Hate Struck: (Maddison High School Book 1)

by Nikki Ashton

  “Whatever, we’ll all be out of here soon,” Ellis said. The three of them began talking about uni and I slapped my hand against my locker.

  “Can we shut up about uni, seeing as my bloody mum wants me to get a job?”

  “She can’t make you,” Tyler said. “Just apply for a course through clearance, if that’s what you want.”

  “I would,” Kirk muttered. “If it was a toss-up between parties, sex, parties, more sex and a little bit of studying, or getting a job, I’d tell her to fuck herself.”

  “Whatever, it doesn’t matter anyway, as far as she’s concerned it’s a done-fucking-deal. I’m stuck in this shit, boring town until I’m useless or dead.”

  I took a deep breath and tried to let the rage seep out of me. When I felt a breeze from the direction of the main door, I turned my head towards it.

  “Well look here,” Ellis said, his concentration in the same direction as mine. “I do believe I smell fresh meat.”

  I watched as the blonde girl, wearing jeans and a baggy jumper, pushed her way through the door and hitched her backpack up higher. She looked frail beneath the red wool, but she held her head high as she walked toward us.

  When she was level with me, I put my foot out and caught her ankle above her red converse, causing her to stumble a little.

  “Hey, watch what you’re doing.” Her voice rasped with a hint of insecurity and when she wrapped an arm around her thin waist, I could practically smell the pain she was carrying with her.

  “Sorry,” I replied and turned to Kirk. “Looks like new girl is lost. You should take her where she needs to go.”

  “I’m perfectly fine,” she said as she made a half-turn away from me.

  I made to grab her elbow but before my fingers had a chance to brush the wool of her sleeve, she pulled away and shrank back against the opposite bank of lockers.

  “Don’t touch me.”

  My eyes widened and I made the same surrender gesture as I’d done with Ellis a few minutes before. “Only trying to help.”

  She glared back at me defiantly. “Well, I don’t need your help. The office is this way, right?”

  Part of me wanted to warn her who I was and that she shouldn’t cross me, but the way her chest heaved and how she curled her delicate fingers into a tiny fist, excited me. No one had ever stood up to me like that and yet she’d barely done or said anything at all. She wasn’t being threatening or trying to overthrow me as the power in the school; she was only being brave when she was actually scared.

  When she let out a tiny breath, swallowed hard and then licked her lips, my dick twitched. Tiny and beautiful, her hair sat like a golden halo on top of her head. She was like sunshine. I already knew that I wanted her. I could practically taste how fucking sweet her pussy would be and I knew that when I made her come, she’d let out a little whimper, too afraid to let herself go. I knew that over time I’d persuade her that her body was mine to do with whatever I wanted.

  I also knew that she could be the fucking undoing of me and that I would never let that happen.

  “Go on then,” I snapped at her and nodded my head in the direction she needed to go. “And if you don’t want your time here to be the worst of your life, then maybe stay out of my fucking way.” I grinned because I knew there was no way I’d let her do that. I’d most definitely be seeking her out at any opportunity.

  Tyler hissed. “Burn,” he laughed out and bounced the football to me. I caught it and threw it straight back so it landed with an oomph against his chest.

  “Go on little girl,” Ellis said and waved his fingers at her. “Go to the office.”

  The girl looked at us in turn and then finally brought her eyes back to me. I thought she would tell me to go to hell, but she didn’t. She took a deep breath, hitched her bag up on her shoulder and practically ran down the corridor.

  “She’s going to be real fun to play with.” Ellis laughed and nodded his head in appreciation of the challenge.

  “Aww she’s just a little girl,” Tyler mocked as he fluttered his eyelashes.

  “I need to shit,” Kirk added. “Cover for me, I’m gonna be a while.”

  I shook my head and turned to my locker. Just before I opened the door, I couldn’t help but look to where the girl stood. Halfway up the corridor, she had a hand against her stomach, her head back and eyes on the ceiling as she breathed deeply.

