Last Broken Heart ✔️

Chapter 24

"Happiness in intelligent people
is the rarest thing I know."
-Ernest Hemingway

Ashraf and I walk into the coffee shop, buying a biscuit and a drink before walking to college. The weather was surprisingly warm today, so we ditched our cars and decided to tire ourselves out and walk all the way to college.

We say goodbye and go out separate ways. I walk into the building, a small smile on my face.

And then, I stop. Because. Her hair. I could recognise it from a mile away. The strawberry blonde waves flow down her back. She was faced away from me, but I knew. I knew it was her. Meredith. She was back.

I watch in shock as she turns around, her eyes falling onto me. The green of her piercing gaze blinds me, and I feel her puncture my heart multiple times. Meredith tilts her head at me, grazing her eyes over my body. I shiver. And when she takes a step towards me, I feel like dying.

"Preece." Meredith says, and her voice sends a wave of shock down my spine. "Long time no see." She grins, crossing her arms over her chest. My hands tighten on the backpack straps.

"What are you doing here?" I ask her, glaring down at her. She smirked at me, raising her eyebrow.

"Am I not allowed to be here? I re-enrolled. Plus, Daniel comes here, and it'd be nice to see him everyday." He says. My jaw clenches at the sound of his wretched name. I don't want to see them to together. It would finally break me.

"You know what, Mere?" I ask, cringing at the nickname I can't seem to let go of. "I don't care, anymore. You and Daniel can do whatever the fuck you want... just don't involve me in your utter bullshit." I spit, glaring daggers at her.

Meredith chuckles, the corner of her mouth dropping into a scowl. She folds her arms over her chest and steps closer to me. My body turns rigid. "Oh, Preece." She murmured. "You're still heartbroken, aren't you?" She asks, and my expression wavers. "You still think I actually loved you." She says slowly, as her smile changes into a dirty, conniving smirk. "You are so, so gullible." She whispers.

"No." I say, stepping away from her. "I moved on, just like you. Do me a favour, and walk yourself over to hell, will you?" I tell her, shoving past her. "Bitch." I mumble, walking away from the long-haired girl behind me.

That has officially dampened my mood.

***

Leona drags herself through the doors of the classroom twenty minutes after the tutor session was supposed to start, and I huff in annoyance, crossing my arms over my chest. "Where were you?" I ask her, raising my eyebrow.

She doesn't say anything. Instead, she drops herself onto her chair and bangs her forehead against the table. I don't want to be annoyed at her, but my whole day has been thrown off-course by Meredith's stormy arrival back into my life. I don't feel like joking around with Leona, or laughing or spewing sarcastic remarks.

"Tell me where the fuck you were, Alana. You're twenty minutes late!" I say, watching with annoyance as she slowly lifts her head off of the desk.

"I was talking to my mum." She mumbled, running a hand over her face. "And the conversation ran over." She says. Despite everything, I couldn't be mad at her. I shouldn't be mad at her. I had no reason to.

I sigh, leaning my head back. My eyes closed briefly, and I calm my mind down before facing Leona again. She crosses her arms, staring blankly at me. "What?" I ask.

"You're never this mad when I get here late. What's changed today?" She asks, tilting her head at me.

"Nothing's changed." I say, too quickly. Leona raises her eyebrow at me, unconvinced by my words. I huff again and stare directly into her eyes. "Nothing has changed, Alana. I'm fine."

"That's clearly a lie." She says, before yawning.

"It's not." I say, my mind whirling. All I can think about is Meredith's lying face; scowling at me. Saying the words I never wanted to hear.

You are so, so gullible.

You still think I actually loved you.

"Are you sure?" Leona continued to press me, pushing me over the edge.

"For God's sake, Alana! I'm fucking fine. Why do you-"

"Don't shout at me, you piece of shit." She says, calmly standing to her feet. I glare at her. She glares back at me. "I can't stand you."

"I can't stand you, either." I say, stepping away from the desk and approaching her. I smirk when I notice the way her back straightened and her hands fall to her side. "But I'm here. On time. I'm trying to help you pass this goddamn exam, but you won't even show up on time."

"I told you, I was-"

"I don't fucking care." I interrupt, stepping closer to her. Only a few inches of space was in between us. Leona looks up at me, her eyes changing from the permanent glare they seem to always have, to a softer, seductive gaze.

"I don't want to deal with you if you're in a bad mood." She says, in a low tone. She stares up at me through her lashes and I feel her thigh slightly graze my knee. I looked down and noticed the way the skirt she wore hugged her luscious curves, and showed enough of her smooth legs to make me go feral.

"No?" I ask, leaning closer towards her. Leona's back presses to the teacher's desk behind her, and I cage her in, pressing my palms onto the edge of the desk on either side of her. I feel her heavy, frantic breathing on my cheek, and I turn my head to face her. "When I'm in a bad mood, Alana..." I say, my lips next to her ear. I take her hands and hold them onto the wooden desk, leaning into her. "There's only one thing that will solve my problem."

I see her gulp. I hover my lips over her neck, my mouth opening slightly. "All I can think about..." I whisper against the skin of her neck. "Are the incredibly naughty things I want to do to you. And, if you're still walking by the end of it, then we're not finished."

I feel her hands on the back of my head and she pulls me closer, my lips skimming hers. I feel her breath on my skin as she whispers, "No one is stopping you, Preece."