Mr. King and I

Chapter Eight: Emotional Blow Out

All Rights Reserved




Copyright © 2013










The moment Sebastian pulled up to the drop off lane of the school, I leapt from the car, suddenly eager to get my first day back over and done with. I turned back to him, suddenly unsure of what to do.



"Um, see you later?"



Sebastian scratched at his mussed hair, leaning his weight against the wheel. "I'll have Sam pick you up after school."



I opened my mouth to say forget about it but he drove away. I watched as he went, a but stung by his aloofness. No good bye, no 'have a good day', nothing.



With a sigh I turned to face my 8 hour prison. Sheffield High School, student body count of over two thousand students. My class contained over eight hundred. It was two stories tall, and had been built in the late 60s. The it had chalk boards instead of Smart-boards and the air conditioner seemed to only work in the winter.



But it was still my school.



I made my way up the front steps, passing a group talking animatedly about the new Hunger Games movie.



"Elle?"


I turned at my name regretting it almost at once.



Jake.



"Uh, hi, um, Jake."



He came forward, an unsure expression on his face. Jake Glass, seventeen and with adorable dimples that would have made any girl turn into a puddle at his feet. With golden hair and All-American good looks, that were it the 50s, would have earned him his face on a billboard.



Only that wasn't the case today. His hair had grown enough that it looked as if he'd rolled out of bed. Instead of his Hollister and Abercrombie & Finch gear he wore a ratty sweat shirt that looked as if it could fit three more of him. A rough bristle had started along his jaw and dark bags hung under his eyes.



He looked like hell.



"Hey," I said forcing a smile as my feet reluctantly took me closer to where he stood.



"Elle," he said, his eyes sweeping over me.



I glanced down realizing what shirt I had grabbed. It was a faded purple long sleeve T-shirt, one that Jake had bought me for me on a whim six months ago. I hastily smoothed down the fabric, giving him a half smile. "I, uh, woke up late."



Jake nodded, saying nothing. He just looked at me.



Okay, this isn't awkward or anything, I thought.



"Uh, so, what have I missed? In school that is?" Insert foot into mouth and shut up Ellery!



Jake blinked, shoving a hand in his jeans pocket. "I called you, like, a dozen times, Elle. I texted you until my thumb got sore."



Shit, frick, damn! He wanted to do this now?



"Jake," I began but he cut me off.



"I know I fucked up, Elle," he said, his tone frantic. "But it's not like I haven't tried to apologize!"



My expression shifted from compassionate to incredulous. He couldn't be serious. "Jake, you ignored me for weeks. I tried to call you, but you never answered. You didn't even show up for their funeral!"



"I freaked out-"



"You don't think I wasn't freaked out?!" I all but shouted, drawing the attention of the present student body. "My parents had just died! I needed you, Jake! But you weren't there; no, you were too busy to answer my calls, my texts, or my Facebook messages. You completely ignored me until it was convenient for you!"



Jake raked his hands through his hair, mussing it so it stood up like the bristles of a broom. A broken broom at least.


"Elle, tell me what I can say to make this okay? I can't stand not talking to you-I miss you so much," his blue eyes shimmered with unshed tears, sending a pang straight to my heart.



But it wasn't enough to make my anger waver. Folding my arms over my chest, I fixed Jake with a glare that could have made the Atlantic boil over.



"Go to London," I said deadpan. "Find a crazy guy with a bow tie fettish and a blue police box, then go back in time and tell yourself not to be such a worthless prick."



With that I turned on the heal of my shoes and made my way up the steps of the school. As my hand closed around the handle of the door I heard clapping and cheering. A surprise chuckle made it's way past my lips. Shaking my head I ducked inside and headed to my locker.



***



By the time class started, word of my emotional blow out had reached phenomenal proportions. Word was that Jake and I had gotten into it over a case of infidelity. One person said Jake had slept with every one of my friends, while another claimed I that I had worked my way through the entire basketball team. Another version included a sordid love scene, a fist fight and a surprise pregnancy. I was frankly stunned and a bit frightened at how quickly and inaccurately word traveled around this school.