  I knew she was trouble. I knew I was going to hate her, and I knew I was going to want her more than anything I’d ever wanted before.

  3

  Sarah

  My heart thundered in my ears as I walked away from the group of boys. They’d make my life hell if I didn’t stay out of their way like I’d been told. I knew I hadn’t fooled them with my not easily scared act, especially not the one who seemed to be their leader. He’d watched me carefully and his eyes had focused on mine. The smirk on his full lips had told me everything I needed to know; he saw me as a victim.

  I so didn’t want to be. I wanted to be as brave and strong as I thought I appeared, but I guess my acting wasn’t as good as I thought. Once I’d been dismissed by him, I stopped halfway down the corridor to gather myself together. It was one thing the school dickheads recognizing that I had issues, but I didn’t need the school golden girl to know and feel sorry for me.

  I put my hand on my stomach and dropped my head back to take in deep breaths like Eleanor my therapist had taught me; counting slowly to ten and then back down again. By the time I’d reached two, I could feel my breathing was almost back to normal and the only evidence that I’d nearly lost it, was the clamminess of my palms. I wiped them on my jeans and took another deep breath before I continued on to the office.

  When I pushed through a set of double doors a girl my age stood outside an internal office door. I guessed she was Alannah. She wore black rimmed glasses and carried three huge books; a backpack similar to my own slung over her shoulder. The length of her skirt, which was short, and the tightness of her jumper, which was tight, didn’t scream school nerd but it did scream bitch. Maybe I was stereotyping her, but in my experience, all the bitches at my old school had been those who slept around and wore the least amount of clothes possible, usually outfits similar to the one Alannah had on.

  As I let the door swing shut, she looked up and smiled.

  “Sarah?”

  “Hi.” I held out my hand, relieved when she took it and didn’t look at me as though I’d just handed her a shit.

  “Alannah, but I guess you know that already.” She rolled her eyes and shifted the books in her arms. “Miss Daniels said you and your mum came in to see her over the weekend. She called me at home to tell me.”

  I chewed on the inside of my mouth and nodded, not sure what to say. The fact that the Head called Alannah at home must have meant that they were close in some way, or at the very least that she had trusted Alannah to do this sort of thing before.

  “Maddison Edge is a pretty gossipy town,” Alannah said. “Plus, my mum is on the PTA.”

  I widened my eyes and blew out a breath. “Woah, you kind of read my mind there.”

  Alannah gave me a bright smile and I noticed how pretty she was; her teeth were perfect and straight. “Everyone who’s new here thinks the same thing.”

  “So, you buddy all the new kids?” I asked.

  Her smile faltered a little but soon slipped back in place. “Depends,” she replied with a shrug of her shoulders.

  “On how fucked up they are?”

  When Alannah’s mouth dropped open my heart sank. This was supposed to be a new start. I wasn’t supposed to alienate the only person I had in my corner on my first day.

  “I’m sorry,” I groaned. “I’m feeling a little defensive, you know being the new girl.”

  “Don’t worry about it, I get it. I’m just surprised at your honesty. Most people who come here for a new start try to act all superior and forget about why they ended up here in the first place. Because, let’s face it we’re
not the best of schools. All the council money goes to Sexton High School.”

  I shrugged. “We moved here from Kent, so I can’t comment. When Mum did the application to change schools this was the only one with space.”

  “Sexton is the next town along,” Alannah explained. “And is a cute little market town, whereas Maddison Edge is seen as the blot on the edge of North Manchester, so guess which school gets all the funding, and all the school applications?”

  We both laughed quietly and although what she’d said hadn’t been particularly funny, it felt pretty good to let out the stale air from my lungs for the first time in a while.

  “So, not only are you the go-to buddy for the fucked up and deranged, but the whole school is.”

  Alannah scrunched up her tiny nose and thought about it for a few seconds before she finally nodded. “I guess so. Now, how about we get you registered and then I’ll show you around? We got let off classes this morning, so I can give you all the juicy gossip about this place in detail.”

