12. Chapter Twelve
The next day at school, I make it a point to avoid Xander by seeking solace in the library during my free time. I am determined to steer clear of him, as the sight of his face would only serve as a constant reminder of him being a selfish asshole.
My mother has barely left for work when I hear knocking on my front door echoing through the house. Instead of getting up off the couch, I choose to ignore it and focus on the TV. That asshole can go fuck himself. I should”ve known better than to expect anything else from that jerk. I”ve studied him enough to figure out he uses people only to get what he wants. I know that once I open that door, his intoxicating presence will draw me in, just as it always does. With just one touch, I know I”ll be repeating the same foolish actions from last night. Why does my self-control go out the window every time I’m around him? Although it’s thrilling to please Xander, I won’t be his go-to person. I won”t be one of those girls who just gives him pleasure and then gets tossed aside like a piece of trash. Yeah, I know, I”ve already said that after the whole blowjob thing, but I won”t screw up like that anymore.
Last night, I shared things with him about my father that I’ve never told anyone else. I opened up my soul to him, only for him to trample all over it with his sudden departure. He dismissed me as if my vulnerability meant nothing.
But that”s the issue with someone like Xander, he takes what he wants and then acts like I don”t exist. So fuck him and his bad boy ways. I”m no longer the quick fuck when he has nothing better to do. He can go to hell because I’m done with his bullshit.
The sound of knocking on the door intensifies.
“Come on, Princess. I know you’re in there.”
I grab the TV remote and increase the volume, effectively drowning out his alluring voice. If he can ignore me without a care at school, I can totally do the same.
He pounds harder on the door.
I crank up the volume a few more notches.
The knocking stops, and I can finally relax. Turning down the TV, I grab the big bowl of popcorn I made for myself.
While munching on some popcorn, I”m interrupted by a sudden knock on the window.
Startled, I jump, causing the kernels to scatter all over me and onto the floor. Through the window, I spot his insanely handsome face bursting into fits of laughter.
“Fucking asshole,” I mumble, getting up from the couch. I head over to the window.
“I’m sorry,” he yells out, bursting into laughter again. “But you should have seen that. It was fucking hilarious.”
Once I”m there, I pull down the blind, blocking his view.
“Come on, Poppy. Open the fucking door,” he says, banging on the window.
As he keeps knocking, I go around the room and pull down the blinds of the other windows, so he can”t see inside.
“I’m sorry, Princess. I didn”t mean to freak you out. Please open the door. I have something important to share.” He knocks once more.
“Xander, just go home,” I call out from behind the blinds of the window he’s tapping on. “I’m not in the mood to talk to you.”
There”s a brief pause before he yells out.
“Why not?”
I don”t wanna see you, that”s why.
“Is it because of what happened last night?”
“Just go home Xander, I’m not in the mood.”
He knocks again, urging me to answer. “Poppy, come on. Open the door. We can talk about it. You know you want to.”
“Just go away, Xander,” I mutter as I retreat to the lounge. I bend down and pick up all the popcorn on the floor, then tidy up the couch, throwing the spilled popcorn back into the now empty bowl.
Once I’ve cleaned up, I notice the knocking on the window has stopped.
I move over to the kitchen and throw the popcorn into the trash. Once I turn off the TV, I head to my bedroom. Entertaining myself, I play the keyboard before deciding to call it a night.
School the next day is the absolute worst. From the second I walked through the gate, Jade and Savannah were all over me, tormenting me about my weight. And on top of everything, my blue pen leaked. No need to stress, you say. But it leaked everywhere, and it was a mess. I had to use the bathroom to wash my hands and when I saw myself in the mirror, I almost passed out. My lips were freaking blue. It looked like I had just sucked Papa Smurf off.
While I”m desperately trying to remove the blue ink from my lips, the bell rings stating it”s time for class. Feeling a little bummed, I reluctantly give up on trying to make it look better. This will have to do. I scrubbed so much that my lips are now swollen, making them look even bigger. Big blue lips. What the hell am I gonna do now?
When I finally make it to the classroom, I inwardly groan because I”m the last one to show up. All I fucking need is some attention when I”m trying to keep things low-key.
