A True Lifestory: Part 2 A Demon’s Obsession

Chapter 32 Back To School

[..]

As Armaros left the house, he walked back to the others, as they had clearly been waiting for him.

“That took you long enough.” Dagon stated, as Armaros closed the door.

“Relax, will you.” He spoke, pulling his hand through his hair, but Dagon wasn’t the only one who seemed to be on the edge.

“How should we be able to relax, it’s clear no one wants us here. It’s not like we can blame them after our encounter a few days ago, but this doesn’t seem like a sustainable solution.” Corson added.

“I know it seems bad right now, but we don’t have any other choice right now, and before we have an idea of what my father plans to do, we can’t leave.” Armaros argued.

“I will always have your back Armaros, but this is just messed up, I like Stella, I really do, and her friends seem cool too, but peace just seems a little far-fetched, don’t you think?” Baal spoke.

“I am not leaving, okay! Some of them might want us gone.. Okay, maybe most of them, but still, I believe we can actually have a chance of peace.”

“How many of their family members haven't we killed or tortured Armaros? What you’re hoping for is nothing more than a dream – they hate us!” Dagon growled.

“Everyone, listen for once! We can’t go back anyway. Did you all forget what Saleos told us? We probably have nothing to go back to now.” Shax exclaimed, as everyone clearly remembered, but didn’t say anything, so Armaros spoke again.

“I get it, it was bad today, but I promise you, it will get better. I make sure of it – you trust me, don’t you?” He asked them, as they all nodded.

“Good, then, please be patient, and I’ll prove to you that it’s possible.”

“You’re doing this for her, aren’t you?” Jin asked, making Armaros turn to him.

“Would my answer to that question change anything?” Armaros asked.

“Yeah, it would..” Corson spoke as everyone agreed. Shax and Baal gave each other a knowing glance, but didn’t say anything.

“Come on, we already know you have something with her, you just need to be honest with us about it.” Jin added, as Armaros gave a sigh in frustration.

“That’s easier said than done. Trusting people doesn’t come natural to me.. And though it might sound strange, Stella is the first person I feel like I can trust completely, and even with her, I have failed to do so at times. I know I expect a lot from you. I want you to trust me blindly, even when I’m uncertain whether I’m able to trust you.. But I’m trying my best to get there.”

“But, yes, I like her, in fact, I love her, and I will kill anyone who as much as looks at her the wrong way.” Armaros revealed.

There was complete silence until Baal spoke.

“Right, been there, done that!” He stated, as he began to chuckle.

“You should have seen it. There was this one time Armaros thought something was going on between me and Stella, like I would have gone behind his back to do that.. But he completely lost his shít.” he added, as it lightened the atmosphere a bit.

“Is that the reason you killed Morax?” Dagon asked which once again put a damper on the mood.

“Morax betrayed me, he knew the consequences of stabbing me in the back.. And I believe everyone else here is well aware of that too.

If anyone as much as considers doing the same, I will suggest they leave now. ‘Cause if I ever find out, the same fate awaits those who do.” Armaros stated coldly.

[..]

“I’m going over to Armaros.” Stella spoke up, as she grabbed the door handle.

“Wait! I need to talk to you.” Chase called out, making Stella stop in her tracks.

“About what?” She asked, before he pointed at the sofa, making her head back in to the living room to sit down, across from her parents.

“Your mom and I have been talking, and we both know the situation is a bit unstable right now, but we have agreed that you still have to take care of your school.” He explained, making Stella frown.

“Why? Can’t I just work from home, or something?” Stella asked. She didn’t have any wish to go back yet because she knew what waited there.

She would have to look at Nathan all day long, and she wasn’t ready for that.

“It’s not up for discussion, Stella, I have already talked to the school and let them know you will be back, starting from tomorrow morning.” Chase stated.

“Great! Then I have to be in the same room as Nathan all day!” Stella exclaimed, frustrated, as she threw herself back in her seat.

“Is something wrong between the two of you?” Cathrine asked.

“Yes, we aren’t friends anymore,” Stella stated, as she proceeded to cross her arms.

“And why is that?”

“Because he can’t understand anything, and I.. I just can’t, okay!” Stella spoke in a frustrated tone, as Cathrine nodded silently.

She gave Stella a moment to calm down, before she continued.

“It’s your choice honey, but you can’t avoid him forever, you know that, right? He is part of this tribe, even if you like it or not.” She explained, leading to a heavy sigh from Stella.

“I know, but it doesn’t mean I have to talk to him,” Stella replied.

“I suppose not, but it shouldn’t keep you on edge, being in the same room as him.” Cathrine added.

