Chapter Five Hell is Me
1127 Words
Noah’s POV
He brings the rain in with him, his hands curled into fists as he walks into the dorm room. The air slices with tension as his eyes meet mine. He blinks disbelievingly, and then, a sigh escapes his lips.
“Abby, do you mind explaining what is going on here?” His tone sounds bored, a careless shrug hanging on his shoulders. “And while you do that, can you tell this mechanic to leave the room this instant?”
Mechanic.
Right
. What did I expect?
No matter what has happened, Abby will always be a Carter. The need to identify disparities and act on them is etched into their blood, and no amount of pulling away is going to change it.
Her brother, Wes, for some reason, is the only one who is different. The gene seems to have skipped his blood.
“Jordan,” Abby mutters. “Stop it.”
"What did you just say?" he laughs, the smell of the cigarette hanging in his breath. "I leave for one minute, and you go right ahead to bring your other boyfriend into the dorm room that I pay for. And now, I am suddenly the one who needs to stop."
“I told you I could handle it,” Abby says weakly, then, as if realizing she shouldn’t have said that, shakes her head. “Just…Noah, I… I…you should leave, please.”
“Yeah,” the fucker taunts. “Leave. And don’t come back here like some damn saviour. She is fine without you.”
"Abby," I breathe, turning to her. "Pack your things. You are coming with me."
Her eyes widen suddenly. “Noah…”
“I am not going to repeat myself.”
Jordan’s cackle overtakes the room suddenly. His intention is probably to make me feel weird or bruised, but the sound does the opposite. It makes me want to shut him up.
“Who do you think you are?” he asks, his teeth still on display. “Abby does not like following orders. If you were close to her, you would know that. But then again, I guess the mechanic wasn’t allowed to be friends with the Carter kids. You should have known your place back then.”
Nodding slowly, I retrieve my phone from my pocket, hitting the number I always have on speed dial. The person on the other end picks up immediately.
“Jordan Cruise, point guard of the basketball team.”
The smile on his face falters. “What are you…”
“I need him out of the team. Now.”
“Done,” the voice clips. “Any other thing, Sir?”
“Yes,” I murmur, staring him in the face. “He has just been violent with a student. I need it on his record.”
“What the….”
My lips raise in a smirk that doesn't reach my eyes. "And don't you think him spending the night in a reprimanding center will do his character a little help? Please file an incident and keep him suspended pending review.”
“Of course, Sir. We’ll get to work.”
The line clicks dead, and I turn to Abby. "What are you still doing?"
She seems frozen to the spot, looking from me to Jordan, who seems to have lost his ability to speak. His phone buzzes, and he takes it out of his pocket slowly. His eyes widens when he takes in the message on his screen.
It has to be his captain.
“How…”
“There’s something you need to understand kid,” I murmur, my eyes darkening as I take a menacing step towards him. He backs towards the wall, all his spine disappearing at the face of someone worth more than he is.
I don't like doing this, but Abby seems to bring out the worst in me, just like how I can't f*****g leave her alone after five whole years. Jordan swallows under my gaze. His back hits the wall, and his eyes regard me with a plea.
Easily towering over him, I lean in closer. “The mechanic always ends up becoming more, Jordan. Never forget that.”
“Noah…”
“You don’t need your things,” I say to Abby, leaning away from her boyfriend. “Let’s go.”
Her feet move towards the door, and I don't move an inch until she's out. I turn towards Jordan for the last time.
“I’m not really excited about the prospects of handing her back to you, but if she wants to come back, this is the last time I hear her cry.”
I don’t wait for his response as I turn around, heading out of the dorm room. I meet Abby out front, her arms wrapped around her frame, staring at the police truck that has just arrived.
The rain has slowed to a halt, and only the whispers of its presence linger in the air.
“That’s my car over there,” I whisper, stopping behind her. She doesn’t jump like most people will. Instead, she turns around slowly, her ocean eyes regarding me intently. It is one of the reasons I stayed away.
Her eyes.
I should have done a much better job.
“Noah, you shouldn’t have…”
“I am not going to talk about this here. Get in the car.”
She nods and turns around, heading towards the sports car in the middle of the parking lot. The lights blink as I hit the keys, and despite myself, I walk ahead of her to the car, pulling the door open. I hold my breath as she pushes past me into the leather seat. Jasmine and Orchid. Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb Eau de Parfum. She still hasn’t changed her scent.
I stop immediately when the thought hits. Coming here is already a mistake, and I do not plan on making a second one tonight.
Shutting the door, I walk around the car and slide behind the wheel. As I pull out of the parking lot, I see Jordan being escorted out by a uniformed cop from the mirror. His unwarranted anger is back now, but his eyes are scared.
Exactly what I want.
The purr of the engine is the only audible sound for a while as I turn into a corner and keep riding down the street. She breathes softly, swallows, and regards me from the corner of her eye.
“Noah, can we talk?”
“In a minute,” I reply, pulling up in front of a building. I reach for my phone.
“I’m here.”
A second later, the lights in the building flicker on, and she walks out.
- Writer
