Page 4 of College-Virgin & Dark Bully Next-Door

My mind conjures a memory of my best friend—well, ex-best friend’s kid sister. Her chubby, innocent-looking face and that long, blonde hair she always wore in a messy ponytail. Peter had been picking on her for years. Harmless pranks, so I’m sure she’s used to it. However, I’m concerned about the last part of Mom’s statement.

“What do you mean by ‘she’s been through enough?”

Mom gives me a puzzled frown, resting the bag on my bed. “I thought you heard what happened. Haven’t you and Chase kept in touch?”

“No, and it’s a story I’d rather not talk about.” I catch a glimpse of a crestfallen look, then add, “Not right now. Can you tell me what happened to Sky?”

“It’s not just Sky. Chase, too. Well, and David. Claire ran away two years ago, a few days after you left,” she informs.

“Seriously?”

Wide-eyed, she nods, then glances furtively at my half-opened door. “David hasn’t told us what happened, but there have been speculations. People are saying she ran off to be with another man.”

“Wow.”

“There’s no proof that it’s true, but oh… I feel so sorry for Sky. Chase has been away at school, and she’s practically there alone.”

“What about David?”

She rolls her eyes, plopping on my bed. “When he’s not drunk, he’s buried in his work. He hardly makes time for Sky. Dan says it’s because she looks just like Claire, and he hates that reminder. We’ve tried an intervention, but it only worked for a few days.”

“Damn…” I sit beside her. Something moves inside me that feels like pity. Well, I think it’s pity. I’m not used to this sensation or any emotional reaction at all. Two years of self-training left me with an emotional deficit I’d been content with.

Half an hour back home, and the factory settings are already being restored.

Courtesy of Sky.

I picture the girl who used to bother me and Chase when her best friend wasn’t around, begging us to include her in our games. We’d send her to play with Peter, and her feisty response would earn her a spot in our crew.

When we got older, I got obsessed with teasing her. For some reason, I enjoyed pushing her buttons, evoking her sassy, cutting responses. I would hit below the belt, and she’d go for the jugular. All harmless fun.

Until it wasn’t.

Mom goes over to open the blinds, which gives me a view of her rose garden and the Bennett’s backyard. The incoming nightfall casts a dark blue shade on their mid-sized pool. I remember the summer nights when I used to scale that wall for a swim. There was no need to sneak, though. The Bennetts let me use it whenever I wanted. Pretending to sneak around added to the thrill.

“Reach out to Sky when you get settled, will you? Seeing a familiar face might improve her spirits.”

I respond with a nod before she goes out. Maybe I will. Maybe I won’t. After what happened two years ago, Chase probably won’t let me touch his sister with a ten-foot pole.

Rising from the bed, I start unpacking, only pausing when I feel a cramp in my shoulder. It’s uncomfortable but nothing to alarm me. It certainly won’t stop me from what I came back home to do. I might be at rock bottom now, but starting next week, I’ll be making my way to the top.

I close the drawer with my knee, still rubbing the injured shoulder. Two surgeries done to repair the ligaments, Six months in recovery, ten thousand dollars in debt and a ruined amateur boxing career.

Well, that’s what my last doctor said.

I don’t believe him.

Telling me ‘you can’t’ is a sure way to light a fire under me, and hell, there’s one blazing under me right now. Dad may be right. I am the prodigal son. Unlike that character, I’m not home to stay. I have a plan. Rock bottom will not be my hangout spot for long.

Something moves past my peripheral vision as the drawer slams shut. I twist my head to look out the window, then do a double take. There’s a naked woman in the bedroom next door.

Correction: almost naked. She’s actually wearing panties. They’re lace, so she’s practically naked, anyway.

Her back is turned to me, but I can see the edges of her boobs. She’s standing in front of the mirror, her slender arms lifted, both hands clutching a bunch of her blond hair.

I’m a pervert for staring, but I can’t stop.

I should turn away and close these blinds, but my eyes remain glued to that vision. She is a vision, even from behind. I take in her cinched waist, the curve of her hips, the way those panties hug her ass. My cock stirs in my pants, reminding me I haven’t been laid since the night before my opponent put me in that goddamn hospital. Whoever that guest is over by the Bennetts could probably be my first.

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