Then the Wolf Step In

Chapter 4

Joy's POV

I couldn’t fall asleep. Every time I closed my eyes, Ryan's cocky smile, demeanor, and playful tone were playing in my mind like a movie, as terrifying as a thriller.

Not until dawn did I barely manage to sink into slumber. It wasn’t long before my alarm went off, awakening me from the light sleep. Glancing at the clock, I felt frustrated as I was about to be late for class. I hurriedly got up, changed the clothes and cursed Ryan in my mind while rushing downstairs.

Ryan was standing in the doorway with his back to me. Hearing the sound, he threw me an icy look and took his bag from the servant. Just as he was about to head to the car, he paused and turned around. But for I stopped in time, I would have bumped into him.

“Reckless.”He sneered.

Feeling wrongly judged, I squinted my eyes and argued, “It was you who suddenly stopped. You didn’t tell me—”

He spat as he took a step closer,“Should I be responsible for keeping you informed of everything? What are you? Blind?”

I was fully alert. Arm crossed in a defensive manner, I warned him in a serious tone, “Don’t come any closer.”

He arched his left eyebrow and stopped approaching. Staring me for few seconds, he turned around and drawled, "Whatever. It's getting late. You should join me for the ride."

I gulped at him like a dumbfounded i***t.

After what happened last night, Ryan behaved like everything was fine. As if we have become good friends. Why would he approach me instead of escaping from me? Wasn’t he embarrassed? I had thought whoever accidentally saw a girl naked would later feel awkward facing her. It seemed that I underestimated how shameless Ryan was.

I was busy evaluating what was going on and Ryan’s patience ran out after he couldn’t get any response. He tilted his head a little bit and asked again, “Well?”

Coming back to earth, I shook my head and turned down his invitation, "Thank you, but I prefer taking the bus alone."

While speaking, I intentionally put some emphasis on the last word, and I hope he got the idea.

My mom had wanted to equipped me with a driver picking me up for school, I felt it was too much trouble and politely declined. Having a place to live and an opportunity to go to school is good enough and I shouldn’t long for more, for I knew the greed of human beings is indefinite and I don’t want to surrender to those temptations. Whatever I want, I’d rather earn it myself then took it for free.

Just when I refused Ryan’s offer, mom came out and saw us. She frowned and asked, "What are you doing here? It's almost 8. Aren't you leaving?"

Before I could answer, Ryan stood ahead of me. Carrying his bag on one shoulder, he gave me a sly smile, turned to my mom and said,"I suggested that my dear sister and I go to school together. For some reason, she seemed to dislike the idea. My dear sister just cruelly rejected me. I was wondering why. I must have done something wrong, having her pissed off and she hated me already."

He kept calling me dear sister, his tone gentle and sincere, which raised goosebumps on my skin. I couldn't detect any sense of respect, but my mom fell for his act. She smile broadly, with her mouth stretching to her ears. Mom said firmly,"Don’t you worry about that. You’re siblings and you’re so friendly to her. How could Joy dislike you?"

Irritated by my mom, I corrected her, “Step-sibling”.

Mom pressed her mouth into a line and forced a smile, “Well, she didn’t disagree the latter part. That was to say, she likes you.”

Ryan chuckled, saying nothing to that. Mom coughed and turned to me, giving me a reproachful look, "Joy, your brother offered you a ride. Why did you turn him down? Just say yes and go with your brother, do you hear me?"

Holding the urge to roll my eyes, I muttered unwillingly, "Yeah, I heard you. I would go with Ryan."

“After you.”Ryan stepped aside and opened the door for me. Sickened by his pretentious politeness, I huffed and got in the car.

When I sat in the backseat, I was hoping Ryan could took the front seat so that there would be enough space between us. He seemed to know what was on my mind. Instead of going to the front, he smirked and sat right next to me. Before I could protest, he waved my mom goodbye like a gentleman and shut the door. After that Ryan rolled up the window and nodded at the driver, signaling him to start the car.

I had no idea what game Ryan was playing.

Two days ago, when I first met him, Ryan didn’t welcome my arrival and he didn’t bother to conceal his resentful attitude. You could tell from his expressions that he hated my presence and he was waiting for a chance to throw me (probably my mom too) out. Last night, he appeared in my room, declaring that mom had assigned him to help me with my homework. And today he behaved like a gentleman, offering me a ride and even opened the door for me.

What could be the reason that triggered the change?I was totally perplexed.

It couldn't possibly be his falling for my naked body, could it?

Disgusted by the thought, I shook my head to get rid of those ideas. Maybe Ryan is mentally unstable. I should just ignore him.

While thinking about it, something heavy suddenly hit me and fell onto my lap. I looked down and saw a carton of milk. I squinted my eyes and asked, "What’s this is about?"

Ryan didn't bother to look at me. While I was nervous, his composure was pretty relaxed, leaning back against the seat with his legs spreading apart. He shrugged and said flatly, "You didn't have any breakfast.”

I blinked and said, "Oh... thank you."

