by K. J. Thomas
Running From Monsters: A High School Bully Romance
Blackwood Academy, Volume 2
K.J. Thomas
Published by K.J. Thomas, 2021.
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
RUNNING FROM MONSTERS: A HIGH SCHOOL BULLY ROMANCE
First edition. May 6, 2021.
Copyright © 2021 K.J. Thomas.
Written by K.J. Thomas.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Also, by K.J. Thomas
Acknowledgements
About the Author
The day you stop trying, is the day you fail...
One
AVERY
The sweet nectar from the rarely used coffee pot boils and hisses as I stand there patiently waiting for the yummy goodness. The kind that promises you, this will have your ass up and ready to go in a matter of minutes. Like my father used to joke, the kind that will have you cleaned out and ready for the day. To him this is the only thing that would make you feel light and awake.
If I wasn’t so exhausted now, daydreaming about my father will catch up and leave me in a very dark and dangerous place. I will end up thinking about my mother, my grandfather that I don’t know, what a shitty world this has become.
I’ve only been able to sleep a couple hours a night, if I’m lucky for the past eleven days. Eleven. Freaking. Days.
That’s the last time that I laid eyes on Asher Mancini, right before he left my world crumbling around me.
I grab my cup of coffee, and make my way over to the dining room table that’s never used in this house. It’s as lonely as the coffee pot, and me. I live here practically by myself. I sigh and take a drink.
When Asher told me that day during school he knew my real name, I thought for sure I was going to curl up into a ball and just die.
This might be a game to him, but this is my life, I guess this is his life, too, since he’s the head of the Mancini family. I shake my head. I should probably just be grateful that he didn’t kill me right away.
Maybe my grandfather is unknowingly saving me. I know it worries him where I’m at, but it will worry him more if I am anywhere else. The Blackwood Academy must be the safest place I can be, and when I’m not there I’ve got a shit ton of guards, that I don’t even see, creepy.
That night after Asher told me, I was a freaking nervous wreck. I was terrified of Tate not being my friend anymore. She might not be now if he told her. I couldn’t call her that night, afraid she would start screaming at me. My only friend in this whole world will just be pissed at me, believing I am the traitor.
Thankfully, that never happened. Tate still doesn’t know who I am, even though I know I need to tell her before it slips from Asher’s mouth.
Speaking of the wonderful Asher Mancini. After I made myself sick from worrying Asher would show up, I didn’t sleep for shit that first night. When I got to school the next day, I find out that Asher was called away on business. He only took Liam with him. Maybe that’s because he’s one of his loyal men.
God, I am so tired I’m not even thinking straight. Nonetheless, for eleven straight nights I’ve been working myself into a frenzy, freaked out about every little thing. Asher still hasn’t come for me, delivering what he promised would happen last time I saw him.
After thinking and feeling sorry for myself for a while, this is where I usually start to get pissed off. I remember exactly who I am. Of course, I’m the underdog here at Blackwood, but I am also a fucking Romano and we don’t take shit from anybody. Maybe if I keep telling myself that, I’ll fucking sleep tonight.
Even though my grandfather has a lot of guys watching me, Asher Mancini and Luca Delano are really clever shits from what I’ve gathered. I’m not willing to bet my life that neither one of them will make it in undetected.
After I finish my coffee, I spend the next few minutes on my phone using my American Express black card. I order myself the best security system that money can buy.
I am pretty much worthless going on hardly any sleep. It’s Sunday and I must go back to school tomorrow. I would love to be able to sleep tonight.
I even thought about going to the hotel with all my guardsmen, but it’s the same thing, anybody could get in there. It might even be easier.
The tears struggle to break free of my eyes. I’m not this person. I am not weak and afraid, but I am backed into a fucking corner and I have no idea how to claw my way out.
I picked up the phone so many times to call my grandfather. To ask his advice of what I should do. I know he would take me away from here and my only friend.
I can honestly even say that’s true; I think that’s what’s bothering me more. My grandfather might decide to force me to go to the dorm over at Blackwood academy. Yeah, they have those, kind of creepy, but kids from all over the world are coming to this school.
For obvious reasons I won’t tell my grandfather what Asher plans on doing to me. But I know deep down inside I should be telling him that the Mancini’s know who I am.
They could just decide to knock me off, especially if grandpa’s meeting goes bad.
I lean back in my chair as the sweet aroma of the coffee is turning my stomach now. Asher had to leave fast, and only a day after that, Mario, my sole support, left right after without saying anything, just a quick text of:
Mario: I’ll see you later.
If something was happening, I’m sure I would’ve heard. Most likely a message at least from Arya or Garrett telling me what’s going on and to be careful. The Romano’s know that the head of the Mancini family goes to my school.
I’m worried about my grandfather’s safety and mine. If there is a big meeting with all the families, it’s most likely in New York. If something gets out of hand or if something goes bad, does that mean Asher can just send down the message to get rid of me? That’s what a lot of families have done before, that’s why people try to stay hidden. This life fucking sucks balls.
