Unspoken Rules

by Eliah Greenwood

  “No, it’s just… you never know what could happen. Promise me you’ll carry it everywhere.”

  I exhale. “Haze…”

  “Winter, promise me.” His piercing pale eyes drill into mine.

  “Okay. I promise.” I give in and go drop my new friend into my backpack. When I come back, Haze pulls me into his familiar arms, kissing my forehead and playing with my hair. He doesn’t want me to worry, but I can’t help it. He’s kidding himself if he thinks he can be with me and still lead them.

  If there’s one thing that I learned about the street fight community… it’s that they’ll find out eventually.

  They always do.

  27

  Disappearing Act

  Marching down the crowded hall like a prisoner walking to their death, I try my best to seem somewhat excited that I’m going home.

  I’m usually the first to squeal in joy when the bell rings, but strangely, I can’t even muster a smile. Today is Friday and I have nothing—and I mean nothing—to look forward to. I don’t have plans with the guys, I don’t have plans with Kass, and I especially don’t have plans with my boyfriend.

  That would require having one.

  As though this day isn’t bad enough already, I turn the corner and see her leaning against my locker. Bianca. I’ve been avoiding her at school for five days, and I’d say I’ve been pretty successful so far. At least, until now…

  “What do you want?” I groan and attempt to access my locker, but she won’t budge.

  “Don’t mind me. Just came to see the miracle woman up close.” She snorts and cocks her head to the side.

  “You’ve seen me. Now, move.”

  “You know he never let me spend the night. Never. Not once.” She twists her dirty-blonde hair around her finger and checks out her nails. I’m really not in the mood to hear her talk about Haze right now.

  “Move,” I repeat, and she finally takes a hint.

  “He never introduced me to any of his friends. He wouldn’t even allow me to be seen with him in public, can you believe it?”

  “That’s fascinating, really.” I open my locker and start shoving its content into my backpack.

  “But with you”—she completely ignores my obvious annoyance with her—“with you, it’s different. He rejects girls, he gets into fights. He would do anything for you. And so, I just had to come and see for myself. What is it about you that makes you so damn special?” She steps closer as she speaks.

  If she only knew that I haven’t heard from Haze in four days.

  “I remember the first time I saw you. You were at my party, and Haze and I had just finished fucking.” Her words make me want to vomit. “I ran into you after he kicked me out because he didn’t want us to come out at the same time. That’s how meaningless we are to him. All of us,” she spits harshly, but her pale eyes are tainted with a distant sadness that could almost make you feel sorry for her. Almost.

  Memories of that night claw at me. This was the party where Haze saved me from some enemies of Kendrick who wanted my head. We never did get to find out who they were, but my guess is it was Tanner’s guys. This is when it all began. He took me to his house and offered me a place to sleep. I had no idea, back then, that I’d end up falling for him. I wanted nothing more than to get this troubled guy out of my life. I’d overheard their conversation after they’d… yeah, and he’d said something about making it clear that he just wanted to sleep with her from the start. She’d rushed out of the room in fury. It’s crazy to think of Haze in this light. He really did treat her like trash. But with me… he’s this entirely different person.

  I don’t know how to feel about this.

  “Then, when the cops showed up, he grabbed your arm and ran away with you. Just like that. He protected you, Winter Kingston, the random new girl. A perfect stranger. His first instinct was to save you.”

  Okay, I’ve heard enough.

  “Listen, I’d love to stay and listen to your side-chick story, but I have better things to do, so if you’ll excuse me…”

  Anger tears through her face.

  “Side chick, huh?”

  Here it comes.

  “Is that why, when you left town for some reason, he didn’t chase you and came to see me? Because I’m the side chick?”

  My stomach churns. Will telling me that Haze was seen at her place the day after I left pops into my head.

  “Or did he not tell you about that?”

  “No, he did. He told me everything. He told me how he couldn’t even kiss you and left you standing there barely two minutes after showing up.”

