A Rose to Keep (The Society 1)

I didn’t know for sure what kind of personal trainer Drew hired, but he was clear: strike with the intent to disable him. The dick blow, as he called it, was the most effective, but it had to be hard and firm, to have him go to his knees in pain.

With how quickly Coach Bilson went to his knees, I thought I was owed a slap on the back.

I stepped back, hands at my sides, waiting.

The whole class erupted into laughter and started to clap their hands.

It took Coach Bilson at least five minutes to get back to his feet and even then, he grabbed his crotch. “Who taught you that?”

“A friend,” I said.

“That wasn’t clever,” he said.

“I had enough time to get away and make a phone call, and if you weren’t my teacher, while you were down, I’d have kicked you in the face.”

“You fight dirty?”

“No, but if someone attacks you, don’t you have to. They’re the ones who have broken conduct.”

Coach Bilson looked pissed off. “You’ve got detention. I will see you in my office.”

“Coach Bilson, that will not be happening,” Gideon said. “We’ve already got permission to be leaving early. Sian will be coming with us. We have a meeting to attend.”

I saw a tic in Coach’s jaw. “Fine.”

Gideon glanced at his watch. “We’ve got to go.”

Without a look back at Coach Bilson, I rushed forward. Heather gave me a smile, and I wished I hadn’t pissed off the coach.

After leaving the gym, I escaped to the locker room, quickly changing into my school uniform. The guys were already dressed and waiting for me when I met them outside. Dante took my bag from me.

Ever since they had all told me the truth, in a strange way, I’d gotten closer to all of them. We were now bound together by what was to happen to us.

Personally, I wanted to meet whoever was in charge of The Society and be the one to castrate them while also berating them for how much their bullshit had affected my life.

“I don’t like the way Coach looks at you,” William said.

He wasn’t in a playful mood. I wondered if it had something to do with class or the way Coach kept looking at me.

I’d sensed his change toward me. For the past three years, I’d been nothing to him. The girl he mocked in class. Or he’d tried to make me feel small.

It didn’t work.

“I don’t know what his problem is, but I totally nailed him in the balls.”

“Yeah, you did,” William said. He held his palm up. “High-five.”

“Who does that anymore?” I asked, laughing. I put my palm to his.

“Please, a high-five never goes out of fashion.”

“Be careful near Coach. I’ve got a bad feeling about him,” Mateo said.

“Recently, you’ve got a bad feeling about everything,” William said.

“Enough.” This came from Gideon. “None of us want to be fighting tonight. We’ve got this meeting with the parents. Let’s get through this.”

“You’re all nervous,” I said.

“You would be if you knew what we were walking into.”

“Oh, that’s true. I’ve only met Mateo’s dad.” We arrived at Gideon’s car and I climbed in the back with Mateo and William on either side of me. Dante drove up front with Gideon.

“Have you heard any news about Fred?” I asked.

“Nothing yet,” Mateo said.

“I’m hoping he pulls through.”

I wanted to offer some comfort to say anything that would make him feel better, but the truth was I had nothing. Sitting back, we all stayed silent, clearly thinking about Fred.

My thoughts drifted to Drew.

What would she advise I do about this?

Would she be happy with me? Angry?

I missed her so much.

Wrapping my arms around myself, I thought about her smiling. How she would always have something good or nice to say.

“I’m fucking leaving you. You piece of shit!”

The words echoed through my mind, and I winced as I rubbed at my temple.

“You okay?” William asked.

“Yeah, just a bit of a headache. I guess it has already been a really long day.” I sighed.

“Leaving me? You’re not ever fucking leaving me!”

I didn’t know who said them or where I heard the voices from before. I closed my eyes and took a quick deep breath, trying to bring my thoughts back into line. I felt a little sick, and as I opened my eyes, everything was fine. No loss of focus. I had to be losing my mind.

All I had to do was get through tonight, onto Halloween night, and then live my life somehow.

I felt I was expecting a little too much from myself. Nothing ever went according to plan.

Chapter Eighteen

Mateo

Sian’s parents looked a little out of place around the large dining room table. Much to my surprise, only our dads showed up. No mothers, other than Sian’s.

The tension in the dining room could be cut with a fucking knife.