Page 518 of Hate Mates

Yeah.

“Okay, um, I’ll come back after then, if that’s alright?”

It’s not.

“Sure, that’s fine.”

He nods and gives me a quick wave before turning around and bumping straight into Harlan. I watch as the meanest boy in the home’s eyes narrow dangerously at the new boy before he looks at me over his shoulder, and his mouth becomes a tight, angry line.

Chapter Four

HARLAN

Fifteen Years Old

“Keep walking,” I warn the new kid in a low tone.

He gives me a confused look, but when I take a step closer to him, he tucks tail and runs. I stand there watching him until he disappears to fuck knows where, then look at Karter one more time. I give her a nod of acknowledgement before I start walking in the opposite direction of where the bitch boy ran off to.

I don’t turn around when I feel eyes on me, even though I know it’s Karter, because if I turn around to look at her, then she’ll know something I don’t want her to.

She’d never be able to look at me the same way again, and that’s something that wouldn’t be easy to deal with. She’s the only person here who pays me attention because shewantsto, not because shehasto.

Even if it is because I push her buttons most of the time.

I push the door open to my room and walk over to my bed, then sit on the edge as I try to clear my head. I can’t stay angry for too long ‘cause that’s when bad things tend to happen.It’snot her fault that he wanted to see her, but I don’t like that she let him into her room when I’ve never been inside.

With a frustrated grunt, I slam my fists onto the mattress, then throw myself onto my back. Kellan has something that I don’t, and that’s why she did what she did, but what is it?As soon as I figure it out, I’m going to take it from him,I decide as I turn onto my side and stare at the wall beside me.

I know what will make me feel better.

I lean forward and pull glass mural pieces off the wall. I have a secret that I’ve been hiding behind it ever since I got caught using my artistic capabilities in a less-than-stellar way.

My eyes lose focus the longer I stare, replacing the bland, white barrier with something that makes me smile. I can almost make out the curves of her body below the fresh coat of paint. Mrs. Jessop thought that the drawing was inappropriate and hastily tried to cover it when she saw it, but I managed to scratch most of it back in. Her hips look slightly uneven since I had to draw over them again, but I made it as life-size as I could, so that when I lay in bed at night, Karter is lying right next to me.

Closing my eyes, I inch closer to the wall, tuck an arm under the pillow and inhale a deep, happy breath, content in the knowledge that she’ll give in soon one day.

Then we can leave this place together.

When I next wake up,the room is dark.

It’s strange because I didn’t realize that I had been so tired that I slept the rest of the day away. I stifle a yawn with my fist, then rub my eyes before I finally open them and turn onto my back.

My body is sore and the inside of my mouth tastes funny.All of the weird and wonderful things that occur when the body rests, I muse with a lazy smile. I tilt my feet forward, stretching my legs as far as they’ll go, then grimace when I feel a quick, sharp pain in my calf. Reaching down, I give it a quick rub, then smack my lips together before I swing my legs over the side of the bed and stand up.

I scratch the back of my head as I yawn again, then walk over to my bedroom door and pull it open. A quick peek into the hallway tells me that all of the doors around me are closed, which means that all of the kids are probably asleep. The grown-ups are probably still awake, but they won’t be outside of their rooms. They’re probably down in the cellar having a few drinks and talking about us like they do when they assume everyone is asleep.

I shift uncomfortably when I feel a burning pain surge through my dick. Not that I find it strange since looking at my crude drawing of Karter tends to give me a stiffy before naps or bed.I wonder if she would be less sad if she knew that?

I give myself a brief tug as I make my way toward the bathrooms, then wince at the shock of pain that greets me in response.What the fuck is going on?I wonder as I walk faster toward the bathrooms. There’s no reason I should be feeling this weird since everything was just fine when I fell into my super nap earlier.

I carefully hold myself as I waddle the rest of the way, then close the door behind me, flicking the lock in place. A hand blindly feels along the wall until I’m able to find the light switch, illuminating the room.Fuck, this hurts,I think with a grimace as I walk over one of the sinks and gently push my sleeping pants down to mid-thigh.

“What the fuck?” I breathe nervously when I notice that there’s blood on my boxers. It’s not enough for me to have toworry one of the grown-ups, but it’s more than enough for my hands to start to shake as I quickly shove them down and reach for my dick.

I can feel the dried blood near my balls as I grab myself, then recoil almost instantly. My mouth hangs slightly open as I turn toward one. I hoist myself up on one of the sinks and stretch my cock so I can get a better look at what I just felt.

And when I see it, I almost pass out from the shock.

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