clock on the oven, Reane realized it was two o'clock in the morning.

"Dad." Renae walked over to Jarrod and tapped his shoulder.

"Hmmbhmm." He grumbled.

"Dad. Go to bed." She grabbed his shoulder and shook it lightly.

"Wh-what happened?" He jumped up.

"Nothing happened. You fell asleep reading in your chair. It's two in the morning already. Go to your room and go to bed."

"What are you doing up?" He rubbed his eyes as he put his book on the table.

"I slept for like sixteen hours already." She glared at him "I'm hungry. Can you blame me?" Jarrod laughed as he got up and started walking to his room.

Renae went into the kitchen and started scouring the contents of the fridge. When she saw the cookie dough, she pulled out the container and looked in the cupboard till she found cinnamon sticks. As she stuck the cinnamon stick in her cookie dough she walked across the window she saw her reflection. She glared down at her pajamas 'a rag for a tank top and short shorts, great pajamas.' She rolled her eyes and sat at the table to eat her junk food. 'Mighty fine breakfast if I do say so myself.' She laughed at herself as she shoveled the cookie dough into her mouth.

After she finished her snack she walked to the garbage and threw away the container, then to the sink to get a glass of water. As she looked up and out the window she saw someone staring back at her. Surprised. she jumped back and let out a yelp trying to scream but failed. She grabbed the bat by the front door and ran out. Around the corner she was met by a boy standing there.

"What are you doing here?!" She asked anger booming in her voice.

"Well, I was just..." He was scared to talk staring at the bat in her hands.

"Just what?!" She yelled making him jump.

"Just wanted to see how the new girl was doing..." He took his eyes off the bat and made eye contact with Renae, creeping her out. She placed the bat at her side and looked at him with disgust and disbelief hoping with the bat out of the way he'd tell her the truth.

"What is it? I have a concealed weapon!" Jarrod came running around the corner in his boxers and a t-shirt.

"Dad, it's fine. It's just some boy." Renae tried to reassure him.

"A boy? Oh good just a... A BOY?! RENAE! No boys over this late! Or early or whatever time it is right now."

"I didn't invite him." She scoffed rolling her eyes.

"Well, what does he want?" He stepped forwards closer to the two.

"I don't know, your interrupted." Jarrod stopped and tried to see in the dark. He ended up rubbing his eyes and regretting not bringing his glasses.

"So what did you want?" Renae asked confused turning towards the boy. As she focused her eyes a white flash blinded her. She rubbed her eyes and saw him running around the next corner. "What the hell?" She asked still rubbing one eye.

"Come on." Jarrod grabbed her shoulder and led her back inside.

"Well that was weird..." Renae closed the door and locked it along with setting the bat back in it place.

"Did I hear a scream earlier? Or did I imagine that?" Jarrod asked confused.

"Oh... that. Well that kid was looking at me through the kitchen window and I didn't notice till I was getting a glass of water and he scared the shit out of me. Also it was more of a yelp then a scream."

"He was staring at you?" He laughed. "Sounds like you have an admirer." He lost his smile at the realization.

"Oh ha ha ha. Go back to bed you old fart." She mocked him.

"I'm not that old, I'm only forty-eight." He tried to defend himself as he crossed his arms.

"Only thirty years older than me and you still act like a child. Yeah, you're definitely not old." She rolled her eyes and smirked.

They each went into there rooms after verbal jabs back and forth. Renae laid in bed unable to sleep. She confused herself every time she kept thinking back to that boy. 'I don't know him, so why'd he take a picture of me? Who was he anyways?' She kept thinking on loop. Looking at her alarm clock it was three-thirty in the morning. She sighed as she rolled onto her side and tried to go to sleep. She tossed and turned until she heard Jarrod get up out of bed. Then she decided to join him in the kitchen.

"Hey daddy." She sang as she approached him.

"What do you want?" He glared at her as he started the coffee.

"Well, I was hoping to start campus security tonight?" She smiled.

"Normal kids don't even want to go to school but you want to do that. Normal kids don't want to take part in jobs they're kind of forced to do and you want to do that. What's wrong with my kid?" He sighed.

"Well, I know I said Thursday but I really want to start tonight. Plus, I want to see if I can find that boy from last night and get some answers out of him if he decides to sneak around again tonight."

"Well, I wish you wouldn't but... If you really want to I guess I don't see why not."

"YAY! Thanks daddy!" She hugged him before running into her room. She closed the door behind her and walked to her closet. Grabbing one of her uniforms she laid it out on the bed. Standing in the bathroom as she brushed her hair, she sees a small scar under her nose and a slight bruise around her nose, she was relieved it wasn't swollen as it was the day before. After washing her face and putting lotion on on her scar she went to her bed and got dressed. Feeling slightly overwhelmed, she grabbed her wind walker and placed it in its holster under her skirt. She bit the inside of her cheek and she headed out.

-

"Dear lord, you've been gone forever and you look like you're in so much pain!" Mr. K cried as he hugged Renae tightly.

"Because you're squeezing the life out of me!" Renaes voice was muffled, Mr. K let go upon realizing "It was just a little fight. I'm fine." She said taking a breath.

"Don't ever scare me like that again, you're one of my favorite students and practically family now." He backed up, tears still showing in his eyes.

"Okay, I won't I was only gone for two weeks."

"Sorry. I was just worried. Go ahead and take your seat okay?" He smiled motioning her to her seat.

Renae turned around and took a seat in the middle of the room. As she leaned back into her chair the bell rang and all the students piled into the room.

"Okay kids, now that all of us are here. We're going to have a doubles project. I, of course, have taken it upon myself to pick out your partners because I don't want to hear that anyone is getting left out or blah blah blah." As Mr. K was speaking, a collection of students let out moans of irritation. "When I call your name find your partner and sit down." He began calling out student names.

Renae listened in and waited patiently as names were called "Allen and Vince. Renae, you'll be with Braxton. Haley, you'll be with Josh. Brice and..." She ignored the rest as she tried to remember her partners name. Not even knowing who to look for, she just looked around.

"Hi, I'm Braxton." He walked up behind her making her jump "I don't think I've introduced myself yet." He smiled extending his hand, Renae grabbed it as they exchanged a handshake. Braxton took the seat next to her. Renae looked at him and noticed how tall he was, assuming he was around six foot two or three. She noticed his black hair was almost covering his dark brown eyes. Before he noticed her eyes, she turned her attention to Mr. K and waited for him to finish.

"Okay, what we're going to do, on graph paper, you're going to draw any drawing you wish, school appropriate! Every angle, you'll write down the equation to make that angle. This needs to be done in exactly one week." He called out before sitting down at his desk.

"Do you want to go to your dorm or mine? I think we'll have a couple distractions if we go to mine. The guys in my room can get pretty rowdy. Or we could go to the library." Braxton smirked as he turned towards Renae.

"Oh, I'm not in a dorm. I live on the other side of the building. As long as you're okay with it, we can go there. We won't have any distractions there." She spoke up to match the volume of his voice.

"Other side? There's no buildings back there." He laughed acting confused "The only one who lives back there is the-" He paused looking at her.

"The... headmaster?" She asked him, he nodded his head thinking "Yeah, I'm his daughter."

"I knew it... but uh, yeah... It'll probably be better to go to your place then my dorm or the library. I'd rather not lose another partner because jackasses keep making kissy faces." He laughed.

"Right. Great. Well, I'll let my dad know and after school we can meet out back." They both nodded and waited for the bell to ring.