Page 40 of Break You

The guy was a deluded egomaniac, for sure. I had the distinct feeling that I was going to regret sleeping with him for a long time to come.

“Yeah, so that’s not how equality works. And I did answer the question. I didn’t tell you, because my financial situation is the definition of none of your concern. Oh, and for the record, you didn’t ask me about the scholarship. You took one look at me and made a whole lot of assumptions based on what that airhead Cherie told you—I’m black, and I have to work to survive here, so I clearly wasn’t born with a silver spoon in my mouth.

“You connected the rest of the dots however you saw fit, without any input from me. It’s not my job to rid you of your ignorance and prejudice, when you jump to the wrong conclusions. That’s on you.” I wished I had a camera to capture the moment he realized he was basically a racist asshole—although I guessed the asshole part wasn’t new news—the look on his face was priceless.

“So, who is paying your fees?”

“Did you even hear anything I just said? Have you grilled Cherie about her financial status in the same way, like some kind of controlling weirdo, or is that pleasure all mine?”

“What has Cherie got to do with anything? I’m not sleeping with her.” He looked genuinely confused.

“Newsflash! You’re not sleeping with me, either. We slept together. Past tense. Singular. It was a random act of stupidity on my part that I’m going to chalk up to a whole host of mitigating circumstances and the recklessness of youth; and move the fuck on. And like I said yesterday, I’ll flat out deny it if anyone asks.”

I paused as though thinking, before going ahead, though really I was making use of dramatic timing. “Oh, and if the way Cherie spoke to me, when we ran into each other at the library last night, is anything to go by, she has a very different opinion of your relationship status. She might be slippery when wet, but she’s definitely prickly when upset.” I smirked at my lame rhyme. “But don’t worry, I already set her straight and told her she has nothing to worry about where I’m concerned. She’s more than welcome to you.”

He said nothing, but his whole body stilled eerily, apart from the vein throbbing at his temple. Moments ticked by like hours, and I almost wished he’d say something—even if it was something predictably obnoxious—to break the tension. Right as I was about to ask him if he’d gone into some kind of trance, he bent his arm at the elbow and lowered his mouth to my clavicle kissing it gently. Then, he dropped his hand from the wall and walked away without looking back. While I was glad that the conversation was over, his unexpected departure left me with more questions than answers.

Deciding that I had already dedicated more brain space to him than was warranted, I pushed thoughts of him and our exchange to the back of my mind, turning my mental attention back to the small square of paper burning a hole in my jacket pocket, and the single nonsense word scrawled on it.

E-P-I-E-X

Then, I pulled out my phone and scrawled through my contacts, stopping when I got to the number I needed. Pixie.

Xavier

I stormed into the main campus cafeteria like a man on a mission, which I absolutely was. I knew I’d find Cherie there. Not eating, but holding court with her cronies. She liked to see and be seen, and the cafeteria was the perfect place to do that, even if she’d rather die than let the slops they served there pass between her over-privileged, artificially inflated lips.

I spotted her right away, her hot-pink designer handbag shining like a beacon in the middle of the room. I marched up to her and lowered my head close to her ears, speaking menacingly quietly, so nobody else could hear. “Outside. Now.”

She looked up, startled, and for a moment, seemed as though she was deciding whether to come with me or not. I glowered, raising my eyebrow in warning, and she got the message, standing up quickly and following me at a trot as I strode angrily out of the room.

As soon as we were outside, I turned to her sharply, speaking harshly, but keeping my voice low. “If I ever catch you looking at, speaking to, or even thinking about Rocky Gordon again, I won’t be held responsible for my actions.”

She quickly schooled her features into a look of feigned nonchalance. “Who…?”

I paused before answering her, clenching and opening my fists, and counting slowly backward in my head to stop myself from doing something that either of us would regret.

“You know exactly who I’m talking about. And I’m telling you—don’t fuck with me on this, or you will live to regret it.”

“Oh, you mean Scholarship? Why are you getting worked up over her? Scum like that isn’t worth your energy or mine.”

I moved forward so fast, she didn’t see it coming. Backing her body to the wall with mine, I prodded at her shoulder, firmly enough to let her know I meant business.

“I always knew you were dumb, Cherie, but I never figured you for suicidal. I’m deadly serious. If I hear you've looked at her the wrong way, or even just breathed the same air as her, I’ll come down on you so hard you won’t know whether you’re walking on your feet or your asshole.”

The look of shock on her face was priceless, and I hoped it meant I’d gotten my message across. Cherie was determined not to show how affected she was by me, but I could feel her quivering under my touch.

She popped her gum. “Ugh. Really? We’ve known each other all these years—since we were practically infants—been friends and so much more, and that is how you treat me in favor of some trash from the projects? Drew said something about you losing your shit over this girl, but I’d figured he was exaggerating, because how could you? But maybe he was right, maybe you’re cray-cray or is it that you’re bored, and you need another project to occupy yourself with? I guess she’s like a broken-down old house—fucked up on the outside, and rotten to the core on the inside.”

I could have happily killed her with my bare hands, but instead I lowered my voice even more, so that she could barely hear, even with my mouth right next to her ear. “You’re nothing to me and never have been. Nothing except a warm inviting body to stick my dick into when jerking off wasn’t enough, but I didn’t have the time, energy, or inclination to go looking for someone better. And that’s all you’ll ever be. Now stay out of her fucking way, or shit’s going to get ugly.”

I was fairly sure she’d finally gotten the point—she was always somewhat slow off the mark, though I’d never previously figured her for someone with an IQ in single digits. Or maybe it was that she was crazy. There had to be something going on with her, to say the crap she just had. Drew, too. It was one thing to give me shit about my connection with Rocky, but it was another to be trashing me behind my back to Cherie of all people. Not only was she intellectually challenged, but she was the biggest gossip in the entire college. We all knew that anything that was said to her was said to everybody.

* * *

I found Drew at the communal rec room of Trinity Hall. He didn’t see me—or my fist—coming. When he’d recovered from the shock, he was angry, lunging at me to try to get a swing in of his own. I dodged his move, pulling back my own fist again.

“I will knock you the living fuck out if you don’t stop.”

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