Devil on the Rooftop [Book 1]

Chapter 65 - Khaleel

I ran through the front doors of the school, anger seeping into my skin. Arisa was so quick to let Loyal do whatever he liked but with me, she set boundaries and said I made things uncomfortable. It was so infuriating. What did I have to do to make her see that I was also an option? Maybe I was wasting time on her. Maybe there was no point fighting for someone who couldn't be bothered to look in my direction. My heart ached as I was reminded of Matilda. That girl spent years fawning over me and what good came of it? In the end, she decided I wasn't capable of being a faithful boyfriend.

I couldn't help but scoff. A Boyfriend. What a stupid concept. Why did people have to go around and tie themselves to someone if they weren't ready to? Why couldn't it just be assumed that they would be faithful to one another without the labels? Why were the politics of love so complex? Why couldn't I be with a girl without handing out promise rings, and all that other bullshit? Arisa's story from the condo flashed in my mind. Loyal wasn't the only one who had touched her. That bald fucker had felt her skin too and I was going to kill him for it. I was going to show him what happened when he laid hands on what was—what was what? Mine? I was fucking delusional. That spitfire was never going to be mine.

My eyes caught a third-term student pulling a hoodie from his locker. I stopped in my tracks and demanded he give it to me.

"Why should I?" the boy asked.

"Because I'm telling you to," I threatened.

He was quick to surrender. I bolted up the staircase and headed for the rooftop. School was already over, and students were making their way out of the building. It was good timing for me. I could get Carter to discreetly exit without attracting too much attention. As expected, I found the rat crouched in his spot, and Hino leaned against one of the power ramps. "Finally," my friend complained. "What took you so long?"

I ignored his question and walked over to Carter to throw the hoodie at him. "Put this on," I ordered.

The rat glared daggers but didn't budge to follow my instructions. "We're going to walk you out of here," I said. "Whether that's done quietly or not is up to you."

Hino moved to my side. He placed his hand on my shoulder and got me to turn around. My stomach churned as our eyes met. He knew me better than anyone else, meaning he could tell when I needed someone to comfort me, verses when I should be left alone. I waited to see what he would do. Hino searched my eyes for a moment before exhaling sharply. "I want to hear about it when you've calmed down," he said, taking his hand off my shoulder.

I turned back to Carter, who hadn't made any moves to wear the hoodie. I grabbed him off the floor and forced him up against the nearest ramp, letting the sweater drop. "Want to leave in a body bag instead?" I asked, low on patience.

"You think you're all that," Carter laughed. "And you think I'm a scared little bitch because you got a reputation? Fuck off, Khaleel. You ain't shit."

I let him go and stepped back, cracking my knuckles. "Body bag it is," I smiled, throwing a hard punch to his face. The ramp cushioned Carter's fall. I pulled my target up on his feet again before I went on. "I don't need you to fear me. I need you tell me where Dobberman is. If you can't even do that then put on the fucking sweater."

"Make me, asshole," Carter retorted, spitting on my blazer. I looked down and found a pool of red saliva dripping down my chest. It was disgusting, to say the least. I grabbed my target by the back of his head, brought him close to me, and then kneed him in the stomach. He fell again, and this time I made sure he wouldn't be able to get back up. Pressing my foot on one of his wrists, I waited to hear the sounds of his anguish.

Hino didn't make any moves to interfere. I appreciated him for it. We were different but also very similar. We both had a tendency to lose our grip on reality when seeing red; we couldn't care less about wrong and right. None of it mattered in that chaotic moment for us. Carter grunted, doing his best to not react to the pain I inflicted. He tried to use his available hand to force me off but it was no use. "Loyal said something strange today," I remembered. "He said he doesn't think Devil on the Rooftop suits him. He never wanted to be a school legend, so I guess that makes sense."

I applied more pressure on Carter's wrist, getting him to finally scream. "You want to know who he thinks is more deserving of the title?" I asked.

"We're on school grounds," Hino's voice was stern.

I scoffed and looked up at the sky. It was scattered with clouds but the sun was still shining through. "Truth is, he thinks too highly of me," I said, with a heavy heart. "If I was able to take anything from him right now, it wouldn't be his title."