My Precious Darkling

Chapter 3

He glared at me with so much hatred. His eyes might as well been flames with how much hatred so evidently burned within them. We were just staring at this point, sizing each other up. He was consumed with some uncalculated amount of rage. To be very honest, I chuckled under my breathe; this dude didn't know what he was getting himself into.

"It's your fault." He angrily hissed

"Nothing is my fault." I answered back.

"You know what you did to deserve this ass whooping." And for what it's worth, I probably did. He didn't hesitate when he launched his massive fist towards my face. I saw it coming so I sidestepped him; only making him angrier because he missed his shot, he spun back around towards me and decided not to go for another punch - because it'd be pointless; he went for something less flashy. He flew the distance between us and slammed into me -- tumbling us both down the stairs.

We quickly rolled down the flight of stairs. I gained the upper hand; landing on top of him, I got a good few punches in before he overwhelmed me and positioned himself on top of me. His weight crushed me and I felt the air pushed out of my lungs. His fists pummeled my chest and my face; his goal was to make sure I felt it in the morning. I consciously took account of what was happening and how his body was position on top of me, trying hard to find a way to gain back the upper hand. His body was pinning my hips down so I couldn't use my legs; instead, I pulled my chest up and along with it, I swung my head like a chained ball and headbutted his nose. His reaction - falling backwards with the quick and powerful impact of my cranium against his nose -- which caused a stream of blood to fluidly flow and during this, I took my opportunity and slipped out from under him. After freeing my legs, I quickly stood up over him and then made a break for it.

I burst through the third floor double doors and ran to my class. Out of breathe and late to the class, my teacher acknowledged my entrance and sighed.

"Why are you late Stephen?" He turned away from me and looked at the papers in front of him. I was catching my breath before I spoke up.

"A kid... Attacked... Me.. in the hall.." I took a huge intake of breathe and slowly exhaled; feeling my heart pounding against my ribcage, I rested my palm against my chest and tried to focus on slowing it down.

"Who was he?" I only shook my head. I was still trying to control my breathing and bring it back to a normal pace. He watched me with bland eyes. "We'll talk after class."

I walked over to my table where four other kids -- who's name I cannot recall -- looked at me eagerly and worriedly as they could probably see some bruising on my face.

"Are you alright?" The guy at the table asked me. He was tall with dark brown hair and his eyes were the same color. His skin was tanned but he was still pale. I sat next to him and settled myself; after I fully calmed myself, I nodded my head in response. The girl sitting next to him was small, with glasses and reddish-brown hair and pale skin; her hazel brown eyes examined my face and looked a little disgusted -- just as I'd expect from a weak stomached little girl.

"Who did all that to you?" Her friend next to her asked. I believe her name is Michelle. She has bright blond hair with blue green eyes, her skin was perfectly tanned and smooth. Her eyes were hard and questioning, as if she didn't believe my story or she just didn't like me or my face.

"I don't know." I knew him -- but just like them, I didn't know his name. I recognize his face, I've seen him around before; at least when Terry was still alive.

"Then why would he attack you?" Obviously she sounded unconvinced of my otherwise truthful response

"Obviously he knows me."

"What did you do to him?" I sighed.

"I don't know. I don't even know the guy. I barely recognize his face." I had an aggressive tone which finally shut her up. I turned my attention back to the teacher, Mr. Abuin. He was talking about conversions and writing on the board behind his desk. Kids in the class weren't really paying attention, they were on their phones texting, or just chatting. I rested my head against my hand and just let my mind wander. Everything around me sort of melted together; sounds didn't register in my mind and the presence of people seemed more of an illusion than reality. I was thinking about the kid from earlier, it was slowly irritating me that his name wasn't in a box -- stored away with all the names I've come to remember.

Soon enough I was "saved by the bell" and aggressively yanked from my thoughts. Kelly was waiting outside the classroom door -- it's sort of become routine this far in the year that she'll come running to my classroom to walk me to my next one. I soon forgot about my attacker and walked over to her. A slight blush covered my cheeks; her smile was so cheerful and adorable, it just made the blood rush to my face. It felt embarrassing to be affected so much by a smile. She just had weird affects on me, like the way I smile when she shows up, or my nerves go haywire when she touches me, and all that other stuff.

"I was wondering when -- omg, Stephen! What happened?" Her hand shakily reached up to my face and ran her soft fingers, gently over my bruises. Her eyes were full of so much concern; her eyes grew large as tears slowly filled up, almost overflowing.

"I just got myself into a little trouble, that's all. Don't cry." I took her smaller hand in mine -- pulling it away from the bruising and just holding it against my chest. I attempted to give her a reassuring smile, but it didn't reach my eyes. This guy had hate in his eyes, and I don't even know his name. But I knew he'd haunt my thoughts for a little while after all of this.

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