Page 38 of The Sweetest Cruelty: Hudson
Swinging my legs off the bed, I glared across at him. Unperturbed, Reed grabbed the chair tucked under my dresser, spun it around and sat on it backwards.
“Micah told me you have a hard-on for her already,” he smirked, placing his forearms on the backrest.
“What do you want Reed, because I know you’re not here to talk about pussy.” My brother remained silent, his face giving nothing away. Out of all of us, Reed was the best at hiding his emotions.
When he didn’t reply, I added. “If I’m wrong, by all means, let’s start by talking about Storm.”
That did it. His jaw started to tick. “What about her?”
“You got in her panties yet?”
Rubbing the back of his neck, Reed’s nostrils flared before he said. “No, I’m not here to talk about bitches. I’m worried about Micah.”
That got my attention. So was I. Micah had been acting shady ever since the Creed’s name came up at the dinner table. He also appeared to be getting stoned most nights,which wasn’t clever with school the next day. If we didn’t graduate this year, we wouldn’t have enough credits to get into college.
Reed and I spoke about Micah. We decided against chewing his ass out until we had a better understanding of where he was sourcing his gear.
I messaged my childhood friend Tommo. He’d dropped out of school last year and knew shit. He replied to say that he didn’t smoke anymore due to his girlfriend not approving. So, I knew Micah wasn’t buying from him or any of his contacts. I replied, teasing him about being wifed up.
After Reed left, I slung myself back onto my bed and lifted my headphones from my neck. Angry rock music started to soothe my rough edges and I pushed my hand down the front of my joggers and squeezed my cock. I then started to hatch a plan of all the ways I could mess with the principal’s hot daughter without allowing her to get to me. My dick was like steel in my hand as I stroked myself. I imagined her pouty lips wrapped around my cock as she took me deep.
My pathetic, lovestruck reaction to Molly Miller in the library had been fake. I hadn’t known who she was, and it felt like I’d been made to look a fool, and I didn’t allow anyone to do that to me. Not anymore.
The thought of punishing her, in several positions, caused me to blow my load within minutes.
Fuck! I grabbed a handful of tissues out of the drawer by my dresser and cleaned up.
Taking my hand off my cock, I then tucked it away in my joggers and retrieved my cell. I had already started spreading rumours about the new girl on social media. Cyberbullying was so easy, and little Molly had it coming. Slut shaming was the best way to fuck with the girls as everything was about sex in high school.
The way her eyes had widened as she’d looked up at me at lunchtime had been a mixture of shock and fear, and I so got off on her fear.
Molly needed to worry about me. When I put my mind to it, I could make anyone’s life hell.
What threw more fuel onto the fire was that she had awakened that hidden part of me and made mefeel. It was powerful and all-consuming and unwanted. Everyone knew that feelings made you weak.
And for that, she would have to pay the price. And then I started typing.
SEVEN
MOLLY
The next few days at school were a washout. Hudson’s behaviour towards me in the cafeteria had a ripple effect as the amount of influence he had in the school became clear. I had been outed as the principal’s daughter, and anyone who had beef with my father was out to get me.
Girls dished out dirty looks as I walked the hallways, boys just leered, and even my teachers seemed off. I was forced to sit alone like a loser in class, and any snickers from my classmates were overlooked. Someone continued to throw balls of paper at me during history. I’d ignored them, knowing they would have something mean written there, so why bother?
It was official, my first week had spiralled into a shitshow. I hated that cold, unbending certainty of failure and not fitting in. This was supposed to be a fresh start. Thankfully, Lisa, my closest friend in the UK, had sent me some funny TikTok videos one morning, and they had cheered me up. We messaged each other more than we called, mainly due to the time difference.
Cassius had also been in touch. I missed his warm smile and gentle teasing. American boys were just so different, almost too loud, and raw.
I hadn’t seen Hudson to talk to. I was desperate to ask him what his problem was. He’d walked past me and bumped my shoulder one day, knocking my bag to the ground. Everyone in the hallway laughed as the contents fell over the floor, including some tampons. Someone even stood on one of my books. It still held the footprint, a reminder of how unwelcome I was. And then the whispers started.
Mark, the boy I’d met at dodgeball, was now my only friend. He was the one who told me I had been targeted on social media. I only had his word for it as I wasn’t part of any groups. That meant I didn’t have the chance to read anything. Mark said it was probably for the best and suggested I ignore it until it blew over.
After a couple of run-ins with the girl, Tate from the cheer squad who called me a desperate whore, things became clear.
Supposedly, I was an English slut. Yep, week one and I had already been labelled. Rumour had it that the principal’s daughter was an easy lay. It didn’t bother me that much, I just hoped that bullshit didn’t make it as far as my father.
The only other person who didn’t give me dirty looks was Harper. The girl I met on day one. The one I then saw at the bowling alley.
