Page 49 of Fall

“You know,heis standing right here. I’ll have you know, dance is just artistic expression through movement, and I’ve mastered that. I can’t help that you lack taste in this fine male specimen,” he says, rubbing his hands down his body and rolling his hips in the air like he’s about to have sex.

I place my hand on his chest to stop him from embarrassing himself further.

“No, Taylor. Just no.” I chuckle and push him to the dance floor. He may not be able to dance, but I’ll admit that it’s fun to have him around.

The three of us make our way to the center of the dance floor and let the music take over. I glance over my shoulder to see Caleb and some of the other Knights on the dance floor with Genna and the rest of her Zeta Sigma Rho bitches not far from his side. My eyes roll and continue to scan the crowd.

I try to convince myself that I’m not searching for him, but I know it’s a lie. I find Elijah leaning against the wall, looking like a fallen angel in all black, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, showing off his elaborate tattoos and eyes focused in my direction.

I close my eyes and focus on the music to distract myself from the ache my soul feels. The DJ plays “Savage” by Megan Thee Stallion, and I’m brought back to reality with Celeste’s squeal—she loves this song. She moves from me to dance in front of Taylor, and I move to his back.

A few minutes later, I feel strong hands grab my waist. I look down to see masculine fingers that are unfamiliar to me. I quickly step out of his hold and turn around. Taylor must have turned around at the same time, because his voice is the next thing I hear.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” he growls.

Benji smiles down at me, showing off his dimples and perfect teeth before answering, “I’m dancing with the most beautiful girl in the room.”

I take another step back as he tries to grab my waist again, and then everything starts to happen at once.

Taylor is immediately at my side, using his arm to try and pull me behind him. “You’re at the wrong school. Did you get lost on your way back to NHU?” Taylor tells him, his voice booming as the DJ shuts the music off.

“We were invited, douche. And Evie is a friend, so can’t we all ‘just get along’?” Benji mocks and reaches for me again.

“You’re touching what doesn’t belong to you,” Caleb says, tapping Benji on the shoulder as his only warning.

Caleb swings his fist directly into Benji’s face, causing blood to spew from his nose, but he remains standing.

“Hey, man! What the fuck!” Parker shouts, running into the scene, but it’s not enough to stop either Benji or Caleb from swinging on each other.

In a blink of an eye, there’s a full-on brawl between the two of them, and the crowd spreads out to give them a makeshift ring, pushing me farther back.

“Don’t!” I shout before the crowd completely blocks my view, but no one hears me.

I try to fight through the crowd to stop them from fighting, but Elijah grabs my elbow.

“Do you get it now, Evelyn? You destroyeverythingyou touch.” He speaks low in my ear.

I snatch my arm from his grip.

“Fuck you, Elijah. You know damn well I didn’t do anything.”

“You never do, and yet, here we are.” He places both his hands on my shoulders, forcing me to take steps back, and looks over to Taylor.

“Get them out of here,” he commands over the sound of grunts and flesh hitting flesh.

“Get the fuck off of me. I’m not going anywhere. Stop them before someone gets hurt,” I shout, pushing his hands off my shoulders, ignoring the burning sensation his hands leave behind.

Elijah nods his chin to Taylor, and Taylor walks in front of me in an attempt to get me to walk away.

I shake my head. “I’m not leaving, Bryant. Just help him and stop this ridiculousness. Someone could get hurt!”

“He doesn’t need help, Eves. The only people who will get hurt are the ones that deserve it.” His lips curl into a smile, but his eyes plead with me to do as I’m told.

“Get her the fuck out of here, Bryant.” Elijah’s command is cold and scarily calm.

He pulls off his shirt in one graceful swoop and rolls his head. I watch as he stretches his tattooed neck from side to side and cracks his knuckles, preparing to join in the fight.

“Now.”

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