  “And you fell for it.” She chortles loudly. “Of course you did. Let me tell you what he truly did that night.”

  Fear grips my insides.

  “He fucked my brains out. He took me from behind, and we did it again and again and again. He fucked me so hard I couldn’t get enough. And let me tell you, it was good.”

  Projectile vomit in 3, 2, 1…

  “But I assume you know that. You did sleep with him, didn’t you? He really is mind-blowing in the sack, that one.” She smiles as if she’s reminiscing.

  Haze said that he didn’t sleep with her.

  He said he couldn’t even kiss her.

  He promised.

  It feels like multiple bullets are piercing my heart. I wish she didn’t get to me. I wish it didn’t hurt. But it’s pretty hard not to doubt Haze when I haven’t seen or heard from him once since the night he told me about his sister. I’ve been texting him—more like I’ve been texting myself—and he’s been ghosting me. I’m getting tired of his disappearing acts. I’ll be on a plane back to Toronto next Friday. We don’t have time for this. We don’t have time for anything.

  “So, let me ask you, princess. Who’s the side chick now?” She offers me a self-satisfied smile, turns on her heels, and disappears into the moving crowd. I fail to ignore the bitter taste lingering on my tongue. I can’t take it anymore. I get my phone out of my pocket to see I have a message from Kass. She’s giving me a ride home from school per usual. She’s waiting for me outside. I text her that I’ll be right there and select my conversation with Haze. My fingers type the message I’ve been wanting to send all week.

  Winter: Is this your way of telling me you don’t want to get back together anymore? If so, please be a man about it and tell me in person.

  “Hey, Canada. Where’s that boyfriend of yours?” Will says, throwing himself onto the couch with a bag of ketchup chips in hand. That’s his go-to snack, and I honestly have no idea where he finds those. I know we have them in Toronto, but I haven’t seen them anywhere since I moved to the US. Does he get them shipped?

  “Yeah, we haven’t seen him in a while,” Alex adds.

  “Oh, you don’t know?” Kendrick mocks, walking into the living room and sitting right on top of Alex. “Prince Charming forgot that he had a girlfriend recently.” Alex pushes him off and they laugh, wrestling each other like kids.

  Kass walks in, too. “I’m sure he’s just busy.”

  “Busy flirting with all the girls in town,” Will says, and I throw a pillow at him, my fake smile faltering.

  “Seriously, though, what’s his deal?” Kass says and throws herself on the couch next to me. “You two just got back together, and you haven’t even had time to talk about what’s going to happen in a week. You know, when you literally move to another country? What is he even doing? I don’t understand this guy.”

  I sigh. “You and me both, sister, you and me both.”

  She’s right. I’ve been trying not to think about it, but the clock ticking is bringing us closer to the inevitable goodbye with every passing second. The finals are next week. I’m already drowning in studies and all these papers I have to write for extra credit. I have no clue when or if Haze and I will even have time to spend time together before I leave. Then there’s his parents’ awful reception on Tuesday. I assume we’re not going anymore since it would mean seeing each other, and we
’re particularly lacking in that department.

  “He’s here.” Kass jumps up when she gets a text message.

  “Who’s here?” I look at her.

  “Luke.”

  I immediately gaze at Will, who can’t erase the anger on his face. Kass’s seeing Luke Jenson again? Why? What happened to my favorite forbidden couple?

  “You seeing him again?” I ask before she walks out.

  “Yes. He’s taking me to prom next week. Somebody’s got to.” The emphasis she puts on the last part isn’t lost on me. Will probably doesn’t want to take her because it would mean telling Kendrick about them. He keeps his eyes glued to his phone, but I can tell he’s falling to pieces with each step Kass takes toward the door.

  He couldn’t keep his promise. But why? It’s so obvious that he’s head over heels in love with her. He needs to wake up before it’s too late… I get it though. How do you tell your best friend that you’ve been sleeping with his sister behind his back, when he’s specifically forbidden you to?

