Page 9

Chapter seven

Forest

I spent thirty minutes trying to wash the mud away from my shoes in the school bathroom closest to the back door. For reasons beyond my understanding, I thought hitting my head against the wall outside would stop the noise. I only managed to give myself nothing but a good-sized cut, easily fixable if I had my Cure-All. I had managed to get the bleeding to stop, hiding it with my hair in a less-than-functional hairstyle. The brown locks coat the side of my face, forced forward with a few straggling bobby pins.

After the incident outside the school, avoiding class seemed like my best option. Either I stay outside and face Fallan, Valerie, and the mess around me, or force myself into a seat next to Kai, who will only pry. The knob on the door jiggles. I stop the running water, gathering myself in the mirror’s reflection.

“I’m almost done!” I yell, fixing my uniform as best I can while cramming multiple paper towels in the overflowing bin.

I grab my bag, hearing the automated chime of the last bell of the day. With a quick drag of the lock, the door swings open, nearly making the Untouchable girl leaning on the door fall inside and onto me. I quickly move past her, not giving her enough time to examine my face too closely. I keep my head lowered, avoiding direct eye contact with anyone who passes by. The eyes of those around me seem to linger. Glances now feel like full-fledged stares. I move closer to reception, then past the scanners with the next wave of students making their way out of the building. My hands shove open the glass doors, pushing me closer to my group’s usual waiting spot.

Multiple people crowd around the side of the school, observing the destroyed ponds and dying fish. Officials stop students from getting a closer look at the carnage, giving students little to no reason about what caused the mess in the first place. My throat feels dry. The blame toward Unfortunates instantly finds people’s mouths, only adding to the hatred of them in this sector.

But what really happened? What happened in those fleeting moments in which I let the noise become too loud? All I could do was harm myself to silence it. The meds were supposed to stop the blackouts. They were supposed to stop those moments of the unknown.

“I’ve been wondering where you went off to.”

Kai works his way from the front of the curious, growing group. Raegan and Max pull away from the swarm, noticing us the moment Kai’s mouth opens. He looks perplexed at the sight, throwing me a questioning look that only motivates me to move toward the tram.

“You pissed me off. I needed some time alone,” I say, feeling the twins’ growing presence as we all begin to move away from the busy schoolyard.

“They’re saying some Unfortunates trashed the lawn. The worst part is they somehow fried the cameras in the process. They can’t recover the footage,” Raegan says, moving close to my brother, who eagerly awaits her presence.

“Give them anything nice, and they ruin it,” Kai says. I can’t help but scoff at his crude words after the ones he chose to share with me in programming class.

“Bold of you to assume it was an Unfortunate knowing Josh and Colton live and breathe for a thrill like destroying property,” Max mutters, filling me with relief. I know he says it to please me, but still. I allow my hand to trail behind me, reaching for his grasp with a squeeze. He lets his hand land on my own. Any tension between us earlier melts away with the touch.

Students gather near the stopped tram, clamoring to get on with shoves. Many linger by the empty ponds, slowly dragging along to catch the tram. Colton and Josh are leaning outside the tram, eyeing down all the women while they work their way up the steps. I keep my head lowered, pulling Max along with me, wanting nothing more than for them to be silent. Colton’s hand reaches out, stopping my march toward the tram steps. The bus driver and I make eye contact. Our heads raise simultaneously.

“You think after what you pulled this morning, you can just get on that easily?” Colton questions. His face grows uncomfortably close. Max grabs his collar, shoving him back into the tram with a grin.

“Why don’t you go and fess up for the mess you two assholes made so we can all go home?” Max questions. Josh audibly laughs at the comment.

“Still following her around like a lost puppy, hoping you get a chance to get past that horrid uniform blouse-”

“Open your mouth one more time, and I will make what you did to that Unfortunate this morning look tame,” Max spits, pointing his finger at Josh’s chest. All three men surround each other like rabid dogs. Kai balls his fist, waiting in anticipation for Max’s next move. I glance again at the bus driver, feeling his worries increase about this new delay. It’s his ass if we keep holding up his routes.

