Havoc at Prescott High (The Havoc Boys #1) - C.M. Stunich Page 0,138

I just now realized you could’ve killed me, and you didn’t? I don’t owe them a thank you for not being worse pieces of shit to me.

I put my back to the wall and take a few deep breaths, putting my phone away.

I must be losing my mind. I’m sitting here defending Havoc? Getting all excited about thanking them for … like, not raping me? This is insane.

I push up off the wall and head to my first period English class with Mr. Darkwood, flashing the note I got from Ms. Keating to excuse my tardiness. Kali doesn’t even look at me when I walk in, but I know she’s aware of my presence because her entire body goes taut. Wonder how she got to school today with no car? Or how she’s doing now that her boyfriend’s laid up in the hospital with a GSW in his shoulder?

Today’s assignment is to write either a cinquain or another haiku. I seriously can’t even understand how the cinquain works other than that it’s five lines, so I go back to the haiku again.

You tormented me

I thought you were all demons

Were you always there?

I frown and cross that out, scribbling down six more versions that are all related to Havoc before I just rewrite the first one and turn it in. My mind is all over the place as I head down the hall to my second period class, and then float my way through to lunch.

The boys are sitting on the front steps with food from the cafeteria. Usually, I’m the first one to get food since my fourth period class is right next to the lunchroom, but this time, I took my sweet time in the bathroom before heading out here, just to collect myself.

When I see them sitting there, it’s like they’re bathed in a whole new light.

“You okay?” Vic asks, an edge of violence to his voice. I realize he’s waiting for me to say I was bullied by Kali or something. I shake my head and sit down next to the boys in black, all of them but Oscar holding cigarettes and smoking blatantly in front of the security office.

“I’m fine,” I say, leaning back on the sun-warmed brick steps. “Ms. Keating let me off with an essay assignment for stealing that box.” I glance in the boys’ direction and find all of them but Oscar staring at me. Fucking asshole.

“Remind me to make friends with Ms. Keating,” Hael snorts, redirecting his attention back to his phone. Probably fucking texting Brittany again, I think, licking my lips in frustration. He runs his fingers through his bloodred hair as he types out a message.

“Ms. Keating hates you,” Cal says with a chuckle. “Nothing you can do to change that now. Just accept that for the next seven and a half months, you’re her bitch.”

“I’m nobody’s bitch,” Hael snorts. Vic narrows his eyes and reaches over, snatching the phone from his best friend’s hand. “What the fuck, man?”

“You’re nobody’s bitch? Because it looks like you’re Brittany’s. Stop fucking kowtowing to her.”

“Kowtowing? That’s what you call it when she’s threatening to sic her dad’s anti-gang squad on us, and I’m doing damage control?” Hael says as Vic pockets his friend’s phone, his purple-black hair shining in the sunlight.

“You wouldn’t have to do damage control if you’d stayed the hell away from her,” Vic says, and Oscar nods in agreement. The way Hael looks at his friend, I can sense a simmering anger that wasn’t there before. I hope it doesn’t have anything to do with what happened between the three of us, but maybe it does? “We will deal with Brittany after Halloween.”

“Fuck, whatever you say, boss,” Hael grumbles, looking back at me as Aaron pretends to be interested in a slice of pepperoni pizza. Has he noticed that I’m wearing his hoodie today? Or that I haven’t washed it since I took it from him? I tell myself it’s because I’ve been too lazy to do laundry, but that’s not true at all.

It’s because I like putting it on and being enveloped by his smell.

I pick up a chocolate milk off the tray between me and Vic, sticking a straw into it.

“Stay low this week, don’t stir up trouble.” Vic glances over at me, his obsidian eyes catching the light and taking my breath away. In the sun like this, they’re not quite so dark. In fact, I can see shades of chocolate brown twisted with russet and auburn.