Page 53 of Broken by my Bully (Lessons in Cruelty Dark Academia #1)

Haven

I can barely see where I’m going. But I’d rather pull a muscle than make a hundred trips to the car to bring my stuff inside. I’m stubborn like that. Also, I apparently have more shit than I thought I did. Who knew you could be broke and a hoarder?

Groaning, I dump my armful of stuff onto my bed and survey the junk with a disparaging once-over. It’s hard not to dwell on the thought that Bastian saw everything I own as he transferred my stuff out of the sedan and into his Land Rover.

Luckily, I brought nothing embarrassing with me when I left Ashwood Crossing.

“You fucked him.”

I spin around, hand on my heart as I stare at Melissa where she’s sitting perched on the edge of her bed, one long leg draped over the other. “Are you auditioning for a fucking horror movie or something?” I groan.

She crosses her arms over her chest, rumpling her cropped, pink hounds tooth jacket. “Was it a package deal? Or did he make you do ass stuff for the car? ”

God, not her too. Is it really that fucking obvious that there’s something between me and Bastian?

I snort. “Are you high?”

“Hillary got a call from Rooke this morning. Next thing, my roommate’s gone. Then you show up.” Her eyes narrow. “You’ve got to be sleeping with him.”

“What? No!” There’s a furious blush creeping up my neck, so I quickly turn to the bed to sort out the junk piled on the sheets.

I stop, her words finally hitting home, and throw her a glare over my shoulder. “ Ass stuff?”

She shrugs a shoulder and looks away, her tone all cool indifference. “You’re not a very good liar.”

“And you’re not a very good friend,” I snap.

Her chestnut eyes are wide when she looks back at me, her arms tensing as if she’s about to lash out, then she slumps a little. “Fair point. I’ll keep my observations about your love life to myself from now on.”

“That’s not the only thing I’m talking about.” I turn to face her, hugging my arms tight against my chest. I need to dig my cardigan out of whatever hole it’s gotten lost in, because I’m freezing. The skirt on this maxi dress might be long, but the fabric is way too thin to keep out the cold.

“How could you?”

Her frown is deep enough to crease her brow, which is surprising.

“Professor Rooke’s wild card? How could you?”

“Make up some random shit that just happened to be true?” She scoffs, looking away again. But her foot is bouncing. “Luck, I guess.”

“You’re smart, Melissa. You knew there was a high probability that?—“

“Yeah, fine. Fuck.” She glances back at me, rolls her eyes. “But so did you.”

“That was a wild stab in the dark!” I point at her. “I had no idea?— ”

“You’re smart, Haven,” she says dryly. “You knew there was a high probability that it was true.”

I don’t cut her off because I don’t really have a defense.

She flinches when I storm over to her and hold out my hand. “Truce.”

Her skin is cool and soft, and I kind of hate her for being so perfect all the time. But I shake her hand anyway, and she rewards me with a micro smile before standing to brush off her matching knee-length hounds tooth skirt.

“Thank you, by the way,” I say.

“For what?”

“Standing up for me back there.”

“Yeah…About that.” She crosses her arms again, leaning back on one foot to study me. “What is it with you two?”

I glance away, pinch the bridge of my nose, and let out a long sigh. “We used to be friends way back. Like way, way back.”

“Let me guess. You tried dating. Then you broke up. Now it’s only sour grapes on the menu.”

I purse my lips. “That’s…inaccurate.”

“Then help me out.”

Blowing out a breath, I head for the door. “I gotta get the rest of my stuff.”

“He’s just pulling your hair.”

“Oh no!” I turn back to her, scowling. “He fucking hates me, Melissa.” The fingertips on each of my hands press together as I raise my arms and stalk back to her. “If he could kill me and get away with it, I’d be taking a dirt nap right now.”

“Drama queen.” Her sleek red hair shifts around her ears as she shakes her head. “Hate and love are two sides of the same coin. One day he’s going to flip it, and it’ll come up heads.”

I glare at her. “Both sides of his coin are tails. It’s a special coin.”

“Be glad it’s Kai.” She goes to her closet, pulling out a fluffy robe and a pair of slippers with bunny ears on them. “I drew the short straw with Ezra. ”

I stare at her for a moment, jaw slack. She studies me with an eyebrow quirked, like she’s wondering if I’m having a stroke.

So am I.

I have to work moisture back into my mouth before I can speak. “ Ezra is your ex?”

“Don’t sound so horrified,” she says sourly. “At least we pretended to like each other.”

“No, it’s just…” I frown at her. “Isn’t he gay?”

She stops rooting through her closet, arms raised as she glances at me over her shoulder. “Why would you say that?”

Alarm bells are clanging in my head. I lick my lips, shrug. “Those polo shirts?” I gesture at my neck. “The popped collars? And his hair is just way too neat.”

Melissa snorts. “Yeah, I suppose he might be on the bi end of the spectrum. Only ever wanted to fuck in the shower. But he got hard for me. That counts, right?” She turns to me, frowning. “Do I look mannish to you?”

I stare at her in her pink suit-skirt. Her long, sculpted legs. Her immaculate hair and stunning almond eyes.

“You’re fucking kidding me, right?”

She laughs. “Thank God.” But there’s just a touch of unease around her eyes as she gathers up her toiletries. “Need a hand with your things?” Her eyes dart to my bed, then back to me.