  I blew out my cheeks and nodded, totally relieved that Alannah seemed nice and genuine. I could so easily have been landed with a bitch who instantly hated my guts.

  “Talking of gossip,” I said and nodded toward the double doors which led to the corridor. “Some boy told me to steer clear of him and his friends.”

  Alannah’s cheeks reddened, and she cleared her throat. “Adam Hudson is not to be messed with, Sarah and he’s right. Stay away from him, otherwise he’ll just suck you in and spit you out when he’s had enough of playing his little games with you. Believe me that’s not a nice place to be.”

  She averted her eyes and moved past me to knock on the office door, interrupting any conclusions I might make about her and the boy Adam. When a voice the other side called out to go in, Alannah pushed it open.

  “Oh hi, Mrs Stubbs, I have Sarah Danes with me to register.”

  I moved up behind Alannah and saw Mrs Stubbs falter. Her hand went to her heart and her eyes sought mine.

  “Hello, love,” she said, her voice full of sympathy. “Come on in.”

  She obviously knew why I’d changed schools halfway through a year, it was written all over her face. She felt sorry for me and I hated that she did, but it was better than her just hating me, which was what most of the teachers and staff in my old school had done. I just hoped that my time here would be different.

  Alannah and I were in the dining room after a morning of her showing me around the school. We’d spent some time in the art department even though I’d told Alannah it didn’t interest me. As soon as I smelled the paints and saw the containers of paintbrushes lined along the windowsill, my heart had begun to speed up. The only way I could stop myself from running was to sing my song in my head, until I’d finally calmed down and been able to chat to the teacher, Miss Hughes.

  You are my sunshine, my only sunshine

  You make me happy when skies are grey…

  “You okay?” Alannah asked as I pushed my salad around my plate. “You’ve been quiet for a while now.”

  My lips twitched into a half smile. “Yeah, it’s just a lot to take in, you know.”

  “I’m sure, but you don’t have to suffer it for long, soon we’ll be gone. I’m going to Swansea for Automotive Art & Design, what about you?” she asked.

  “I’m taking a year out,” I replied, avoiding eye contact with her. I had no desire to talk about the whys and wherefores of my decision, but no one ever ran with it when I informed them that I wasn’t going to university… yet.

  “Seriously?” Alannah’s voice went up an octave.

  “Yeah,” I replied and looked at her spoon halfway between her bowl and her mouth. “I’m not sure what I want to do, so deciding to take a year out was the best option.”

  I expected her to argue, after all she was the A grade student, but she simply nodded. “Good idea if you’re not sure on your plans for the future.”

  Surprised at her response, I smiled, and she went back to eating her soup, leaving me to look around the huge space we were in. It was much more modern and in better order than the neglected and scruffy rest of the school. The ceilings in the dining room were high with large round pendulum lights hanging from them. Aside from a few round tables scattered around, there were also long trestle type tables with round stools at them. One wall was all glass which looked out over the football pitch and along it from one end to the other was a high bench type table with bar stools at it. The floors were pale wood as were the walls and along the front of the counter and it all looked pretty new. Even the ovens and serving top were bright, shiny stainless steel.

  “It all looks new in here,” I said, my focus back on Alannah. “Has it been refurbished?”

  “Let’s just say,” she said as she pushed her bowl away, “that there was an incident with burning books which pretty much decimated the place. The whole dining room had to be remodelled.”

  “Shit,” I gasped. “What happened? I mean who set fire to the books?”

  At that moment, the double doors opened and slammed back against the wall, allowing space for the boys who I’d had trouble with earlier in the corridor, to walk in, side by side. A lot of people continued to eat and chat, but the majority of the school stopped to watch. I had to admit they looked as if they ruled the damn world, never mind the school; they were cool and intimidating and I could see from the faces of all the girls, and some boys, watching them that they had reputations in other ways too.

  I glanced at Alannah who focused her glassy eyes on them, her hands clutched on her serviette which was screwed it into a tight ball.

