Billionaire Bad Boy's Beloved

Chapter 3 - Raw

ACE ARGENT

I entered the Principal's office with a huge grin on my face. After a whole, torturous month of holding back and patiently waiting, Ava had finally taken me back. My Duckling had finally agreed to be my girlfriend again, and I was never going to lose her again. I would not have to stay away from her anymore. Finally, I would be able to kiss those lips whenever I wanted, I would be able to call her mine, and I would be able to smother her entire body with my marks and hickeys. My heart was racing in my chest as I longed for the day to end. I just wanted her to get done with her classes, so I could carry her back to our dorm room, and take what was rightfully mine. I was planning to make up for the entire month in just one night.

"What are you smiling about, Mr. Argent?" Mrs. Jacobs mocking voice pulled me out of my fantasy-Duckling-world, reminding me of where I was.

I stepped forward, the genuine smile on my face replacing with a sarcastic one.

"I am just so happy to see you again, Mrs. Jacobs."

She let out a chuckle, her eyes narrowing behind her slim glasses. She took them off, and placed them down on the table, as she carefully studied me.

"May I know why I'm here?" I asked, getting bored of the situation. I did not want to waste a single moment staying away from Ava, especially not with this new Principal.

"You're here for violating school rules," she replied.

"What rules are those?"

"Multiple."

"Would you like to list them for me?" I crossed my arms. "So that I may be careful in the future."

"Of course," she replied, a sly smile on her lips. "Public displays of affection--"

"What?" I scoffed. "This is about that?"

Her face hardened. "Yes, Mr. Argent. It's about that."

"That kind of stuff has been going on in this school for years. No one's objected to it ever. And I'm not the only one who does it."

She nodded. "And each one of them will be reprimanded. Don't worry. I just wanted to start with you, so that the others would not be able to throw this in my face."

I clenched my jaw. She was not taking away my moments. Not at all.

"Mrs. Jacobs," I smiled, before pursing my lips. "I understand you're new here, you have that spirit to fix things, an enthusiasm... and I appreciate it, I do. But, it's better if you ignore some things, and focus on more important problems. Like the door of the janitor's closet that's still broken after months, and one of the school bells that does not work anymore."

Her expression mirrored mine, and for a second there, I recognized what Ava meant by seeing the Devil in my eye.

"The janitor's closet door, that you broke down, and the school bell, that your friend Darren cut the wire of," she pointed out.

My eyebrows shot up. "Wow. You're really well informed of the situation I see. So you may also know what will happen if you do not ignore certain things. With all due respect, ma'am, maybe you should tone things down just a bit."

Mrs. Jacobs scratched her forehead, and stood up, walking around her table. I crossed my arms, staring down at her with slightly narrowed eyes. There was almost an amusement in her eyes, as if she was enjoying this too much.

"Mr. Argent. Do you remember a girl called Gretta?" she asked. "Freckled skin, blonde hair. Green eyes. She looked a lot like me, actually."

I raised an eyebrow. "No, I don't."

"Hmm," she let out a humorless chuckle. "I'm her Aunt. She used to study at this very school, until a group of children who called themselves the 'Wolves', bullied her. They made her life hell, for no real reason, until she got tired and left. That girl spent nights, weeping and crying, that some dude told her she looked old because her hair had white strands. She still dyes them every week, and will not step out of the house without hairspray. A girl from that same group, mocked her acne. She still stares in the mirror and cries some times. It's been three years."

My smile had disappeared by now, and guilt clenched at my heart.

"So this is revenge? You wanna teach me a lesson by bullying me?"

"Absolutely not, Mr. Argent," she stated. "What I want to do, is fix things. And not even your father will stop me this time." Her voice had a warning, one that hit a nerve.

"Alright." I nodded. "We'll see how long you remain Principal. Have a good day, ma'am."

I turned to leave, but she stopped me.

"I'm not finished yet."

"I am."

"Okay, leave if you want. But do not dare to spend the night in the room of that girl."

That's when I froze. I turned around, my eyebrow raised in question.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Boys and girls have separate floors in the dorms. They are, by no means, allowed to stay in the same room. If you'd like we can assign you a different room, but we both know why you stay there in the first place."

I stepped closer to her, my jaw clenched. "You cannot do that."

"I'm not doing anything. These have been the rules since the very beginning, but for some reason, you and your friends were always treated like an exception. That won't be the case anymore. Not on my watch."

"You have no idea who you're messing with, ma'am."

"Is that so?" She raised an eyebrow. "Are you threatening me, Mr. Argent? What are you gonna do? Bully me too? Play pranks? Put glue on my chair or hide nails in my desk? Or will you hit me too? The way you hit anyone who stands up against you?"

My jaw ticked, but I held back. I wanted to yell at her, but I knew that would be no use. And Ava would never agree with it. "You're gonna regret this," I stated, before turning around and leaving the room. I slammed the door behind me, feeling anger course through my veins. I could almost picture her smirking behind my back. I wanted to wipe the look off her face.

I ran a hand through my hair, and made my way straight towards the exit. It was finally time to see him again.

"Ace?" I heard her call out to me, and stopped immediately. She ran up to me, taking my arm and stepping in front of me. "What happened?" She frowned.

"Nothing. I have to go see my father."

"What?" Her frowned deepened. "Is everything okay?"

"No, everything is not okay," I replied, looking away from her. She gently took my hand, staring up at me with a confusion and concern.

