Page 70 of The Darkest Note

I’m not anyone’s slave.

“Hey.” I give her a once-over. “Wow. You look nice.”

She’s wearing particularly thick eyeliner and it brings out the sparkle in her eyes. Her usual motorcycle jacket is worn over the male version of the Redwood Prep uniform—sweater vest and straight khakis.

“Thanks. I was tired of wearing a skirt so I thought I’d switch it up today.” She groans against the locker. “This stupid school won’t let us be great and wear jeans.”

I chuckle. “Evil overlords. All of them.”

Her answering smile makes my heart feel at ease. Although I didn’t set out to have friends at Redwood Prep, having Serena as a friendly face really makes a difference.

“I heard about the commotion in your music class.” She folds her arms over her chest. “Word on the street is that Dutch saved you.”

“Hewhat?” My eyes widen.

“After what happened the last time, with you freezing up at the keyboard and running away, crying and screaming—”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. There was no crying and screaming,” I defend.

Unbelievable. No wonder gossip’s so powerful and deadly. The story completely shifted after being passed around to the whole school.

“Anyway, he protected you so the music sub didn’t force you to play.” Serena tosses her head and the cute raven-haired bob swishes around her cheeks.

“That is so far from what happened it’s diabolical.” I frown at her, clutching my books to my chest.

“Either way, I didn’t take you for the Dutch type.” She gives me a once-over. “You seemed more like a Finn-head to me.”

“A Finn-head?”

“Yeah. A fan of Finn? He’s the quietest brother, but man… those eyes and when he plays his bass…” She stares dreamily into space. And then she shifts her attention back to me. “Not that I notice.”

“Totally buy that.” I laugh.

She grins and elbows me in the side.

Just then, I spot the Cross brothers sauntering down the hallway.

Oh damn.I turn on instinct, trying to blend behind the students crowding around us.

“What’s going on?” Serena asks, looking confused.

“Nothing,” I whisper urgently. “I’ll see you later.”

I hobble around, keeping my back bent and try to scurry in the opposite direction. Too scared to look back, I don’t realize that Dutch caught sight of me until I feel a jolt.

My shirt squashes my boobs and I almost stumble. When I peer over my shoulder, I see Dutch, Finn and Zane staring intently at me.

Dutch has his pointer finger in the collar of my blouse and is physically holding me back.

I’m going to kill him today. I have to.

Whirling around, I smack at his hand. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“Where’s my latte, Brahms?” His voice is smooth and unhurried. There’s a hint of a smirk on his lips that tells me he enjoys the fury rising on my face.

“I’m going to smash your face in,” I threaten.

My words seem to bounce off his back like a pebble on a mountain. Dutch doesn’t care that I was having a good day. He’s here to ruin it.