I’m taking deep breaths trying to relax my nerves. I’ve still got all my guards and I still know how to fight. I can’t beat a bunch of people at one time but probably make a good dent.
Instead of calling my Gramps every time there is an emergency, he let me keep his cell phone number so we can text whenever I needed. This way I don’t have to call Arya or Garrett all the time. They would just reach out to him anyway.
There’s been no news that I’ve heard. If I wasn’t so damn tired and scared, I would’ve noticed how weird Mario was acting right after Asher left. I could’ve confronted him and demanded to know what’s going on.
Fuck it, I think as I dump out my coffee and head back to my room. Having to deal with this stuff is hard enough, but when you’re alone it’s ten times worse. I just wanna reach out to Tate and tell her everything.
She’s a phenomenal friend. That’s it, I decide, tomorrow at school is when I’m going to tell Tate everything. Oh my God, I think as I lean my head back on my pillow and just cry more. I could lose my best friend because
of this whole situation we’re in.
All I want to do is sleep, so if it takes me telling Tate everything, then so be it.
I SHUT OFF THE CAR and turn down the radio right after I pull into Tate’s driveway. Yeah, I listened to the radio this morning and even sang along.
I took a small nap yesterday, then got up and cleaned the house, then went back to bed and slept all night long. It was the best feeling ever.
The new security system hasn’t been installed in our house and I was still able to sleep. The only thing that changed was that I decided to talk to Tate today and tell her everything.
I shake my head. I wonder if I’ve even been worried about all this Mafia boss shit, thinking that was the issue, but I’ve been worried about lying to my best friend for so long.
We still have been riding together the past week and a half for school, but I’ve been insisting on driving every day. I never know if I’m gonna need to leave because I’m being chased or in fear of my life. It doesn’t bother Tate though, thank God, she’s happy that she doesn’t have to drive right now.
The door opens right as a grumpy looking Carter emerges. The asshole shoulder checks me as he stomps right by me toward his car. Great, why the fuck is Carter here, incredibly early in the morning? Maybe something’s going on with those two.
As I go to set foot in the door, Tate comes bouncing out, bubbly and happy, shutting the door behind her.
I stare at her for a couple seconds. There’s so many things I want to ask her right now, like what the hell is wrong with her.
“So, are you doing Carter now?” I give her a wink as I turn around and walk to my car.
“No, no, no,” Tate mumbles as she gets herself buckled into the passenger seat. “He was just picking up some papers and dropping off some shit for Asher, for when the fucker finally gets back.”
I start laughing. “You don’t seem happy right now.”
Tate turns toward me, and she brushes her dark brown hair away from her eyes. “It’s been wonderful, Avery. It’s like my parents are on vacation and I have the house to myself. It was like it was before.” Suddenly the happiness leaves her eyes and is replaced with sadness as she leans back in her chair.
I give her arm a squeeze. “Enjoy it while you can. Who knows when your uncle will get back,” I say as helpful as I can, realizing I probably just made it worse. “I’m so sorry, Tate. At least you have this chance.”
I kind of want to tell her everything right now, but it won’t make her feel better, I’ll just make her more pissed. Damn, I don’t know, I’m not particularly good at this ‘friending’. I’ve been locked up most of my life because of my family. I’ve had a few here and there but I don’t wanna lose Tate.
The rest of the ride to school is in complete silence. We both have a lot on our minds, and it makes me sad. We’re in our senior year. Tate and I should be having fun, going to parties, getting laid, crushing hearts and whatever else teenagers do.
After I park my truck in the school parking lot, I reach over and grab her hand. “I don’t want there to be anything between us anymore. Do you think you could come over tonight or we can meet somewhere? I want to tell you everything.” She just nods. I think she’s a little bit shocked because her eyes are glossy. They’ve been glossing over since she got in the vehicle. I’m really hoping that she’ll say, ‘I wanna tell you whose house this is,’ but baby steps. Maybe she’ll let me know after I talk to her.
One thing she does do is give me a tight squeeze, and I really needed that. God, how long has it been since I’ve had a good hug from somebody who cares about me? It’s been that long.
We start walking to the school entrance and Tate puts her arm through mine. “I think you could just come over to the house after school. Who’s going to fucking know?”
I know that’s true. They can’t really keep me away from her forever. It’s been twelve days now.
The warning bell rings letting us know we have less than a minute to make sure we’re not late for first period.
THE WHOLE MORNING WENT by uneventful. People have left me alone, which is a good thing. I know everybody’s on team Asher, and they know how much I can’t stand him. But I guess since he’s not here, they don’t have anybody to show up for. Why even put the effort in on fucking with me if your leader is not here to do anything?
