The initiation darkness.., p.3
The Initiation (Darkness Within Duet Book 1), page 3
The teacher was still there, and so were a lot more students, including cheerleaders and jocks.
Ignoring them, she got to work on filling the trash bin she’d also picked up.
“It’s about time someone calls her what she is. She’s dirt.”
“Trash.”
“Useless.”
All the time, Mr. Arnold didn’t say a word. He pretended not to hear the insults. Instead, he kept his arms folded as she worked to clean the mess. Once it was all done, the bell had already rung and most of the students had gone to class.
Mr. Arnold, after another two minutes, finally left, and she finished cleaning up the mess just as the janitor arrived. He also had someone to help him carry the dirt outside.
She watched them go and stared into her locker. The few books she had were now dirty, and the jacket her mother gave her was also covered in dirt.
Picking it up, she stared at it.
Shaking her head, she put it back into the locker, grabbed her books, and spun on her heel. Only she wasn’t alone.
Draven stood waiting.
She ran into him, his body stopping her from going. She stepped back, staring at him.
Neither of them spoke as they looked at each other.
It was on the tip of her tongue to scream at him, to shout, to hit him. She wanted to do something to make him realize that he’d been a dick and she didn’t accept that.
Instead, she walked around him, and as she turned the corner, she heard his laughter. He found this all amusing.
Just one more year.
One more year and I’m gone.
Far away from here.
She had begged for her father to send her to another school, to get her a home away from Stonewall, but he’d not listened. She wished she had the guts to just leave, to walk away and not look back. Only, she knew what poverty felt like and knew it would be worse if she left her father behind. She had no money and no way to make a life on her own. She had to be at his mercy.
Arriving fifteen minutes late to class, she got her first detention. The teacher didn’t care what she suffered. There was no excuse for tardiness in his class.
With the slip of paper in her hands, she sat down at her desk in the back, staring at it. She’d never been late, never been to detention.
She hadn’t even had things put in her locker before, and yet all of that had happened within one morning.
Who knew that going to a simple wooded area would make her so damn popular?
After class finished, she shoved the detention slip into her bag and made her way toward the next class. She passed people in the hall who’d seen what happened and thought it was the funniest thing of their lives.
Pretending they were talking about someone else, she went to each class, ignoring the ones that Draven and his gang were in. They sat in the back, and she sat in the front. There were times during those classes she was sure they were staring at her.
The temptation to turn around was strong, but she didn’t.
She was not focusing on the class, taking in absolutely nothing that the teacher was saying. When the teachers called for answers, she didn’t put her hand up.
First time again.
She expected to feel guilty for not paying attention, for not being the star pupil. Instead, there was a freedom in her silence. Refusing to participate felt good.
By lunchtime, she was ready to call it a day.
Instead, she went to the cafeteria, grabbed her tray for lunch, and as she spun around, Drave, Axel, Buck, and Jett were there. They blocked her path.
Staring at each of them, she turned to Draven last.
He had this smirk on his face as if he could read her mind.
Fuck you, jerk. You don’t have a clue what I’m thinking. What I’m feeling. You don’t know anything.
He stepped right up close to her.
“Hey, dirt face,” he said. With a hand out, he slapped it down on her tray and sent everything tumbling to the floor.
Laughter erupted around them, and she gritted her teeth.
“Dude, good one,” Axel said.
One by one, they walked past her.
“I’ll get that cleaned up.”
She didn’t even know who said that.
Watching them leave, she wondered if she could plot someone’s death just for pissing her off.
She had seen them, yes. She hadn’t done anything to hurt them.
Storming out of the lunchroom, she went straight to the bathroom. Gripping the sink so tightly, she tried to gain control of her anger.
Why?
Fucking why?
She’d done nothing wrong. She’d gone straight home after seeing them hurt that guy. She wasn’t about to make waves.
All of her life she’d been ignored. Why were they noticing her now?
She stepped into the toilet, grabbing some tissue as the door to the bathroom opened, letting her know she was no longer alone.
“Did you see that? It was so funny,” Joanne said. “Damn, Draven must really have it in for her. Not that she needs another meal. She can totally skip a good couple hundred.”
Through the crack in the door, Harper saw Joanne making fun of her.
“That Draven is hot though. I’d love for him to pay attention to me. The right kind of attention though,” This came from Louise. “What I would do to ride him. I’ve heard he’s rough in bed. He loves to fuck a woman and make her scream for days.”
“I hear he fucks married women as well and that even husbands want to kill him because his cock ruins it for everyone,” Charlotte said.
All of them were cheerleaders, wearing little skirts that showed off a great deal of thigh.
“Could you imagine Harper trying to ride Draven?” Joanne asked. “It would be so funny. The girl’s a pig. I can’t believe she didn’t just slit her wrists. I bet that’s why her mother did it. She looked at her dirty ugly ass and said no more.”
“Joanne, that is bad.”
