RYOT GRL

Chapter 12

I had to tell her everything after that, except I missed out the part where I went to the boardwalk to see her in her job instead, I said I went to get chips for dinner and see more of the city. I told her about going to every animal shelter I found and none of them getting back to me about finding Ruben. In the end we were both in tears, holding each other whilst both reeling over the possibilities of what could have happened to him, since it’s been days since I’ve seen him. The guilt eating me up alive. We decide tomorrow to go around all of the adoption and rescue centres in a bid to find him. The next day I’m up early, Georgina and Stella text me telling me they got home and how much fun they had. I made sure we exchanged phone numbers in case any of us needed help after a run in with Castle, Hames, and Jordan.

Mum drove us to every adoption centre; we were driving around the whole day but turned up with nothing. We asked our neighbours and went back to the boardwalk but nothing. When we got home, she was silent, she didn’t say much, and I went to bed. The weekend passed me by in a blur, I mostly watched telly. When I watch telly, I put the subtitles on to try and help me to understand different sounds, it means I’m re scrolling back constantly. I’ve neglected the pile of books on my desktop and I’m thinking about neglecting school altogether. It’s getting harder to lie and now with Castle on my case I don’t know for how much longer I can keep pretending. When it comes to Monday, I’ve barely slept, and I’ve barely come out of my room. Stella text me saying she’ll pick me up and I’m grateful. “Are you alright Dodo?”, she inquires when I get in the front seat. I shrug my shoulders. “Long weekend”, and she frowns. When we pull up, I see Hames, Jordan, and Castle outside their cars a group of girls around them, trying to talk to them. We meet with Georgina, all of us peering at them in anger. “I can’t believe they just left us there”, Georgina retorts angrily and Stella sighs. “What do you expect. They don’t care about us”, she mutters bitterly.

“They’re not worth the time”, I tell them, and we keep walking. In physics, I make an excuse that I hurt my hand and that’s why I can’t write anything. In biology, I make the same excuse which the teacher says I need to go to the nurse and get a note to prove it. So, I do, but instead of going to the nurse I cruise around the school. I hear a girl crying and I turn the corner to see she’s sobbing in her hands and the familiar brown eyes and hair of Castle Maddox comforting her. He wraps his arms around her, pulling her to his chest, and stroking her back. It takes me off guard to see him so comforting to someone. I’m surprised, I didn’t think he had a good bone in his body. The girl looks younger, only a freshman; probably another girl he’s screwed over. I head away, feeling the hurt in my chest. We kissed twice, and yet he treats me no better than he does the other people he bullies.

In English, I switch seats with Penelope Strauss, a girl who sits in the back for 5 dollars and my pot of black eyeshadow. It means I’m sitting 2 rows back from him. I see his confused face when he struts in, seeing Penelope and when his eyes connect with mine, I look away. Telling my heart to stop, I shouldn’t feel this way about him. Not when he treats me like this, it’s not fair. I deserve more than that. He turns back every so often to look at me, but I keep my head in my book, pretending to read the scribbled black lines. From Stella, who’s actually read the book I’ve found out pride and prejudice are actually about a man and a woman. Both of whom at the beginning can’t stand each other. Darcy too pompous and arrogant to allow himself to love someone of Elizabeth’ social stature and Elizabeth too bright and wise to let herself be trapped in a marriage with someone like him. I have to admit when I heard the plot I was interested, now opting to buy the audio version in case the teacher ever asks me to explain what the book is about.

In lunch, Stella was quiet I could tell she had something else on her mind but didn’t want to say anything. Instead, Georgina and I talked about what she did on the weekend. She went on a trip to the canyon with her parents and she was showing me photos by the river when her phone was snatched from her. Hames dangles it in front of her, whilst the two other boys sit down. Castle on the left of me, Stella, and Jordan on the right of her. “What do you want Castle?”, I ask, as he takes several of my chips and pops them in his mouth. “Can I not come and say hello?”, he chimes. “I wouldn’t waste my breathe talking to you”, I seethe, and he smirks. It’s so arrogant, yet I feel my insides twisting. “I see you managed to get of the room”, Jordan adds spitefully. He’s got blonde curls on top of his hair that form into ringlets and he’s slightly shorter than the other guys. Like them he’s kitted out in designer labels. “Well, we weren’t going to go calling for help. If that’s what you were expecting”, I bite back, and he raises his eyebrows giving a knowing look to Castle. “I see what you mean by feisty”, he chuckles. Georgina is still trying to grab her phone of Hames, who’s holding it above her head knowing she’s way shorter than her. “Just leave us alone”, I say. “Why did you switch seats?”, his voice is lower now, and he’s looking directly at me. I ignore him, hoping he’ll go away. But then I feel his hand on my knee and I shoot my eyes back to him. I push his hand off. “Touch me again Castle and you’ll lose that hand”, I threaten, and he holds his hand up in defence. “We both know what will happen when I touch you”, and his words are whispered. His eyes filled with determination and something else, desire. I clear my throat. “It’s never happening again”, I say the words clearly, keeping my eyes with him so he knows I’m serious.

“Oh princess. We were just getting started”, he says, and his hand gently squeezes my thigh this time. “Castle, Hames, Jordan. Come with me”, the principal is there, with two other teachers looking deadly serious. The whole lunchroom is deadly silent whilst the teacher stares me down. “For what?”, Castle bites back and I see Stella eyes widen into saucers. “Just come with me”, he says his tone deadly. “Not until you tell me why”, he stands up and all 3 boys square the principal. I see him take a step back looking at the other teachers. “We need to talk to you about vandalism we found in one of the old classrooms”, he says, and all 3 boys look at each other in confusion. “Vandalism. What classroom?”, he says, his voice raised like he’s being provoked. “There was a piece of graffiti on the wall, and your names underneath it”, he says, and Castle turns to me, our eyes locking. There’s a burning anger in them and if I was smarter, I should have pretended I didn’t have the faintest idea what was going on. But instead, I popped a chip in my mouth and smirked.