The New Me

Chapter Ten, Unwanted Feelings

There were only three days left of the school year, leaving endless chatter about summer plans filling the hallway.

I push my way through the flood of people, my eyes searching for the one person that didn't seem to be in the crowd. He was always there when I didn't want him to be, but when I was actually looking for him, he was nowhere to be found.

Finally I find him, standing in front of his navy green locker, a red head standing him front of him. She smiles as her hair spins around her finger. She opens her notebook and scribbles something down before tearing out the page from the spine, and hands it to him with a smirk. I watch as she clicks away on her tall heels and I roll my eyes before approaching.

"So how was your night in jail, Mr. Do Nothing Wrong." I ask him, learning against the locker next to his.

Preston shuts his locker, his eyes meeting mine before he chuckles breathlessly.

"Is this your way of asking me if I am okay, without really asking?"

"No, I would have made it clear that I was wondering about your wellbeing, but I'm not. That was just my introduction to what I will be saying next."

"Which is?" he asks me, his eyes baring into mine uncomfortably but I keep his gaze.

"I don't know what you're doing, continuing to butt into my life, but fighting my best friend is where you go too far. Whenever I say to leave me alone, that means leave everything in my life alone also."

"Excuse me?" he asks, blinking several times.

"Don't act as if you are surprised I know, you both are walking around here with bruised faces and shiners, I think am capable of putting two and two together."

"That's not what I am reacting to, what it seems like to me is, you're blaming me for what happened between your little boyfriend and I."

"One, he's not my boyfriend, and two, there is no doubt in my mind that you and your followers had something smart to say that resulted in a tussle." I snap, irritation spreading through my veins.

He takes a couple steps forward, making his face inches from mine, his eyes blazing.

"Do you ever stop to think that maybe your punk ass friend was the one that ran his mouth?" he begins, his hands resting on the lockers behind me, locking me in place. "This is where I am getting fed up with you. You and that kid walk around here, causing chaos, and all kinds of problems around the town, but you don't see anything wrong with your actions." His eyes continue to stare into mine, and I stare back, returning the cold stare.

"I don't care what you do anymore, I'm not going to try and stop you from doing anything, but when your little friend runs his mouth about personal stuff going on in my family, that's where it doesn't concern you. So next time, how about asking your friend about what happened, before throwing accusations at me." He backs away from me and throws me a sly smirk. "You want me out of your life so bad, that's exactly what you'll get, but you and your friend need to return the favor."

He tosses up his hands and walks briskly away from me, leaving me standing against the locker by myself.

·

"What's up?" Blythe asks me, sliding into the seat across from me at the lunch table.

My eyes make their way over his shoulder, peaking a glance at Preston and I watch as his eyes crinkle with laughter.