The Bully's Possession

Chapter Five

            Much to my surprise, Cole hadn’t bothered me all weekend. It was nice not having to worry about whether he would show up on my front door again or worry about how nervous he made me. The first night, after he stormed out, I couldn’t stop thinking about him as much as I wanted to. I didn’t sleep a wink but refused to take any medication since it was the weekend. Instead, I opened the pages of my book and let myself get lost in it.

            Now it was Sunday and the day that my parents would be back from their trip. I was looking forward to having them home, hopefully in time for us all to share dinner together. It had been way too long since we all sat down at the dining table and ate a decent meal together. Since the idea was fresh on my mind, I made my way down to the kitchen, peeking into the refrigerator to see what I could conjure together to prepare a meal.

            I could hear my phone ringing from upstairs and ran upstairs as fast as possible, hoping that it was from Cole. I know, stupid for me to go there. All because of the intimacy we shared once, I was swooned by him. Disappointment set clear on my face when the name across my screen reads mom.

            I picked it up right as it was about to go to voicemail. “Hey, mom! How is everything going?”

            She sighed. “Going,” she responded. “Listen, honey. I called to let you know that our trip has been extended. There is a major deal that we are trying to help one of our clients close, but the client is a stick in our asses.” I couldn’t help but laugh at her reference. “Sorry to be so blunt. That means that our trip will be extended for at least another couple of days. Are you going to be okay on your own?”

            This should upset me, but over the years, I had grown to expect this when they had out-of-town business to attend to. I was just hoping that they could make it home to have dinner with me. Just once was all I needed to hold me over for a while. “Yes, mom, I promise I will be fine.”

            “Okay, but if anything comes up, call me. I will keep you updated, honey. Make sure to have a wonderful day at school tomorrow. I love you, Mia.” She hung up the phone as I let it linger to my ear a little longer.

            There was nothing for me to do other than read my books, not that it was a problem. I loved to read, but sometimes it got lonely being here without anyone to keep me occupied other than the fictional characters in my book. I wasn’t one for watching much television, and I certainly did not play any video games. I needed to find something to do outside of the house, considering I would be cooped up in it all week after school. Where would I go? It wasn’t like I had many friends here, not that I minded. The library would be a great place, but it was closed on Sundays.

            Instead of cooking for just myself, I settled on finally going out and grabbing a bite to eat with the money that my parents left me. It would consist of me not staying out for too long, but enough to enjoy being out and about. It was a chilly day outside, so I left my hair down in wavy curls and threw on a black jacket.

            The good thing about living in such a small area was that everything was close to us. I didn’t have to depend on taxis like I did when we were in New York for a short time. Instead, I could walk, enjoying the weather.

            Town was strangely crowded for a Sunday, probably all those Sunday church people ready to catch a meal after service. I hadn’t been here long enough to venture around town to see what was good and what wasn’t, so I picked the first restaurant that I came across. It was a small but cute pizzeria that was just as crowded with people as the busy streets were.

            As I walked inside, I instantly noticed various groups of kids from my school. This must be a pretty popular place. Hopefully, that was due to the food and not the convenience this place offered for many.

            “Hello and good evening. How many will be dining tonight?” A middle-aged woman with a velvety bob haircut greeted me, her name tag reading Sophia.

            I smiled at her, saying, “um, just one, please.” She was very polite, smiling back at me and guiding me along to an empty booth.

            Of course, I had to get seated in the booth next to some people I recognized and that I was sure recognized me. If it would have been like any of my other schools, no one would have even noticed my presence, but because Cole freaking Parker interjected himself into my life, everyone now knew who I was. Some may have thought that was a good thing, especially someone like me because I could continue to be left alone, but that wasn’t the case at all. The attention was overwhelming, making me squirm in my seat.

            Soon, I was joined by the guy that showed no fear when he stole me away from Cole, claiming that I was his girlfriend. “Well, well, if it isn’t the girl with the crazy guy problems,” he joked, smiling a perfectly attractive smile. “Sorry to tease, but when I saw you come in, I just wanted to check up on you, see how you were doing.”

            I looked up just enough to let him see me smile back. “I’m fine. Thank you for that…by the way.” Oh! What am I, a freaking stuttering machine all of a sudden? Gosh, you would think that I had never held a conversation with a guy in my entire life. Seriously, it was embarrassing!

            Gavin chuckled, leaning over the table. “Good. Now that I have done you a favor, maybe you can do me one,” he suggested, his smile never fading. “There is a party next Saturday, and I was in need of a date.”

