Breakout

Chapter 6

The dining room was enormous. High vaulted ceilings, hanging chandeliers, oak tables and benches. The room almost reminded me of the dining hall in Harry Potter. The walls were a cream colored with dark wood baseboards with matching flooring. The room was lively, students chattering away, random bouts of laughter in different areas of the room. I could see some of the people who were on the train with us already eating, along with the faces of the upperclassmen.
"Oh my gosh, that line is so long," Elana exclaimed, pointing towards the far left side of the room. I looked over and saw about 50 students lined up to get their food. I noticed that everyone, save for those of us who just arrived, are all wearing a uniform. The guys all had on red blazers and plaid red trousers, the girls also had red blazers, and either wore plaid trousers or skirts.
"Great, uniforms. What was the point in bringing clothes if we are all going to be stuck looking the same," I asked.
"It's not so bad, you'd look really sexy in one of those uniforms," Chase said, draping his arm around me.
"You are disgusting," I retorted, twirling out of his embrace. "Let's go get in line before it gets any longer," I say to Elana, grabbing her hand and dragging her with me.
"Oh my gosh! Could it get any longer," Elana said, exasperated. She groaned and stomped her foot, as if she was a two-year-old.
"That's what she said," Chase yelled, laughing with the others in our group. I right away punched him in the gut. "That's not what she meant, dumbass," I yelled at him, obviously very annoyed. He bent over slightly in pain. "Damn! You really pack a punch, don't you," he asked breathless.
"I can do much worse than a punch in the gut. Judging by how much time we will be spending together, I get to hit you all I want any time you bother me," I said.
"Not true. See, here's the thing, beautiful. You have to do everything I say and I can do whatever I want. If I ask for a foot massage, you give me a foot massage. If I ask for, let's say, a strip tease, then you give me a strip tease. No ifs, ands, or buts," he says, wrapping his arm around me.
"I will shank you. I'm not like any of the other girls here who are willing to bend to your every whim. You can't have me wrapped around your little finger because I won't stand for it," I growl, shoving Chase away from me.
"She's a feisty one, man," Jackson said, slapping Chase's shoulder.
"You're lucky Korey shows how much she likes you back. Stella here can't seem to praise my godly appearance," Chase responded. He wrapped his arms around my waist and held me close, too close for my liking.
"Can you, like, not do that," I asked while shoving him back. "I don't like you, and I never will. You need to get that through your thick skull."
"He needs to think with the right head first, though," Jackson said, laughing.
"Yeah, no kidding," I mutter. Eventually we make it to the counter and start serving ourselves dinner. I serve myself a heaping pile of pasta and top it off with the chicken Parmesan and sauce. As I reach over to get broccoli, I feel hot air on my ear. "You really shouldn't serve yourself so much pasta. It's gonna go to your hips and thighs and stomach. You gotta stay nice and fit for me," Chase whispers.
"You have five seconds to get back or I'm going to shove this plate in your face," I growled. Chase backs up with hands up, as if he's surrendering. "Yeah, that's what I thought." I continue serving myself then follow Elana to a table near the back of the dining room.
"Just ignore him like you usually do," Elana said, stabbing her chicken with her fork and cutting into it.
"I've been trying to since we were kids, but he's just so damn obnoxious that I have to snap at him. He never learns," I reply.
"Well, maybe you secretly like him back," she says, wiggling her eyebrows at me.
"Hell no! He just makes me want to strangle him to death," I say, giving her a look that could kill her. "I've never liked him in any way. He can never win me over. I don't care what he does, he could spray paint the Director's office walls professing his 'love' for me and I still wouldn't like him." Elana goes wide-eyed while looking over my shoulder. "Umm.... you, ah, might want to.." "He's right behind me, isn't he," I ask. "Yep," she says quickly, making a popping sound. I shrug my shoulders and resume eating. Chase, Jackson, Korey, and Aurther sit down with us.
"You, my beautiful, smart, woman, just gave me a brilliant idea. Hell, I'd even tattoo your name right on my di-" he cuts off as I smash my plate of saucy pasta and chicken in his face. "That's what you get, sleaze ball," I yell. He throws his slice of tres leches at me, and it's right on my chest. Great! Just what I needed. "Oh how dare you waste a sacred dessert in my family," I screech. I throw Jackson's key lime pie at Chase, but he dodged and it hits the girl behind him. My jaw drops. That was not supposed to happen. I hurry over to the girl and start wiping the pie from her hair. "Oh my God! I am so sorry. He wasn't supposed to dodge that," I start apologizing to her, but she stands up and slams her plate of pasta on my face. "Bitch," she yells, obviously very pissed off I ruined her curls. Next thing I know, food is flying EVERYWHERE. I run back around the table, grab Elana by the wrist, and drug her under the table with me.
"I did not expect this to happen. Like at all. I thought he'd just get up and sulk away, but he didn't," I said.
"Sweetie, c'mon. It's Chase we're talking about. He doesn't know what it's like to be humiliated in front of people," Elana says, patting my hand. All of a sudden I feel a hand on my arm and I'm being yanked back out from under the table. "Let go of me," I yell, trying to fight back against whoever grabbed me.
"Did you think I'd let you sit out from all the fun you started," Chase asked before he shoves pie down my shirt. "Can't wait to lick that off." I spin and knee him where no man wants to be hurt. "I don't think you'll be needing these," I say smugly. He falls over in pain, holding on to his useless jewels. I squat over him, grab his face, and make him look right at me. "We are never going to be together. Don't forget that," I snarl.
Suddenly, the cafeteria doors bang open, and everyone freezes. I look around and see everyone looking down at the ground, as if whoever is walking in is the supreme ruler of the galaxy.
"What is going on in here?!?"