Forbidden Love

Chapter 7

The next morning I got up bright and early. Ethan wasn't going to school because he was still in bad shape from his beating. Mum was worried about me going by myself and even asked me if I wanted to stay home.

"I'll be fine mum, I promise." I said over breakfast as she fussed over me and not Ethan.

"Go to Joe if you get any trouble." Ethan said when mum left the room briefly.

"Oh what you like him now, do you?" I turned on him. Boys were unbelievable.

"Not exactly. But I've seen the way he looks at you from the very first day. He'll protect you." I blushed. What did Ethan mean by that?

"Are you expecting trouble?" Ethan had refused to talk to me all weekend about what had happened. I'd given up asking I got the story from Joe anyway.

"No." He shook his head and winced from where it seemed to pain him, "but you never know with some of this lot."

"Right." I nodded thinking my brother was playing slightly too innocent in all of this but didn't think it would get me anywhere sharing that opinion.

When I got to registration I was flooded with questions about Ethan's well being from our friends and was drowned in glares from the surrounding pupils.

"Ignore them." Aaron said to me, "they're idiots the lot of them."

I nodded and smiled thanks to him. I was struggling to focus on anything but Joe's foot on mine under the table.

He was having no such issue. I almost thought he didn't know it was there as he chatted away to Aaron about how awful being grounded was and how his mum was making him do all the cleaning and take care of his baby brother.

They were then joking about how Aaron's birthday next month would have to be less eventful when I was sure his foot was only there by accident and he didn't even know so I moved my foot away. As soon as I did his head shot round to my direction and his eyes narrowed at me as if to say 'you ok?'

He did know. I smiled at him and hook my foot back around his. He smiled back and continued to talk to Aaron. I joined in on the conversation.

We made our way up to physics at top speed joking around like there was nothing wrong in the world.

"You've got to appreciate I have much smaller legs than you do." I said catching my breath as we finally make it there. The crowd was outside. It looked like the teacher was late again. I had yet to see him early and was starting to think Joe had made that up.
Joe only took this comment as an excuse to look at my legs.

"Oh stop it." I laughed shoving him lightly.

"What if I don't want to stop?" He countered in a flirty tone.

I was ready to respond when Michelle and her posey came marching up, "you aren't still talking to her are you? I thought I told you on Friday, I can give you so much more than she ever could."

"Fuck off Michelle." Joe said turning his back to her so he stood in between her and me.

I side stepped him so I was facing her, "what's your big problem? I get you don't like me. You don't even know me! But if you don't want to know me can you at least leave me alone?"

"I know enough about your kind. Nothing better than rats on the street. Shame no one finished your brother off last week we could do with one less to deal with."

I saw red. I lunged at her. I didn't even know what I was doing but I was attacking and getting hit back. I didn't care.

Joe's arm came round my waist, he lifted me up and carried me down the corridor away from Michelle and her friends who had circled around her.