Chapter 2
Chapter Two
Seraphina
Two Weeks Later…
I’d been back in school for at least two weeks, and I hadn’t seen Sergio.
I also didn’t have to deal with Jake or any of the guys from the hockey team either.
It was such a relief. It was difficult dealing with rich kids who believed they deserved your attention just because of who they were. Jake was one of those rich kids.
Since I transferred to this high school, I’d been dealing with him and his friends.
I didn’t know if he targeted me because I was one of the few Black girls at school, or he was used to girls falling at his feet.
Whatever it was, he just wouldn’t take no for an answer.
I wasn’t interested, and I had told him that countless times.
In the past few months, his advances had become creepy and more aggressive, which was why our run-in outside of Lucky’s Diner scared the shit out of me. But at least all that seemed to be over now.
All I wanted to do was go to school, then go home. I wasn’t rich like the kids here. I couldn’t just get by on my family’s name. I worked hard for what I wanted.
Like my sister, I came here on a scholarship. I was fourteen and a freshman. I wasn’t here to make friends or find a boyfriend. My goal was to graduate early and make something better for my life.
Most of the time I navigated the halls of Sacred Heart Prep with my head down and moved as fast as I could to each of class. I didn’t hang out with anyone and tried to stay far away from everyone.
I never ate in the cafeteria, taking my lunch in the library where I could eat in silence and not worry about the constant chatter of high school bullshit.
As long as I kept a low profile, I hoped to go unnoticed.
So far, I’d done a good job except with Jake.
Now that he wasn’t around, I hoped once again I could blend into the background.
With my head down, and my books in my hand, I headed toward the library, dodging students as they rushed to their next class or to lunch.
I had only a couple more hours left, then I could leave since my last two classes had been canceled for today.
I couldn’t wait. I thought about studying.
But I needed a break. So I would hang out at home, binge my favorite show, while eating a shit ton of sweets.
My reward for keeping my grades up the first semester.
Turning the corner toward the library, I was stopped in my tracks by a solid wall of muscle.
“Fuck,” I mumbled as the books and papers I hadn’t stuffed into my backpack fell to the floor. I bent to pick it up without looking at the person I had bulldozed into. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t watching where I was going.”
“It’s alright.”
I stopped grabbing my stuff, and my eyes landed on Sergio Puglisi.
He looked like a younger version of his brother Gianni, who was my sister, Phoenix’s boyfriend.
While Sergio had no clue who I was, I knew who he was.
Not only was he one of the most popular and the most gorgeous guys in school, my sister and his brother warned me to stay clear of him.
Gianni believed he was nothing but trouble, and my sister agreed.
It had become sort of a ritual with Phoenix to ask if I had run into him.
Each time I could tell her no. But now I wouldn’t be able to do that anymore.
I’d done a good job staying off his radar until a few weeks ago outside of Lucky’s Diner.
“Seraphina, right?” he asked, even though I was sure he knew my name, even if he didn’t know Phoenix was my sister.
He passed my books and my papers to me. “Yeah,” I said, as I stood. “Thanks.”
“Pretty name.” A flush crept up my neck, and my cheeks heated. “I’m Sergio.”
Pushing past my flustered state, I gave him a small, shaky smile. “I know who you are.”
A wide grin spread across his face like he knew he had rattled me. I’d never seen someone as beautiful as him other than his brother of course because they looked so much alike. Sergio also seemed a lot older than he was.
And dangerous.
“If you know me, why haven’t I ever seen you before we ran into each other at Lucky’s Diner?” he asked, following beside me as I continued to the library.
I shrugged. “Don’t know. But thank you for what you did with Jake. He doesn’t like to take no for an answer.”
Disgust rose inside me. There had been too many times Jake had cornered me, touched me. I was lucky Sergio had been there the last time.
“I did what anyone would do. Has he given you anymore trouble?”
He smirked, but I didn’t understand the smug look.
“No, he hasn’t. I haven’t even seen him, which is a relief. His friends won’t even look at me either.”
“Good. Just let me know if that changes.”
While relieved I didn’t have anyone’s attention, I thought it was weird how Jake’s friends wouldn’t look at me and he just disappeared. They fed off each other. They weren’t as aggressive as Jake, but they wouldn’t take no for an answer either.
We stopped when we reached the library doors. “This is where you eat lunch?”
He frowned, and I couldn’t help but laugh at the cute look on his face.
“Hey man!” Kai Rossi shouted before I could respond.
He and Finley Esposito made their way to us. They never noticed me either, even though we were in the same fourth period Chemistry class. Kai and Finley also had the same dangerous aura as Sergio. They didn’t seem as scary, but if they were Sergio’s friends, I needed to stay far away from them too.
As soon as Sergio’s attention moved from me to them, I slipped inside the library. But I didn’t miss Kai’s narrowed gaze as the heavy wooden door closed behind me.
I made my way toward my usual table. Even though their voices sounded muffled, I could feel Sergio’s eyes burning into the back of my head after he noticed I had eased away while he wasn’t looking.
I put my books and backpack on the table, then slid into my seat.
As I removed my lunch from inside my backpack, I looked back at the door where I’d left Sergio standing.
I expected him and his friends to be long gone.
But I couldn’t have been more wrong. While his friends were talking, his attention wasn’t on them.
It remained on me. Despite the flutters erupting inside my stomach, catching his attention wasn’t a good thing. I hoped he’d forget all about me.