The Girl in the Boys' Dorms

Chapter Twelve: Even fake girlfriends like to know secrets.

The Girl in the Boys' Dorms - Chapter Twelve: Even fake girlfriends like to know secrets.

The sound Lucie's hand made on my skin seemed to reverberate throughout the entire cafeteria, which had somehow fallen silent during our argument. My cheek stung from the rough impact, and I could feel tears forming in my eyes. Blood rushed to my face, and embarrassment flood me the moment I saw Lucie hovering over me, her expression contorted into one of both anger and satisfaction.

Frustration bubbled inside of me, and I attempted to jump to my feet - you know, in the same way those fighters do in the movies, with both fists ready to attack, and their legs in tough stance - but I ended up doing an unstable wobble, and almost falling over again. Chase caught me this time, though, and straightened me, keeping his strong arm wrapped around my shoulders. He held me tightly against his side, and glared at his stepsister, but I could tell that the majority of his irritation was directed toward me, because I had humiliated him.

I had to grit my teeth to keep from molding into him. The warmth of Chase's arm on my back was seeping through the thin fabric of my shirt, and spreading through my entire body. The smell of his seductive cologne was enveloping me, and I knew the color in my cheeks had intensified at the thought of him holding me close. But I couldn't control the uneven thudding of my heart, and I knew that if Chase pulled me any nearer, he would be able to hear how it was impaling itself against my ribcage. It was invigorating and frightening all at once, and I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from melting into a puddle.

Lucie was still standing in front of me, looking more victorious than I had ever seen her. She smirked at me, her dark eyes lighting with cockiness. "Something wrong, Underwood? Is there anything else you'd like to say, or was once on the ground enough?"

The old bit of courage built somewhere inside of me, and I opened my mouth to retort - but Chase beat me to it. Removing his arm from around me - which sent a bizarre pang of disappointment through me - he stepped forward so that he was towering above Lucie, who was a good four inches shorter than her stepbrother.

Glaring at her with an intensity I didn't know he possessed against Lucie, he growled, "I think you should stop right there, Lucie. You had crossed the line in the first place, you don't need to do much else." He paused for a second, and I was sure I had seen something like tremendous animosity flash on Lucie's face. Chase gestured toward me, muttering, "She's my girlfriend now, and I think you could respect that. There is no reason for you to be so rude to someone who is dating your stepbrother."

There was a collective "ooh..." from the crowd, and I almost joined in with them. I hadn't thought Chase would be so protective of me. Going against his stepsister? That was something he didn't do - not Chase and Lucie, everyone knew they were a combo pair. But at the same time, I felt a wave of excitement flood through me.

"Chase, she's not worth it." Lucie lashed back, setting her hands on her hips. The scene was quite comical, and I had to choke back laughter, because Lucie was on the verge of spontaneous combustion - Chase had never said a word against her. "You could get any girl here, even Evelyn if she's willing to give you another chance - "

"What?" Chase exclaimed, and his agitation was starting to turn into hatred. "You think Evelyn has the right to give me another chance?" He demanded, and I got the feeling it was time to hold him back. If Lucie were to say anything else about his relationship with Evelyn - which had been amusing from me, but probably uncomfortable for him - he would strangle her.

Pursing her lips, Evelyn moved toward Chase so that she was blocking his view of Lucie. Peering up at him, her light green irises absolutely pleasant, she murmured, "I have every right, Chase Gold. You know nothing happened between us, that couldn't be explained." He voice held a serious tone, and I could guess that she was trying to convey more things than she could say aloud. Flipping her shiny chestnut curls back, she leered, "Being open-minded often aids people in continuing their relatioships. Perhaps that is something you should've thought about, before what happened that night - "

Chase grunted, effectively cutting her off. My brows furrowed as I heard what Evelyn said. What the hell was she talking about, something that happened one night? Chase had told me about how controlling Evelyn had been in their relationship, but he didn't mention anything about a certain night. I thought he had said everything there was to be said - he explained about the text to his sister, who didn't attend North Shore because she refused to be sent to a boarding school; the shouting match afterward, when she accused him of things he wouldn't repeat; and even his confession of wanting her back, even after all she had done - but there was apparently something he had thought was too personal to tell me.

"That's not important." He hissed, and at the sound of his harsh command, I knew there was something he hadn't told me. I couldn't hide the betrayal I felt when I realized this. I mean, we weren't best friends or anything, and it wasn't like he was required to give me all the details of his life, but we were in this fake couple thing together, and... and that meant I had the right to know the gruesome bits of their relationship, damn it. "You don't need to bring that up again," he continued. "Just forget about it, can't you?"

I felt like a huge idiot for wanting to interfere in Chase's personal business, but didn't I have a right to know? Even as a fake girlfriend, I had to know the gruesome facts, so that I was prepared for the worst-case acting scenarios.

"I will not." She protested, almost baring her teeth at him. "You need to figure out what the problem was between us, and just go f - "

At the sound of her cussing, I knew it was time for me to intervene. No matter how annoyed I was by Chase's secrets - which I was pretty out of line for getting offended about, seeing as how we weren't really dating, but I didn't care at this point - I couldn't allow him to murder both his stepsister, his ex-girlfriend, and every other person who moved in his path. Inching closer, I seized him around the wrist, guiding him back away from Evelyn.

He complied easily, and I was almost crushed by his muscular frame. He only curled his arm around my waist, though, and the electricity sparked at my skin again, but I ignored it. Instead, I steadied Chase, because he was looking very sketchy in his furious state, and proceeded to drag him out of the lunch room. He intertwined his fingers into mine, and I thought I felt a different kind of urgency. HIs hand was grasping mine tightly, and I almost cried out in pain, but the message that was hidden in the gesture kept me from doing so. Chase's action was telling me on thing loud and clear.

Just wait, it'll all make sense soon enough.

***I AM SO SORRY FOR THE LATE UPLOAD! And on top of that, it's short... But this one had to be a filler. I know I've said that before, but it is true. Everything that happened in this chapter was important, it just didn't have the usual length. The next one will be longer - and especially because of what "that night" holds - I promise. The results of the contest should be up soon, too. Stick with me, people, because I love you! <3 Comment with your thoughts, vote if you liked it, and fan if you loved it :)***