I ignored the questioning stares, and whispers, pretending to be spellbound by my world history text book.



"So, you're pregnant and got into a fist fight, you've had a busy day, haven't you?"


I looked up from inspecting my text book to see a complete stranger sitting next to me. I blinked, taken aback by her appearance.



Her hair was Crayola red, styled raggedly to frame her baby-doll face, her lips a cherry red with a Monroe piercing silver stud winking at me. She had Egyptian eyes outlined in coal, a pair of black framed glasses perched on her nose. She wore a ratty black jacket that had dozens of zippers on it for no apparent reason, jeans that were so torn up that I was amazed they were sticking together. Her T-shirt was of a band I had never heard of the design made up jumbled images to form a purple rose.



"Uh, yeah. How I managed to do it all in ten minutes amazes me," I said playing with my mechanical pencil.



The girl chuckled. "It's scary how news travels around here. On my first day I shad an affaire with the PE teacher, went to juvie for assaulting the principle and had three abortions." She held of a hand that was ladened with rings of all styles and varieties. "I'm Clara Stuart, but everyone calls my Tonks."



I quirked a brow. "As in Harry Potter?"



She grinned. "I think it's the hair. It scared them."



I couldn't help but laugh. "Ellery Van Aller."



Tonks grinned, reminding me of a pixie for whatever reason. "Like Ellery Queen? I love it! It's very old school. I caught your performance this morning and I thought to myself: 'Tonks, that's the kind of chick you need to hang with.' "



I snickered. "Emotionally volatile and crazy?"



"No," Tonks said rolling her eyes. "A chick who won't deal with bullshit."



I shook my head. "Where are you from?"



Tonks perked up. "Cali. L.A. to be specific. Parents got separated. I was given two choices; stay with my alcoholic father in L.A. or move to the frozen tundra with my workaholic mother." She teetered her hands as if they were a scale. "I chose the lesser of two evils."



She shifted in her seat, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear to reveal a dangling silver earring. "So, what's your tale of woe?"



I hesitated. It was weird. Yes, I was still upset-but it was mostly over my encounter with Jake than anything else. But with Tonks, she had this breezy, almost unconventional force that made you just want to . . . Laugh. Spill your guts. I had a nagging feeling that I was gunna like her.



"My parents died during hurricane Sandy. My boyfriend avoided me like a leper-as did most of my 'friends'-" I made air quotations with my fingers. "-and now I'm living with a complete stranger."



Tonks whistled. "You should have kicked him in the balls."



I snorted loudly, causing my classmates, as well as our teacher Ms. Blackwell-a fifty-something woman with a love of grey who resembled a female version of Death from Supernatural-to turn back to us giving us a freezing glare. I mumbled my apology and Tonks mock bowed with a tilt of her head.



Ms. Blackwell scowled at us as she returned to lecturing us about the Renaissance era. Tonks and I exchanged tight lipped smiles, fighting back fits of laughter. As I tried to focus on Ms. Blackwell's lecture, I couldn't help thinking that my day was looking up.




________________Author'sNote_______________

Update at last! Nope not dead. Just suffering from Real Life. I have too many books. Damn you imagination!!

So you all got to meet Jake. What you think of him? Did Ellery go too hard on him? Or did he deserve what he got? Guys, some ppl cannot handle the heavy emotional aspects of life. Or death. It freaks them out and they run. It happens.

Introduced a new character on a whim. Clara aka Tonks. She is largely based on my beloved cousin, Alyssa. I felt that Ellery needs a douce of quirkiness in her messed up life. Next chapter you get to meet Ellery's old friends! Possible cat fight in the works.

Update will be soon(and I mean it!)

COMMENT VOTE FOLLOW

Happy holidays minions! Xoxo