I drop my head and make a beeline for my usual seat, hoping to fly under the radar.
When I pass by Jade, she looks up and catches sight of me. Her eyes widen with delight, and her laughter fills the air, like a signal to let everyone else in on it. “Holy shit, what happened to you, fatty?”
Glancing up, I take in the sea of faces, their mocking laughter filling the air. As I look around the room, my gaze settles on Xander, who sits at the back of the room. Amongst the laughter of others, his face remains devoid of amusement, focused solely on me.
I ignore him and the people staring, and head to my seat. Savannah spins around in her seat to give me a quick look.
“Wow, you”re even more uglier than before,” she smirks, reveling in her comment, her eyes seeking validation from the room.
“Well, I”m pretty sure you could wipe away ninety percent of your face with a Kleenex,” I add, maintaining eye contact with her while casually placing my bag on the floor next to my desk.
My response totally works because she gets up, slams her hands on my desk, and leans in to intimidate me.
“Sit down, Savannah,” the teacher yells from the front of the room.
She lets out a breath of frustration, flips her hair, and locks eyes with me as she sits back in her chair.
Just as we”re in the middle of our staring battle, my phone pings. I wonder what the hell my mom wants now, since she”s the only one who has my number. But I refuse to look away from Savannah, gotta stay strong and show the bully they didn”t win.
“Whenever you”re ready to turn around, Savannah Gibbons,” the teacher says. “I”ll wait as long as necessary, and I”m even down for lunch detention if needed.”
I keep glaring at Savannah as she turns around.
As the teacher starts talking, I discreetly reach for my phone to check my mother”s message. Upon lighting up the screen, I am taken aback by the sight of an unknown number and message. When I open it and read the words. I know exactly who it’s from.
Xander: WTF happened 2 u Princess?
Poppy: HTF did u get this number?
The bubbles appear on my screen.
I peek up and see the teacher at the front, recounting some historical event leading up to the war in the 1940s. When he searches for something on his desk, I sneak a peek to see another message from Xander.
Xander: Tell me what happened to your lips and I’ll tell you how I got your number.
Poppy: Blow job gone wrong.
Xander: What did the guy have blue balls or something?
I burst into laughter, but hastily attempt to repress it. But it’s way too late; both the teacher and all the students sitting in the classroom shift their attention toward me.
“Is something amusing, Miss Reeves?”
“No, sir,” I reply, placing my phone face down on my desk.
“Well, you seemed to enjoy something, so do share with us what’s so amusing, Miss Reeves.”
I look up at him and see everyone staring at me. There”s giggling and I can”t tell if it”s because of my stained lips or if I”m the joke of the day.
I”m sitting there, not saying a word, watching the teacher.
“Out you go,” he says, pointing towards the door.
“What?” I ask, not sure if I heard correctly. Savannah’s intimidation earlier didn’t result in her being sent to the principal’s office. However, I am the one who has to go because I refuse to disclose what I was laughing at. This is bullshit.
I”m staying put at my desk, watching him.
When I don”t make a move, he signals towards the door. “Get out of my classroom. I won”t stand for any disruptive behavior in my class.” He walks around his desk and taps on the keyboard of his laptop. “The principal”s expecting you.”
Man, can this day get any fucking better? I release a frustrated sigh and snatch my bag off the floor as I head towards the door.
As I”m making my way to the principal”s office, my phone buzzes.
Xander: I got your number from Zoe Mitchell.
I should”ve realized that. Zoe Mitchell helps out in the school office every now and then. But Xander doesn”t really talk to Zoe. She”s not one of the girls he usually hooks up with.
With my thumbs poised ready to ask him how he conned Zoe into giving him my number, another text comes through.
Xander: You won”t believe the lengths I went to get your number. So don’t ignore me. Answer the fucking door next time.
I don”t know how to respond, so I just turn my phone off.
My phone pings again and I”m so tempted to just ignore it, but it”s from Xander, the guy who”s always on my mind.
Xander: Did my text make you so excited that you died or something? Quit fucking ignoring me.
I smirk as I type out my reply.
Poppy: Sorry, new phone, who’s this?
Xander: Well played, Princess. Well played.