  The one who I thought Alannah had said was Adam was slightly ahead of the other three, just one pace in front as he strode through the room. He had a red checked flannel shirt tied around his waist, his jeans were dark wash and ripped at the knees, and on his feet were a pair of white, Old Skool Vans. A white t-shirt covered his torso, clinging to his muscles, and when he lifted a hand to run it over his dirty blond hair the fabric stretched against his bicep.

  I looked at the other three boys, scrutinising them as I hadn’t dared in the hall earlier. There was another blond, but his hair was lighter, and his skin was pale. I remembered he had a smattering of freckles on his nose. The one who’d told me to go once Adam had warned me off, had rich caramel coloured skin and a tight cut afro. His features looked as though they were carved from marble, while the third, the one who had been told to take me to the office, had black hair and perfectly white, straight, teeth.

  As individuals, they were all handsome, but as a unit, there was no getting away from the fact that they were beautiful; their reasons for attracting attention were obvious. They were a collection of perfect specimens who drew everyone’s eye. Adam though, he was almost flawless with strong features, pouty lips and olive skin. He was the one everyone looked at first and for longest.

  My gaze turned to Alannah who still watched them carefully, her eyes flickering between them behind her glasses, but lingering most on Adam. When they got closer to us, I kept my eyes firmly on my new friend and swallowed hard. I didn’t need or want them to bring anything to my door. I’d heed Adam’s warning because my life was crap enough as it was. I pushed my hands up the arm of my jumper and my fingertips found the raised skin on my wrist and rubbed it, up and down, up and down.

  You are my sunshine, my only sunshine

  You make me happy when skies are grey…

  When I saw a flash of red checked fabric in my periphery, I dropped my gaze to the table and started to count the pieces of corn on my plate.

  Eleven, twelve, thirteen.

  “Alannah,” a deep voice said. “You going to introduce us to the new girl? She ran off before we had chance this morning.”

  I didn’t want to look up, I wanted to keep on counting the corn, but I knew if I showed any more signs of fear than I already had, not only would the four Adonis’ make my life hell, but I would also be the easy target for the rest of the school.
My dad had taught me that.

  With my fingers still rubbing up and down my wrist, I lifted my head.

  “Well,” the boy with the dark skin said. “What’s your name?”

  “Sarah and what’s yours?”

  I flashed him a smile and moved my hands to between my legs and clapped my thighs together. I wouldn’t show them my fear, they’d probably smell it on me, but I couldn’t let it show it if I was to survive this place; that was another lesson I’d learned over the last year.

  “I’m Ellis, and this is Adam, Tyler and Kirk.”

  The pale boy, Tyler, poked out his tongue and waggled it suggestively and I heard Alannah groan. All their eyes darted to her, and Adam took in a breath so deep that his nostrils flattened on both sides.

  “Alannah,” he drawled. “Have you told Sarah, how you like to suck my cock when your new little cheer squad and school are getting too fucking much and you’re fucking stressed with everything?”

  He turned his head slowly to me. I held my breath and heard Alannah whimper. I wanted to tell her it was fine, I didn’t care what she did or didn’t do and that Adam was just being a knob by telling me, but his Atlantic blue eyes mine held mine captive and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t turn away from him.

  “Oh yeah.” Ellis sniggered. “She’s not tried mine yet but fuck—”

  He stopped abruptly as Adam gave him a side punch into his stomach.

  “Thought you might like to know the company you’re keeping, Sarah. We wouldn’t want you to be corrupted by Little Miss Prissy now, would we?”

  “She can do what the hell she wants,” I replied as I swallowed to try and keep my voice steady. “I don’t judge people no matter what their predilections.”

  Tyler whistled and Kirk raised his eyebrows.

  “Big words for such a little girl.” Adam dropped his hands to the table to lean closer to me. “Got to say, it makes me hard to think of you saying words like that while I…” He winked at me. “No, I don’t think you’re ready to know what I would do to you.” He pushed himself upright.