"Are you gonna tell me?" she asked softly. "If you don't want to talk about it, we could just sit together for a moment. Don't leave when you're so angry."

"How do you know I'm angry? How do you always find out?"

She smiled. "Have you seen yourself. You have murder written all over your face."

I could not help but let out a chuckle. "So you know all about my face, huh?"

"Of course. But it's not just your face. It's the way your posture is so rigid when you're mad about something. It's the way your eyes are unknowingly narrowed, and how your fists are either balled at your sides, or pushed into your pockets. You also tend to wrinkle your nose slightly, which would be really cute if you weren't yelling or being rude."

A smile stretched across my lips, and I ruffled her hair. She rolled her eyes and pushed my hand away, before pushing her hair back into place.

"How do you do it?"

"What?" she asked.

"Be so cute. It calms me down."

She grinned. "It's just you who finds me cute. Other people think I'm annoying."

I chuckled, gently cupping her cheek. She leaned into my touch. "They're also stupid." I bent down and pressed a kiss on her forehead, before caressing her cheek. "I'll be back in an hour. Have something important to do."

"You're getting her removed already?" she asked, making me frown.

"What? No," I lied.

"Yes, you are," she replied, scowling. "What did she say that got you so worked up?"

I clenched my jaw, the anger returning.

"She said we can't be roommates."

Her face fell. "Really?" she asked softly.

"Yes."

"Oh."

"What 'oh'?"

She shrugged, looking away from me. There was something in her eye that I caught easily, something I did not expect to see when I told her that.

"Why do you... are you afraid of something, Ava?" I asked, stepping closer to her.

She shook her head, lowering her gaze.

"Look at me," I demanded, placing my finger under her chin. She obliged, taking a deep breath. "What is it?"

"I'm just sad," she muttered.

"No, that's not sadness. I've seen you afraid up close, and multiple times. What is it?"

Her lip quivered, and she bit onto it.

"I just... I'm too used to having you in my room at night. It makes me feel safe."

My heart jumped in my chest.

"Come here." I pulled her into a hug, rubbing her back soothingly. "I'm not leaving your room, alright? No matter what happens. I'll always be there."

"But getting her replaced is wrong, Ace," she said softly.

"No, it's not. She knew what she was getting into when she messed with me."

Ava pulled away, looking up at me with a frown.

"She's just trying to do the right thing."

"She can do it some place else."

"But--"

"Shh." I placed my finger on her lips. "I'm going to fix this, because I cannot tolerate that woman bossing me around, in my school. She came today, I've been here since years. She's not destroying my last few months here. I want to make the most of them."

Ava gently pushed my hand away. "And what then?" she asked. "What will happen when you leave? I will get a new roommate, Ace. I think it's better if I get used to it."

I gave her an incredulous look. "Are you serious?"

"Yes. When you leave, it's gonna be hell for me. Maybe this way, we'll slowly get used to staying away from each othe--"

I didn't allow her to finish her sentence.

- - - -

AVA CLAYTON

He didn't let me complete. He grabbed me by the back of my neck, and brought his lips crashing down against mine. The air was knocked out of me, and my mouth parted in shock, immediately letting his tongue inside. My heart fluttered, as his other arm wrapped tightly around my waist, pulling md closer to himself. I wanted to kiss him back, but the aggression and rawness of his touch had me frozen in place. I did relax after a moment, however, closing my eyes and giving in to him. His lips moved against mine in almost a territorial way, and just when I thought I would collapse into his arms, he pulled away. The hand that rested on my neck now gripped onto my hair, making my eyes shoot open. Both of us were breathing hard, and he was bent down to my eye level, his eyes burning with passion.

"You are not staying away from me, Ava Clayton. Not anymore. I love you, and I'm not going anywhere. Not from your room, and not from your life," he whispered. "Never, ever, dare to say that again. Do you understand?" His tone was almost threatening, yet gentle in its own way. My heart raced as I stared into his eyes, completely dumbfounded. "Do you understand?" he repeated. His grip on my hair tightened slightly, and I winced. He immediately let go, clenching his jaw as he gently cupped my cheeks now. "I'm sorry," he said softly, gulping. He pressed a kiss to my forehead, before pulling me back against his chest. His chin rested on my head, as he held me close. My knees had already buckled under me, and I gripped onto his t-shirt for support, my stomach exploding with butterflies, fear, and excitement--all at once. "I'm sorry, Duckling," he said again. "Did I hurt you?"

"No," I squeaked out, taking a deep breath. "I... It was..."

He pulled away to look at me.

"It was?"

I pursed my lips, my heart knocking at my ribs. "It was h--hot."

His lips curled into a smile, and the look in his eye made me regret the words I said. Something told me, I was going to see a lot more of his passionate side again, and I wasn't sure how exactly I felt about it.

"But don't go overboard," I said quickly, as the fear in my heart got the best of me. I didn't like too much aggression, given how low my pain tolerance was. "I mean, I wouldn't like if you'd--"

"Don't worry," he reassured, his gaze softening. "I'll be careful." He winked at me, making me blush and lower my gaze. I felt him lean in, and his breath tickled my ear. "But you know you can't take those words back anymore." He pressed a kiss to my cheek, before stepping away from me and leaving the school, whilst I stood there with burning cheeks and a wild heart, wondering what I had got myself into. I buried my face in my hands, letting out a small squeal, before making my way to the locker room.

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