Reed was in front of me in seconds and I pressed myself into the wall, looking up at him. "Please don't hurt me, Reed! It was an accident, I swear!" I exclaimed, watching his eyes narrow at me.
"Don't you fucking watch where you're going?" He snapped, and I flinched at his tone. "I didn't mean to. I was just throwing away my friends food and you happened to be in the way!" I blurted. I closed my eyes when I realized that I'd basically just told him it was his fault for being in the way. "Are you fucking blaming me?" He hissed and I shook my head, nervously twiddling my fingers.
"No, no! That came out wrong." I squeaked. Reed suddenly grabbed my arm and shoved me into the classroom beside us, closing the door and I started pushing his arm away nervously. "Wait, wait. Please, I won't bother you anymore but don't slit my throat or anything!" I gasped, digging my heels into the floor as I tried to tug away. Reed glared down at me, "Shut the fuck up." He snapped. I obeyed, nervously chewing my lip and then I heard footsteps passing the room we were in.
When they were gone, Reed pushed me up against the wall and I cried out in surprise.
"Reed, I said I was sorry!" I whined, trying to push away from him as he looked down at me. For a second, he didn't say anything and instead just stared silently at me before he suddenly spoke. "I don't give a shit." He said bluntly. I squirmed nervously when he didn't say anything more, his eyes still locked on me and still looking angry. I couldn't tell what he wanted or what he was thinking and I didn't like it.
"Umm.." I started, clearing my throat as I looked over to the door, "I-I have to go to the office. Mr. Block said that he..uh..wanted me." I stuttered, jolting in surprise when Reed leaned closer. "You don't have to go to the office." He said simply, no expression on his face. I paused, "But..I..Well, I was called to." I fiddled nervously, shifting on my feet as I tried to push myself as far into the wall as I could.
Reed stared at me, "You're an idiot." He muttered, "I set that up." He said. My lips parted in realization and I nodded slowly, "W-What for? What do you want?" I asked quietly. I was wringing my fingers by now, as if trying to remove the anxiety from my bones. "Honest, I wanted to hurt you." He said, cocking his head as he looked at me. I bit my lip at this, "Okay." I said quietly, and Reed suddenly smacked the wall beside my head, making me jolt in surprise.
"I really don't fucking like you." He snapped, close enough that I could smell his cologne.
"I didn't mean to spill it on you!" I cried, trying to slip away from him quickly and I barely got away before Reed's hand enclosed my wrist and he pushed me chest first up against the wall. His hand came around the front of my neck, only applying slight pressure as he gripped my wrist and placed it behind my back, bending my arm at a weird angle.
I pushed up onto my toes, whimpering as I pressed my stomach into the wall, "I heard you the first ten times you said it." He scoffs, and I struggle in his grip, "Please, Reed. We can work this out but please don't hurt me." I begged. "I didn't say I was going to hurt you." He mutters and I bit my lip, trying to look at him over my shoulder, "Then what are you doing right now?" I retorted, "Cause this doesn't feel too nice." I frowned.
Reed paused, "I'll leave you alone this once but I swear, bother me one more fucking time and I will hurt you." He hissed, his lips brushing against the shell of my ear.
I nodded hurriedly in agreement, "Okay, okay! Agreed. Done deal." I said, and his hand released my wrist, the other slithering along my skin until his fingertips just brushed against the back of my neck as he released my neck. "Now get the fuck out of here before I change my mind." He said, and I didn't have to be told twice. I hurried out of the classroom and into the empty hallway, rushing to the nearest bathroom.
I had to pee like a motherfucker after that. Reed was terrifying to me and I didn't know how to control that, nor did I know why he hated me. Sure I'd spilled some food on him, but was that enough to hate someone? To hurt them?
Then again, I'd heard Reed hurt some guy for looking at him the wrong way. The only reason he'd stopped was because of his best friend Xavier. If that rumor was true, I was lucky he hadn't hurt me. I intended for that to be my last run in with Reed, but because I'm ever so lucky, it wasn't. Nope, instead, another thing happened the very next day.
I happened to be walking with Noah, arguing with him over whether the Harry Potter series was better or the Lord of the Rings series. I, ever the potterhead, said Harry Potter was better while he said Lord of the Rings.
Noah and I entered the library, "You're an idiot. Of course I've seen all of the Harry Potter movies." I scoffed. Noah rolled his eyes, "Really? Did you, though?" He asked dryly, shooting me a disbelieving look. I glared, shooting him the middle finger as I held the door open, "Yes! Matter of fact, I've watched the entire series about twenty times." I said. Noah went to walk in front of me and I shoved him through the doorframe, watching him stumble with a grin on my face.
