Page 34 of Promise to Break

Trying to understand a bully isn't something I've attempted before. Killian Fierro, however, is much more than that. I don't know why he's changed his act, but it's an act, nonetheless, and I have no intention of falling for it.

I, more than anyone, understand the emptiness in a person's stomach and soul. For instance, hunger alone can make the strongest soldier break under its unyielding force. I remember those first days in the orphanage. The other kids saw me as weak just because of my slim and petite figure. One of them was my first true bully. Sam was fifteen years old, and he loved food. Serena's and mine, in particular. So he stole it under the supervisor's nose every chance he got, and I let it go on for four straight days before acting.

For four days, I let Serena eat my evening yogurt, telling her I wasn't hungry, and for four days, I endured. My stomach roared every moment of the day, but on that fifth day, my mind crumbled under the strength of my survival instinct.

My body controlled my mind, and I attacked Sam with all I had. I did everything in my power to find food, and I not only took ours back, but I took his as well.

The supervisor at the time punished Sam for his greed, but he didn't stop there. And when he tried again, I became smarter and more cunning.

I stole meds from a cabinet, not even knowing what they were at the time, and I put them in my stolen soup. Thirty minutes later, poor Sam started farting in front of everyone as he ran to the toilet. He sat there for hours as he pooped all the food he stole from my sister and me, and I memorized the name of the medication.

I told Raven about this medication, and a few days later, a bottle appeared out of nowhere, reminding me that her father and uncles make a good portion of their living wage from illegal substances.

All the athletes in school drink protein shakes before practice, and every shake is specifically designed for each person individually. For instance, it could be a specific flavor or the amount of added vitamins. Killian takes a vanilla cinnamon-flavored shake with a little bit of spirulina in it. But today, he's getting a dose of a super-fast laxative formulated for people with digestive problems.

Poor Sam suffered so much because I put all that laxative into the soup he stole from us, and I'm going to do the same now. Killian Fierro is going to make the toilet his best friend for the foreseeable future, and I'm going to enjoy every single second of it.

"This is going to be fun," Raven claps as if her favorite cousin isn't going to be in a lot of pain. Usually, she isn't big on watching sports because she'd rather take me for a run. But today, we both sit in the stands watching for the moment Killian makes the run of his life.

The team walks onto the practice field, and I spot the asshole instantly as he's still wearing the glittery jersey I made for him. Why the hell does he look hot even now?

"He's got the bottle with him." Raven claps like a child who just discovered the fake Santa she believed in wholeheartedly is about to be exposed.

We both watch, waiting for the asshole who dared to kiss me in front of the entire school twice—no, three times—to take a few sips. Nothing yet.

Their coach comes onto the field, and training begins. Killian goes to his place as the goalkeeper. He notices Raven and me and winks playfully. Killian fucking Fierro, playful. Who knew?

Every time he goes near the bottle, I tense. My conscience screams at me to put a stop to this. I don't.

"Stop," the coach roars. "Kai, I don't know what's wrong with you today." The Mute says something to the coach as the man nods and steps away, marching toward the benches as if looking for something. He sees the bottle near Killian's feet, picks it up and shakes it, then turns back to Kai. "You need more energy. Here, take Fierro's shake. The spirulina will wake you up."

No, no, no.

Raven and I share a look of horror as Kai takes the bottle of poop bomb I made, unable to do a thing to stop him as he downs the entire contents as if it's the best thing he's ever had.

"OMG!" Raven exclaims. "What are we going to do?" She looks to me for answers, but I don't have any to give her. How the fuck could I have known something like that would occur?

We're plastered to our seats, waiting for the shit show to start. Quite literally. But the deviant who drank the beverage appears to be fine as he runs all over the place.

It takes over forty minutes or maybe an hour for the coach to bark, "Stretches everyone." A minute later, Kai bends his knee into a stretching position, and his face changes as the most horrendous sound comes out of his butt. Instantly, his once-white shorts are painted in a muddy brown fluid. Fuck!

"Pizdech!" The Mute screams what I presume is a slur in Russian as he runs for his life toward the locker room. All the guys look confused as some of them wrinkle their noses—from the smell, no doubt.

"Run, Maricela, run," Raven calls, but I can't. The poor guy is going to be sitting there for a long time, making the toilet the victim of his behind.

"Girl, we are fucked. Get up. He's coming." Raven tries to shake me as Killian strides toward us, appearing as if from thin air and staring at me with amusement in his eyes. The vacancy isn't there. No, his once-dead eyes are now full of life. I expected anger. I see none. The fucker is trying to look somber, but the amusement is clear on his too-perfect face.

I hate that face. You want to sit on that face. I don't. I argue with the voice

"So, the poop fest was meant for me? I have to say it was a tad much, don't you think?"

Much? After all this time and after all that was done to me? Okay, a bit much, maybe. But then, a big dose of laxatives is nothing compared to what I still have planned for him.

I put a finger to my chin and twist my lips as if considering. "I don't know what you're talking about, but if it was meant for you, was it really too much?"

The idiot grabs me by the hand and pulls me up, forcing me to stand in front of him. I wish I had my camera handy, and if I did, I'd take as many pictures of him at this moment as I could. I took a bunch at the game a few days ago, but I doubt he knows that.

"You look guilty as hell."

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