Chapter Eighteen | A Losing Battle
The only people that remained were some random guys that I didn't know, Kaylee, Hazel, Hunter, Eros, Xander, Niklaus and Gnashton. Gnashton shot me a smile as he took Niklaus's hands into his and began to leave.
I scowl at him for leaving us with the work of cleaning the blood but he was completely unfazed by it and even blew a sarcastic and mocking kiss my way. Flashing him my middle finger, Gnashton laughed and disappeared with Niklaus in tow who turned around to give me an awkward and apologetic smile before the doors closed behind him.
This fucking sucks.
"This fucking sucks." Xander said like he had just read my mind.
I look at him. He looks at me. It felt like we were having a staring contest that ended when Hunter clasped his hand on Xanders shoulder to get his attention.
"No point complaining." Hunter said. "Hazel and I are going to get some mops and stuff to clean up the blood."
"Make sure to get bleach too." Kaylee sniffed the air and gagged. "This shit is starting to stink."
"As if it didn't already smell like shit in here." I muttered.
Curiosity got the best of me and I also inhaled a deep whiff of the air. Immediate regret. I gagged painfully as I clutched the collar of my black t shirt and tugged against it. I grew hot just being inside here, inhaling the putrid scent that is Professor Graylin's blood that is slowly drying on the floor.
"We need to clean this ASAP or else we'll suffer every time we come in here." I barked out but my voice was muffled by my shirt as I had lifted it up to cover my nose. Not like that would help in the slightest. One of the moments when having an enhanced ability to smell sucked ass.
"You're right." Hunter agreed quickly, his face morphing into one of absolute disgust when he caught whiff of the horrible smell that was traveling through the air and stabbing at our nostrils.
Taking his mates hand, he leaves with Hazel waving goodbye at us even though she'd be back with supplies to clean up the floors. Truly an adorable girl unless you piss her off or come for Hunter. Then she transformed into something close to what I assume the devil would look and act like.
On the floor by a basketball hoop, Eros is sat down in a feeble position quietly with his eyes closed. Kaylee is beside him with her arms wrapped around him to comfort him. I can't even imagine what was going on inside his head right now after having witnessed all of whatever first hand. He was beside Easton when everything was happening after all.
When Easton was getting yelled at, Eros was close by and indirectly taking in the blow as well in spite the fact that Professor Graylin chose to target Easton. I'm sure that the bastard of a professor would've verbally attacked Eros instead of Easton since he was in an even worse state than Easton before but I'm sure that he was scared of Xander.
The arrogant asshole would never admit it, he didn't have to though because I knew. I knew that he was terrified of angering Xander. If he even tried to raise his voice at Eros, Xander would be on him in the snap of a finger for messing with his brother. Even raising his voice by an octave at Eros would give Graylin first class tickets on a train to his brand new grave.
That's why he chose to pick on Easton despite the fact that all three of his siblings are in this class as well and would attack the shit out of him. He also failed to realize that his mate was in the class. Either he wasn't aware of it or he just wanted to test his luck, regardless he got what he deserved for making Easton and Eros his targets. What kind of grown ass adult picks on people who are two times less their size? Fucking cowards, those are the kind of people who did that.
I wanted to internally berate Professor Graylin more but I wasn't able to as my attention was drawn to the entrance of the gymnasium. The double doors are violently thrown open and in walks a large guy in a tight ass t shirt to remind everyone just how big he is, blue jeans, white sneakers, and his dirty blonde hair a mess atop his head. His face is contorted into an angry scowl with his fist clenched into a ball. It looked like he wanted to punch the living daylights out of some unfortunate soul.
It just so happened the poor unfortunate soul is Xander King. It also just so happened that Xander is no unfortunate soul.
The big meat head stomps his way over to an indifferent Xander and proceeds to grab him by the collar and aggressively pull him close to his face until his face is inches away from Xander's. Something about that dude grabbing Xander like that makes me want to pull an Xavier. The pits of my stomach twisted, I grew angry and irritated. How dare he grab Xander like that?
No, calm down. I release a shaky breath. Chill out, Jay.
With or without the mate bond, I always took Xanders side and fought by his side. He's my best friend after all. My blood is boiling because that dick face is stepping up to my best friend, not because Xander is my mate. That's definitely not why I'm so upset right now. It's just my obligation as a best friend to be this angry and want to bash his face in until teeth fall out.
That's all it is.
The oaf shakes Xander a bit as he glares hatefully at him. Inside, Jackson is growling.
