All the Little Lies (English Prep 1)

April laid soft kisses on my neck as I leaned away from her. Ollie and the rest of the guys were talking about Wellington Prep, the school we beat to the ground—in the rain, nonetheless—when Madeline stormed into the cabin.

She instantly searched for me, and when she spotted me, she scowled, but only for a moment. Her blonde hair was tied in a bun, and it bobbled on top of her head as she stomped over to me and April.

“We need to talk. Now.”

“Relax, Madeline,” April said, sliding off my lap. “Nothing happened.”

Madeline rolled her eyes before turning her back. “What happened was you just got kicked off the cheer squad for being a backstabbing slut. Christian, come on.”

April gasped as I stood up. “You can’t do that!” she shouted, but her yells were drowned out when I followed Madeline into the downstairs den.

“What?” I asked, a snip in my voice. My eyes immediately followed Madeline’s gaze as she looked over to the couch. Two other girls were sitting there, both of whom I recognized but didn’t care to know their names.

“We have a problem, and I’m certain you’ll take care of it.”

I followed Madeline farther into the den, unease settling in. “What’s the problem?” I treaded lightly. Madeline had a knack for making shit seem much worse than it was. She was dramatic, and that was speaking lightly.

“Wellington Prep boys put their hands on Cara, and it wasn’t with her permission.”

I paused, flicked my eyes over to the girl I presumed to be Cara, and then back to Madeline. “Tell me everything.”

Once I rounded up the boys, we drove the thirty minutes it took to get to Wellington’s side of Pike Valley. I told Madeline to stay with Cara, the girl who confessed that a Wellington Prep boy went a little too far with her after the game tonight.

Eric and Jake were yammering in the back of my Charger, hyped up to beat ass. Only, they weren’t the ones who were going to do the beating. I was.

Not only was I fucking pissed that Wellington Prep had hit on our girls, but to do it without their permission? No. I didn’t stand for that shit at English Prep, and I wouldn’t at their school either. I was an asshole, I knew that—an arrogant asshole, at that—but this wasn’t okay.

Did I treat girls like royalty? No. Did I worship the ground they walked on? Also no. But did I disrespect them in a way so vulgar as to take away their right to say no? Absolutely not. I knew where to draw the line, and I wouldn’t dare cross it.

We pulled up to a large home much like the ones in my neighborhood. Ollie shifted in his seat, rubbing his hands down his jeans. “What’s the plan?”

I turned my car off and took several, calm breaths. I wasn’t fazed by this at all. Beating this motherfucker, Cole, sounded like exactly what I needed. It was a nice distraction. Earlier, I was hyped, jittery, couldn’t stop thinking about that fine little china doll I wanted to break in half. Thoughts of Mom blurred my vision every time I thought of Hayley, and that wasn’t settling well with me. But this? This felt right.

“Follow my cue as always, brother. I’m going to make Cole Johnson my bitch, just like he tried to do with Cara.”

“So, you’re gonna try to fuck him?” Ollie laughed at his own joke. I glared at him, and he quickly shut his mouth.

“Let’s go, boys,” I said as I climbed out of my car.

Jake yelled, “Fuck yeah! Let’s teach these Wellington Prep tools that they need to stay the fuck away from English Prep.”

That was exactly what we were going to do.

Chapter Nine

Hayley

Piper went to get some sodas for us two minutes ago, but it felt like an hour. I stood along the far wall, watching the drunken girls dance their asses off in the middle of the room. They were dressed in barely any clothing, and most of the boys were drooling with their eyes in the shapes of hearts.

I wished I could have been like those girls.

Happy.

“I don’t think I’ve seen you around here before,” a sly voice slithered up beside me, and I felt it all the way to my bones.

His voice was creepy. Breathy and warm on the side of my neck. I took a step to the left before answering. “You haven't. I’m new. I’m here with Piper.”

“Ah.” He smirked. “Piper’s friend. The untouchable Piper.” He dipped his head low, his eyes hooded. “Per her cousin’s words.”