"You need therapy or anger management." He muttered. I scoffed, "And you need to grow some balls but I don't see you doing that anytime soon." I retorted, walking through the door with my fingers still gripping the handle.
"Why do you insist on insulting my manliness? That's the only thing I've got going for me." Noah frowned. I let the door slam shut and chuckled, "I hate to break it to you, but you don't even have that going for you. You're about as manly as my bra." I snorted. "So," I said, "What exactly did Olivia and Jasmine do to get lunch detention this whole week?" I asked, walking into one of the aisles with two large bookshelfs on either side.
Noah stood to the side, watching me as I searched through the books, "They pulled a prank on the teacher. Well, Jasmine did, but Olivia was giggling along before it happened so she got lunch detention, too." He frowned, not looking very happy about that.
I raised a brow, "Don't be too down. Your woman will be out of there in no time and then you'll be able to try to remove her tonsils with your tongue anytime you like." I said, giving him a teasing wink. He glared at me in response, "Shut up, Leila." He muttered, "What the hell are you looking for, anyways?" He asked, sounding impatient. "Don't get your panties in a twist." I said in reply. Noah's brows furrowed, "I don't wear panties." He said.
"Really?" I asked, feigning surprise. "Coulda fooled me." I shrugged, pushing up onto my tippy toes.
I began poking at a book with my fingers, trying to pull it down. Noah shoved me for my comment and I slammed into the shelf with a grunt, hitting down the books on the other side of the shelf. I heard them fall, at least six of them. "What the fuck?!" I heard someone on the opposite side of the bookshelf hiss in anger. It instantly clicked in my mind that that was Reed, and that I'd just knocked at least six books onto his head.
I peered through the shelf and jolted back into Noah in surprise when my eyes met Reed's through the crack I was peeking through, hearing his footsteps thundering to rush over to probably murder me.
I shoved Noah forward towards the library door, "Go, go! It's Reed and I don't want to die yet! I'm not even eighteen and I haven't even had my first kiss or a boyfriend and I don't want to die yet! I have to finish watching Vampire Diaries first before I even think about dying!" I cried, all the while being shushed by the librarian as she glared at me from her desk.
I looked over my shoulder as I shoved Noah out the door, seeing Reed was literally right on my tail. I squealed in surprise and terror, quickly slamming the door in Reed's face before he could get out. No literally, he ran into the door, his face hitting the glass and I paled, realizing he'd probably want my head on a stick as a trophy to take home after killing me. "What did you just do?!" Noah cried.
I whimpered as I shook my head, "I signed my death certificate!" I wailed, "Now go!" I gasped, watching him push the door open.
Noah and I took off down the hallway, which was pretty much empty since we were here earlier than we should've been. School technically didn't start until seven thirty, but it was six AM and we were already here. I wondered briefly what the hell Reed was doing here so early, but dismissed it when I looked over my shoulder, seeing him still tailing us.
I turned to Noah and stumbled a little in surprise when I noticed he wasn't there anymore. I actually stopped running in confusion, looking around the hallway like he'd pop out to save me, "Noah?" I asked, wondering where he'd gone. The breath was knocked out of me when Reed tackled me to the floor, my back hitting the hard laminated tile with a yelp, "Fucking mother of shit!" I cursed.
My head had slammed against the floor too, pain sprouting throughout my skull as I groaned. Reed's hand wound around my throat with more pressure than last time, shaking my head like a fucking ragdoll and I whined, trying to push him away, "Please don't murder me! I'm too young to die!" I cried.
Reed pulled me up by my throat and pushed me up against the wall, still choking me, "Well, you're also way too annoying to live!" He snapped, anger clear on his face. I whimpered, pushing at his chest like he'd suddenly be weaker than me, "Please, Reed! I'm just really unlucky, I didn't mean to do those things!" I cried. Reed briefly tightened the grip he had on my throat, his other hand gripping my wrists and pushing them behind my back.
I was practically trembling in fear, tears rolling down my cheeks because of how scared I was. Suddenly I saw something plastic hit Reed in the side of the head and he dropped me to the floor, picking up the gatorade bottle off the floor beside me as he shot me a glare. "If you fucking move at all, I'll rip out your tongue and feed it to your dog. Got that?" He hissed. I nodded, gasping in air and the second he turned his back I jumped up.
I found it a little hard to move, as I was literally so terrified that it seemed like I'd completely forgotten my bodily functions.
