If you ignore the person you like, then you fall for them harder.
"I'm glad it hurts," I shot back at him. "You're a Bass, after all. Your father, Maxwell Bass, a businessman, politician, and public figure. What's the conclusion? Just dirty headlines with photos of your mother, beaten and shattered. Headlines that relish the details of how your father broke your mother's arm, and no one did anything. So, he loves you? Does he hit you too? Or do you both mock women?"
Alexander's gaze made me feel sick. I pressed against the wall, realizing what had just flown out of my mouth. Anger mixed with hatred and... sympathy. I shouldn't sympathize with him. Not with him. But I did. Not that I justified his actions and behavior; it's just... when your family is broken, you're broken too.
"Be a submissive sheep, Waldorf. You believe everything the media says," he growled, his voice almost a snarl. "If I hear one more thing about my family from your filthy mouth, I can't promise what I'll do, Orphan. Do you understand?" He hissed threateningly, his eyes blazing. "Do you understand?" In an instant, he was right next to me, shaking me by the shoulders.
"Or else what?" I challenged.
I knew I should stop. His eyes had already mentally killed me, eviscerated me. In his thoughts, I lay dead in a ditch, where, according to his logic, was my place.
"I'll destroy you," he glared at me. Again. "You and everyone who says anything about my family."
"I at least don't have anyone. I'm not looking for family love. And you? Do they love you? Judging by your behavior, no," I shot back.
The silver in his eyes turned to a blade. He looked like he couldn't believe I hadn't shut up.
"Do you want to crawl into my head, orphan?" he hissed tensely. "Do you think I'm just a spoiled boy who's going crazy from excess money and suffering because Daddy doesn't praise him?"
His fingers tightened around my shoulders, bringing physical and mental pain. I couldn't breathe. The taste of arctic cold on my lips, as if winter had crashed into this day, forgetting it was autumn. Needles pierced through my body. But I didn't avert my gaze. I already knew what would happen next: Alex would look for my weaknesses and press on them.
"I don't think about you at all," I whispered.
He huffed, looked at me with disgust, and pushed away. He ruffled his black hair, shaking his head as he walked away, leaving me alone in the corridor, already forgetting about the meeting of the prefects, about everything.
***
Alex’s POV
Anger simmers within me, like a geyser. I walk aimlessly, feeling her foolish gaze on my back. Has she decided to interfere with my family? Does she think her filthy orphan mouth can say anything about my father?
Why did I even follow her? The elders' meeting started less than a minute later. I went searching for my assistant.
"Alex!"
She catches up to me. Lost in thought, I didn't realize I had walked into the garden. I stop suddenly, relieved no one else is here. I don't want anyone to see us together. I turn to her.
"What the hell are you following me for?"
Her green eyes blaze with some wild fire. She doesn't even know why she followed me. An uncontrollable idiot. You'll die in a ditch, and I won't even know.
She opens her mouth to speak but then closes it. She realizes it's pointless. She squeezes her notebook with thin fingers and fidgets, unsure of what to do next.
I smirk to myself, mocking her.
Madness overwhelms me. She drives me crazy. Infuriates me. The urge to hit her buzzes beneath my skin. Hit her, like a weakling.
Inside, where demons rage, despair burns. Fear. Hope. For what? I don't know. I don't understand. What the hell is hope?
I approach the orphan. Panic flashes in her eyes. She wants to step back but can't.
"Don't look at me like that, Orphan," I hiss. "Even the sun hides from your gaze, you're so..."
I don't finish. I want to say so much, but it all vanishes when I see what she's doing. She places her hands on my jacket, burning my skin. Inches. Just inches between us. Nervous orphans race within me. She tilts her head back and stands on her tiptoes. I stand still, like a statue, unable to move.
Her face is inches from mine. She's closed the gap. That lilac scent is suffocating, like it's sucking the air out of me. I hate it and I hate her too.
She's staring me down with those green eyes like she owns the place. I snarl, "Just try it."
Waldorf looks shocked, but her eyes are lit up with rage and confidence.
"Just...". She reaches out, her palm touching my face gently. Like I'm a wild animal that might lash out. Then she kisses me softly, and quickly pulls back. It's like she's not sure if she should have done it.
My body freezes up. Prickles of heat explode across my skin, leaving me feeling like stone. Her lips leave the taste of spring on me, and it's like poison spreading fast.
One second, one heartbeat, and I hear a quiet sound from her mouth. I'm scared, and I'm furious.
My hands grab her shoulders, and I'm about to shove her away. Of course, I would never kiss someone below me like that. But I don't push her away. Instead, I hold on tight, and I'm breathless. She's getting under my skin, and she knows it.
My hands slide down to her elbows. I'm not pulling her closer, but I'm not pushing her away either. Time just stops.
My grandfather's voice pops into my head: "Girls like her are always after something. They need one thing from you: your money. Not you, just your cash."
I jerk away from her, eyes wide with fear. We're standing on the edge of a cliff, staring into an abyss that's scarier than death.
"Bitch!" I choke out, my voice hoarse with emotion.