Bad guy (REWRITTEN)

Chapter 14

Anna

"No! Don't you touch her!" I screamed, my voice cracking as two of his shadows pinned my arms against the cold tile.

He didn't even flinch. He just looked at me, a slow, hollow smirk spreading across his face. He picked up my phone, turning it over in his hand like it was a piece of trash before dropping it. It hit the floor with a sickening crack.

"Relax, Anna. Yelling is low-key embarrassing for both of us," he said, stepping into my space. "I like her, okay? You're just going to help me out. Be a team player"

"Never" I spat, the word burning my throat. "You don't deserve to even breathe her air"

He stopped. The smirk didn't vanish, but his eyes went cold that flat, dead look that had haunted my nightmares for the last five months. He grabbed my jaw, his thumb digging into my skin.

"What was that? Repeat it for the group" he said, his voice a low, dangerous hum.

"I said no"

The slap was sudden a sharp, stinging flash of heat that sent my head recoiling. I tasted copper. Tears welled up instantly, a physical reaction I couldn't stop even though I hated myself for it.

"Listen to me carefully, because I'm only going to say this once" he whispered, leaning in until I could smell his expensive, cloying cologne. "If you say no to me again, I will strip you down and leave you in the middle of the hallway for everyone to see. I will make sure your entire life is fucked. You'll be a ghost before the end of the week"

I couldn't stop the shaking. It started in my knees and traveled up to my chest. He knew exactly which buttons to press to make me feel small.

"Now, you're going to tell Emma there's a move at Nessa's house tonight " he continued, checking his reflection in the mirror like we were just chatting about the weather. "Tell her everyone's going. If she's not there because of you... well, you saw what happened to the phone. Don't let that be your life"

I stayed silent, my jaw locked.

He didn't like the silence. He drove a fist into my stomach—fast and heavy. The air left my lungs in a jagged gasp, my vision blurring into gray spots. He had enough power to end me right there, and we both knew it.

"Don't make this a main character moment, Anna. You're a side quest" he muttered, signaled to the boys to let me go.

I collapsed onto my knees, clutching my ribs and gasping for oxygen as the door swung shut behind them. I sat there on the floor, the cold tile pressing against my skin, my tears landing on my lap in slow, heavy drops.

I can't do this, I thought. But then I saw Emma's face in my mind—her laugh, the way she always shared her lunch when I forgot mine.

No. I wiped my face with the back of my hand, a new kind of heat blooming in my chest. He could break my phone and he could break my ribs, but I wasn't letting her walk into that trap.