“I know, so, can I go now?” She then asked, as she proceeded to rise from her seat.

“You can talk to Armaros tomorrow, it’s already late, and you should get some sleep now that you have to be up early in the morning.” Chase replied.

“Why do you have to punish me all the time!” Stella snapped, before she stomped out of there and towards her room, not waiting for a reply.

[Stella’s POV]

“We’ll be seeing you both later, okay?” Kyan stated, as him and Jaze had followed Vicca and I to our class.

Vicca, Nathan and I, were all in the same class, unlike Jaze and Kyan, who were one year older than us.

My dad probably had them do it, to make sure I actually would show up, after my outburst yesterday. To be honest, I was still as mad as I was last night.

“Yeah, we’ll see you at lunchtime!” Vicca beamed, as Kyan pulled her in for a kiss.

“Yeah, I’ll miss you.” Kyan added, as she began to giggle. I was, of course, super happy for them, but it didn’t make me feel better right that moment. On the contrary, it made me feel even worse.

I had not been allowed to go talk to Armaros after my talk to my parents. Not only that, but I wasn’t even allowed to go over there before going to school, and it made me feel so píssed.

I was sure my dad was trying to ruin everything for us, and it made this unsettling anger in me keep pushing forward to get to the surface.

“Are you feeling okay, Stella?” Jaze asked me, as he probably picked up on my bad mood.

“I’m fine, I’m just a little tired..” I brushed off. He didn’t seem completely convinced, but then the bell went off, and they both had to hurry to their class.

“We have to go now, but you’ll text me if anything feels off, okay?” Jaze notified, as I nodded. Kyan and Vicca were still tangled with each other, so Jaze took a hold on Kyan’s arm, and pulled him along.

Vicca kept smiling and waving at him, until they passed by the corner, then she turned to me.

“So, are you ready for this?” Vicca asked as I tried forcing a smile.

“As ready as I can be.” I replied, and I believe she bought my act, or maybe she chose not to dig more into it.

We then stepped into the classroom, but as soon as we did, I remembered why I normally hated going to school.

“So, the teacher’s favorite has returned!” A voice called out, making almost everyone turn to me and Vicca.

Bridget wasn’t more than a petty human, it wasn’t like she could do anything to me, but her voice made me want to pull my own ears off.

Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against humans, but this girl was everything I hated in one person.

Pretty close to my hate against Damien and Damon, though she at least hadn’t tried to kill me or anything like that.

“Bridget, what do you want?” I asked, annoyed.

“Oh, nothing, just wondered why you haven’t been to school for months now?” She spoke like she had no ulterior motives, but I knew better.

Normally, I would just have ignored her, but my anger got the best of me.

“What is it to you? It’s not like you care anyway!” I bit, as she flashed a fake smile.

“Well, I heard many theories, but I do have one of my own..” she spoke as she tapped a finger on her chin. While she looked around,

“You got dumped by Nathan, didn’t you? You two usually hang around each other all the time, but he doesn’t seem to be here – the day you return.

I must say, I always believed he was too good for you anyway.” She spoke. I knew she had been jealous of me and Nathan’s friendship, and she had clearly believed we were more than friends.

For a moment, I did wonder why he wasn’t at school, but at least I had one less thing to worry about.

“To your information, we aren’t together, never have been, never will be. Yes, he did tell me he liked me, but I turned him down, so get over yourself Bridget,” I snarled, as I was going to pass her, but she stepped in front of me.

“Sure, keep telling yourself that,” she taunted.

In the past, I wouldn’t have let her comments get to me, but this day was not one of those days.

I fisted my hands, as I tried to contain my anger, but it wasn’t working.

For once, I just wanted to smack her in the face, but then Wilder grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the classroom, closed the door and pushed me against the wall.

“Calm down, Stella!” He spoke as I frowned.

“Stop butting in, Wilder!” I snapped, as I pushed him, but he didn’t let go.

“You can’t just let yourself lose control like that! What if you had shifted in front of all those people!” He scolded, as his words surprised me.

“What?”

“You were losing control in there, I saw your eyes were starting to shift, Stella!” He exclaimed, and I finally realized how far I had let myself go.

“I know this is all new to you, but what you did in there could have got us all in serious trouble, you could have killed someone,” he added.

I wasn’t sure what to say, but hurting anyone was the last thing I ever wanted to do.

“Should I call someone to pick you up? Maybe it’s too early for you to be here.” Wilder asked, as I shook my head.

“No, I just need to get this over with, but thanks for stepping in.” I spoke as he nodded.

“Sure, we should probably head back in, then..” he spoke as he was about to go back in, but I stopped him.

