Rampage ✔

Chapter six

The cafeteria turns silent as I sit at my regular lunch table on Friday afternoon. I look up from my plate of fries to see my friends staring with wary expressions at a group of people a few tables down. My eyes lock on him automatically, drawn to the attractive man sitting at a table alone. My mouth goes dry at the scene, and even though I'm not quite sure what's going on, I know that it isn't anything good.

A boy with light brown shaggy hair stands behind Reece with his arms crossed over his chest and a sadistic smirk on his face. I recognize him as the boy who spit at Reece's feet in the cafeteria on my first day. He has a medium build, not too muscular and not too lanky, and he's of average height as well. I can't make out what he's saying to Reece, but I catch the words: mother, ruined, gone, and whore. Whose mother is he talking about? Is it Reece's?

The students in the cafeteria break out into hushed whispers as the boy continues to snarl at Reece and I turn to my friends to get answers, "Who is that guy?"

Kayden glances at me, "That's Scott Mulligan. He's the captain of the soccer team. Although not many people on the team like him, he is the best player we have. He's an egotistical ass who thinks he is better than everyone else and he's a bully."

My eyes narrow at the information handed to me and I turn my attention back to the boys to find that Reece has stood from his chair. My teeth snag on my lip as I anxiously wait for something to happen. Everyone has told me Reece is a fighter, and by the look of rage on his face, I know that he isn't going to back down easily.

A breath I didn't even know I was holding escapes through my mouth when Reece slams his fist into Scott's nose without warning. I can hear the loud crack of it breaking on contact and Scott falls to the floor, blood spurting out of his broken nose. Two of Scott's friends step forward with glares aimed at Reece. With calculated movements, Reece raises his fist, punching the guy on the right and then expertly spins to the side to elbow the boy on the left in the ribs. While he is bent over in pain, Reece brings his knee up smashing it in the guy's face.

I watch the fight in awe, my eyes wide. A few shouts can be heard from teachers trying to break up the crowd of students around the fight. I didn't even realize they had formed a circle around the fighting boys, but now that teachers are here they scatter back to their lunch tables.

"Can someone take these boys to the nurse? You, Reece Daniels, get to the principal's office!" a male teacher shouts, face red with anger.

The three boys on the ground are escorted to the nurse by students to assess their injuries whilst Reece is dragged out by a teacher.

He doesn't show up to the rest of his classes.

***

After dinner that night, I decide to take a walk around town. Stars shine like small gems in the sky and the moon casts a dim glow across the street. There are a few shops on either side, but they are starting to close since it's already nine o'clock. My black leather jacket keeps the chill of the wind away from my body as I walk and I don't even notice the cold until I come across a short bridge. It's rusty and the paint is chipping; to say the bridge looks old is an understatement.

I should turn back and head home, but my curiosity prevents me from doing so. Well, they do say curiosity killed the cat. I shrug, crossing the bridge and notice that the houses get significantly smaller and older the further I walk. I pull my jacket tighter around my middle when a gust of wind blows by making my hair whip into my face. Now that it's darker, my mind becomes more alert. After all, I am an innocent teenage girl walking alone at night and there are creeps out there no matter what neighborhood you're in.

Resisting the urge to turn around, I continue wandering down a few more streets until I come to a sudden halt. My ears pick up a sound and I hold my breath to listen. My eyebrows furrow in confusion and I twist my body toward the opening of an alley where the sounds are coming from. This is the part where a crazed murderer wielding an axe pops out and kills the blonde bimbo. But I am neither blonde, nor a bimbo.