Chapter Five

Song: The Enemy - Andrew Belle

*****

"We pretend that we don't care. But we care."

"Oh? That's all I get? Gees, Thompson, I thought you would have been happier to see me."

I could easily just turn and walk away right now, find somewhere to go that he can't follow. My mind speeds through the options; girl's bathrooms... the cafeteria... leave the school completely. Obviously, the cafeteria is out of the question given my lack of navigational skills, but I think I remember passing the school's exit earlier.

If only my feet weren't rooted to the ground. It's like my body is frozen, and despite the simple choice being to just walk away and avoid the confrontation bound to occur, I can't bring myself to move.

Shoes squeaking on the linoleum floor draw my attention, and I meet his gaze as he takes slow steps towards me, noting the glint of challenge in his eyes and the sick twisted smile covering his face.

He knew how I felt under his unnerving gaze – trapped and afraid – and he was enjoying watching me squirm.

"Wh-what are you doing here Kai?" I stutter, trying to supress the tremor in my voice.

I drop my gaze to my feet and my entire body courses with nerves. Of all the billions of people in the world, it had to be Kai Aoki. Although my heartbeat is racing and my breaths ragged, my mind still finds time to curse the unfortunate series of events that is my life.

"I go to school here – obviously", he replies with a smirk. "The real question, Lola Thompson, is what are you doing here? Last I checked, you and your pretty little group of friends were tormenting seventh graders at Beechworth College."

Even though I have bigger things to worry about, I'm a petty person, and his last comment bothers me more than it should. Last I checked, he was the one tormenting kids, whilst I was the one trying to stand up for them.

Jerk.

"I transferred."

"Is that right?" He sneers. "And why on earth would a nice girl like you need to transfer schools in her final year?

He's standing less than a metre away from me, and even with my eyes darting continuously around my surroundings, landing on anything that isn't his face, I can still feel the intensity and anger in his glare.

"You know why," I mutter.

"Oh, I know I do, but what about everyone here? Do they know your horrible little secrets? The kids here probably already think you're running away from something. You have to be careful; people tend to talk. All it takes is one little whisper and your secrets will spread around this school like wildfire."

He knows exactly what to say to get under my skin.

And he also knows that when you're already standing at the edge of a cliff, all it takes is one little push to send tumbling over the edge.

"You wouldn't..."

"Try me," he whispers, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards into a sinister smirk.

I shake my head. How could this have happened? How could the school I decide to go to in the middle of a new town be home to Kai Aoki. If I had of know, I wouldn't have been seen dead within a ten-kilometre radius of this place.

"Please just leave me alone," I beg.

For a moment he hesitates, and I'm filled with a small sense of hope. That is, of course, up until the moment he opens his mouth again.

"I don't know... There's something thrilling about the power I hold to air all your dirty laundry. How would your new friends like to find out the reason you ran away?"

"That's none of their business, and more importantly, it's none of yours." I exclaim, my voice rising as my nerves turn into anger.

"Funny, it seemed liked it was my fucking business last year. What's changed since then?"

My senses are all amplified; I can feel his breath on my face, hear my heart beating through my chest.

"Maybe it was, but it's definitely not anymore. I don't want anything to do with you. Ever again."

"Aw, Lola I thought we were friends," Kai drawls, his smirk still prevalent on his face.

"Don't flatter yourself. We were never friends, and we never will be. The only reason I ever talked to you was because of him."

Finally, my brain decides to wake up, my newfound anger unfreezing my body. I go to walk around him, not sure where exactly I'm heading, but deciding I would rather be anywhere but here.

I've taken maybe four steps when I feel his rough hand clasped around my arm.

"Leaving so quickly, Lola?" he sneers.

I spin around, ripping my arm from his grasp.

"Do you have something to say to me?"

"I just wanted to let you know that it was all your fucking fault," Kai spits, hatred dripping from every word he utters.

He knows instantly that those words have hit their mark. My mouth drops open and my vision starts to blur. The last thing I want to do is cry in front of him though, and I force myself to keep my composure.

"How dare you?" I say, my voice considerably weaker than it was a few moments ago.

"It's the truth though, isn't it? Nothing is ever going to be the same again, and it's all because of you. If it weren't for you and your stupid friends, and your stupid problems, it never would have happened."

I can feel my heart rate quickening and my breathing becoming ragged. Doesn't he understand that I've kept myself awake each night thinking exactly the same thing. His words are meant to hurt me, but I've already hurt myself so much that all they do is make me feel numb.

I'm already turning away from him when he speaks again.

"If it weren't for you, he would still be alive."

For a moment it's silent, with only the sound in the quiet hallway being both of our heavy breathing. It's as if we're both too shocked by his words to do anything; to move, to speak, to even think.

Whilst my mind is still in shock, my body seems to have a will of its own...

Before I fully register what I'm doing, my open palm connects with Kai's cheek.

A sharp clap sounds out, bouncing off the walls of the empty hallway.

I draw my hand away as a stinging sensation begins to run through my palm. However, this discomfort is quickly forgotten when I see the red mark forming on Kai's cheek. Somehow, this quells my anger, bringing me a bitter moment of satisfaction.

"Stay the fuck away from me," I hiss, putting as much venom into my words as I can muster.

Without taking a second glance at his clearly furious expression, I turn on my heel and follow the hallway – wherever the hell it leads.

The lack of footsteps behind me suggests he's not following, thankfully. Although I might not know exactly where I'm going, I'm glad to be leaving Kai behind me.

