Page 84 of Landon & Shay: Part One

Not only had he snapped, he’d snapped at me.

Just then, Reggie walked past us with his arm wrapped around Monica, and he looked in Eric’s direction and shook his head with a look of disgust on his face. “Fucking faggot,” he muttered.

My body tensed up and I puffed out my chest. “What did you just say?” I barked, making Reggie look my way.

“Not you, Landon. Cool your jets,” he said.

“Did he do this to you, Eric?” I whispered. Eric’s frown conveyed that it had been Reggie. The blood in my veins began boiling as anger built up in my body. There was only a handful of things I actually cared about, a handful of people I’d give my life for. It just so happened Reggie had chosen to lay a hand on one of those people, and that wasn’t okay.

I clenched my jaw as I walked toward Reggie. “What did you say?” I demanded again.

“I said faggot,” he repeated, gesturing toward Eric. “This asshole had the nerve to show up to my house then the next thing I know, he’s drunk, and I find him kissing some random dude in my bedroom. It’s fucking sick. The world doesn’t need fucked-up people like—”

No more words from the homophobic asshole.

I shut him up with my fist. Ninety-nine percent of my reasoning for slamming my knuckles into Reggie’s jawline was for Eric, but that one percent was selfishly for myself. I’d been wanting to slug that guy from day one.

Reggie stumbled backward like a giant awkward gorilla. He ran his hand against his lip, wiping blood away. “You shit.” He growled before charging toward me, but I had my fist already prepared to slam into his face again. He body shoved me against the lockers, then we both went tumbling around like apes on the ground. He got a few hits in, but then I flipped him over and started hammering my fist into his face. Black and blue, the same way he’d done to my friend—I was going to hit him until he was black and blue.

A crowd formed around us, and it took a few teachers to pull us off of each other.

“Reggie! Landon! Principal’s office.Now!” Mr. Thymes hollered.

We were both dragged away by teachers, and Mr. Thymes looked at me as if he was so disappointed in me for using my fists. But hell, I was sure Romeo had thrown a few punches in his time.

I wiped the corner of my eye, which was stinging. Reggie had clipped me good with his fist, and blood was dripping down my cheek. I looked up and saw my favorite pair of brown eyes staring my way. She looked terrified as she hugged her textbooks to her chest. I wasn’t sure if she was scared by the fight as a whole or by me. I knew how I could get. I knew how I lost myself in my rage. I didn’t want her to see that side of me. I didn’t want her to judge me for my shadows.

But then, I watched her lips. They parted slightly and mouthed, “Are you okay?”

She was concerned about me. Even though I was broken and bruised, even though I looked like an untamed beast, Beauty still saw me and wondered about my wellbeing.

I nodded once.

Yes, Chick.

I’m okay.

* * *

Principal Keefe was an olderman with a Santa Claus beard and a Santa Claus gut. It had been a while since I’d spent time in his office due to fights. After Lance passed, I didn’t feel the need to get my aggression out in that way. Still, Principal Keefe didn’t seem surprised in the slightest by my arrival to his office. It was almost as if he’d expected it to happen at some point.

“For a minute, I thought we were past this stage, Mr. Harrison,” he muttered, his voice low and tame.

Yeah, yeah, me too, Principal Keefe.

Reggie sat next to me, his face already changing colors, and at least I had the benefit of watching that happen. He looked uncomfortable.

Good.

He didn’t deserve any kind of comfort whatsoever.

Even though he was obviously the loser of our fight, he still had a slick tongue on him. As Principal Keefe stood up to go get some paperwork, he left us in his office.

Reggie brushed his hand beneath his nose and mumbled under his breath. “You’re acting like a real dick just because I’m fucking your bitch.”

My hands clenched, but I didn’t react. I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of getting under my skin again. Plus, Shay would want me to do better, be better. I wanted to do better, too. I wanted to be better. Therefore, I wasn’t going to feed into his taunting—at least I didn’t plan to until he kept talking.

“That’s right, I’m fucking your old bitch, and I can’t wait to fuck your new one, too. That mouth of Shay’s? That sweet hole on her face looks like a great one to fill with my cock. I bet the good girl will even say please and thank you after accepting my load,” he mocked, and well, that was a wrap on his life.

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