Imperfectly Yours: His Slave Series

Six

Jay was leaning against my locker with his hands in his pockets when I arrived. For the first time Keith had been really early to pick me up saying he had some “business” to take care off but I knew he meant he had a girl to go and see. I rolled my eyes at that thought.

“Jay?” I asked as I opened my locker and looked around for my best friends who were never late. “What are you doing here? Is there something I can help you with?”

Jay shrugged and moved his hand into his basketball letterman jacket with a big ‘C’ written in bold on the side. I knew he was into sports and he was the captain as well as the school’s golden boy with his bright hazel eyes and silky dark hair that he was every girl’s dream guy, well obviously not me. He was just someone I could ever see myself going out with not after what happened in freshman year when I went out with Dan. Yeah, that will forever haunt me. I mentally shivered just at the thought of him and his dry but sloppy cold lips.

I shook that thought out of my head and placed my Math book in my locker because it was the last morning class before lunch.

“So, Macy,” Jay began and I turned to look at him. He looked around us and I followed his eyes, there was a bunch of cheerleaders who were glaring at me. Jay leaned in to me. “I have a favour to ask for but please don’t laugh at me,” he gave those big sad eyes and there was just no way I could say no to that.

I sighed, “fine, but considering those cheerleaders want to have a head on a spike for how close we are right, it better be worth it.”

Jay beamed and grabbed my hand then dragged me into the first empty classroom he could find. What was with everyone dragging me around without talking to me about it first? I had legs and I could walk. He let go of my hand and started pacing back and forth while I made myself comfortable on the teacher’s chair.

“So, what’s up?” I asked while spinning around in the chair. I loved these chairs, they were so much fun.

Jay was still pacing and not even looking at me. This is why I need my friends back and not have to hang out with the school’s golden boy and his bad boy best friend. The entire dynamic of it all was just way too crazy even for me.

I stopped spinning long enough to look at him, he looked like he was having second thoughts about whatever it was that he wanted to tell me. “Dude, this is the part where you say something before I walk out.”

“I like your friend and I need you to help me talk to her,” he blurted it so fast that I could hardly make out what he was saying.

“What was that? I didn’t quite catch it.”

Jay sighed as he rubbed his hand over his face in what looked like sheer pain. “I like your friend and I would very much appreciate it if you helped me talk to her,” he said slowly.

I placed my elbows on my knees and my chin in my hands. “Which one of my friends?”

“Kate.”

I nearly fell out of my chair at that. “Are you sure you are okay? Kate? The one who got me in trouble? The one who has no regard for rules, heck, I think she and Keith would make a perfect couple. Both of them are annoying to the core and have so much in common.”

Jay stopped pacing to glare at me and I raised my hands up in surrender. “What is that supposed to mean? That I’m not good for her and Keith is the one?” he asked through narrowed eyes.

“No, you are way too good for her, that’s what I’m saying,” I replied. “Have you met the girl? Like really met her and had a one-on-one conversation and walk out without committing a misdemeanour or a possible crime?” I got up from the chair and walked over to where he was stood glaring at me. “Trust me when I tell you this, Kate is my friend and I know her better so please stay away from her for your own good.” Then I walked to door and looked at him one last time before walking out.

                                                                                        ********

I pulled Aliyah before she could enter her next class. “Jay likes Kate and we need to talk about it today at my place, sleepover,” I let go of her hand and she entered her AP Math class. I never understood why she did that to herself, she took the regular classes and the AP classes and was the debate club president with so much extracurricular activities that I wondered how she was able to survive.

I walked aimlessly in the school hallways while I waited for Aliyah, my classes were done for the day but she still had an afternoon class. Heaven knows how she agreed to have afternoon classes. I passed the Principal’s office and stopped in my tracks when I saw Keith sitting there with Principal Kalvin. They looked to be having a very heated conversation and my curiosity got the better of me.

I looked around before sneaking over and eavesdropping.

“Keith, you have to start putting in the effort. You are one of the promising students at this school and I don’t want to see you waste it away by getting into meaningless fights,” I heard Principal Kalvin say.

What was he talking about?

“I don’t care about school and it doesn’t matter what you say,” Keith said and I could hear the frustration laced with his words. “And mothing you say will make me think otherwise.”

There was an audible sigh from Principal Kalvin before he continued speaking. “Do you think your father would be proud if he knew this was what you were doing with your life?”

A heavy silence followed after that before I heard the loud scrapping of a chair on hard wood. “Don’t you ever mention him again; do you hear me?” and then heavy footsteps.

Shite, shite, shite, he was going to find me here and heaven knows what he was going to do to me. I had to get away before he saw me. But just as I was about to leave, the door opened and a pissed off looking Keith was staring at him through narrowed eyes and all I wanted to do in that moment was for the ground to open up and swallow me whole.

“I wasn’t eavesdropping,” I said standing o my full height which was way shorter than his six foot.

Keith didn’t say anything, instead he grabbed my wrist and dragged me all the way out of the school. He kept dragging me without saying anything as I pleaded for him to let go of my wrist because his grip was hurting me.