  Kassidy’s eyes lift to Will. Then, she looks at the ground, pain coloring her traits, and walks out. Next thing we know, a car’s screeching down the street. I receive a message shortly after that. It’s Haze. He texted me back. Well, that’s a first.

  Haze: I’m so sorry, sweetie. I can explain. Please come over to my place.

  Sweetie? Since when does Haze call me sweetie?

  Winter: Where have you been?

  Haze: I’ll tell you everything in person, I promise. I love you. Can you come over?

  I stare at the screen for a few seconds, uncertainty growing inside me, and decide I owe him a chance to explain himself.

  Winter: I’m on my way.

  “Thanks again.” I unbuckle my seat belt and climb out of Will’s car. He was nice enough to drive me.

  “No problem, Canada. You good to get back home?”

  “Yes, don’t worry. Haze will drive me, or I’ll get a cab.”

  Will nods and I slam the door. He drives off in a roar as I make my way to the entrance of the alluring brick-built building with my backpack hanging off my arm. I thought I’d bring Haze the assignments and notes he missed from the classes we have together. I notice two guys that look my age smoking next to the building and watching me but don’t think much of it.

  I text Haze to buzz me in since I can never remember his apartment number. The familiar sound quickly resonates in the wide entrance hall, and I pull the heavy door open with a million thoughts swirling around my brain. He texts me to come in without knocking.

  I have no idea what I could possibly say to him at this point. Every time I think we’re making progress, he takes us back to square one. The elevator ride isn’t long enough. I need more time. More silence. I need another chance to figure out how to casually bring up that I’ll be on a plane taking me to another country in a few days. The ding indicating that I’ve reached his floor only accentuates my panic. The painful lump in my throat makes itself known as I count every step I take religiously. I haven’t been able to get rid of the doubts cutting through my stomach since earlier. What Bianca said stayed with me. I can’t shake her. What if it’s true? What if he did sleep with her?

  I suck in a breath, lay an uncertain and shaky hand on the handle, and turn it. As soon as I walk in and close the door, I’m struck by a darkness I did not expect. All lights are off. Engulfed in gloom, I let my hands explore the walls in search of a light switch.

  “Haze?” I call.

  No reply.

  At first, I think maybe he’s pulling a prank on me. But I quickly realize I couldn’t be more wrong. The lamp comes on and I see him.

  The guy that should be Haze but isn’t…

  He’s tall, brown-haired, and buff. He looks at me with a smug face and arched eyebrows. His nose is crooked, but it doesn’t seem birth-given. It looks like he broke it. I’ve never seen him in my life.

  “So, it’s you, huh?” he says casually like I’m not completely terrified.

  “Who are you?”

  “I mean, I get it. Great ass. I’d hit that, too.” He eyes me up and down, my previous sentence going in through one ear and out the other.

  “Where’s Haze?” I ask louder.

  “Oh, don’t worry about him. He won’t bother us.” He smiles and gets up, walking toward me. “I made sure of it.”

  Oh hell to the no.

  I don’t have even the slightest idea as to who that is, but it doesn’t matter. He’s bad news, I know that much. I try to make a run for it, but he beats me to the door like he’s had time to prepare for my every move. “Hey, where are you going? We’ve still got so much to discuss, you and I.”

  I get my phone out of my back pocket, but he sees me coming from a mile away. He wrenches it from my hands and lobs it across the room.

  “Rude!” He glares at me. “I’m talking to you.”

  I’m paralyzed.

  “What do you want with me?”

  “I want what we all want. To get our leader back and for you to stop being a pain in the ass.”

  To get our leader back…

  This… this is one of Haze’s fighters.

  “You know, it’s funny. Even your goddamn cousin doesn’t want you together, but you two idiots still can’t take a hint.” His fingers trace the curve of my jawline, and I tremble in fear. “Don’t get me wrong, we’re happy that he told us everything, really. It exposed Haze for the lying son of a bitch he really is.”

  Kendrick.