His mouth twitched as he c****d his head to my side and mocked, "You’re more skinny than the skeleton model stored in the science lab. You can starve yourself however you want but don’t die on me, or I'll have to clean up your body and it is quite time-consuming."

His tone was aggressive, but I felt relieved because this was the familiar Ryan I knew.

Weird and offensive.

Still we ended up being late. When we arrived at school, the first class just ended. As the result, when we were walking through the hallway and headed to main building, we were seen together by many students. I felt uncomfortable when people threw curious looks at us while Ryan enjoyed to be noticed.I doubted if this was the reason why he stood so close to me. Was this a part of his evil plan? Maybe he wanted me dead but didn’t want to do it himself. So he misled his crazy fans into believing he and I were intimate. Based on the way the girls looked at me, his plan has worked.

I could smell the envy in the air. Maybe I was too paranoid. But the truth was high school was a dangerous place and I wouldn’t be surprised if someday a group of girls gather together and stone me to death. Or more realistically, they might yank my hair, drag me to the toilet and lock me there.

I had expected gossips since students at this age have crazy imaginations and their abilities to make up stories are as strong as full-time writers. Even though I’ve prepared myself to face the storm, I was astonished by the speed of information dissemination. Rumors spread like wildfire and my relation with Ryan soon became the most heated topic discussed among students.

My desk mate Daisy Lee was the first one to interrogate me. She asked straightforwardly, "What's your relationship with Ryan?"

I shook my head and said,"We don't have any relationship."

She didn’t buy it and sent me a suspicious look, "They all say you're his lover."

I tilted my head and asked, "Be more specific. Who said that?"

Daisy trailed off, "Everybody thinks so. We saw you this morning. Ryan was smiling at you and he whispered something to you. What did he say?"

For real? That wasn’t a smile but a malicious smirk! Are you guys all blind? I argued silently.Daisy’s words just verified my concerns. Ryan is one of the most popular students at school, the girls' dream guy. If they thought I have the slightest connection with him, my school life could be a mess. Shivered at what could happen, I clarified immediately, “I am not his lover. I accidentally dropped my student ID this morning, and Ryan picked it up and returned it to me. That’s all. I hardly know him.”

These are made-up stories. I lied to Daisy but fortunately, she was an innocent girl and didn't doubt a word I said. She believed my explanation and said, “Diana and her friends have asked me about your relationship with Ryan. I told them I don’t know. But if Diana asks me again, I will have something to say, right?”

Daisy has been desperate to be accepted by Diana and her gangs. I could never understand but I respect her choice. So I gave her a smile and said, “Sure”.

Daisy beamed at me and began to hum a song happily. For a second I envied her for being so carefree. It’s easy for her to be happy. For me, however, being happy is so difficult.

In fact this was why my mom named me Joy. According to my dad, I had a sullen face since the day I was born. I didn’t smile like other babies. When they giggle and cry to pull the parents’ attention, I was sitting in the corner, piling up toy bricks myself.

When I grew older, I asked dad once why mom would abandon me. As a kid I was independent enough and I never caused my mom any troubles. Dad thought for a while and told me that could rightly be the reason.

“People tend to be attracted by noisy babies because the vulnerable cries make them feel needed.”

I said, “I don’t want to be weak but I need mom, too.”

“Well, she has left, moving to another city.”Dad shrugged and mused, “Shall I kidnap your mom and bring her to you?”

“Absolutely not!”I objected in horror. I was too young to identify jokes.

Dad laughed and kissed my forehead, muttering something like he was sorry and he would take good care of me. I didn’t know why he apologized. To my understanding it wasn’t his fault that our family fell apart and he shouldn’t blame himself. So I hugged him tightly and told him it was okay. He laughed again, hugged me back and called me his angel. Dad promised me he would never abandon me and he would always be my side. He kept his promise until death took him away. Mom didn’t attend his funeral. She sent me an envelop, including some cash, a ticket and a note demanding me to pack all the stuff and go to the city she lived in.

The first day I moved in the house, mom visited my room. She sat by my bed, saying she was sorry and she would take good care of me. I couldn’t help but laugh. Her deceased husband had said the same thing to me. No wonder they could spot each other and got married.

Mom wasn’t happy about my happy face. She lectured me, stating that a lady would never look happy shortly after her father died. I nodded and asked her if a lady would break the vow, abandon her own child only to live a wealthier life. Mom had nothing to say about that. We remained silent for a long time and she finally got up and wished me good night.

Raised by love and surrounded by kind people, Daisy Lee would never understand my fear of intimacy and my willingness to alienate myself from the crowd. For a girl like her, whose mind are pure and naive, can never face the fact that Ryan Davis was a devil. If I told her everything, would she believe me or think that I'm slandering her Prince Charming? I don’t bet on things I am not sure about and that’s why I lied to her.

As for what really happened this morning? Well, part of my explanation was real. I was about to enter the main building when my student ID fell to the ground. I bent down to pick it up, and when I stood up, I bumped into Ryan's arms. I was startled and stepped back. He was amused. His eyes raked over my body and then he leaned forward, taunting me with a cocky smile, “Nice cleavage, slut. How much do you charge per night?”