“You are hurting me Keith, please let me go. I’m sorry, I won’t do it again,” I said while trying to hold back the tears that wanted to fall.

He stopped when we reached a place between the fence and the labs but his grip didn’t loosen from my hand. “What the f**k were you doing?” he asked through clenched teeth. His eyes blue eyes looked electric and furious. “What the f**k, huh?”

I kept twisting my wrist trying to make him let go of my hand but all it did was make his hold tighten. The pain that was shooting up my wrist.

“I’m sorry but you’re hurting me,” I croaked and he immediately let go of my wrist as if he had touched fire.

An unfamiliar emotion flashed through his eyes and he took a step back from me. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you,” he turned around and couldn’t even look at me as he said that and I knew it was hard for him to say those words.

I have no idea what possessed me but I took a step closer to him and placed my hand on his arm which made him jerk away from me. There was a pang in chest but I stuffed it down, this was not about me but about him and I wasn’t going to be that girl that fell for the bad boy.

“It’s okay,” my voice came out small and afraid. “But I should be the one apologising for eavesdropping, it is none of my business and I should learn to butt out.”

Keith turned to face me and the emotion that was once there was replaced with a blank stare. “You are nosy, you know, that right?” he crossed his hands over his chest and stared me down.

That was a slap in the face and I took a step back from him. “I…I’m sorry,” was all I could say.

But it seemed that Keith wasn’t done, he moved closer and lowered his head until we were eye-to-eye. “But you see, that isn’t enough. Sorry won’t fix the problem that you now know what you shouldn’t,” he said and smirked coldly. “You are starting to get on my nerves and honestly, I could just turn you in and be free of you and all your whiny and nosy self.”

Why was he saying all this?

“If you think your little plan on getting me to hook up with you will work, then you have to think again. You are ugly and I would never do you even if you asked or better yet, the last person alive.”

I could feel my heart break and it wasn’t because I liked him because he was the first person who spoke to me the way my parents did and that brought back memories that I had learned to bury deep down. Finally deciding I was not going to stand here while he insulted and degraded me, I balled my hands into fists and slapped him. The impact shocked even me because I was not anticipating that.

“You have no right to talk to me like that, I have feelings too and all I was trying to was try to make sure you were okay,” I said with courage I had no idea where it came from. “You are an arsehole and I hope you die.”

I turned on my heels and walked away, not once looking away. A tear slipped down my face and I furiously wiped it away. I was not going to let him bully me like that and make me cry. I have spent the longest time of my life feeling sorry for myself and letting people like him walk all over me but it stops now. I was sick and tired of feeling like I wasn’t good enough and my parents and elder brother never failed to make me know just how…. No, I shook my head. Enough!

                                                                                      *********

“You mean he said that?” Aliyah asked. She was sprawled on my bed in her pink pyjamas with her glasses in hand. “You mean Jay told you that he likes Kate?”

I sighed and pinched the bridge on my nose but glad that Kate couldn’t make it because she had to stay back while her mum went out on a Friday night. Otherwise if she was here, she would have made a scene and I didn’t want that.

“Yep, he told me that and asked if I could help him get with her,” I replied.

Aliyah sprung up from the bed and turned to look at me. “Wow, I mean that is so new and I have no idea what to feel about it?” she said and then bit her lip. “Are you going to help him?”

“What! No way, there is no way I am going to do that to him and to her,” I replied as I joined her on the bed. “If he likes her so much then he should talk to her himself and blame himself when everything goes south.”

“You have a point but she is our best friend and we have to look out for her even though she is the devil’s spawn.”

I laughed at that and it was the first time I laughed since the whole confrontation with Keith. Just thinking about his name pissed me off and I didn’t want him to ruin my night with my best friend. “Yep and if wasn’t for her then I would have never met Keith or Jay,” I mumbled but Aliyah didn’t hear.

Aliyah moved closer and wrapped her arms around me, “I missed this, just you and me spending time together on a Friday night.”

I mumbled something incoherent and nodded my head.

“What’s wrong?” Aliyah asked and turned me to face her. “And so, help me if you lie to me I will know.”

I bit my lip because I knew that was true, she was the only one who could call me out on my bullshite because she knew me so well. Should I tell her about what happened with Keith in the afternoon, like everything?

“Spit it out Mace, now.”

Sighing, I took a deep breath and told her everything. Every single thing and not missing anything and when I was done, I felt lighter and free.

“That jerk said that to you and he didn’t have his balls kicked,” she was pissed. “Next time I see him I will make sure he knows not to mess with my best friend.”

I smiled and pulled her into my arms because there was nothing she was going to do. She was softie with a big heart and that was what I loved about her. “You aren’t going to do anything Ali, just let it go love, just let it go.”

Aliyah pouted, “but he was mean to you.”

“I know and I will deal with him on my own, I don’t need you getting into trouble because of me.”

She wrapped her arms around me and squeezed me tight, “I’m sorry for letting you get stuck in this position. If I hadn’t listened to Kate and made you break into his house, then none of this would have happened.”

“I know and it’s cool.”