CHAPTER 6

I open my eyes only to shut them immediately. "Oh boy, my head hurts like hell. I would have thought I have a hangover. The only reason I differentiate it from a hangover is that I recall that I haven't been drunk for about I don’t know, two years now? Yeah, that's right, it's been two years since. I think as I roll over my bed and set my feet on the floor.

"What the heck happened yesterday, I recall Trevor’s furious face because the stupid me couldn't keep her mouth shut. Wait, am I dead? Oh! It can’t be."

"You are not dead, stupid, can't you see you are still in your room?" my subconscious mocks.

Relief washes over me when I realize that I am not dead but how comes? I recall that he didn't let me breathe until I passed out." That's it? I only passed out! I didn't die! Thank God. For a while there I thought he’d kill me."

I groan as I head to the bathroom. Memories of last night are slowly coming back.

"Leave it to me to get into trouble only on my first day of being on campus." I mentally facepalm. I walk into my bathroom and the warm water cascading down my body is enough to relax my body but my throat is still sore. I check its condition on the mirror in the bathroom and decide that I have to use my concealer to mask the fingerprints that imprinted themselves on my neck. I don't want Sydney asking questions or I might end up spilling how much his dearest brother likes strangling people. That thought leaves me rolling my eyes. Telling Sydney will probably leave me dead so I'd rather put my concealer into use.

I have classes today, I have to talk to Trevor about his behavior. Who does he think he is to order me around like a child.

Once I am done dressing up, I take my books for today and head out of the room.

"Hey Anna, can you give me a ride to school, my brother usually drives me there but I think that asshole left me behind," she huffs in annoyance.

I wonder why he didn't take his sister with him to school. Did he really abandon his sister so he couldn't face me? That can't be it, his appearance doesn't give off even an ounce of cowardice, but why?

I am lucky my mama thought of buying me a car ahead of time. I am sure I wouldn’t have recalled that kind of necessity with all I have going on. I’ll have to call her later.

"Anna?"

"Yeah sure, hop in." I smile back at her.

She does and we head to school in silence. She seems to be deep in thought.

"Something is so wrong with my brother. He has never left me behind before. Not even once since I was little." She breaks the silence in the car. I don't know what to make off that so I instead keep my mouth shut.

We reach school in no time and she intently looks for her brother through the window while I pack the car. Immediately she spots him with some guys whom I guess are his friends, she hops out of the car and waits for me to do the same before she takes my hand and drags me towards his brother. The courage I had gathered to talk to him suddenly evaporates into thin air and the words I had already prepared vanish. Soon enough, we are standing before him while Sydney cusses him out for leaving her. Meanwhile, I don't know what to do so I just stare at Sydney as she goes on and on, noticing that his friends left as soon as we reached them.

Jeez! This girl can talk!

"Do you even know how worried I was I would get late for my first class? You should have as well let Uncle buy me a car if you knew you were going to behave this way!"

Sydney loses it when he shrugs and rolls his eyes to her tantrums.

He slightly chuckles and that is the last straw for Sydney. She stomps her foot and huffs, walking away annoyed.

Am so engrossed with Sydney to realize that I was indeed left alone with him. He stares at me for a long time which makes me nervous and I start to shift my weight from one foot to another avoiding his gorgeous eyes.

"Come on, you can do it Anna" I chant it to myself. Come on, come on."

Finally, I gain enough courage and make up my mind to speak up but the moment I meet his eyes and open my mouth, he changes his face to a cold glare and leaves.

"What! He freaking left! He left! Does he want to break my will? I'll show him who Anna Rose Gregory is, she never breaks down in front of anyone, unless she is in the comfort of her room alone and she never gives up. My will never breaks."

It hurts but I blink away the tears, keep my back straight and with my chin held high, walk into the school grounds as if my heart has just not been stabbed. I head straight to my first class and seat at the back of the class since I was almost late, then keep my attention focused on the lecturer till the lecture ends. With the same spirit, I walk towards my second class of the day which is unfortunately not the last class. I look around the class and notice that only a few people are here but I choose to sit at the back since I found it more comfortable in my previous class. Just as the lecturer enters the class with an 'I don't mind skipping this class' look, I am distracted by an argument of someone demanding a switch of seats directly behind me with a poor guy who looks frightened by his tall bulky self. I don't dare to look up at the bulky guy because I know too well whose voice it is.

How could I not, it sends shivers all over my body every time I hear it close to me.

This will definitely be the longest and most uncomfortable class since I am sharing it with Trevor and for some reason, he is demanding a switch of seats with the poor guy just directly behind me.

As he settles in his new seat, I expect that he is going to apologize for ignoring me earlier this morning but I guess you can't anticipate blood oozing out of a stone, right? I sit still for the next hour of the class but I can't seem to concentrate because the hairs at the back of my neck are fully aware of him breathing steadily close to me. I make up my mind that I am going to confront him at the end of the class but the moment I stand after the lecture ends, he is already gone. My heart sinks as another disappointment registers. I hurriedly pick up my books and walk out of the class hoping to catch up to him along the hallways but for the rest of the day, I can't seem to find him.