"Why the hell did you sleep with my girlfriend?" he demands.
"I didn't sleep with your girlfriend but maybe she wishes that I had slept with her." Xander smiled.
The oaf — his name is now oaf — begins to fume as his nostrils flare and he growls at Xander, clearly triggered by Xanders words that mocked and taunted him. Xander was challenging his masculinity that was fragile to begin with, something that insecure men were always so livid by. Funny.
"What the fuck did you just say?" The man barked out and spit came flying onto Xanders face.
What is with men today and not being able to keep their saliva from flying out of their mouth? It's gross. I wanted to rip his mouth off for even allowing the smallest particle of saliva to drip onto Xanders face.
Xander sighs as he wipes the saliva off his face — gross — with his forearm and looks placidly at the irate meathead.
"Maybe if you cleaned the earwax out of your ears you'd be able to hear me better, bitch." Xander feigns shock like he misspoke and gives him a fake apologetic smile. "Oh, I meant to say Mitch."
The sarcasm in Xander's face and laced like poisonous venom in his voice was too overwhelming to be the least bit convincing that he was being even remotely sincere in any way.
So his name is Mitch. Oaf has a better ring to it.
I thought Mitch was angry before but now he's absolutely furious. He looked like he wanted to break Xander's face, and he tried to. Emphasis on tried. The man who looked like he was on some Goddamn steroids wasn't able to land a single finger on Xander.
I didn't allow him to.
His fists had risen to punch Xander in the face and I — without thinking — ran over and wedged myself between the two of the them with my hand rightly gripping Mitch's hand with immense force before it could strike Xander's face.
I don't know why I did it.
Xander can clearly take care of himself but I wasn't able to stop myself from my moving. My legs had a mind of their own at this point, even if I wanted to stop myself from intervening I wouldn't be able to. It felt instinctual. Just as instinctual as it felt to defend Kaylee. That's all it was, all I was doing is protecting my best friend.
Mitch is taller than me by a few inches but that didn't stop me from crushing his fist in my own hand until I heard him groan as he tried to get out of my hold.
Good try.
I twist his arm aggressively and pin it behind his back with enough force to have him squirming around despite having another hand for him to use. The way he struggled would only make it more painful for him, I silently urged him to struggle more.
Kicking the back of his knees, he buckled and fell to the ground with a harsh thud. The way he cried out in pain and held his arm told me that I may have dislocated his shoulder and broke a few of his fingers which was not my intention at all. If he fought with Xander, it would've been much worse. He should be thanking me honestly, I was being nice.
I try to ignore the way Xanders looking at me right now. He's looking at me in awe, his eyes shining with admiration and something else...
I cough.
I focus my attention back onto Mitch who is in pain on the floor, clutching at his twisted arm with his one good hand.
"I suggest that you figure out why your girlfriend would make up such bullshit about Xander because clearly — " I scan the room until I finally spot the girl that I saw enter the room earlier with someone else moments after Mitch stormed in.
She hides behind one of her girl friends and is taking in the scene with an easily readable expression that told me that she's the bitch who was making shit up and was caught in her own lie. I look her up and down and she watches me do so with red cheeks and attitude laced in every wrinkled crevice of her face. Snickering, I shake my head and look back down at Mitch.
" — she's not the type that he would even go for." I sneer.
Exhausted by all of the events that have transpired, I walk to the double doors and leave the room just as Hunter and Hazel begin to walk towards the entrance with confused expressions on their faces as they see me walk out and past them. I didn't bother to address or provide answers for them. I was too tired to do so and my head was spinning right now as I tried to rationalize defending Xanders honor.
Having the mate bond there makes things more complicated and confusing for me. I would have defended Xander anyway, I knew that but the feeling that the mate bond was attached to the reason that I got so ... angry and made me want to break Mitch's face kept creeping up and crawling all over my skin.
Speak of the devil and he shall appear. I smelt Xander before I even saw him as he appeared beside me and was following me as we walked down the empty hallways. I internally groaned.
"Why are you following me?" I demand.
"I'm not following you." He lies.
My right eyebrow quirks up but I don't look at him.
"You're clearly following me right now, Xander." I said.
Xander hums in thought. "Or I just happen to be going the same way as you."
I really want to strangle him right now.
'No you don't.' Jackson denied.
Worsen my mood why don't you? I block Jackson, knowing that he'd continue to spew shit that I didn't want to hear.