“So what? It’s the truth. Anyway, I hear that Draven makes you fuck his friends. That’s why they don’t have any girls in their club. The initiation is brutal. They like to fuck and play, and no girl can put up with all four of them.”
Shaking her head, Harper gritted her teeth. How much longer were they going to be talking about all the slutty things Draven wanted his girlfriends to do?
For another five minutes they kept on talking.
Finally, once they left, Harper made her escape.
She’d heard about the supposed Initiation. Draven and his gang had been inseparable for as long as she could remember. Axel and Draven lived close together where Buck and Jett lived in the old neighborhood where she used to live.
There were all kinds of rumors that surrounded them.
Stonewall wasn’t exactly a safe haven for anyone. Look at Mr. Arnold that morning. He wouldn’t have done anything. She’d seen fights break out, and the teachers walked to break it up.
No one dared to make waves in their small, shitty town. They were only happy to keep the money in their pockets, and to survive another day.
Leaving the bathroom, she made her way to her locker and stared at it. Would she find anything else waiting for her? She opened up her locker, and nothing was inside.
No books. No jacket. Nothing.
Glancing up and down the corridor, she saw no one. Closing the door, she rested her head against the metal. For a Monday, this had to be her worst day ever.
She didn’t care that anyone had broken into her locker. What she cared about was someone had stolen her jacket. The last thing her mother had given to her.
The thought of finishing up the rest of the day didn’t thrill her. She wanted to go home, only there was no home.
Hannah and Ian’s house wasn’t where she belonged.
Kicking her locker, she turned on her heel and went to class. She wouldn’t let anyone think they’d won. She was a fighter. No matter what her dad said or Hannah tried to do, or even these dickheads at school, she wouldn’t fall.
Squaring her shoulders, she headed back to class.
The giggles and laughter that followed her rolled off her shoulders like water. She didn’t pay attention to any of them.
After all, they were just children, and she didn’t need their approval.
****
“Did you see her face? That was fucking priceless,” Axel said, laughing.
“Dirt and no lunch all in one day.”
Draven stared down at the jacket he’d taken from her locker. A couple of the jocks had decided to follow them, and he’d caught them attempting to steal shit from Harper’s locker. They’d only just gotten the lock open when he found them.
Seeing five jocks piss themselves had been kind of amusing, but he’d been left with a broken locker, and the temptation of taking her stuff.
“Do we burn it?” Buck asked.
“We don’t want it,” Axel said. “She’s way too dull. All she has in her locker is shit for school. No pictures. Nothing. She’s, like, the most boring chick in the entire history of the school.”
Draven searched the pockets of the jacket and came up empty. It was dirty from the mud they’d stored in her locker.
It wasn’t well worn either. The jacket looked new, cheap but new.
“We’re not burning her shit,” he said.
“What is it with this chick?” Buck asked, dropping her books onto the ground.
“I don’t know. I find her pretty interesting right now.” He folded the jacket, leaving it on his knees as he stared at his friends.
“You do realize you’ve announced her as public enemy number one with what you did in the cafeteria?” Jett asked, once again playing with his knife. Jett had so many wounds up and down his arms from tossing the knife and catching it wrong. Still, it didn’t stop him from holding it.
Draven knew it was because of one of his many stepfathers. Jett had been used as punching bag, and some of the wounds on his back showcased how his stepfathers liked to beat him up, slash at his skin.
Since he, Axel, and Buck put a stop to it three years ago, Jett carried a knife with him. No one came at any of them.
They had each other’s backs. It was what made them different from the cliques within their school. All four of them had seen how shit the world was, and still, they kept bouncing back. They kept on fighting for one another.
“Let’s see how she handles it.”
“Are you auditioning her for our group?” Axel asked, all trace of laughter dying in his eyes.
“I’m curious about her. She came to the woods last night, got detention today. She hasn’t run to the cops, and not once did she burst into tears. She’s … entertaining to watch.”
“It was kind of funny watching all that dirt spill out of her locker.”
He looked at her books that were on the ground. Some of them had notes inside, while others were aged. Nothing before him had any personal value apart from the jacket.
“Why don’t we jerk off to it, cover her shit with our spunk?” Axel said, already reaching for his belt.
“You’re fucking disgusting.”
“I’m out of here,” Jett said. “Got a job to do.”
“You’re still working in that fucking DIY place?” Axel asked.
“Got to pay the bills.”
“Doesn’t your mother whore herself out?” Buck asked.
“She’s all dried out. No guy wants to fuck a dry cunt. Later, guys.”
Draven watched as Jett left the woods. It was still light out and one check on the time, and he saw it wouldn’t be long before detention was over.
“I’m heading out,” he said. “Catch you later.”
He didn’t wait to see what Axel and Buck were doing. They could amuse themselves for hours by playing catch or gambling on some chick.
Climbing into his car, he took off back toward the school.
