Chapter 5
Ella
As Ms. Higgins goes back into the classroom, I yank away from Briggs.
He grabs my arm and drags me back to him, putting his face next to mine. “You think today was bad? Just wait.”
“Is this because of you ? Did you make Nathan drop the class so we’d be forced to be partners?”
He answers with a smirk.
“Why would you want that? We’re supposed to be competing. If we’re partners, we get the same grade.”
“It’s just one class. It doesn’t fucking matter.”
“Then why’d you do it?”
He lets go of me and saunters into the classroom.
What the hell? He’s not going to give me an answer? Why would he do this? He hates me. Why would he want to be my partner?
It must be part of his plan. If we’re forced to be together, he has access to me. He can do stuff, like hide drugs in my bag.
We don’t have lab today, so I’m able to keep a safe distance from him, way up front by the teacher, while Briggs is way in the back.
After class, I glance back at Briggs and see him watching me, a wicked smile on his face. I gather up my things and get out of there.
When school lets out, I go to the office to fill out a graduation form that they apparently had on file but lost. The lady at the desk takes forever to find the blank forms, so by the time I leave, the school’s empty and so is the parking lot.
“Help!” a girl yells as I’m walking to my truck.
I look around but don’t see anyone.
“Please! Someone help me!”
It sounds like it’s coming from around back. The shrill cries for help continue as I get out my phone and follow the voice to the back of the building.
When I get there, I see Scarlett and Aubrey standing there, laughing.
“What’s going on?” As I ask it, someone grabs my arms, yanking me back.
“We wanted to have a little talk,” Briggs says. He’s on one side of me, and Parker’s on the other.
“Let go of me!” I scream, struggling to get free.
“You two can go now,” Parker calmly says to Scarlett and Aubrey.
“Take her phone,” Briggs says to Scarlett. “Just throw it on the ground.”
Scarlett rips my phone from my hand, smiling as she watches me struggle. “What are you going to do to her?”
“We haven’t decided yet,” Briggs says.
Aubrey looks at Scarlett. “We should stay and watch.”
“No!” Briggs snaps. “Get the fuck out of here.”
“Why?” Aubrey walks up to Briggs. “You’re not going to...” She looks me up and down with disgust.
“Are you serious?” Briggs says. “You really think I’d put my dick in that?”
“You’re right, baby.” Aubrey reaches up to kiss him. “Nobody would. See you tonight?”
“Maybe. I’ll text you later.”
Scarlett goes up to Parker, kissing his cheek, her eyes on me. “Wash your hands after you’re done with her. I don’t want that getting on me.”
“Fuck off,” I tell her as she and Aubrey leave.
I’m left alone with Parker and Briggs, who are holding my arms so tight I’m sure they’re going to leave a bruise.
“Why are you doing this?” I ask. “What do you want?”
“We talk. You listen,” Parker says. “Those are the rules.”
“Why are you in on this?” I ask Parker. “You’re trying to be valedictorian too?”
“Shut up!” Briggs tightens his hand around my arm.
“That’s what this is about?” Parker says to Briggs. “You being valedictorian? Who the fuck cares?”
“That’s what I said,” I mutter.
“If it doesn’t matter,” Briggs says to me, “then give it up. Stop fighting me on this.”
“Wait.” Parker keeps hold of my arm as he walks in front of me over to Briggs. “Is that seriously all this is about? I’m missing practice for this.”
“We’ll go to practice when we’re done. Just shut the fuck up.”
He lets out an annoyed sigh. “So what are we doing with her?”
“Just get out of here. I’ll deal with her myself.”
“I don’t know why you’re wasting your time with her.” He lets go of my arm and walks off.
“Parker!” Briggs yells.
“What?”
“You know what happens when you challenge me. Do it again and you’ll be next on my shit list.”
He doesn’t say anything, shaking his head as he goes around the building.
Briggs shoves me back against the brick wall, causing my head to bang against it.
“You’re hurting me!” I yell, then wish I hadn’t, because he probably gets off on hurting people.
“Shut the fuck up and listen.” Briggs leans down to me, his hands on my arms, holding me in place. “It’s only been one day and look what I’ve done. You really want to continue this?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say, wanting him to admit it. “What did you do?”
“Don’t play stupid. You know what I did.”
“Put drugs in my locker? Made us partners in Chem lab? Big deal.” I stare back at him, trying my best to hide my fear. “What else you got?”
“Your grad form disappearing?” He laughs a little. “I even hid the forms so the old lady in the office would take forever to find them.”
“Yeah? So? You got what you wanted. Here I am. Now what?”
I wish I hadn’t asked. I don’t want the answer. Briggs is capable of most anything.
Briggs lowers his face to mine. “What’s it going to be? Do what I asked or find out what’s next? And trust me when I say today was nothing. On a scale of one to ten, today was barely a one.”
My chest rises and falls as I struggle to breathe, my heart pounding against my chest. And there’s this odd tingling sensation moving through me. My body’s never reacted to fear like this. It’s almost like I’m turned on, but that would be sick, and twisted, and just... wrong.
Briggs either senses what I’m feeling or it’s just part of his game because next thing I know, his mouth is by my ear, his warm breath causing a shiver to go down my spine.
“What’s your answer?” he asks in a low, deep voice.
“Briggs, stop. Don’t do this.”
