𝐈 𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐘𝐎𝐔

𝐗𝐕𝐈𝐈 | 𝐄𝐗𝐂𝐔𝐒𝐄𝐒

꧁꧂

    Walking into class, a frown prominent on her lips, (Y/N) could see Cage giving her a small wave from the back that signaled he wanted her to come sit next to him, a seat that looked practically reserved empty beside him. When seeing this, she felt a knot twist itself in her stomach, and the thought of being near him after seeing what he was capable of left her feeling unpleasant.

    Walking to the only other seat available—one near the front—and blatantly ignoring Cage, (Y/N) sat down, fully aware of the shocked pairs of eyes on her, including Cage's own.

    As he abruptly stood up, his chair screeching back, he was then surrounded.

    No one gave him the chance to be able to approach (Y/N), his peers greedily trying to claw his attention away from her so it was instead on them. Girls flirtatiously made moves toward him while guys tried to invite him to parties or ask him if he could take them somewhere expensive to hang out.

    All (Y/N) did was prop up her head.

    Staring blankly at the board with disinterest, unaware of Cage steadily making his way towards her, his hand was just about to reach out and grasp her shoulder when the teacher walked in and demanded that every student take their seat.

    And when their glare cut into Cage's form, he reluctantly retracted his hand and sat as well.

    His stare never left her form.

    She could feel the intensity of it, and shifted uncomfortably in her seat from the chills that resulted from such a look.

    Why is he acting like this?

    To me... and to Angelina and Jasmine?

    I get wanting to protect your friends, but they were just talk, and what he did was too far...

    It's better to just... forget it.

    To just... not care.

And... to distance myself from Cage.

With that notion in mind, (Y/N) decided that instead of avoiding him and leaving him in the dark, she would confront him about it to get his side of the story. After all, Jasmine and Angelina weren't the best people to trust so blindly, especially with how horrible they were to her. Then again, she also couldn't just write off their accusations. If what the two girls were saying was true, however, then (Y/N) would end her friendship with Cage then and there.

It hurt.

It truly did.

The first person that she had opened up to and confided in betrayed her trust, in a sense.

    She had expected it.

    But she had blindly ignored it nonetheless.

    After successfully avoiding Cage for the remainder of the day, a not so easy task considering they had every single class together, (Y/N) texted him to meet her on the roof after school considering they had exchanged numbers a while back. Because of that, she was able to see the string of texts from him with demand after demand and question after question of why she was avoiding him, and for her to stop.

She didn't pay much mind to them.

All she was interested in was the one-word reply from him to her invitation.

Staring outwards, she waited.

And she certainly did not have to wait long.

Turning around as the door creaked open, she met Cage's dark eyes. The frigid look he was giving her was enough to make chills creep down her arms, but she would not allow herself to waver, giving him that same dead-eyed stare that he had grown to love and loathe at the same time.

"I got your text," he stated, being the first to break the tense silence between them. "Are you going to tell me why you've been avoiding me?"

"I talked with Jasmine and Angelina," was all (Y/N) responded with, watching his reaction.

Cage didn't so much as flinch.

"To be honest, when you ran off so suddenly after I told you about my confrontation with them, I had a feeling that I should've stopped you," she mumbled as she averted her gaze away from his own, a fact that irked him all the more. "I thought my own gut feelings were strange because I considered you my friend—someone who wouldn't hurt them."

"And?" Cage's expression darkened, his grip on his phone tightening. "Why didn't you stop me?"

"Because I didn't want to define you as the stereotypical rude, rich asshole after I was able to overwrite that by getting to know you," she exhaled softly—almost in defeat—as her lips twisted into a bitter and disappointed frown.

Cage jolted.

But it wasn't because of her words.

It was her expression—an expression of almost disgust directed solely at him.

He loathed such a sight.

The pride from being able to capture her smiles was extinguished, left with only a muddy and murky feeling of abandonment.

"It's clear I was wrong though," (Y/N) murmured softly, her voice a whisper in the wind that was starting to pick up from the darkening sky—a clear sign of rain that was about to fall. "You hurt them. How can I be so sure that you won't hurt me? I'm too tired to deal with someone like that. Don't try to talk to me from now on, don't text me or call me, don't try to find me in the halls, don't sit next to me, don't tutor me anymore, nothing."

"What?" Cage's eye twitched, his pupils practically shaking from the rage that coursed through him.

This was what he got?

After tutoring her, after saving her mother's business, and after being her friend, this was it?

No.

No, no, no.

He knew he deserved much more.

He deserved her entirely.

Cage let his phone slip from his fingers and clatter to the cement floor, the noise drawing (Y/N)'s attention, her gaze finally drawing upwards to meet his eyes. She couldn't help but flinch when she did so, this being the first time that she was seeing it: the part of Cage where she did not know. When looking into his eyes, it was like she were looking at a stranger—no, more so a devil that seemed about ready to swallow her whole.

    "I've done everything for you, (Y/N)..." he muttered lowly, any and all friendliness gone from his tone, making his voice like that of a serrated blade. "Is it not enough?" Within a moment, the gap between them closed, is hand gripping her own before his other wrapped tightly around her waist to pull her in close, whispering into her ear, "What more do I need to do to make you obediently walk into my arms?"

    A shudder ripped through her body.

    For within his gaze, she felt completely and utterly trapped with no escape.

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