Page 23 of Picture Perfect

Dre may have come from money, but he was the black sheep of the Roberts family. They'd disowned him long ago. And, it's no surprise looking at him.

The blonde demon slouches on the couch, his dirty boots resting on the coffee table in front of him. With a small knife he most definitely should not have on school grounds, he meticulously scrapes the dirt from beneath his fingernails, his brow furrowed in concentration.

The man is twisted, there's no doubt about that. But I know his history. I know the truth about what makes him tick.

Chess is an entirely different entity. He's fucking brilliant. A scholarship kid from the wrong side of the tracks. He exudes sunshine, but it's a ruse. A coverup. I've seen the darkness that lurks inside him. Maybe they have too, because they flock to him in hopes of tasting a little danger.

He's leaning forward in his chair, fingers flying over the keyboard as he enters line after line of code. The crease between his brows is deepened in concentration as he hums a tune softly under his breath.

"So, what are we gonna do about it?" Dre drawls without looking up. A smirk crawls across his lips as he continues, "Because I could use another taste of the Arctic."

I notice Chess' shoulders stiffen, but he says nothing. Curious. Worth paying attention to. I'd hate for our carefully laid plans to be derailed by a case of the morals.

"You sure you want another go at her? She seems to have taken on the persona of a church mouse this week."

"More to unwrap." A cruel smirk curls Dre's lips, a vicious thing. The malicious glint in his eye as he glances up at me almost makes me worry for the Ice Princess.

"All in due time, my friend."

"So, we're really doing this?" Chess asks, finally looking away from his computer screen.

I can't help but smirk at Chess's question. "Oh, we are definitely doing this. That little bitch has secrets. I want to own them. She has another phone somewhere, I'm fucking sure of it."

"She's hiding something," Dre agrees. He tosses the knife to the table with a clatter before his boots stomp to the floor. He leans his elbows on his knees. "I want to know what."

"And, what if there's no other phone. What if she's not hiding anything? What if what she's hiding isn't what you think?"

"Do you know something we don't, Chess?" I ask, my voice low and deadly serious. "You better share with the class."

He smiles at me, attempting to disarm me the way he does everyone else. "I don't know shit, Saint. But you all seem pretty obsessed with the girl. Makes me question your motives is all."

"It's forbidden fruit," Dre scoffs. "I want another fucking taste. Her fear was...delicious. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Fear?" Chess interjects, finally letting his guard down. "Is that the only reason you're doing this? To scare her? To get a rise out of her?"

Dre snorts, crossing his arms over his chest. "What do you care, huh? You got a hard on for the girl? Want her all to yourself?"

"Yes, because that's the only reason for decency."

"Decency? She comes from scum, Chess. You think she's any better than those little rats. We're pursuing our interests, same way we always have. She's a stepping stone. A delicious one, sure, but a stepping stone nonetheless."

"Right," he scoffs, turning back to his laptop and resuming his typing. He's shaking his head and muttering under his breath, and something inside me snaps.

"Fuck you, Chess," Dre growls, standing up and towering over him.

I rush over to him, my footsteps echoing off the cold tile floor. I reach his side and grab onto the back of his chair, spinning it around to face me.

“You better watch how you fucking speak to me, Chess.”

"Or what, Saint?"

"Are you fucking kidding me right now?" Dre narrows his eyes. "Are you so fucking pussy whipped by a pussy you've never even touched you're gonna go against your best friends?"

“Fuck this,” Chess hisses, slamming his laptop shut and standing up. He pushes past us both, but I stop him before he gets to the door.

"Where the fuck do you think you're going?"

Silence falls over the room as Chess stares both of us down. The only sound is the whirring of the computer fans. I've never seen him like this. I'm not really sure what to do with it. But, I'll need to keep an eye on him. This shit can't stand and he fucking knows it.

---