“Do what?” he asks, his lips brushing over my ear. “What do you think I’m going to do to you?”
“I don’t know, but I need you to stop.” I hear my voice shaking, but I’m not sure if it’s from fear or from the sensations coursing through my body. Sensations I should not be feeling right now.
“You want me to stop?” He raises my arms above my head, his giant hand grasping both my wrists.
“What are you doing?” I sink back against the wall and look up at my hands. “Let me go.”
“Ella.” He waits for me to look at him. “Do you want me to stop?”
“Yes,” I mutter.
“Then do as I asked. Fail a test. Miss an assignment.”
“I can’t.” I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to make these feelings go away because what I’m feeling right now, for Briggs, is so damn wrong.
“Why?” His voice is soft, but still in that deep, powerful tone that reverberates through me as he talks in my ear. “Why can’t you do this, Ella? It’s one little thing. Like you said, it means nothing.”
“But it does. To me. I worked my ass off to get this and I’m not giving it up.”
He gets quiet, and I keep my eyes closed, not wanting to look at him, not wanting to know what’s next.
I suck in a breath when I feel his hand on my thigh. It’s a light touch, not his usual harsh grab. He slowly moves his hand up, taking the knit fabric of my dress with it. More sensations fill my body, making me want to slap myself for feeling them. What the hell is wrong with me?
“Is that your answer?” he asks, his hand stopping at the top of my thigh.
I open my eyes and see him looking back at me. “Briggs, please. Don’t do this. This isn’t you. You’ve done a lot of bad stuff to me, but this... this is so much worse. And it’s not you. I know deep down, it’s not.”
His expression softens, and his lips part like he’s about to say something, but then he doesn’t.
“Stop,” I tell him. “Please. Just stop.”
I see the movement in his neck as he swallows. He takes his hands off me and places them on the wall beside my head, keeping me trapped in front of him.
“Say you’ll do this. I need this, Ella, more than you’ll ever understand.”
His tone is urging, almost desperate.
“Tell me why. If you tell me maybe I’d—” I don’t want to agree to do this, so I keep quiet and see if he’ll explain.
“You don’t need to fucking know,” he says, his tone back to sounding like the harsh, angry Briggs I’m used to. “This is your last chance. You asked me to stop and I did. But next time? Who the fuck knows? You really want to test me and find out?”
After seeing a glimpse of vulnerability from him just now, that hint of regret in his eyes when I told him to stop, I think there’s more to Briggs than the bully I know and hate.
I think there’s a side of him that doesn’t want to be this way or do the things he does.
But I can’t count on that side of him showing up again to save me.
I have to save myself, which means I need to be smarter about this.
I should’ve known today was a trap. I should’ve been more careful.
“I need to think about it,” I say. “I need more time. It’s not like this has to be done tomorrow. I could fail a test any time this semester. Can you stop this and give me time to think?”
He pauses to consider it. “I’ll give you until Monday morning to decide.”
“It’s already Friday. That’s not enough time.”
“You get all weekend. That’s plenty of time.”
“I need more. Seriously, what’s the rush? If anything, you’re the one benefiting from this.”
“How?”
“It gives you more time to plan your next move if I tell you no.”
He takes a moment to think. “I’ll give you a week. You get all next week to decide. I want your answer a week from Monday and if it’s not the answer I want—”
“You’ll torture me. Yeah, got it. And hey, I also want you to call off your minions. Tell Parker and Finn to leave me alone.”
“I don’t control what they do, and this deal isn’t with them. It’s between you and me.”
“But they listen to you. If you tell them to back off, they will.”
He stares into my eyes. “Stop making demands or our deal is off.”
“I wasn’t—”
“You’re lucky you got a week.” He slowly backs away. “Go. Get the hell out of here.”
I push away from the wall, my legs feeling wobbly as I make my way around the building. I glance back, thinking Briggs is going to sneak up behind me, but he’s gone.
“Ella.” Ms. Whittaker is walking out of the school when I reach the parking lot. She smiles at me. “What are you still doing here?”
I smile back. “I had to fill out a form in the office. I’m heading home now.”
“Before you go...” She walks up to me. “I’ve been meaning to talk to you about your valedictorian speech. Many students like to start on it early in the semester and I wanted to let you know I’d be happy to help or offer suggestions.”
“It’s a little soon to say I’ll be valedictorian, isn’t it? I mean, don’t you have to wait until all the grades are in?”
She sets her hand on my shoulder. “I think we can both say with confidence that it’ll be you, unless you happen to fail a test or forget to turn in your assignments, things I know you would never do.
Even if you did, all your extra credit would make up for it.
You should be very proud of yourself, Ella.
You’ve worked hard all these years. You deserve this.
I’m sure your father is counting the days until he can see you on that stage, giving your speech. ”
“Yeah,” I say, nodding. “Well, I should go.”
“Have a good night!” she says as I go to my truck.
She’s right. I worked hard. I deserve this.
And my dad deserves it too. He raised me by himself after my mom died.
He sacrificed his own needs for mine. Giving this up means giving it up for both of us.
I can’t do that. I owe it to my dad and to myself to finish what I started.
I didn’t do all this work to just give up at the end.
Sorry, Briggs, but this is how it has to be. I can’t give you what you want.
If Briggs wants to fight me, he can, but I’m going to fight back.