Surf's Up?

Facing... Everything

Ellis' POV

The next couple of days were rough. For whatever reason, Steele was avoiding me, although I did say that I didn't want to speak to him again... Brian was giving me more space than I wanted, and Reese was so angry at Hill that she didn't talk about anything else. 

School was weird. I felt like suddenly everything reminded me of what happened the past Friday. More than anything, my head was still spinning from everything that Steele told me about Hill. Was it all true? Could Hill really be a dad? Not only that, but I saw more of Lindsay in one day than I ever had in high school. She would give me a weird sort of look when I saw her too. It wasn't exactly gloating, but more of a smug sorry. Reese would glare and whisper bitch, every time she walked by, much to sweet Cara's dismay. Hill wasn't around much. He was skipping a lot of his classes and his teammates said they hadn't really heard from him. I didn't see him until Friday, which ended up being the worst day so far. 

I purposefully wore an outfit that I would feel confident in, all week. No point in giving people stuff to gossip about. If they thought I was fine, everything would be normal. Today, I was wearing distressed cuffed boyfriend jeans, short black chunky boots, and a loose fitted comfy black T that could be called cropped. I pulled my hair up into a half up half down and put the top half in a bun. I was feeling okay as I walked down the hallway to my locker, until I saw them. Hand in hand. Everyone seemed to stare. Brian and Steele were on the opposite side of the hall, watching me, waiting for my reaction. Everyone seemed to be waiting for my reaction. 

Lindsay laughed at something Hill said. Most likely about me. I took a couple deep breaths, collected myself, and kept walking. Keep your eyes forward. Ignore them. Don't picture that night. Too late. More deep breaths. Before I could make it to my locker, Lindsay bumped me walking past. Hard. My books fell out of my hands and onto the ground. My instant reaction was  not to respond, until...

"Watch it bitch-tease." She snarled. 

My head snapped up. I turned around to face her. 

"What did you call me?" I asked slowly. My hands curled into fists without my consent. 

Her snarl turned into a crooked grin. "You heard me. We all know that Hill only stayed with you for so long because you played it like you'd let him have it soon. Guess he got tired of your games." Brian and Steele glanced at each other quickly. 

My fists got tighter. They started to ache. Hill didn't move. His face betrayed nothing. My vision became clouded, not with tears, but with red. I dug my nails into my skin so hard that I felt them get wet. Do. Not. React. I blinked and my vision cleared. 

"I'm glad you got exactly what you wanted Lindsay," I began slowly. Her face betrayed every bit of confusion I'm sure she felt. " And I'm glad you're okay with being his booty call. It's a real honor." The expression shifted to ugly in a split second. I turned to pick up my books when I felt something collide with my face. Did she just...? I didn't have time to think. I moved out of the way before she could hit me again. Hill pulled her away, and I only stared. She spat at me and muttered, "Bitch" before letting Hill walk her down the hall. The only relief I felt was watching her clutch her fist to her stomach. Brian was at my side immediately. I saw Steele standing with his mouth open, gaping at their retreating backs. 

Brian put his hand under my chin and tilted my face up. He observed place she hit me, right at my cheekbone. I could tell it was swelling. It was already starting to get sore. He looked me in the eye. I knew he was asking if I was okay. I nodded a fraction of an inch, and he gave me a grim smile. "Looks like we'll be twins." His face was still recovering from his fight with Hill. His hand was still under my chin. Steele walked over and Brian dropped his hand. 

"You're gonna have a good little shiner there." Steele bent down and grabbed my books. I took them from him, put them in my locker and readjusted my backpack. 

"Let me walk you to the nurse," Steele insisted. Brian pursed his lips. He didn't like the me in that sentence. I shook my head, causing a raging headache. 

"Go to class, I'll be fine. She punches like a wuss." Brian cracked a smile. 

They asked me twice more if I was fine before walking off. Most of the hallway had been cleared. I made my way to the nurse. 

Ten minutes later, I was sitting in an stained, orange chair while the creepy mustached nurse gave me a thorough checkup. She had already rubbed something that smelled strongly of raspberries and vinegar on the bruise and was now checking my vitals and making sure I didn't have a concussion. 

"This is really unnecessary," I argued. She gave a grunt and left to get God-knows-what. I sighed and fiddled with my phone case. The doors burst open, and I looked up in alarm. Reese glared at me. 

"I had to learn from half of my Anatomy class that you and Lindsay went all WWE and you got sent to the nurse." 

I frowned. "That's not exactly what happened..." 

She smiled, but hesitantly. "I know. Steele gave me the recap. Are you okay?"

I nodded. "It wasn't a bad hit. I kept telling myself, stay calm and it will all just go away." I shook my head. "I guess I didn't expect her to say what she did. I mean, is that what he thought of me? A tease?" I rubbed at my eyes angrily. "Whatever. I'm just sad for her that she's being used." 

Reese grabbed my hands and turned them over. They were stained with dried blood. The cuts in my hands weren't deep, but I began to feel the sting. I winced as I closed my hands. She sighed and looked at me. "E, I don't know if that's what he thought. The important thing is that you aren't with a guy who will treat you less than you deserve. I know that's probably  not what you want to hear right now, but it's true."

The nurse came back in noisily and cleaned my hands. She wrapped them carefully and grunted at me and Reese to leave. I hopped up, grabbed my bag and squeezed Reese's hand. "Thanks," I whispered. She nodded. 

"We'll talk more later, okay?" I smiled at her. 

I headed into the bathroom before going to my next class. I gripped the sink, ignoring the sting, and stared at my reflection. My right cheek had blossomed into different colors - black, blue, purple. The bruise was only the size of a half dollar. There was a teeny cut just below my eye that seemed like it could cause some bruising later. I sighed. So much for confidence. 

I walked out and immediately bumped into someone; my phone that had just been pulled out crashed to the floor. The phone killer knelt down and picked it up, handing it to me and smiling. Her smile dropped when she saw my face. Shit. 

"Hi Mrs. Morgan." I said slowly. 

Mrs. Morgan. Dean of students and most intense woman you'd ever meet. Her stormy, grey eyes narrowed into slits and she crossed her arms. "Hello Ellis. Would you like to tell me what happened to your face?" 

I swallowed. "Yeah, it's no big deal. I stepped in front of a well-aimed football pass. I'm a klutz, what can I say." I tried to force a smile. She didn't smile back. Instead, she shook her head and gave me a disappointed sigh, like I had just let her down with my simple answer. 

"Ellis, you need to know that I'm here for you if you need me. I'm going to find out what actually happened, and I'll let you know when I do. Whoever did this will not go unpunished. There will be severe consequences."

And with that, she stepped past me, nose in the air, purposefully walking towards her office. I sighed. No doubt she would try to find out what happened, but I doubted she would ever hear what actually occurred. But if she did... things would get ten times worse.