A few days after Asher left, one of the football linebackers decided to make a move on me. Maybe he thought he wasn’t coming back at all. Of course, I shut him down. That’s all I need right now is his blood on my hands with the way that Asher is. Who knows, maybe he’s working with Luca. God, I swear I’m going crazy. The morning after the incident, when the linebacker showed up for school, he completely ignored me. He didn’t even flash me smile. When he walked by me in the hallway, the nice shiner that he has on his face is a dead giveaway that somebody didn’t appreciate what he did. Most likely Carter was working on Asher’s behalf.
Lunch with Tate was even relaxing. It’s great just to sit in the school cafeteria and be normal with the other kids. I’m not gonna be one of those people that always wants something better. I’m still going to appreciate what I have. Even though that’s low on the list.
Yes, I could’ve ended up in foster care, probably with some grabby lunatic that wanted to play my dad. Or I could just ended up dead.
My mother, even through her situation, she always wanted me to know that the world is my oyster. If I want something bad enough, all I have to do is go get it. At the same time, she reminded me some things will just be impossible.
It didn’t hit me at the time, but it hits me now, the look of sadness in her eyes. I wonder what else my mother wanted that she couldn’t have. I’m almost one hundred percent sure it wasn’t a different man; my parents were so madly in love.
It’s probably something that she wanted to do with her life. She mentioned to me one time she loved teaching. A Boss’ daughter, most parents wouldn’t want her teaching their children.
My first class back from lunch is trig, I had that with Asher, Tate and pretty much everybody else.
Tate sits with me as we try to pay attention but the dynamic in the class just makes you wanna put your head on the table and fall sleep.
My phone beeps loud reminding my dumb ass that I forgot to turn down my volume earlier this morning. You can tell how popular I am, my first message of the day comes in the afternoon.
I mumble. “Sorry,” as I stare into the eyes of a very annoyed teacher.
Normally he just snags the phone away whenever it goes off. I’m lucky though, this is my first time it’s ever gone off. His glare is probably my only warning.
After five minutes my anxiety is getting to me not knowing who texted. When he turns his body back to the chalkboard to write out a huge problem, I quickly pull out my phone and read the text.
VR: Go home, NOW.
I don’t respond; it would be worthless. My grandfather, Vito Romano, knows that I’ll listen and do exactly as he tells me to. I’m not gonna take a chance of him showing up at this school.
With everything that’s going on right now, I need to get my ass in gear.
I give Tate a sad smile and she looks at me. Confusion clouds her face when she notices me putting all my shit in my bag.
I would be freaked out, too, if she had to leave all of a sudden. I look towards her and I mouth, ‘sorry, I’ll call you later.’ She nods her head at me, but I can tell she’s worried. God, this just feels like another secret I’m keeping from her. There will still be time tonight to talk, I’ll make sure of it one way or another.
The scene when I get home is that of a madhouse. People are storming in and out. One guy is standing in front of the garage doors giving orders to everybody, pointing this way and that way.
I counted a total of five black SUVs. Two are in the driveway, one is blocking my spot, and the other two are on the street.
I walk up to the guy that’s in charge after I park my truck across the street.
I glance up and down the street making sure that our neighbors aren’t out with their mouths open. I can only imagine what Arya and Garrett are going to say. Nothing, it doesn’t matter what they do if Grandpa put the order out. At least I hope it was Vito Romano that orchestrated this.
The man turns around looking like he’s going to yell at me. He must recognize me as his features soften.
He holds out his hand, “Avery, my name is Mac and I’m one of the guards that your granddad hired.” I look him up and down nonchalantly of course, I realize that my grandfather did good. This guy is fucking stacked with a bald head and dark skin, this fucker scares the crap out of me.
Mac whistles loud. That must be his call to gather the troops. The men start walking out of the house that I’m currently living in. The ones that glance in my direction give me a slight nod or a tight smile. In less than a minute they’re all piled in the SUVs ready to go.
Well not all of them, because I still see at least ten guys inside. That would explain the two SUVs that are left on the side of the street.
Mac didn’t say anything else, he just hands me a piece of paper as he jumps in the front seat of one of the SUVs leaving. Great, now I get to know everybody else that’s inside. It would’ve been nice if the one guard that I had any contact with would’ve stayed here.
I remember I have the paper in my hand, I unfold it to look at the contents. It’s just a notice from the home security system I bought. The alarm code 6256 and any other information I might need like phone numbers. Damn, that was fast. I ordered this a little bit over twenty-four hours ago.
I walk in and start to mess around with the buttons, familiarizing myself with the system. I’m sure I’ll probably need it. Not one of the other men say anything to me. Most don’t even look in my direction but when they do it’s the same tight smiles and nods of the head.
It’d be nice if somebody told me what the hell is going on. I was lonely before, now it’s ten times worse. There are people in the house I can’t associate with. I’ve tried every time the house in Chicago was put on lockdown. My parents always reminded me; this is their job. They’re here to protect me not to become friends. How ironic.
