Page 2 of Delilah In Discretion

“Not even a thank-you, Princess?” he asked, and I paused in the middle of the hall. He walked closer, and I turned around to see him only a few feet away.

“It’s not like you’re any better,” I whispered, and he tilted his head. For a six-year-old in first grade, Archer absolutely terrified me.

He was mean, stubborn, overprotective, and scary at times… the only difference between him and Neil was that he believed he had a right to bully me. Almost like he was the only one who was allowed to torment me.

“And you’re so tough, right? You could have handled this all on your own, huh?”

“I can take care of myself,” I whispered, and he walked over slowly as I took a small step back, wishing I had just left and gone back to class without worrying about him.

“Well, it doesn’t look like it. What I see is a pathetic, silly little girl who always needs someone to protect her.”

“I’m not silly,” I whispered, tears coming to my eyes.

He didn’t say anything. I tried to keep my bottom lip from trembling, but it was useless, as a tear slipped down my cheek. He looked at me for longer before his face grew angry. He walked towards me and hit my shoulder as he went past.

“Whatever. Don’t come crying to me when you need help later.”

More tears came to my eyes as my throat felt like closing up. A small sob escaped as I tried my best to hide it, and I quickly attempted to wipe the tears from my face.

Archer stopped at the end of the hall for a moment as I sniffled softly and walked over to the girls’ bathroom.

Before I could open the door, his hand grabbed my arm, and I looked at him with tears in my eyes as he looked down at me sadly. I made a move to pull my arm away, but he only pulled me closer to him, ignoring my attempts to get away.

“Let me go!” I cried helplessly, and he only ignored me as he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into his hold. He sighed as I tried pushing him away, but ultimately, I stopped as I simply cried on his blazer, overwhelmed by Neil, by the bullying, by him.It was all too much.

“I’m sorry, Princess,”he muttered, but I didn’t say anything as I wiped the tears from my now rosy cheeks.

Chapter two

Delilah

Fifteen Years Later

“Okay, Kimi, now what do we think about this?” I asked as I came out of my closet, holding a matching sweater and skirt set. Kimiko rolled her eyes as she took a seat on my bed.

“I think you should wear your school uniform. You know, the clothing they instruct us to wear on a daily basis?” she suggested, and I sighed.

“Kimi, do you know how basic I’ll look if I’m going back in a uniform? I need to make a good impression, and I can’t do it if I wear the same thing everyone else has to wear. Besides, what other colleges or universities require uniforms for adults?” I questioned, and she pondered for a moment as I folded up the sweater to put in the “maybe” pile of clothes.

“Aside from military colleges or universities in other parts of the world, I assume the only other option would be a school that requires the students to have inhuman intelligence, pay more than half a million dollars in tuition every year, and have identity issues after growing up in wealthy families that decided their futures for them.”

I gave her a look as she shrugged and spoke once again. “I wonder which one fits our situation.”

Deciding to ignore her, I continued to search through my closet once again.

Tomorrow was my first day back at Highland Bridge Academy, and to say I was nervous would be an understatement.

A few years ago, I graduated from the high school branch of Highland Bridge Academy and have attended the different branches of the school my entire life: elementary, middle school, and this year, university. It is one of the largest and hardest schools to get into.

Most of the students there also walk around with rich spoons up their... behinds. And instead of possibly using this time to clean my room and prepare, I was instead panicking with piles of clothes on the ground. No thanks to my “best friend.”

“You may think I’m overreacting. I say I’m underreacting.”

Kimiko sighed loudly and ran her hand over my Maltese dog’s white fur. “Your mommy is crazy, Marshmallow.”

I rolled my eyes at her and heard a gasp at the door of my room.

“Goodness me,” I heard Benjamin, my butler, say.

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