Devil on the Rooftop [Book 1]

Chapter 15 - Arisa

Paulie and Krish were on my heel before I could get to my last class. They demanded answers about my relationship with Loyal and recklessly talked over each other, attracting more attention than I was comfortable getting. I tightened the grip on my duffle bag when they circled me by the downstairs lockers. I wanted to be nice about it. I wanted to act like he had no effect on me, and more than ever, I wanted to clarify that there was no relationship to be curious about.

"Slow down, you're going to run out of oxygen," I told them. "There is nothing going on between us. What kind of rumours are people spreading?"

Krish placed a hand on Pauline's shoulder to steady himself. "Oh, you mean him carrying you in the science wing was just something me and the entire second floor hallucinated? Did we all drink the same cactus juice or were the devil's hands on you?"

"The devil?" I asked skeptically.

Paulie nodded before whispering. "He's not the sort of person you should associate with, Arisa," she said. "I know he's hot and all—"

"They're all hot!" Krish interrupted, covering his face and squealing in agony. If I had to guess, I would say he loved and hated the fact that he went to the same school as the rooftop losers. Paulie and I waited for him to recover. It took a good ten seconds for him to drop his arms. "But that does not give her the right to waltz into the underworld, looking to play nice with the three-headed dog. Please tell me you didn't sell your soul to the devil incarnate, Arisa?"

"Okay," I drawled. "You need to relax. He's not the devil. Yes, he's really smart and sure, he's good at calling people out on their bluffs. I'll even admit that he's good looking but that doesn't mean you should be this scared of him. I mean come on, he's a high school kid just like the rest of us."

Paulie and Krish exchanged a curious look.

"Can you two just spit it out already?" I asked.

"How much do you know about Loyal and his pack of demons?" Paulie pried.

"How much do you guys know?" I retorted. I wasn't ready to disclose my findings about those cheats and bullies, not until I was satisfied with the truth. There was still a lot of unanswered questions that needed my attention, and considering how scared Paulie and Krish looked when they talked about Loyal, I knew I couldn't ask them for help.

"Krish," Paulie said, not wanting to be the one who told me everything.

I rolled my eyes when Krish whimpered, struggling to oblige. "I'm going to give you a quick overview," he said quietly. "And I'm only going to do it once so you better pay attention."

"Okay," I humoured him.

He grabbed a hold of my wrist and pulled me behind one of the four pillars by the entrance of the academy. Paulie stayed close to my back and kept an eye out for eavesdroppers.

"Is this necessary?" I asked exasperated.

Krish held my face in his hands and started babbling on about the rooftop losers. "Every school has a legend, whether it's a story or something based on the acts of one person. Jackheights is no different, at this school, the legend is the devil on the rooftop."

"Devil on the what?"

"The rooftop, Arisa, pay attention!" Krish hissed as I got out of his grasp.

"Okay, okay. Relax, I'm listening."

"Loyal transferred to the academy's middle school branch four years ago with his twin sister, Tomasia," Krish continued. "They were like royalty there, untouchable because of how much money their parents donated to the school. When high school started, their relationship took a nasty turn, no one knows what happened, only that they stopped talking to each other at school. Tomasia set her sights on becoming president of the student council, and Loyal started a special service for the struggling students."

"The lazy and unmotivated students that he quote un-quote sympathizes with," Paulie chimed in. "We don't know how he does it but he gets his hands on every test and exam the teachers prepare, then he sells the answers to students in exchange for money, a lot of it! Something you could only manage at a school like Jackheights."

"I've seen him beating people to a pulp for the pay-up," Krish said. "Loyal is like this terrible loan shark you hear about, you know, the ones from East Asia. He's running some sort of sick triad business while he's still in high school!"

"And that's just him," Paulie added. "If you heard the horrible stories about Khaleel Abdul, you would think twice before speaking to him. Jackheights Middle wanted him in juvenile detention! That's why even those of us who don't use their services keep our mouths shut. If Khaleel gets a wind of anyone even thinking of snitching, they're either beaten to a pulp or kicked out of the academy."

"The whole lot of them are messed up," Krish said. "They aren't regular high school students, they're scary delinquents with god complexes. You need to tap out while you can, Arisa...before it's too late."

"It's already too late," I breathed.