The Devil Wears Number Seventeen

5- Bruised Knuckles And Scary News

Slamming the lunchbox, he looked at me with annoyance and frustration. Feeling victorious from within, I tried masking my smile with a cough and opened my diary. Again.

"So, without delaying. Let's begin. What's your full name?" I asked him, and he arched an eyebrow, leaning back on the bench.

"I thought you knew my name, at least, considering how you came to interview me, Brooks. Clearly, I expected more from the only school journalist Oakridge High has." He said, and I closed my eyes to calm down.

Lifetime imprisonment isn't worth it, Selene. Don't kill him.

"Of course, I know, Jace. These are protocols. It's how interviews are supposed to be. Now if you can quit being an ass, it would be really helpful." I said, almost losing my patience.

"And being patient and polite with your subject must be excluded from your protocol guidelines, I presume," He said, and I rubbed my face in exhaustion.

"Look, Jace. I am as uninterested in interviewing you as you are. Trust me. So, please co-operate with me. I have work in thirty minutes, and I can't afford being late." I said tiredly, and he clicked his tongue, shaking his head in mock guilt.

"Who said I'm uninterested, Brooks? I am very much interested in getting interviewed by you." He said, and I glared at him, making him laugh.

"Okay, okay, I'll behave. Start with your questions." He said, and with a sigh, I obeyed.

Despite promising to behave, Jace Ryder refused to answer any of my questions with seriousness. He was too obnoxious and arrogant for his own good. After thirty minutes of unsuccessful tries, I gave up.

Maybe the day was not appropriate for the interview.

"Okay, that's all for today," I said, slamming my diary shut, and he looked at me with feigned innocence.

"That's it?" He asked me, stretching his limbs as he crossed his arms across his head, resting his head against the armrest of the bench. "I was starting to enjoy the interview now." He said, and I forced out a smile, refraining from strangling him.

"I guess your enjoyment ends here then. I need to leave now." I said, looking at the time. I cursed under my breath when I realized I had only ten minutes to reach the convenience store.

Hurriedly, I stuffed my diary and pen inside my bag and stood up. My manager will kill me today.

"Do you need a ride somewhere?" Jace suddenly asked me, twirling his bike keys in his hands, making me shake my head immediately.

There's no way I would go anywhere with him, let alone on his bike.

"No, thank you," I said as politely as I could manage, and he shrugged his shoulders, closing his eyes as if he wanted to sleep.

"As you wish. I was just offering you my help." He said, and I looked at him for a couple of moments before nodding my head.

"I know."

***

Prexton, my manager, yelled at me the moment I stepped inside the convenience store. I was twenty minutes late, after all. After what felt like an eternity, and was just a couple of minutes in reality, I got back to work. My ears were still ringing from all the yelling I received.

"Rough day?" Nate, my colleague, asked me, and I smiled tiredly at him.

"Kind of? I was assigned additional work and got late because of it." I explained to him, and he slid a bottle of water towards me while attending to a customer as he generated a bill.

Smiling gratefully, I uncapped the bottle and gulped half of the water down, feeling really thirsty.

"Thank you so much, Nate."

"Oh, don't mention it. Prexton can be a pain in the ass sometimes." He said, and I laughed with him, shaking my head.

"At least he didn't deduct my pay," I said, arranging the products nicely after the customer placed them in the wrong section.

"Mhm, he is a prick, but not heartless at that," Nate said, and I agreed with him.

When Prexton came to supervise, we quietly started doing our work. The silence made the television's voice louder, and I started listening to the news while working.

'The police busted the illegal underground racing near Briar Street. A few racers and managers were arrested, while some escaped before the police could raid them. CCTV footage reveals certain faces and names, and the police are working hard to find the fleeing criminals.'

My eyes snapped up, towards the television. A gasp escaped my mouth when footage of a bike across the street was shown and a figure fallen on the road. In the darkness, the face wasn't clear, but the bike number was clearly flashing.

Even when I didn't know the bike number or could see the face, I knew exactly who the person on the television was.

It was Jace Ryder.

But that wasn't it.

The CCTV footage also revealed a girl standing beside him, speaking something. Though her face was not visible, the CCTV captured a girl with Ryder. And chills ran down my spine.

That girl was me.

I was on the news everywhere.

'A girl was seen on the site. However, her relevance to the matter remains hidden. The police are expected to take her statement as well.'

"f**k," I cursed under my breath, and Nate looked at me in confusion.

"Is everything alright, Selene?" He asked me, and I tried smiling in response, my eyes barely leaving the television.

"Of course," I said, feigning cluelessness.

Except for the fact that the police are looking for me, I am doing just fine, Nate.

The bell rang when a new customer walked inside. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath in to calm myself down. Plastering a smile, I turned around.

"What can I get for you today, Sir?"

"A pack of bandages and an antiseptic would do." The familiar voice said, and my eyes shot up in shock.

Covered in bruises and with a bleeding knuckle, stood Jace Ryder.