Rebels.

Chapter five.

Ellington sat in the grass until his homework was finished, which didn't take any longer than an hour. By this time, more people had copied his idea and were sat chilling in the grass, some sunbathing, some playing the guitar softly whilst singing, some talking and some making out with other people.

He gathered his things, stuffing them back into his bag and getting to his feet. He looked around the college campus as if he was considering where to go next, but really he only had one place on his mind.

Randys.

Randys was a diner that a lot of college kids hung out at, just down the road from the college campus. It was simple, yet the staff were very chilled about everything, which was necessary when they had a lot of teengers there every hour of every day. They had good music, quick yet great quality food, cheap and they were always nice people. It was everything anyone looked for in a diner. Ellington particularly liked the fact that it was somewhere where he could sit and watch movies on his laptop in the corner, without being asked to "by something or get the hell out".

The warm early afternoon sun beat down on his back as he walked towards Randys diner, lost in his thoughts.

He had managed to keep Rydel off if his mind for a whole extra hour whilst he finished his essay but now she was back. Dominating his thoughts. He wondered what she did when they weren't together. Did she stay on campus or live nearby? He'd never seen her around much but he'd never looked out for her. Was she a criminal or did she just seem like that? Was it him or did she smell really really good?

For some reason, he was always led back to the question, why did her eyes look so mysterious and intriguing, the complete opposite of her appearance?

He entered the diner, the sweet smell of deep fried food hitting him like a wave as he inhaled it, smiling satisfactorily. He found his way to his regular booth in the corner, sitting down on one of the seats and pulling his laptop out of his bag. He turned it on, logging in and plugging in his earphones, placing them into his ears.

A waitress walked over to him and he ordered his regular milkshake and cookies before logging into netflix and searching for the tv series he had been watching whenever he had the chance.

From the second he hit play, he was completely entranced by the story line, the characters, the dialogue, the plot twists and every single aspect of the series he was watching. He would definitely classify himself as a movie/tv geek and that's how he loved it.

He didn't take his eyes off the screen when the waitress delivered his milkshake and cookies to him, only nodding this head in thanks. Without moving his eyes, he picked up the milkshake, taking a sip and selecting a cookie from the plate to nibble on.

He loved being in his movie fantasy land, however if he wasn't so absorbed in his movie, he might have seen what was coming next.

Two large guys approached him, both of them going to his college and being co captains of the football team and by their build and clique of followers, it was obvious that they were popular.

"Hey Ratliff." One of the announced, the clique of followers laughing like something was funny.

Ellington pulled out his earphones, looking up at them shyly. "Can I help you?" He asked quietly.

"Yeah. We need an essay writing for us." One of the guys asked, punching his fist into his hands threateningly. Ellington ignored it.

"Sorry, i can't help you there." He innocently replied, looking at his laptop.

One of the guys slammed down the screen of his laptop. "It wasn't a question."

Ellington continued staring forwards as if his laptop screen was still there. He hoped and prayed it would be over soon.

The second guy, grabbing his bag, searching inside and pulling out the paper on which he had written his essay. He held it up in the air. "Got it."

The first guy picked up his milkshake, pouring half of it into his bag. "this is what you get for disobeying orders."

The second guy took the milkshake from him, pouring the remainder of the tall glass over his laptop and watching the sticky liquid ruin Ellington's beloved laptop forever. "that's what you get for lying."

The first guy picked up the cookies. "This is what we get for being hungry. Awesome crew out!" He announced, leading his whole clique out of the diner.

Ellington looked down, fighting the urge to burst into tears.

At that moment, what he failed to notice was, a badass blonde who had watched everything unfold, slip away into the afternoon sun.

It wasn't often that Ellington ran home but the tears threatened to fall and he knew his life would be ruined forever if they saw him in a state of vulnerability. He didn't stop running until he had locked himself in his dorm and buried his head in his pillow, tears being absorbed into the fabric. His laptop, something that meant everything to him, had been ruined in a matter of seconds, his homework had been stolen right under his nose and everything in his bag had been covered in milkshake.

There was a loud knock on the window which made him seriously jump as it took him a few seconds to realise who it was. He dried his eyes quickly before sitting up and going over to the window. He pulled his sleeves shyly over his hands, pushing the glass up in order to open it.

"wow Rookie, you look like sh*t." Rydel said bluntly, swinging her legs inside.

Ellington didn't step to the side, wanting her and her rude attitude to go away. "What do you want?"

"To know why you didn't stand up for yourself." She said, letting herself into the room despite his attempts to stop her. "I saw it all happen Rookie. We both know you could have stopped them. I've seen you and your wild side. You spray painted a penis on a dudes car last night just because they almost hit me. Why didn't you stand up for yourself this time?"

It was the kindest he had ever heard her sound and it was honestly entrancing. For a second. Until he realised who it was and that he couldn't trust her.

"Rule number one, no questions." He said simply, sitting down on his bed.

"You can't do that, it's my rule-"

"Yes I can." He replied simply, laying down.

Rydel stood next to him. "Then let's get them back. The best revenge you could ever think of!" She said enthusiastically, her eyes shining.

"No. No revenge. Just please, leave me alone." He pleaded, staring up at the ceiling.

She looked at him for a few seconds, wanting to argue but deciding against it.

The next time he looked up, she was gone.

He lay for a while, thinking about random things and trying to bring up his mood before drifting off to sleep.

When he woke up a few hours later, he noticed something on his desk. He walked over to it, rubbing his eyes. He couldn't help but smile when he realised it was his essay in perfect condition with a note saying "i think this belongs to you. you're a nice guy. see you 'round Rookie. - Rydel."

something about the simple gestured changed everything.

10 comments please? I love you all so much!!