“Max, let it go,” I begin, motioning Kai and Rae to help me pull him away from Josh and Colton. With a release of Colton’s collar, he backs down, moving backward and into my touch, even making it up a few steps of the stairs, beginning the flow of movement once more.

“Go on and follow your dirty, Unfortunate loving whore-”

My hands meet Josh’s arms, shoving him back into the tram as hard as possible. He stumbles, almost falling over, only to be dragged back up by my hand. I grab his face, holding his sharp jawline in my hand, forcing him to look at me. My hair slips away from its pinned position. The cut burns as the cool breeze moves past it. I hold Josh still, pinning his tall figure with my leg. I made sure to keep my knee in the one place he would rather not feel pressure. Colton moves, ready to pull me away from his idiotic companion. I put more pressure on Josh’s crotch with my knee, watching the arrogance leave his expression.

“Make him back off,” I hiss. Josh pounds the side of the vehicle, stopping his friend’s movements. Kai’s hands hold the back of his head, his eyes wide at the exchange. Max stands still, unsure of what to do. Rae tries her best to deal with crowd control but only meets dead ends as people begin to cheer at the sight of aggression.

“You have absolutely no idea who I am. None!” I press down harder, watching his expression shift to pain. My lips move closer to his ear. His heartbeat pounds beneath my touch. “If you would like to see how dirty I’m willing to get my hands to prove to everyone here how much of a bitch you are, please, allow me. Call me an Unfortunate loving whore again, and I will make sure you look as fucked up as every Unfortunate who’s received a violation. I suggest you stop mistaking me for the first year you tormented and back off,” I finish, pulling my mouth away from his ear, only to meet his angered face.

Pulling my knee away, I let him go. His body slumps forward, exhibiting the strength of the hold I had on him. I motion Max up the steps, playing off the whole interaction as if it’d never happened. Josh grabs my arm, stopping me dead in my tracks. His fingers wrap around my wrist, squeezing with all he has.

“Don’t forget what I have on you-”

“Tell them. Maybe we can both get some fucking answers,” I hiss, looking over the crowd with anger.

“Show's over,” I spit with rage.

In the back of the crowd, his blue eyes look at me with something other than a scowl. A small smirk lines his face, eating up his expression like a mask. Unlike all the other times he has hatefully watched over me, he allows his amusement to show this time. His arms are crossed over his chest. His head cocks, and he looks as if he’s challenging me to prove something to him. I feel my body move forward, bowing toward the crowd while only looking at him. I keep my lowered gaze on him, letting my hate consume my vision, before following behind Max.

I expected that smirk to leave his face at my posturing.

It only seemed to grow.

But maybe that was my own delusion.

“What the hell was that? What does he have on you?” Kai questions silently, while stealing the seat next to me. Josh and Colton stagger onto the tram, eyeing me down with nasty looks that only fall flat.

“Do you suggest I continue to let them walk all over everyone? He has nothing, Kai. Calm down,” I snap, waiting for his following snide remark.

“She’s right,” Max says, sitting beside me. “It should have been us roughing them up after Rae said he hurt Forest. Now is not the time to cast judgment,” Max says, keeping his eyes on my furious brother.

Kai throws his arms in the air, forcing himself back to his feet. His hand grabs Max’s front, pulling him up and into a standing position.

“If you’re so adamant about getting involved, then you won’t mind helping me convince them not to put marks on Forest’s scorecard for her outburst,” Kai says, dragging Max closer to the two devils. They look unamused by my brother’s presence. Still, he sits next to them, using his most professional tone to create a mind-numbing conversation that will only go over their heads.

Raegan shakes her head, looking over her textbook, ignoring her twin’s vicious side-eye.

“Thank you, kiddo,” the bus driver silently whispers, smiling ear to ear at the sight of Valerie and Fallan on his tram. I press my head against the cool glass next to me, observing the silent banter between the trio meant for them and only them. Pain from the cut on my head still lingers, throbbing every so often, indicating the start of a headache.

Fallan pulls away from his conversation, looking over Valerie as she walks in front of him. I scoff at the sight, keeping my eyes away from his once they finally pull away from his blonde lap dog. My hands fidget with my bag, trying to find any source of distraction.