When he arrived, only a couple of cars were parked in the lot. He tapped his fingers against the steering wheel. None of those cars belonged to Harper. She hadn’t been able to afford a car or driving lessons.
He locked his car and headed inside to see what was taking her so long.
She wasn’t at her locker, and as he stood out of line of sight, he watched as detention came to an end. A couple of guys headed out, and Harper was the last one to leave, apart from the teacher.
She looked … lost.
He watched her, curious as to what she was doing. What was going on in that head of hers? She looked at the time, and instead of going straight to the parking lot, she didn’t. She went into the bathroom.
His curiosity was always a problem. He followed her inside.
The jacket he’d taken from her was inside his car.
Why was he testing her, pushing her?
Being a bully hadn’t been part of his MO. He never taunted anyone. The guys who got in his way, he made sure to take care of, and the chicks always knew only his dick was on offer, nothing else. He still didn’t understand why he was sticking around with Harper. She was nothing special. They’d been going to the same school since nursery school.
When it came to her, he wanted to push her, to see how far the good girl went.
Stepping into the girl’s bathroom, he saw her at the sink.
She turned her head, and the blue fire in her eyes should have struck him dead and cold.
“What are you doing here?”
He leaned against the wall, folding his hands over his chest. “I’m curious how detention was.”
“Wow, really? Have you ever been to detention?”
“No.”
“I bet you got a slip though, right? The teachers don’t give a shit what you do. You’ve got the right last name. The kind of name that even teachers don’t like to touch.”
He smirked. “You jealous of my last name, Miller?”
“Leave me alone.”
“Is that an order?”
“It’s a request.”
“I don’t take orders.”
“What do you want?” she asked.
“To see … something.”
“So I’m the target this year for your amusement, is that it?”
“You clench your hands often?” he asked, looking at her tight fists.
“You’re so weird.”
She went to pass him, but he put his hand out, stopping her from going.
“Seriously? What?” She folded her arms over her chest.
The glare she gave him turned him on. He’d never seen her look so ferocious. He blocked her exit, watching her.
“I want my stuff back.”
He smirked.
“Why did you take it, huh? Did it get you off to go inside a locker that’s not yours? You know what? I don’t care.”
She went to pass again, only this time, he caught her shoulders, pressing her up against the wall. At first, she struggled against him. He watched the fight in her gaze, how she tried to overpower him, but he wouldn’t let her go.
The truth was, he didn’t have a fucking clue what he was doing or even why. Only that he had to.
“Let me go.” She went to strike him, and he caught both of her hands, pressing them above her head.
She growled the moment he did it.
Still, he didn’t speak even as she fought him, her body arching against him. The thrust of her tits pressed on her shirt.
He was used to women being all over him, used to the female sex wanting him and willing to do whatever he said.
This, with Harper, was new.
He didn’t mind it. In fact, he found it rather refreshing. She wouldn’t give in, wouldn’t allow him to have what he wanted.
Staring into her sweet blue eyes, he remembered them the first day of kindergarten. How scared she’d looked as she watched the other kids. Like him, she observed. She waited to see what was coming her way.
Where he had three friends, she had none. No one wanted to be her friend.
He’d watched her over the years. Seen her grow up, again, always alone, never one to join the crowds.
Always good.
He wanted to break that goodness, to shatter the innocence within her.
He’d never been allowed to be free, to be good, to be strong.
She was everything he’d been ordered to avoid.
Now, though, after her mother ended her tragic life, there was a darkness swirling within Harper. Shadows clouded her once clear gaze.
“Don’t you have some teenager to screw?” she asked, fighting him.
“You want to take the job?” He finally spoke, and seeing that spark of anger flash within her gaze turned him on.
“Fuck you, Draven. Let me go.”
“I’ll let you go when I’m good and ready.” He kept her hands locked above her head. He wondered what she’d do if he caressed down her body, touching her tits before cupping her between her thighs. She’d probably come.
So much repressed rage.
He could tutor that, help it come out.
Leaning forward, he stroked his cheek against hers, feeling how soft her flesh was. “We’re going to have a lot of fun together, you and I.”
He stepped back, releasing her.
She stayed perfectly still by the wall, glaring at him. Slowly, she lowered her hands down to her sides.
“Asshole.”
He laughed as she made her escape. Maybe he was an asshole; he never claimed to be anything but. He liked seeing her run though.
He followed her out of the bathroom, watching as she darted out of the school.
Walking in the same direction, he saw her stepmother was waiting. Heading to his car, he stopped and watched.
Hannah with her bleached blonde hair and fake tan, looked the part of a trophy wife to fit within the street she lived. Even his own mother had the same look, including fake tits. They had to look a certain way.
Harper didn’t fit.
With her wild, raven hair, so like her mother’s, and shocking blue eyes, to Draven, she stood out. She didn’t belong in their world. It’s what set her apart from everything he knew.
