Mate to the school badass? *Faint*

Chapter 3

*Mate to the school badass? *Faint* *

Rose POV:

I giggled as I clutched onto Fluffy's fur as he sped through the forest. I don't think he was actually taking me somewhere, more like he was just running with me on his back because he could. He leaped over a stream and I shrieked softly, laughing. This was the best thing EVER! I felt his laughter rumble through his huge body. He stopped suddenly, growling fiercely. Taken by surprise at his sudden stop, I tumbled off of his back and fell onto the floor. He was immediately crouching over me, growling, his head swinging from side to side and his mouth open to catch scents. His tail was in my face, but I didn't care - I could see a pair of glowing amber eyes, glinting with malicious intent, staring straight at me. I slowly lifted my hand, eyes on the wolf as he stepped silently towards me, and grabbed Fluffy's tail. I tugged, hard, and he spun around and lunged at the other wolf with his teeth bared. Another emerged from the bushes and silently stalked over to me. Fluffy was locked deep in a fight with the other wolf, so I would have to defend myself. I looked around and saw a large, thick stick about a meter away. I lunged for it at the same time the wolf lunged at me. He missed and I had enough time to grab the stick before he spun and face me. 'Don't mess with me, wolf.' I snarled, lifting the stick. 
He snarled and lunged at me again. I thwacked him hard on the head with the stick. He yelped, shook his head and lunged again. I dodged him and hit him towards Fluffy, who had just sent the other wolf, yelping, into the bushes. The wolf scrabbled desperately to try and avoid Fluffy, but ended up hitting into him anyway. Fluffy spun around when the wolf crashed into him, and his eyes glowed with rage as turned on the wolf and started attacking it viciously. I quietly crept up to the two and thwacked the enemy wolf hard on the head with the stick, he passed out immediately. I snickered and Fluffy turned to me, shocked. I gasped and dropped the stick when he faced me. He was covered in wounds and bleeding heavily. Dammit! Where was my first aid kit when I needed it? The bushes rustled behind me, and I quickly picked up the stick to see around ten huge wolves emerging. The leading one took in the area - Fluffy bleeding behind me, the passed out wolf and me pointing the stick threateningly at them. He took a pace towards us and I raised the stick, growling slightly. No one else was going to hurt Fluffy. He was special, he cared for me and protected me and I felt the need to protect him - with my life if it came to that. Fluffy whined from behind me and nudged me aside. I turned to him, and he stared me in the eyes. He bent his huge head and licked my cheek. I giggled and rubbed off his slobber. 'Alright, alright!' I giggled, laughing,'but if they hurt you, they're going down!'
I glared the other wolves all in the eyes, to get my point across. Fluffy limped across to them and barked a greeting. Seeing Fluffy next to them, they didn't seem so huge anymore. I followed him slowly, still suspicious of them. Fluffy was soon surrounded by them, but they were helping him. One wolf approached me, and I raised the stick. He rolled his eyes and crouched down. It was obvious that he was wanting me to get on his back, but I was hesitant. I glanced over at Fluffy. He caught my eye and nodded. I climbed onto the wolf's back. He stood up and trotted next to the wolves surrounding Fluffy. I reached out and touched Fluffy's fur to soothe myself. He turned his head and licked my hand. Then they all started running and I was forced to let go of him. I gripped the stick tightly with one hand while the other gripped the wolf's fur. 

After about 5 minutes, we came to a gigantic house in the middle of the forest. I leaped down from the wolf's back as Fluffy went inside. The wolf blocked my entrance. 'I don't think so,' I muttered and hit him hard enough with the stick for him to pass out. I raced inside and followed Fluffy. They went into a white room. When they saw me following, the blocked the doorway. I raised the stick,'i will use this!' I threatened. 
I heard Fluffy's bark, and they all cleared reluctantly. I rushed over to him to see him lying on his tummy on a white bed. He laid his head down on his paws and closed his eyes. I grabbed a seat from the corner of the room and set it down next to Fluffy's head. He didn't twitch. I stroked his head gently, humming a tune softly. His tail tip thumped against the bed softly. I sung him 'Puff the Magic Dragon' to send him to sleep. 