When I remembered how to walk properly, I booked it into a nearby classroom and quietly shut the door, hoping he wouldn't find me. I went to lock the door when I noticed something about the lock. My head reeled back as my heart dropped directly into my butt, "Oh, fuck." I breathed, placing my hands on my head. There wasn't a lock on this door, not one I could use without a key, anyways.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck." I hissed quietly, covering my mouth when I could hear Reed's footsteps outside of the classroom door, passing down the hallway. I heard his voice seconds later, ringing out, "Oh, Leila. I don't want to have to come find you, but I will. You're just making this worse on yourself." He called. "I could just look in every single fucking class, if this is how we're doing it." He spoke again when I didn't make noise or leave the room. I stayed quiet, but moved to the teachers desk and huddled under it.
I pulled my knees up to my chest, the pleated black skirt from our uniform fanning out on the floor as I tried to keep quiet.
I could hear classroom doors opening and banging against the walls with the force he was opening them before the sound of desks scraping against the floor would commence. Then he was outside of the room I was in and the door flew open, slamming into the wall so hard that I had to practically push my hand down my throat to not cry out in terror.
I could hear the desks sliding noisily across the tiled floor, and then there was silence for a few seconds. I thought he'd left but then his footsteps started, heading right towards the teacher's desk where I was under. I tried to push myself as much into the corner as I could, biting my lip as his shoes stood directly in front of the desk opening. I thought perhaps this would be the part where the killer leaves and doesn't find the victim, but no.
Instead, his face popped into frame as he bent over, face stoic and anger in his eyes. I whimpered, pushing back into the corner and Reed gripped my ankle, yanking me out from underneath the desk. I let out a screech, trying to kick him away even though I knew it was very possible that I could've been flashing him my underwear. If it meant not dying, then I didn't care.
Reed suddenly flipped my leg in a way that made me have no other choice but to roll onto my stomach, and then he sat on me.
I felt his hand scrape back my hair and I frowned in confusion, wondering what was happening. Before I could say something, Reed yanked on my hair and I yelped, having to push myself up with my back arched to stop the pain springing through my scalp.
"Please stop!" I cried, tears rolling down my face as his free hand wrapped around my neck, choking me from behind. "You've been such a fucking pain in my ass little bitch, you know that?" He hissed, pulling my hair more as he tightened the grip on my neck until I was struggling beneath him. I was desperate now, kicking my legs in hope that maybe I'd eventually kick him in the back and also jolting underneath him like a fucking bull trying to buck the rider off.
"What the hell?" I heard someone say from the doorway.
Instantly, both of us froze what we were doing. I don't know why I froze, as if I did something wrong and would get in trouble for it, but I did. Reed jumped off of me and I looked up at the doorway to see a guy about Reed's age, eighteen, who I assumed was Xavier. I figured that because nobody else would've bothered to interrupt Reed while he was mid-strangling a girl on the classroom floor.
I scrambled off the floor like I was on fire, knowing I probably looked a disheveled mess. My hair felt like it was tangled from Reed pulling on it and I knew I most definitely had red marks around my neck, hand prints to be more specific. I'd lost a shoe somewhere along the way and one of my knee-socks had rolled down, my skirt hitched up higher from trying to buck Reed away like a donkey.
If I wasn't crying and looking completely terrified, he might've thought Reed and I were just trying to find a place to get down and dirty.
Luckily, though, that wasn't the case. Xavier gaped at Reed, "The hell you doing, you fuck? Why are you in here strangling this little girl?" He asked. I frowned, wondering why he called me a little girl. I wasn't a little girl. Sure I wasn't the tallest, but I wasn't little. I was 5'5 at least.
"Stupid bitch has been asking for it." Reed scoffed, shooting me a glare. I shuffled back more, bumping into an out of place desk. "Yeah?" Xavier raised a brow, his eyes darting over to me. He looked a little amused, dare I say. "That girl was asking for it?" He asked, looking doubtful. Reed rolled his eyes, "She's been getting on my fucking nerves since yesterday, man." He snapped. I looked around the floor for my shoe and frowned when I spotted it.
It was laid there innocently on the floor between Reed's legs.
I just wanted to get my shoe and go home because I sure as hell wasn't staying at school for the rest of the day. I'd say almost getting choked to death on the classroom floor by a delinquent suffices for a day off.
Xavier rolled his eyes, "Want me to take you home, dollface?" He asked, glancing over at me. This seemed to agitate Reed even more, his defined jaw clenching as he glared at me with a look of hate in his eyes. I swallowed thickly and looked away from Reed, nodding at Xavier, "Yes." I said softly. Xavier gestured for me to go out the door and I paused, "Um.." I muttered.
I pointed down between Reed's legs where my shoe was and both looked down at the same time. Reed grabbed the shoe before Xavier could and I gasped, ducking when he chucked it forcefully towards me. It flew over my head and slammed loudly into the wall behind me before falling to the floor. I grabbed it and put it on before rushing carefully out of the classroom, not wanting to be around Reed any longer.