I remain quiet, refusing to speak to Xander and feed into his antics that were starving and begging to be fed right now. All I have to do is get away from him and then I can regroup and organize my thoughts that are a fucking mess right now.
As soon as Xander and I turn a corner, he shoves me against the wall. His hand is firmly holding my neck with his big hands and those thick fingers of his pressed against my throat. He wasn't choking me, just keeping me in place against the wall while his other hand chose to rest above my head. My right hand firmly clutched the wrist of his hand that was wrapped around my neck. I used my forearms on my left arm to press against his chest in my attempt to prevent him from coming any closer.
I didn't realize how breathless I was until I felt my chest puff in and out continuously as pants drifted past my lips and I gazed up at Xander with untamable fury.
His eyes return a look that makes my fury morph into uncertainty, nerves, and want. The last feeling I buried down and hid in the depths of my damn soul. He looked like he wanted me. His eyes raked my body, even going as far as to drink up the sight of a bead of sweat trickling down my neck, falling past my collarbone, and disappearing into uncharted territory for him; my shirt. My member twitched in response as it was honest even when I wasn't.
"Get the fuck off me." I struggled against him.
I relentlessly try to push him off of me but was I really even giving it my all at this point? Jackson would've ate this up and told me that I didn't really want him off of me like the pain in the ass that he is, but I didn't need him to tell me that. My subconscious told me that already despite the fact that I didn't want to hear it.
His eyes weren't fixated on my body anymore, they were concentrating on my lips now.
No no no.
"I want to kiss you so bad, Jay." He whispered.
My eyes widen, I swallowed nervously. Where did this even come from? There is no way in hell that me defending his honor turned him on this much.
'He's pent up and his wolf is starving.' Jackson says in a sing song voice in my head. 'You think he wouldn't be after not being able to touch you or be near you for days now?'
This could not be my fault but it sure as hell felt like it was my fault.
"No." I firmly shake my head. My voice cracking makes me sound a thousand times more unconvincing. "You can't..."
"But you want me to." His voice deepens to a low timber that made each vowel echo in my ear and send the most delicate shivers down my skin as goosebumps rose on my skin. I was trying to act like my member wasn't dancing in my pants simply from the carnal desire laced in his each word he had uttered.
His eyes moved from my lips to my eyes. I felt like melting into the wall behind me and disappearing.
"You're breaking the rules right now. You're not supposed to be touching me." I quickly remind him, unable to muster up the strength to truly retaliate because my head was a mess right now so I had to grasp for straws. For a crumb of something.
But I hoped that my words would jog his memory of the promise he made.
I also hoped that it would convince him to let me go but even I knew that it wouldn't work like that. Xander didn't give a damn right now, the look in his eyes told me that. I wish he wouldn't look at me like that, it made me a mess inside. I didn't ever want to reveal how much of a mess he made me inside. I hated it.
Him having all of this power over me frustrated me and so I clench my teeth and glare at him. Raising one of my legs, I brush my knee against this crotch and I rub against it teasingly, watching as his eyes flash with lust as his lips part slightly to inhale. His grip on my neck loosens enough for me switch our positions while he's a bit dazed. I aggressively shove him against the wall, and use both of my hands to pin his hands above his head.
"If you're not going to follow my rules, I'm going back to California." I threatened.
It was just a bluff. I don't intend to go back especially with the my heart aches and feels like it's fucking being stabbed at the simple thought of being even ten miles away from him. But this bluff of mine — that I uttered just to get him off me so I could think straight — caused Xander to growl as he immediately switched our positions in the snap of a finger.
Both of my hands are effortlessly pinned above my head with a single hand as his dark eyes look down at me with his sharp canines bared in anger. Wedging a toned, muscled thigh between my legs that trembled in response as I sucked in a breath at the feeling of his leg rubbing against my clothed member that was hardening quickly, I shiver and dig my nails into my hands.
I bite down on my bottom lip to refrain from releasing an embarrassing noise. My body begins to shake, my bottom lip trembling as he rubbed slow, hypotonic and teasing circles against my member with his leg. Fuck. Desire began to grow within me as my member reacted to the feeling. I felt dizzy, like I was spinning in vigorous circles. I'm breathless, my eyes wanting to shut and succumb to the pleasure that made me tingle inside.
"You're not going anywhere." His breath tickles my neck and I shiver. My eyes feel heavy as they slowly begin to close. "You're mine."
Why do I feel like I'm fighting a losing battle?
Note: not edited