            No, he wasn’t implying what I think he was, was he? Was Gavin out of his mind? If Cole only knew that he was talking to me, he would start trouble. The last thing I need was a dangerous Cole, fighting with the guy that seemed to be genuinely nice. Maybe he was a little into himself, but that was a trait that I was sure most guys had.

            “So?” He asked, raising his eyebrows dramatically. “Will you be my date to the party Saturday night?”

            “Gavin,” I sighed. “I’m not sure if that is a good idea.”

            I thought he would have seemed defeated, even hurt a little, but he remained as calm as a cucumber. “Why is that? Do you think that Cole guy is going to be mad? Don’t worry about him. I can take him,” he teased, making me laugh so hard that I snorted, embarrassing myself even more.

            My hands covered my face to hide that I was a nice shade of pink right about now. That was when the atmosphere suddenly changed. All the chit-chats had died down, turning into hushed whispers instead. Gavin turned around, clearing my view. It was Cole entering the pizzeria with his arm wrapped around the shoulders of a girl that I had never seen before. They were laughing, carrying on like it was the most normal thing in the world. For me, it was anything but. I found myself getting jealous of that girl. Just Friday after school, Cole had his hands all over me. Only two days later and he had moved on with someone else. I should be happy, ecstatic even because this is what I wanted. This is what I had been silently hoping for since I collided with him in the hall. I wasn’t happy at all, mostly hurt. Hurt because Cole had seemed so interested in me, and intimate, well as intimate as I had ever been before.

Gavin shrugged his shoulders, turning back to me. “See? I don’t think that Cole would mind all that much. So, what do you say?”

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            My entire weekend was spent alone, trapped inside of my room, only after getting into it with Joel. That motherfucker just couldn’t help himself. He had to interfere with my personal business when he should have been keeping his f*****g nose out of it.

            When the dust had settled with us, Joel talked me into going out for some pizza. Joel’s sister Alexa was in town for the weekend, and Joel hadn’t been too happy that I had been avoiding her. Alexa was cool and all but annoying as hell. She stuck by my side like glue with the crush that she has had on me since the second grade. I agreed to go out only because I was sick of being stuck in my room with nothing to do. At least if I went out, I could grab a beer, hoping that it would relax me.

            Alexa called shotgun, of course, wanting to sit up front with me just to pester me some more. Alexa pumped her hips into my side when we got to the pizzeria, being her flirtatious self as always. Just to get my kicks in, I decided to tease her a little, knowing damn well that I had no interest in her. f*****g with her would piss Joel off, and that brought me joy, so much joy. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders as we walked through the door together. We had a usual spot here since we came here so often. Sophia would keep the table always ready for us, never bothering ever to sit anyone else there. She knew that this was our place, even though she worked there.

            What I didn’t expect was to see Mia here of all places. My jaw clenched when I spotted her close to the back, talking to none other than that f*****g Gavin guy. I tightened my free fist by my side, struggling to control the monster within. If Alexa weren’t here, I wouldn’t mind causing a scene, but I didn't because her father signed my paychecks.  I have done my fair share of pissing that guy off, and one more slip up, and I would find myself incurring his wrath.

            Joel noticed me staring and cleared his throat to try and steal my eyes away from anything but her with Gavin. “Table is ready. Let’s go, man.”

            Alexa bumped my side again, placing her hand on my chest as we walked. I walked right by Mia and Gavin without so much as a glance in her direction. What caught my attention was Mia agreeing to go out with him next Saturday. Yeah, that wasn’t f*****g happening!

            I lost all sense of control that I had, stomping over to him, pushing Gavin up against the seat of the small booth. “Mia won’t be going anywhere with you, prick. You had your one warning when I didn’t break your f*****g jaw for stealing her away from me Friday. Come anywhere near again, and this will end much differently.” I growled at him, marking my territory, so to speak.

            Gavin smiled at me, showing no fear. “Well, I don’t see how our conversation became any of your business. Mia can decide what she wants to do all on her own. You aren’t the boss of her or anyone else here, for that matter. Cole, you don’t scare me. Making false threats won’t scare me away so easily.” He turned back to Mia, giving her a wink. “I will see you Saturday, beautiful.” He added that only to piss me off, even more, bumping into my shoulder as he stepped past me to leave.

            Mia stood up from her seat when Gavin left, ready to leave herself. I could tell that she was scared or embarrassed about what just happened, but it wouldn’t be that easy, not for her. “Sit down!” I commanded, apparent authority in my voice. She started to shake, but obeyed, which I liked, a lot. I slid into the booth beside her, making sure that we were close enough that we were slightly touching, but touching, nonetheless. “Are you going to tell me what the f**k that was about?”