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I stared into his green eyes, hoping to find one shred of humanity there, but they were empty. Void.
“What are you saying?” I asked.
He leaned forward, his face only inches from mine. “If I could dothismuch damage on your very first day without trying in the least… What do you think I could accomplish with time? Preparation?Endlessresources?”
Realization started to settle in. This hadn’t been a game at all. This was just boredom. The pre-show.
“What do you want, Damian? Why are you doing this?”
He leaned back. “At first, it wasn’t personal. It was a job. A deal I took to get rid of you.”
My eyes widened again. “That’s the second time you’ve mentioned a job. Harper? Did she put you up to this?” I asked.
A dark smile spread across his lips. “Maybe. Maybe not. Doesn’t matter. Becausenow…Nowit’s personal. Your little show this morning made it personal. So, you need to decide, little lamb. Exactly how much did you enjoy your first day at Crestview?”
I stared in silence. I couldn’t believe what he was saying. Surely, even Damian Wolfe couldn’t be as cold as he portrayed himself to be. But the longer I stared into his eyes, looking for even a flicker of hesitation, the more I realized how wrong I was.
How wrong evenHarperwas. He wassomuch worse than she made him out to be.
Still, I didn’t care. I wouldn’t let him bully some random guy I’d never met, and I sure as hell wasn’t about to let him do it to me.
“I’m not leaving, if that’s what you’re getting at. I may not exactly want to be here, but I’m here for a reason. Reasons that are much bigger than you, little boy. You’ll not bully me out of here.”
“Mmm,” he moaned as he returned to his normal, relaxed position. Leaning back in his chair with his hands clasped behind his head. “Good. I was hoping you’d say that.” His eyes turned to me, though his head stayed facing forward. “You should prepare yourself, Wilder. Things are about to getverybad for you. Let therealgames begin.”
* * *
After what Icould only describe as a “troubling” discussion with Damian, he’d rudely dismissed me. The back row of the classroom was empty, thanks to his earlier orders for everyone to steer clear of them, so I took the last seat on the right to stay as far from him as possible.
Considering what he’d told me, I expected him to mess with me more during or after class, but he didn’t. To be honest, I wasn’t sure what I wanted more. Him to torture me or for him to leave me be. On one hand, being left alone was nice, but on the other hand, I was anxious just thinking about when he might strike next. He’d somehow stripped me of any sense of control I’d had.
Getting out of that class was a blessing.
I quickly went to my locker and grabbed my things before heading to my dorm apartment. The whole way there, I found myself looking over my shoulder. Harper was pissed, and I didn’t put it past her to sneak up behind me with a group of her weird clones. Knowing we were in the same dorm building was unnerving, but it couldn’t be changed. I’d have to deal with it—for now.
Relief washed over me as I shut and locked my apartment door. Leaning against it, I took a deep breath and blew it out. The whole day had been a series of ups and downs. Now that things were calm, the whole day flashed before my eyes.
How the hell did everything get so fucked up so fast?
It made no sense.
My phone vibrated in my skirt, and I removed it to see a text from Luna.
__________________________________________
Luna:
I just got to my room. Bring all your uniforms. What size shirt did you get?
__________________________________________
Seeingher text made me smile. I didn’t want to be out wandering around, but I also didn’t want to go another day wearing those horrid uniforms fitting as they did. I texted her back to let her know I wanted to shower and change before tossing my stuff on my bed.
It had occurred to me that by the end of the day, I’d end up taking three showers when I usually only took one—two if I worked out—but I didn’t care. Today hadn’t even come close to being a normal day, and the horrid feeling it left behind felt like a film. One I hoped I could wash away.
The hot water felt amazing, and it let me wash all the places Damian had touched me. I’d hoped it would do something symbolically. Making those parts of me that felt dirty feel clean again. However, that was absolutely not the case. As my hands cleaned the places on my right thigh he’d touched, I remembered what it felt like for his fingers to graze me there.
Fuck, I hated him.