It worked, he fell asleep during the chorus. When the song finished, I kept on stroking his head, even though my hand was tired. The door opened softly and I turned in my seat. It looked like a doctor. He was tall, thin and had gray hair and blue eyes. 'Excuse me miss, I need you to leave while I treat him.' he said, when I stared at him suspiciously, he explained. 'I need room to work, but I promise that as soon as I'm done I'll come and get you.'
'ok,' I agreed.
 I stood and placed a kiss on Fluffy's forehead. When I walked away, he growled, his eyes snapping open and watching me intently. I stifled a chuckle. 'I'll just be outside while the doctor fixes your wounds,' I promised with a smile. 
When I mentioned the doctor, his eyes snapped to the doctor. 'You be good!' I called teasingly as I shut the door behind me. 
Just like I promised, I sat against the wall next to the door and waited. 

I don't remember falling asleep, but I must have, as I jerked awake as the door opened. 'can I go in now?' I asked the doctor eagerly. 
He chuckled,'sure.'
I leapt up and raced into the room. Fluffy was covered in bandages. I ignored the chair and crept silently onto the bed with Fluffy. He was fast asleep. I snuggled into his side and closed my eyes to take a nap with him. 

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I woke up to murmuring on the other side of the door, and Fluffy was curled around me in a tight, warm, safe ball. I opened my eyes as the door burst open and a teenage boy walked in, grinning largely. I leant over a grabbed my stick, from where I had rested it against the bed, and pointed it at him threateningly. His smile dropped as he saw me. He raised his hands and turned his head to the side. 'Anyone know who this chick is?' he called through the open doorway. 
The doctor poked his head in, took in the scene and laughed. Fluffy stirred slightly, curling tighter around me, his left ear twitching. 'Nope, she came in with him and threatened anyone who went near him.'
The guy pulled a face and turned back to me. I glared at him. 'Name's Jake. Who are you?' he asked, stepping closer.
'Someone you don't want to mess with,' I growled out. 
Fluffy lifted his head and stared at Jake. He unraveled himself from me and stretched on the bed. His muscles rippled under his fur and I stared in awe before snapping out of it. Fluffy leaped down from the bed and faced Jake. I quickly got off the bed as well and stood next to Fluffy with my hand on his neck. Then I realized -  sunshine was streaming in through the window. 'Gah!' I cried, startling Fluffy,' I'm going to be late for school!'
Fluffy sped out of the room and returned with a guys school uniform in his mouth. I quickly shooed the boys out of the room and put on the uniform. It was too big on me, but I didn't really care. I combed my fingers through my hair and rushed out the door and raced through the woods. 

I rushed into my house, grabbed two hair lackey's and my bag before racing to school. I put one hair lackey on my wrist and I ran and tied my hair up with the other. Then, I grabbed the back of the shirt and tied the back so that it didn't look to bad. As I raced into school, the halls empty, I rolled up the pants. Geez, you gotta love Autumn. Perfect weather, not too cold and not too hot. 

Ryan appeared next to me, looking ruffled, I grinned at him and we both raced to English together. We halted outside the door and caught our breaths. Then we opened the door and walked in together. The teacher glanced at us, and carried on marking work without saying a word. I hurried in front of Ryan and took my seat. He sat next to me and grinned. I glanced up at the clock and clamped my hands over my mouth to stop me from laughing out loud. Ryan raised an eye brow and I pointed to the clock. His eyes widened before he chuckled softly. There was only one minute until the bell went for the end of the period. 

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I walked out of Health (one of the few classes I didn't have Ryan with) and saw Triton, Travis and Trent waiting for me. 'Hey guys!' I greeted. 
'Hey Rose!' they chorused, grinning. 'Do you want to hang with us for lunch?'
'Of course!' I agreed without hesitation. 
I grinned and walked alongside them as they walked to the lunch area. 

Half way through lunch, Ryan joined us. It was awkward at first, but by the end we were all laughing and teasing one another. It was the most fun I had had in years. I didn't notice, but I had somehow managed to end up tucked under Ryan's arm. It was comfortable. I felt closer to him than I had yesterday. I shivered as a cold breeze picked up, and snuggled deeper into Ryan's warmth. Triton caught my eye and winked at me. I winked back, causing Trent and Travis to laugh. Ryan remained silent. After a brief pause, Trent jerked his head at me - indicating that he wanted to speak to me privately. Then he stood and walked away. I muttered an excuse and followed him quickly.
'What's up?' I asked when I caught up to him. 
We were out of hearing range of the others, so he could say whatever he wanted. He glanced at me, scuffled the ground with his foot and took a deep breath. 'Will you be my girlfriend?' he asked softly. 
I stared blankly at him for a moment before his words sunk in. 'Im so sorry, Trent, but no... I don't like you in that way, you're more like a brother to me. Besides,' I broke off, blushing as I realized what I was about to say. 
He chuckled quietly. 'Thats cool, besides, you like Ryan, dontcha?' 
My blushed deepened and I nodded. He engulfed me in a bear hug, squeezing me to him tightly before releasing me. 'Friends?' I asked, walking beside him as we headed back. 
'Always,' he replied with a grin. 

