Devil on the Rooftop [Book 1]

Chapter 74 - Khaleel -

I was not in the mood for school. In fact, I was ready to sleep in and waste the day watching tv shows and eating junk food. Why? Because I had nothing to look forward to. Arisa was mad at me. Loyal was ready to fight me. And Matilda? I couldn't even bring myself to think about what she would do when she found out I kissed another girl. She might never talk to me again.

Kumar told me to stop wallowing and get my ass out of bed. Easy for him to say, he wasn't on anybody's hit list.

I arrived at Jackheights earlier than usual. A lot earlier. If I'm being honest, it was to avoid Arisa and Loyal. I wasn't ready to face them yet. I hadn't thought of what to say: it was a little more complex than handing out an apology. I didn't want to half-ass sincerity. I was sorry for upsetting my friend, but I wanted him to acknowledge that he started it. He acted like I had no chance with Arisa and pushed me into taking risks with her. I would have preferred it if he told me he didn't feel comfortable with my feelings towards her. I would have preferred it if he didn't assume himself to be the winner.

"I guess that would be out of character," I grumbled, heading into the school. I made my way to the stairwell and headed for the basement. It was the last place anybody would expect me to be. Since my sentence, I had only attended a single meeting. It was more than I could tolerate but I was hoping the space would be my saving grace.

I didn't expect the student council room to be open. I was planning on hanging by it's door until someone arrived, but to my surprise, they were already inside. I peaked my head in and saw that the main room was vacant.

"Hello?" I called.

There was no answer. I took the opportunity to claim one of the vacant chairs by the table. Just as I sat down, Matilda walked out of the archive room, carrying a heavy box, and listening to music through her wireless headphones. My presence startled her. I got up to help her set the box on the table.

She secured the device around her neck before speaking to me. "I didn't think you would come back here. At this time of the day."

"Beggars can't be choosers," I said, eyeing her workload. "What is all this?"

"What exactly makes you a beggar?" Matilda asked, moving to open the box. She pulled out a bunch of dusty old binders and sifted through them. "Paperwork that your tiny brain wouldn't be able to comprehend."

"Well, that's insulting," I replied.

Matilda looked up at my healing lip. "What happened to you?"

I blinked at her. "What do you mean?"

Matilda rested the binder down and crossed her arms. "Something happened and it made you run into the student council room."

"I didn't run here," I scoffed.

Matilda raised her brow at me. "Come on, Khaleel. I know you well enough to notice when something is bothering you."

"Aw, you're concerned about me."

Matilda cleared her throat. "Not really," she said, dropping her hands. "If you don't want to talk about it, you don't have to—"

"I kissed Arisa," I blurted.

Matilda stared at me solemnly. I had to tell her. It was time to stop pretending to be a clueless little shit. If I couldn't become Matilda's boyfriend then I could at least be honest about my feelings towards Arisa. "You kissed her?" Matilda repeated. "Why? Is she the girl you like?"

I nodded.

Matilda exhaled before returning to her binders. "You're unbelievable," she told me. "Why would you tell me that?"

"So, you don't hear it from anyone else," I replied, going to stand behind her. "So, when you tell me I'm the worst, I'm prepared to hear it."

The room fell silent. "Anything else you want to get off your chest?" she asked, keeping her back to me. "Any other details you want to use to pour salt on my wounds?"

I took a deep breath. "You asked."

I didn't want to hurt her. I only wanted, no—needed her to know my side of the story. "I confessed and she turned me down," I went on. "When I told her to give me a good reason as to why she couldn't like me back, she said it was because of you."

Matilda whipped around to reveal her streaming tears. I reached my hand out to wipe them, but she abruptly grabbed my wrist and stopped me from touching her. "I must have been a horrible person in my past life," she concluded. "This must be retribution for some horrific crime I committed."

"Hey, come on," I began. "Don't say that."

Matilda pushed past me. "I wish I didn't like you," she said, sniffling. "If not that, I'd be happy if you felt just a fraction of what I'm feeling right now."

"V-Vice Prez," I stammered.

She turned to glare daggers at me. "My name is Matilda! The least you could do is call me Matilda!"