“Nah. One more trip, max.”

“’Kay. See you in a bit.” She pauses at the door and turns back to me. “Oh, yeah. What are you wearing tomorrow?”

I look down at myself. “Uh…clothes?”

She’d been about to walk away again. She grabs onto the doorframe and gives me a hard stare. “To the Rain Dance.” I guess my face isn’t screaming gotcha, because she rolls her eyes. “The fundraiser we were literally just discussing in the meeting?”

“That’s tomorrow?” I clear my throat.

“Yeah, it’s tomorrow. Did you forget?”

Guess I missed the memo .

“Oh, uh…what’s the dress code again?”

“Black tie.” Her bunny slipper gives me a dismissive bob when I just keep staring. “I’ll send you all the deets.”

A black-tie fundraiser?

I didn’t even go to prom.

Melissa leans out into the hall as if she’s checking to make sure it’s clear. “Who would you pick, though?” she stage-whispers.

She’s giving me mental whiplash.

“Kai or Ezra?” I grimace.

She rolls her eyes again, checks the hallway again. “Kai or Rooke .”

“Oh my God, Melissa!” I rush at her, giving her a playful shove.

She giggles as she stumbles into the hallway, catching her balance and heading for the bathroom down the hall. But she turns around after a few steps, walking backward as she calls out, “Both?” She points at me with a slipper. “You’d pick both, you dirty slut.”

I give her the finger, and her laugh follows me down the stairs as I head for the Land Rover to collect the last of my things.

Both.

I huff out a sardonic laugh as I roll my shoulders and pop the trunk.

Now that’s asking for drama.

“Nice car.”

I don’t realize I was staring off into space until the voice behind me snaps me back to reality. Grabbing the first thing I can lay my hand on, I spin around and face off with Kai.

“You stay the fuck away from me!” I brandish my flashlight like a baton. It’s pretty hefty, but I doubt I can swing it hard enough to dent Kai’s thick skull.

Won’t stop me from trying.

“Relax, Heavenly,” he says, stepping closer. “You made your point back there.”

“Stay back.” I wiggle the flashlight again when Kai steps closer still.

“Just being neighborly. ”

But other than beating him to a pulp with the flashlight, there’s nothing I can do to stop him when he grabs a duffel bag in each hand and heads for the sorority house.

I don’t recognize the bags. Are they Bastian’s? My clothes have been in trash bags for the past few weeks. There’s still a mortified blush on my cheeks when Kai stops in the foyer and looks back at me.

“Where do these go?”

“Right here’s fine.” I hurry over and snatch at the handles, trying to tug them out of Kai’s grip.

“Nah. Couldn’t let a cutie like you hurt yourself with these heavy things.” He tips his chin toward the stairs. “Lead the way.”

We’re alone down here.

It’s gone past ten already, and I’m guessing most of the sorority house is asleep or getting ready for bed.

The stupidest thing you can do in a horror movie is go up the stairs, or down into the basement. But those guys usually have an evil spirit or an ax-murderer to deal with.

I have an unpredictable Kai.

Even I’ll admit murder is a bit dramatic.

My choices are to run out the front door, into an even more deserted street, or head upstairs, where at least there will be a bunch of sorority sisters to hear me scream.

The ornate crystal chandelier above us casts a soft, warm light on Kai’s head, picking out golden strands in his wild brown hair. Turns his tan a shade darker until the whites of his eyes seem to glow. Which is weird, because I know he’s stoned, so his eyes should be red.

Fuck. He’s so handsome it hurts.

One side of his mouth is quirked up, and it looks so much like the permanent little smirk he used to wear when we were young. Always so fucking full of himself. Couldn’t teach kid Kai a damn thing.

But I did.

He used to love killing things before he met me. Insects, reptiles, small rodents. Not in a cruel way. But like he was disposing of pests. Said his mother couldn’t stand that kind of stuff in their trailer. He and Ezra had to keep the place critter-free.

I never really paid him much mind. Insects creep me out, so no loss there. And one less snake in the world was one less chance of getting bitten and dying.

But then he killed a squirrel.

I loved squirrels.

Kai had never believed me until he shot one down off a tree with his slingshot.

I was inconsolable.

I’ll never forget how stunned he looked as I mourned that squirrel. The slack-jawed fascination as I dug out a little grave and buried it. The wreath of flowers I laid on top. How I sat there, sobbing, until the rain had drenched us both and my teeth were chattering together from the cold.

He never did it again.

At least, not when I was around.

I taught him to be kind to animals.

He taught me to be kind to myself.

Staring up at him now, I wish we could just go back to the woods. Back in time, to when we were so young.

Before shit got so fucking complicated .

And for just a second, his moss-green eyes reflect the same desperation. He scans my face, his smirk fading as his mouth slowly tilts down. His hand tightens on the strap of the duffle, his muscles trembling.

“Did he fuck you?” he growls.

I jerk my hand away. Those words slam into me so hard, he might as well have kicked me. “That’s none of your fucking business!”

His eyes flicker over my face again, and that smirk pulls at his lips. “That’s what I thought.”

He slings one of the duffel bags over his shoulder and grabs me with his free hand.

“Kai!” I gasp, but he’s already dragging me up the stairs.