Page 39 of A Vicious Rumor

"I came here with Tyson Stone," I said.

"Really?" he mused, biting his lip and looking off to the side. "That's interesting."

"Why's that?" I asked, letting my curiosity get the better of me.

"Girl like you hanging around with a guy like Tyson? You seem way out of his league."

I rolled my eyes. "We all have equal souls in this world. Mine isn't any better or worse than yours or the homeless man's down the street. We're all independent, sentient beings. I don't believe in things like 'leagues,'" I replied, disdain slipping past my lips unintentionally.

It was people like this guy, Zachary, who really got to me. They were judgers. They thought they were better than the people around them because of things they didn't even work for. Zachary only had money and status because he was born to parents who had money and status. He hadn't worked for it on his own. And yet, he acted like he was better than everyone else.

"I like the way you think," he replied with a cocky smile.

"You should try it sometime."

"Try what?" he asked.

"Thinking," I mocked.

He snorted and rolled onto his back, his chest heaving with the laughter. "A girl with wit, so rare. I love it."

"Yes, well, as fun as this has been," I started to say. "I really should be going."

I started to get up, but he grabbed my wrist again. I lost my balance and went tumbling down onto the bed, which I gathered was much his intention.

In that moment, the door to the room opened, and I could hear Tyson's voice. "Lily, I'm really sorry, but we can't seem to find Scissors, god he's such an asshole," he started to say. I wrenched myself free of that very person's grip and sat up.

Tyson's eyes were dark as he took in the scene.

I opened my mouth to try and say something, but Tyson was already speaking.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" But the words weren't directed at me.

"Oh, hey," Zachary said, sitting up on the bed and looking completely casual. "I was just getting to know your date," he said, his eyes sparkling with mischief.

"You're dead," Tyson said. I stood quickly, because he was moving like a freight train towards where Zachary was. He launched himself on him, straddling him. But, just before he was able to throw the first punch, Zachary did something that had them both landing on the ground.

"Stop!" I yelled as they started to tackle one another. I ran around the bedpost and wished I hadn't because Zachary’s towel was still very much on top of the bed.

"You piece of shit!" Tyson yelled at him before throwing a punch that Zachary avoided. I winced as Tyson's fist went into the solid wood floor with a thud. "I'll fucking kill you if you touched her."

"Oh, I more than touched her," Zachary lied. I couldn't understand why he was doing this. It didn't make sense. Tyson was clearly bigger and stronger than him, so why egg him on this way.

"Stop! The both of you, that's not true! Tyson!" I pleaded. Adrenaline took over and I rushed in to try and break things up between them. In the course of my efforts, I got pushed to the ground and landed on my finger weirdly. I yelped in pain and moments later Luca walked through the door.

"Every goddamn time," I heard him curse under his breath as Tyson and Scissors continued to wrestle on the ground. He walked over to both of them and quite literally kicked them in the ribs.

They both keeled over and he gave them each another kick for good measure. "Scissors, put on some pants. Rock, go stand in the corner," he said, his voice booming through the bedroom.

"Don't tell me what to fucking do," Tyson started to say.

"You WILL stand in the corner," Luca said, turning to look at him and giving him a gaze that would have terrified me.

Zachary grabbed the towel off the bed and covered himself. I blushed as I caught a peek before he did, and he smirked and winked at me with a rather swollen eye. Luca turned to me. "Are you okay, my dear? Were you hurt?"

I shook my head, bending my finger. "No," I replied. "I think I just overextended a finger when landing funny."

"Yes, well, if my club members could show some manners towards one another, that wouldn't have happened. So," he said, turning back to Zachary. "Apologize."

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