The Lonely King | Ongoing [New Edition]

21 | Melting

"I wanna love you,

I want to love and treat you right.

I wanna love you every day and every night.

We'll be together, with a roof over our heads,

To share the shelter of a single bed.

Is this love? Is this love? Is this love?

Is this love that I'm feelin'?"

❁❁❁

"WAIT!" I CROAKED. Wes spun around as fast as lightening and reached to grab me. I shut my eyes tightly and let out a small shriek before realising he was only giving me a hug.

"Sorry!" Wes yelped and let go of me as if my skin was on fire. I bit my lip and ducked my head.

"I'm sorry," Wes mumbled again, suddenly taking an interest in his leather shoes. "I should've stood up for you back then. Maybe I could've done something before it got so messy."

"Yeah well, it's a little too late for that now," I mumbled, unconsciously reaching up to touch my bruise.

"Really, Alex. If there's anything I could do─"

"There's no need for that," I muttered, glancing up at him. "What are you really here for, Wesleigh?"

At my sharp tone, he winced and took a step back. I really wished that he would deny coming here with a secondary motive, but to my disappointment, he sighed and said, "Can't you do something about Jake getting expelled?"

"What?" I breathed, feeling my throat constrict uncomfortably.

"I know that the two of you had some kind of a fight, but is it really necessary to go so far as to get him expelled? Alex, getting expelled from Meilleur is like receiving a death sentence," Wes said quietly.

"I had nothing to do with his expulsion, Wes," I said, reaching up to pull down the hood of my jacket and revealing my face for him to see. Wes gasped in shock at the unsightly yellowed bruise that covered the majority of the left side of my face. "But if you ask me? He deserved it."

"Alex," Wes breathed, staring at the bruise in horror. I looked away, hugging my waist tightly. "Jake did this to you?"

I kept silent, and I heard Wes swallow before hesitantly pulling me into a hug. I couldn't bring myself to hug him back, and instead stood motionless in his arms.

"I'm sorry," Wes mumbled, releasing me. "I didn't know. Jake...it's not like him to do that. He was just really mad because you were with that bastard Robin Clair."

"What did Robin even do to make the whole group of you hate him so much, Wes? Hell, you told me you weren't like them! You said you didn't care," I asked, narrowing my eyes at him and backing away. "At least he was there for me when I didn't show up for classes. At least he tried to do something when he realised what Jake did to me. You? The only reason you came here was to try to get me to put in a good word for Jake so he wouldn't get expelled. Would you have even visited if it weren't for Jake?"

"It's not like that, Alex, and you know it," Wes practically pleaded. "I do care about you."

"Alexandra?" someone said, interrupting the both of us. I looked up to see Robin approaching the both of us, hands shoved into his pocket and a scowl on his face. The cut on Robin's bottom lip had turned a dark shade of red since I last saw him in the dining hall. Wes hesitated, swallowing.