The girl who saves werewolves

5. Slap and kiss

Though there were nearly a thousand teenagers in my high school, he was everywhere. No matter where I looked, Alex Montgomery was there, leaning against the wall, wrestling with his friends, or telling his mother-effing jokes. I bet he'll be telling jokes on his death bed. Stupid, stupid jokes. With his stupid grin and a stupid dimple.  

He was everywhere, but never, not even once did he look at me. Either he was oblivious of my existence or he was extremely aware of me. I don't know what was going on in that boy's mind. But the more he ignored me, the more I wanted to know.

He had kissed me for Heaven's sake!

Friday came. Not a second too early. Dealing with him and his stupid dimple had drained me empty. The lack of energy caught the guidance counselor's attention. I don't know whether she believed me or not when I told her I was swamped with deadlines. With a nod, she moved on to discuss meaning. I was happy to get my mind out of a dimple and into something that actually mattered. Turned out helping people and fighting injustice was my thing instead of making money in a glass tower. Finding a major to interest me was still a challenge. Everything felt boring. No university offered Wonder Woman studies or BA in Rosa Park-ing. But at least I had a vision and some sort of a direction where to go from there. I just had to explain that vision to my parents. Especially the part of not going to college next year, but taking a gap year. My counselor had given me a brochure of an organization that provided volunteer work opportunities abroad. Maybe I could teach English to orphans in Bangladesh or work in a rhino reserve in South Africa. I could be a freaking Mother Theresa!

I left the counselor's office with a smile on my face. 

The hallway was almost empty since most students had already left for the weekend. So when Alex Montgomery appeared on the other end, there was no crowd to disappear into or a back to hide behind. And this time he could not not see me. A small twitch his body made told me he fought the urge to turn around and escape me. But he decided not to be a coward. So did I. I lifted my chin up. According to my dad, I did that when I wanted the world to see that Lucy King was not giving up. Like in a grocery store after dad telling me he would not buy me Hershey's Kisses. This time my chin was proclaiming I was above Alex Montgomery's kiss. 

Only a few more steps and we'd be side by side. I don't know if he avoided looking at me because I had my eyes fixated somewhere in the distance. As he stepped past me, I recognized is cologne. The same one he had worn the day he - um... kissed me. 

I realized I had been holding my breath when he was no longer next to me. I let the air fill my lungs and listened to his footsteps. 

"Alex." Stupid, stupid! Idiot! Why did I open my mouth, I thought as he stopped. I turned to face him. I'm such an idiot!

"Yeah?" he cleared his throat. 

Ok. I got this, I thought as I walked to him. I would tell him, his behavior was unacceptable. You don't go around making racist and sexist jokes about someone and then out of the blue kiss them - without their consent. Unacceptable! I got this.

But I didn't. As a stopped right in front of him, chin up, I panicked. And because I panicked, there was only one thing I was able to do.

I slapped him. 

I think I was as shocked as he. He held his cheek and looked at me with wide eyes. 

"I-uh..." I stammered trying to find words and shaking the tingling feeling off my skin. Slapping really hurt. Apparently he was waiting for my words too. 

"Sex trafficking" I breathed out. 

"What?" he frowned.

"Many of the women in those ping pong shows are trafficked or forced to do that because they are poor." 

"Ok," he nodded."

"Please don't ever call me Ping Pong Girl again," I say. 

He nodded again, still holding his cheek. I didn't have anything else to say so I turned to walk away, but he stopped me before I could do that.

"Lucy, I am sorry. It was a stupid joke," he said hand around my arm. 

"Yeah, it was," I agree. I look up to him. "You've been calling me with stupid names since middle school."

He let go of my arm. 

"I know," he whispered. 

"Why?" 

He shrugged.

What an arrogant idiot! 

"Did you do it to hurt me?"

He shook his head.

"Then why? Are you an idiot?"

He pressed his lips together and looked down. But when he looked back up, I couldn't believe what I saw. His eyes were filled with tears. A sob escaped his lips. It was such a strange noise in the empty hallway. He tried to hold himself together, but the more he tried the harder it got. I didn't know what to do or say as I watched him. Never in a million years had I expected this; Alexander the Great was crying in front of me. Some might think it was a nice feeling, seeing the bully, breaking down like that. But it wasn't. I didn't like seeing him like that - broken. 

"Hey," I whispered. With my fingertips, I brushed his bicep. "Don't cry."

That didn't help as it only made the tears fall faster. I couldn't take them any longer. I stepped closer to him and hugged him. His body stiffened for a moment as he felt my arms around him. But as he realized how close we were, he started to sob and his body shook between my arms. 

I felt really uncomfortable. It was easier to handle his words and dimple than this. I just wanted him to stop. 

I breathed in his cologne. I lifted my chin. Not to show my stubborn defiance, but to meet his teary red eyes. Then I let mine fall on his lips. He stiffened again.

I got up on my tiptoes. 

What. The. Hell. was my last thought before putting my lips on his.

He was thinking the same. It took a while. We just stood there, lips pressed against each other but too afraid to move. But then he moved his lips on mine. That's mildly put. He attacked my lips. And I let him.