  Kendrick told them about us. Haze was suspicious that someone in the East side had snitched. I didn’t want to believe it. This has to be what Kendrick meant by “fixing” it. This is where he went the night of the party. This is why Haze said his guys were even worse than before. They knew he was lying for a fact. I bet Kendrick thought he was keeping me safe. That Haze’s guys would force him to walk a straight line again and get him away from me. If he only knew…

  “I’m sorry, where are my manners? I didn’t even introduce myself. Name’s Ryan, but I go by my last name. Everyone calls me Sutter. Maybe your boyfriend told you about me?”

  No, he didn’t. If he had, maybe this wouldn’t be happening.

  “Where is he?”

  “Haze? He’s fine. Trev’s keeping him busy while we take care of you.” He cackles. “Bastard has no idea. He still thinks he lost his phone.”

  It all becomes clear. Haze didn’t send me those messages.

  This guy did.

  I knew something was off. He never calls me sweetie.

  Wait, Winter, he said “we.” I think back to the guys I saw outside. Could they be with him?

  “He actually thought he could fool us by staying away from you for a week, can you believe it? He really does take us for a bunch of brainless imbeciles.”

  That’s why he hasn’t been around. He was trying to convince them that we weren’t together.

  “I gotta give it to him. The guy really does love you.” He steps forward and corners me. “It’s fascinating, really. We didn’t think he had it in him.”

  “I’ll scream. Don’t think I won’t.” I gather all my courage, my throat so dry it hurts to speak.

  “Scream all you want, darling. There isn’t a soul in the building.” He twists a piece of my hair around his index finger, and I wince. “Do you know how easy it was to get everyone out for a few hours? All we had to do was go from door to door, claim the landlord sent us, and tell them we suspected there was a gas leak. They didn’t even bat an eye.”

  Only then does realization crumple me.

  They thought this whole thing through. I’m not strong enough to fight this guy. My only chance is to outsmart him.

  “What are you going to do to me?” I quiver in fear.

  “We don’t know yet. See, the initial plan was to get rid of you but…” He smirks. “Maybe we don’t have to go to such extremes. Maybe we can get rid of Haze’s feelings for you instead.”

  “What does that mean?”


  “What do you say you show me how that pretty mouth of yours turned Haze Adams into your little bitch?”

  Instant gag reflex.

  “What? You screw my leader but not me. A bit unfair, don’t you think?” He shoots me a cocky look.

  I have an idea.

  “Then I’m free to go?” I bat my eyelashes.

  “Yep. I’m sure Haze finding out that I fucked his precious Winter in his bed would do the trick.”

  It takes an unparalleled strength for me to crack a giggle, step toward him, and run my hands down his chest.

  I pray that I’m believable.

  “That’s more like it,” he says, satisfied.

  I stand on my tiptoes and whisper in his ear, “I have protection in my backpack. Let me grab it.”

  He beams. “I knew there was a reason Haze liked you so much.”

  Just like that, he lets me bend down and grab my backpack lying on the floor. Freaking idiot. I unzip my bag and dive my hand deep into it, my fingers searching for it. Where is it?

  I know I brought it.

  “What’s taking so long? My dick isn’t going to suck itself,” he hisses.

  The moment Haze and I shared in this exact spot five days ago haunts me.

  “I want you to have this.”

  “Pepper spray?”

  “Keep it with you at all times, okay?”

  I am so glad that I listened to him.

  “Why don’t you suck on that?” I spin around and spray the monster in front of me right in the face. He stumbles back a few steps, screaming in agony as he covers his eyes with his hands.

  That’s my cue.

  I slam the door to Haze’s apartment open and leap into the hall. I know there’s a very good chance the guys I saw outside will be waiting for me, but I don’t care. I have to try.

  “You bitch!” I hear him yell as I go down the stairs. The adrenaline kicking in gives me the super speed I so desperately need. I can hear his distant thumping behind me. He’s probably blinder than my great-grandma right now.