Chapter 2
Too Close
The clock on the wall ticked louder than it had any right to. Five minutes had passed since I spat those words at him, and the silence stretched between us like a rubber band ready to snap. I sat back down at my desk, arms crossed so tight my nails dug into my skin. Damien leaned against the teacher’s desk at the front, scrolling through his phone like he didn’t have a care in the world. The empty classroom felt too big and too small at the same time.
I couldn’t take it anymore. “You know what? This is bullshit. Mr. Hargrove isn’t even coming back to check on us. He probably went home already.”
Damien didn’t look up. “Scared of a little quiet time with me, Elena?”
“Scared?” I laughed sharply. “Of you? Please. I’m just not stupid enough to waste two hours of my li
