Sub Rosa Ties ( A High School Dark Romance)

Zera

The scent of citrus mixed with peaches enveloped my nose and senses. I opened my eyes slowly to see the sunlight streaming into my room, and I squinted my eyes shut quickly.

"I hope you won't regret those words, Zera," the words echoed softly in my mind, sounding so familiar. "I won't," my voice echoed afterward.

Last night, I had gone to watch the match, the court, the bracelet, seeing Gerard, the chaos about stabbing, and then... memories of Gerard and me rushed back to me in a surge.

My cries and panting as I gripped his steering wheel for support, his rough grunts as he delved in between my legs in the darkness.

My eyes snapped open, and I sat up, my mouth opened gradually, and I felt noise escaping, but I couldn't discern if I was screaming or not until I felt my jaw throbbing painfully and heard a loud knocking on my room door.

"Zera, what's wrong?" my mom's panicked voice snapped me out of my daze, and I quickly stood up and rushed to the door, opening it just a crack.

"Nothing, I just had a bad dream. I'm okay," I rushed out in the tiniest voice I could muster.

She looked at me strangely and smiled.

"Come out for breakfast; you'll be late for school," she muttered, walking away. I closed the door, leaning against it for support.

"You must be crazy, Zera. Crazy... crazy, crazy. How could you say that to Gerard and let him do that to you?" I groaned out, clutching my hair tightly and collapsing to the floor.

A small hiss escaped my mouth as my butt met the chilly tile floor, and I hastily lifted my skirt to inspect... A gasp escaped my lips as I beheld marks that were more than just hickeys; they resembled wounds.

"Gerard, you freak..." My eyes burned with fury, but the anger soon waned as I recalled that I had been the one to initiate things in his car.

They covered my entire upper thigh, and I could only imagine what my little cat looked like. I slammed my head against the door and let out a loud groan, already losing my confidence to go to school.

"You can't go to school today, Zera Palmer. That's completely out of the question," I whispered, my eyes fixed on the floor, but who was I kidding?

♡♡♡

"I apologize. I'm not sure what came over me. I just ran back toward the crowd," my voice sounded as solemn as I wanted it to. I sat in class, facing Sarah, who had refused to talk to me all morning.

I noticed over 30 missed calls on my phone, and I knew she was very concerned about me.

"Not sure what came over you? You looked completely insane last night, Zera. I thought Gerard had brainwashed you or something. I couldn't sleep last night, and I remember checking the group chat to see if there was any news about a girl stabbed or kidnapped or..." she ranted, panting, and I noticed tears welling up in her eyes.

I grabbed her hands, holding them tight, and forced a smile.

"I'm sorry. I mean it, and I promise it won't happen again."

She looked away, feigning annoyance, but I knew she had already forgiven me. Sarah wasn't good at holding grudges against anyone; she either let it out or forgot about it.

"So, do you care to tell me about what happened last night?" She shrugged when I teased her.

"You were also there last night, you saw it for yourself," she muttered, forming a pout.

"But you always know all the details," I tugged at her hand and formed a cute face before she finally agreed and began to recount how it all started.

Bret, a student from our class, was quarreling with a particular guy from the opposing team. No one knew he had already plotted to stab Bret, but fortunately, it ended up piercing Bret's palm instead. Bret is still in the hospital while the guy is in custody.