A small piece of paper falls to my lap. Fallan’s hand quickly retracts to his side. I’m almost sure I envisioned his hand dropping the paper toward me in the first place. He moves forward and down the tram car until he is again in his section. He doesn’t acknowledge me once.

I notice Kai and Max continue trying to talk to Josh and Colton. Rae’s eyes are too focused on her textbook to notice anything. I tuck the note between my legs, opening it delicately to unveil whatever it contains.

I know it was you hiding behind the wall.

Tell anyone what you saw between me and Valerie, and I will ensure everyone knows about your generous contribution of a bottle of contraband Cure-All to an Unfortunate. How long would it take an Official to question how I got my hands on a bottle? Maybe Mommy should leave your name off the next one she slips in your bag. Wonder what a violation like that would do to you?

For shame, Little Dove.

I linger on the name he’s given me, hating it with every fiber of my being. The paper crumples beneath my hand, smearing my fingers in black ink. I cram the note into my pocket, feeling my chest’s heavy rise and fall as I process his arrogance. Valerie’s legs are strung across his lap, absorbing the small rolls of his thumb over her thigh. She takes up several seats, almost lying down to indulge in his touch. While her eyes are on him, his stay on me. His head cocks, watching me, waiting for some type of reaction.

I lean forward on my knees, raising my head, mocking his movements with a challenging stare. His eyebrows gently raise, pulling the familiar metal vial casing of my mother’s Cure-All free from his pocket. He twirls the tube between his long fingers. Glancing over at Josh and Colton, he pretends to drop the vial right in front of them.

If they find out I “gave” Fallan anything, I’m done for.

I lean back in my chair, shaking my head out of frustration. He continues rubbing Valerie’s leg, even dipping his fingers beneath the hem of her shirt to rub her lower stomach. I force my gaze away from the sight, feeling the start of a pounding headache creep through my mind as my birthmark begins to burn. I grasp my lower stomach, focusing all my energy on working through the pain. The headache continues to grow, and I’m consumed with silent whispers in my mind that no longer feel like they’ve come from my own inner consciousness. I feel something creeping into my mind, lingering in the empty spaces, waiting to find an opening. It expands out, increasing the pain in my head, taking all of my rationality with it. At this point, I’m nervous that I’ll blackout again, and that can’t happen on the tram. There are too many people.

I draw in a deep breath, forcing my mind to push back on the pain with each expansion of my lungs.

“Get out!” I scream in my mind, closing my eyes to focus on where it’s coming from.

It persists. Once more, I fill my mind with a painful scream.

“Get out! Get out! Get out!”

All at once, the pain slips away, causing the pressure in my lids to become lighter. I finish my exhale, feeling a great weight lift away from my now vacated mind. The crowding of another presence in my head melts away, making me question how much of that pain was real. I turn my head, expecting Fallan’s taunting stare to eat me alive.

Instead, I find him looking out the tram window, running his hand through his wild locks, moving Valerie’s legs off of him with frustration. She tries to speak to him, getting nothing but silence. His eyes snap shut, his hand wiping something away from his face with a drag of his sleeve.

“Did you hear me?” Kai’s voice questions, pulling me away from my reverie and back into reality.

“What?” I question, looking over his frazzled face.

“It’s dealt with,” Max says. He steals the spot next to me, forcing Kai to sit beside his twin.

“How did you-”

“Just trust us, Blackburn,” Max says, slinging his arm over my shoulder. He narrows his eyes at my head, gently running his thumb over my cut. Red coats his finger and he quickly wipes it away on the white cuff of his uniform.

“What happened?” he questions, my eyes focused on the crimson now smudging his sleeve.

“It’s just a cut,” I whisper, leaning my head into his chest, letting the sound of the tram’s wheels in motion numb my thinking. He messes with his bag, utilizing some of his Cure-All to fix the wound. I silently thank him with a small smile, allowing his hand to rub up and down my back in comforting strokes.

“It’s never just a cut with you,” Max whispers in a light-hearted tone, leaving me to force a smile at a statement I can no longer find the humor in.