Ryan was silent, looking determinedly away from us as me and Trent returned. I hesitated, torn between sitting with Ryan, or not because he looked like he didn't want me to. Shrugging, I sat in between Trent and Ryan. The bell went, and we all stood, saying our goodbyes and going to our next classes. Ryan remained stonily silent. 

He stayed like that for the rest of the school day. Hurt, I shrunk inside myself again and trembled every time Ryan tensed. I quickly hurried home, knowing that Oliver would be returning today. Fear is all I felt. Without the comforting presence of Ryan or Fluffy, I returned to the girl I used to be - the girl who was scared of everything. I quickly made a large dinner for Oliver and crept up the stairs to start on my homework, leaving the dinner on a plate and not daring to take any for myself. 

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Taking a break, and knowing that Oliver wasn't home yet, I decided to go see Fluffy. I walked outside, starving, and walked into the woods. I called his name several times, but he didn't appear. Hurt for the second time in one day, I trudged back inside. Oliver was waiting for me. I froze, and he lunged. 'You little bitch, I bet you've been whoring, haven't you?' he snarled, his eyes glazed. 
I stiffened - he was drunk. The beatings were always worse when he was drunk. 

I lay there as he beat me, unable to do anything. When he had finished, I was crying and he kicked me. Then he retreated to the lounge room to eat. I crawled to my room and checked the damage. None on my face or arms. One of my legs was badly hurt, so I would be limping for a while. I had several bruises on my ribs and stomach. Nothing serious. I changed into my pjs, brushed my teeth then went to bed. 

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I ached when I woke in the morning. Just like I predicted, I was limping. The closer I got to school, the more I tried to suppress my limp, the more it hurt. I gritted my teeth against the pain and walked sticky inside. I made it to my locker and took out the books I would need, stuffing then in my bag. 'Hey,' Ryan's, deep voice sounded next to me. 
I jumped, slamming my locker door shut turning to face him. 'H-hi,' I muttered, walking past him to class. 
He gently grabbed my arm, turning me to face him. 'You ok?' he asked gently, his eyes scanning me for visible wounds. 
'Y-yeah. P-perfectly fine.' I stuttered, lying and avoiding his eyes. 
He frowned. 'Im sorry about yesterday, I just let my imagination run wild, I guess.'
I gave him a quick, fake, smile before taking off to class. I didn't want him near me. He could read me like no one else could. I didn't want him involved in my problems. He could end up seriously hurt. Besides, who was I fooling, he would never like than more than a friend. But I did. In fact, I think I was falling for him - hard. 

Too engulfed in my thoughts, I forgot to suppress my limp. Ryan was onto me in a second. He grabbed my hand, sending heat through me, and turned me to face him, his face hard. 'What happened to your leg?' he growled. 
'I think you already know the answer to that,' I whispered, looking down. 
'Im going to kill that man!' he snapped out, his whole body literally vibrating with anger. 
'No!' I shouted, he looked down at me, startled. 'I mean, you can't! He'll hurt you! And... I don't want you to get hurt because of me - I'm not worth it.' I whispered the last part, tear brimming in my eyes as I stared into his gorgeous grey eyes. 
His whole demeanor softened. 'You are worth it,' he whispered, entwining our fingers together.
I kept my eyes on his as he slowly leant down to kiss me. Just as our lips were about to touch, someone shoved me away from him. I stumbled, my leg collapsed and Ryan caught me. He wrapped his arms around my waist and brought my back to his chest, letting me lean against him. He was shaking again. A boy I didn't recognize at first was standing in front of us, smirking. Looking harder, I recognized Jake - a boy from my old school. I trembled in fear. Jake was the badass at my old school, nobody would dare mess with him. He alway bullied me and other loners alike. Seeing him here was terrifying. Ryan, realizing that I was scared, pushed me behind him and took on a aggressive stance. 'Who are you?' he growled threateningly. 
'Wouldn't you like to know,' Jake drawled. 
Ryan growled, obviously ticked, and Jake smirked. This seemed to be all Ryan could take, and he lunged.