Unexpected (Dirk Strider x Abused! Reader)

Chapter Eleven: Don't Let Go

Heat rushed into your cheeks as you tried to pull your hand away from Dirk's and his grip tightened. He must have underestimated his own strength, because he ended up pulling you slightly closer to him. The two of you had just walked onto the sidewalk that led to the school's main doors.

"Uh, Dirk, what are y-" You began, trying to hide the blush that adorned your face, but he cut you off just before you walked into the school, his hand resting firmly against the surface of the door. He looked at you, and even with those stupid godd*mn shades on, you could tell that he was thinking hard about something.

"... Just... Don't let go of my hand, okay? Not yet. Do you trust me, (y/n)?" He asked and you could practically feel his gaze meet yours. This question took you some thought, naturally, and even though no words were exchanged, you were sure that he understood why. You didn't trust many people. So why would you trust him? You thought of all of the things that had happened since he had showed up, which filled you with both irritation and happiness. You had felt more alive since he appeared than you had during the majority of your life. He was changing everything. He was protecting you. He was helping you believe in life again.

"... Yeah. I do trust you." You stated, looking away and giving his hand a slight squeeze. Upon hearing your words, Dirk smiled, but you had turned away and couldn't see it. He pushed the doors open and walked through the threshold, your hand comfortably and loosely entwined with his. You almost didn't want to look up and observe your surroundings. His hand was undeniably warm and it made you feel safe and reassured. However, you couldn't resist the temptation and looked up. What you saw made you extremely nervous and uncomfortable. All of the girls were giving you death glares and whispering. There was no doubt in your mind that it was about you.

"Look at her face.... My god, how can he even stand to touch her?"

"William's gonna get her good for this~..."

"Sh*t... What happened to her? She looks like she's been... Abused..."

Yup. They were talking about you alright. You tried tuning them out. Most of the guys were just staring or talking amongst themselves about completely irrelevant things. Dirk seemed to sense your discomfort and pulled you closer to him so that your arm was touching his. Warmth began spreading throughout your body and you looked up at him with a blush. He looked down at you, and squeezed your hand, and you thought you saw the ghost of a smile. You figured that your mind was just messing with you. '(Y/n)... This is not good. Don't get attached to him. Don't you dare...' Your mind warned you, force of habit taking over and making you try to distract yourself. After all, you knew that there was a reason that he was holding your hand. It wasn't because he liked you, cared about you, or loved you. It was simply to protect you from William, or anyone else who thought it would be a good idea to mess with you, right?

When you chose to redirect your attention to the crowd around you, what you saw made every part of you tremble with terror. There William was, arms crossed, casting a hate-filled glare in your direction. His brown eyes concentrated on yours. It was consuming you. No matter how many times you tried to convince yourself that he didn't affect you, seeing him still sent shivers down your spine. You felt more alone than you ever had before. You were terrified and you felt like the air around you was cold. Time had frozen, and all of the sudden it was only you and William in the room. You were oh-so-very afraid. You had long since let go of Dirk's hand; William's gaze had kidnapped your own and was holding it hostage, making you unable to even think straight.

And then, it was like somebody had found the antidote to a wicked spell that had been cast over you. Dirk walked right in front of your line of vision, making your frightened eyes snap up to his face.

"Hey, (y/n), we need to get to Doc's class for first period..." He informed, grabbing your hand again and giving you a serious look. 'Don't let go again. What did I tell you?' You looked down and nodded, letting his warm fingers weave back into yours. You could still feel William's eyes on you, but you ignored his cruel glare as best as you could as Dirk led you into Northwestern Earth History. Nobody was in the classroom at the moment. Not even Doc Scratch.

"Hey. What was that about?" Dirk asked, frustration lacing his voice as he let go of your hand to turn around and cross his arms. You looked down again, trying to avoid his stern gaze.

"I-I'm sorry..." You apologized, your voice trembling. You were terrified. You had never seen William so furious before. You could see literal Hell in his eyes. At this rate, you weren't even sure you would live through the next month to see your 18th birthday.

~Dirk's POV~

"I-I'm sorry....." Her voice trembled as she whispered the words and I immediately felt bad. It probably didn't show, but I saw the way he looked at her. I knew he didn't scare me. Nobody scared me. But I also knew that I was not her. For all I knew, she could have been f*cking terrified. I rubbed the back of my neck, turning around so that she couldn't see the pained look that had adorned my face. For some reason, when I was around her, it was getting harder and harder for me to keep my composure. Sometimes I actually wanted her to see my expression, and I had to mentally chastise myself. Striders don't let anyone see their emotions. No exceptions.

"No, don't apologize. It's no big deal. Just.... Try to avoid the son of a b*tch as much as you can, okay?" I asked, turning back around after regaining my composure. She looked up with a relieved expression and nodded slowly. She hesitated and I paused as I was about to sit down. I thought she wanted to say something, so I waited. She opened her mouth to speak again, but Doc came in right before the words could make their way out of her mouth and she immediately closed it, deciding to make her way to what was apparently her usual seat in the back of the room. 'D*mnit... What was she about to say?' I inquired to myself. My Autoresponder began annoying yet again me with possible examples. F*ck. I really needed to get that feature of my shades fixed. Lil Hal was starting to get real godd*mn annoying real godd*mn fast.

The bell rang two seconds later, and the students began filing back into the room. I sat next to (y/n) so at least she wouldn't have to bear the presence of William alone. Everyone sat in their spots and he sat next to her. I honestly felt as though I wanted to kill him, rage filling my veins, making me clench my fists. He had some kind of sick, f*cked up grin on his face, like he thought that everything was going to go his way. Well, I wasn't going to let that happen. I was gonn make sure that it didn't. I glared at him from the side and clenched my jaw, distracting myself by looking up at Doc Scratch, who had been addressing a student. I got curious when he pointed at William so I decided to listen in.

"-greatly be appreciated if you switched spots with Rose." He hinted. William shot him a glare. I was shocked. Did this guy know sh*t or what? He had a knowing look in his eyes and glared right back at William like a bad*ss. "Move, Mr. Issack. Need I remind you of what happens when you disrespect me? I quite remember what your father did last time you decided to act so rashly..." Doc trailed off. Everyone in class began whispering. William shot a glare at (y/n) - which she did not miss. She cringed at even the sight of him - and got up slowly. He traded seats with Rose, who was grateful to be away from some other girl who was acting like she was drunk. Hey, but maybe she was. I wasn't f*cking omnipotent.

I shot Doc a look mixed with gratitude and approval and he winked at me in response. I froze. 'What... What the h*ll was that supposed to mean?' I asked myself, confused. My eyes widened in realization. Did he think... No. No, of course not. I was getting way too ahead of myself. (Y/n) probably didn't think of me that way in the slightest. And neither did I. Or... F*ck... How did I feel about (y/n)?

"Oh! Mr. Strider and Ms. (l/n), I would very much appreciate it if you would see me after class. There are some things I need to discuss with you about a prestigious side project concerning Northwestern Earth History." Doc mentioned. I could tell that he wanted to talk to us about something completely different. Clever bastard.

~Your POV~

'Project? What project?!' You mentally screamed. You weren't quite as observant as Dirk. You had no idea that Doc Scratch was planning something that had nothing to do with history. No, not at all. Rather, it had something to do with freeing you from the source of all of your problems.

It was a plan that would set you free.