As I turn the first corner leading me away from Kai, a lump has already begun to form in my throat and my vision has quickly become blurry once again. I feel a single tear escape my eye, and quickly wipe it away.

"Not now," I murmur to myself, willing the tears to stay at bay for at least a few more minutes. The last thing I want is to be spotted crying on my first day at a new school.

Despite the very large problem of Kai, I've left behind me, my mind seems hyper-focused on the way my footsteps are echoing sharply off the walls of the deserted hallway. Every step I take sends a jolt of nerves rushing through my body. The sound of footsteps is overly loud in my ears, resonating and amplifying the thumping of my own heartbeat

Subconsciously, I begin to chew on my lip – an anxious habit which has been long ingrained into me over the years. It still hasn't fully healed from last time. Soon, the metallic taste of blood fills my mouth.

Less than 50 metres away from me, I finally spot the exit doors and my pace speeds up as I rush to reach the fresh air awaiting me outside. Pushing through the doors, my rapid and shallow breathing begins to ease as I take in a lungful of the cool summer air.

The tears have finally breached the barriers I tried to hold, beginning to fall softly down my cheeks. I furiously wipe them away, trying harder to control my breathing and clear my head.

Kai can't be here.

It's impossible.

The small amount of safety, the feeling of a fresh start. All of it has been cruelly snatched from me, simply by his presence.

I keep walking until I pass through the school's front gate, at which point I lean back against the brick wall, allowing my back to slide slowly down it until I'm sat on the concrete pavement.

I don't know how long I stayed like that, but eventually I heard the sharp ringing of the school bell – signifying that it is nearly time for class.

It takes me all of two seconds to decide that I would rather be anywhere but trapped within the daunting walls of that school right now.

It takes me another two seconds to realise that I also can't stay here, given that it would be highly likely that someone, be it a teacher or student, would spot me and guilt me into going to class.

I stand up from the ground, dusting the dirt and leaves off my back and making sure to flatten out my dress as I do so.

When I look up, however, my eyes unfortunately meet the inhospitable gaze of the last – no, second last – person I want to see right now.

Leo.

'Why him?' Is the only thing my brain can think as I curse the world for the categorically evil tricks it has played on me today.

It's just my luck that the grumpy, little teddy bear, has decided to annoyingly appear yet again.

What's even worse is that I'm positive I look an absolute mess at the moment. Tear-stained cheeks. Red, puffy eyes. If I wasn't already looking horrible enough this morning, I'm sure I looked about ten times worse right now.

And of course, he looks flawless.

His chiselled jawline and piercing green eyes, paired with his ruffled black hair all working to accentuate his features.

Why is it that when a guy's hair is messy it looks good – better even – than normal, but I'm positive my messy blonde hair looks absolutely hideous at the moment?

Life is unfair.

Our eyes meet; mine, shocked at his sudden appearance and his, already scrutinising my every detail, flickering between the various points around my face and body.

And just like this morning, he's absolutely silent. No 'hey, how's it going' or 'just thought I'd let you know, you look like shit'. His silence is making this situation ten times worse.

"Hey," I say awkwardly, trying to break the silence between us.

I notice his chin move slightly upwards before returning to its original position. Did he just nod at me? I guess I couldn't have expected much more from him.

At that moment, a second bell rings out from the school. Class has officially started now.

Yet, neither me nor Leo make any movement, our gazes still both locked in curiosity on one another. It's almost like we're both waiting for the other to make the first move.

What am I still doing here?

Suddenly, Leo moves. I watch as he shrugs his backpack, which hangs precariously off one of his shoulders, further up onto his shoulder.

He gives me once last look, before turning away from me. But rather than walking back through the school's front gates, he's walking in completely the opposite direction. I watch him leave, expecting him to keep walking, but instead he pauses, turning his head back around towards me.

"Bye Lola," I hear him call back over his shoulder, before he ducks his head once again and continues to walk away from the school.

"Okay then..." I mutter, frowning at Leo with a tilt of my head.

Finally, I break my gaze, turning around to follow the footpath home.

That was weird. I have absolutely no idea what that interaction with Leo was about, but I do know that this year is going to be a very horrible one if I keep bumping into people I would much rather not.

The entire walk home, my mind decides to switch its focus constantly between both the conversation with Kai and the strange meeting with Leo. This ultimately means that by the time I reach my doorstep, I have definitely not calmed down at all.

As I reach up to unlock the door, I hear muffled voices coming from inside the house. Of course, my parents are home. It's just my luck.

If I walk into the house now when I'm supposed to be a school, I am going to get in a hell of a lot of trouble. Not to mention that my parents have eyes like hawks and will instantly notice that something has gone wrong at school. I don't want to worry them any more than they already are, meaning that I probably shouldn't go into the house.

Furthermore, the voices coming from the house don't sound very civil. I can hear footsteps stomping around the floorboards and both my mum and dad's muffled voices raised over each other's as they speak.

I'm pretty certain that they're in another one of their arguments at the moment. One of the many recurring arguments that they think I don't know are happening. They've both been putting on happy faces when I'm around, trying to pretend that everything is alright, but the second I'm gone they turn their irritation against one another like sharks.

I rest my head softly against the front door, squeezing my eyes shut as the tears begin to fall yet again.

I don't feel safe at school and I don't feel I'd be welcome at home right now either.

Holding my breath, I go back down the front porch steps and follow the road to the one place that I've always felt safe.

Pretty soon, I'm comforted by the sound of waves crashing softly against the shore.

*****

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~ eloise