“Just one more thing.. Why would you even wanna help me? You never once cared to step in before,” I asked.

“Like I said.. We would all end up in big trouble if you had turned in front of all those people. I can’t let that happen,” he repeated with a shrug, just as the teacher showed up.

“Shouldn’t you two be sitting inside the classroom?” He spoke, with a raised eyebrow.

“Yes, of course, Mr. Samson, Stella just needed some water. She felt a little.. Off.” Wilder excused with a smile, as Mr. Samson looked at me, before nodding.

“Fine, it’s good to have you back, Stella.. Now, hurry in, and find your seats.” He ordered as we both quickly found a spot, and for some reason Wilder chose to sit down next to me.

Although both of us had been friends with Nathan for years, he never really acknowledged my presence when we finally were gathered in the same room, so I wondered what changed.

“OK, class today we will start where we left off yesterday. Take your books and find page 34..” Mr. Samson started out, but he was interrupted as the door suddenly opened, and Armaros walked in with seemingly no care in the world.

I what to blink a couple of times because I didn’t expect him to show up at my school.

“Only students are allowed in this classroom, Sir, so I have to ask you to leave.” Mr. Samson stated, as Armaros paused in front of him.

“Oh, don’t mind me, I’m just here to keep an eye on Stella,” he stated.

“Still, you can’t just..” but before he was able to finish, Armaros had walked so close to him, while he had this look in his eyes that would strike fear in most people.

“Are you willing to take the consequences of standing in my way?” Armaros asked, as I debated with myself if I should step in.

Next to Armaros, Mr. Samson didn’t seem like much. Armaros was almost one foot taller than him, so I wasn’t surprised that he was scaring our teacher.

“I.. Ugh.. Just sit down.” He stammered, as a smirk spread on Armaros’ face.

“Glad we could sort this out in a civil way,” Armaros replied, as he gave a couple of slaps on his shoulder before walking towards me.

Wilder, who was sitting next to me, quickly turned whiter than a sheet, as Armaros leaned close to his face.

“Beat it!” was all he said before Wilder scooted out of the seat, and Armaros plumped down on the chair next to me with a satisfied look on his face.

“You can’t just go around threatening everyone who stands in your way,” I whispered, as he just winked at me.

“Sure I can, and I will.. I’m here to make sure you’re safe, and anyone who tries to stop me is a threat to your safety.” He spoke as he leaned back in the chair, as he placed his feet casually on the table.

Normally, no one did that at that school because of how strict the teachers were, but Mr. Samson seemed to be too scared to say anything at all.

“Well, anyway.. I’m actually glad you’re here.” I added, as he looked at me, and I sent him a smile before focusing on the pages, Mr. Samson asked us to read.

To some people, Armaros’ behavior might have seemed overprotective and controlling, but to me, I knew it was his way of showing he cared, so it didn’t bother me.

——

As the bell once again rang, Bridget was at our table in seconds.

“Well, hello there, handsome! Are you Stella’s bodyguard or something?” She asked, as she was practically drooling all over him.

Most people feared Armaros. I was aware of how they normally would avoid him because of his brut attitude, but Bridget was either too stupid or too careless to understand when she should stay away.

All she saw was a hot guy and then nothing else mattered.

She didn’t even hold back if the guy was taken, and it made me so angry, another one of the “amazing” things about being part werewolf - they are very territorial, and I wasn’t an exception.

“Nope, I’m her boyfriend.” Armaros spoke, making me turn to him surprised. I didn’t think he would put it out like that, but it made my anger subside.

It also seemed to have the right effect on Bridget, as she and the rest of the class seemed like someone who had just had cold water splashed in their faces.

“Oh.. So, you weren’t lying when you said you and Nathan aren’t together,” She stated, surprised.

Armaros' face immediately turned to stone as she mentioned him.

“No, they aren’t, and it will never happen,” he growled, as he got up from the chair and put his hand out for me.

“Let’s get you something to eat,” he added, as his attention turned back to me. He took my hand, placed a kiss on it, and with no hesitation, I raised from my seat as the two of us headed towards the door.

“Wait! Why don’t you eat with us?” Bridget asked, as she undoubtedly was still trying to flirt with him – clearly she didn’t know when to back off. Maybe I should claw her to pieces after all. But before I was able to react at all, Armaros was already answering.

“Sorry, I don’t associate myself with bítches.” He dismissed, before placing his arm on my shoulder, as he led me out of there.

I felt a small grin spread on my lips because I couldn’t help but feel a little satisfied about how well he pulled her down from her high and mighty horse.