Nero slowly slid his hands back down her thighs and returned her to her feet. “Now, hurry up. I would like to get the fuck out of here.”
Elle didn’t know how she got her legs to hold her up, much less walk to the back kitchen. She tried to shake off what had happened between her and Nero as she quickly took out her phone and sent Nero the first picture she had taken yesterday, showing her whole schedule. Elle figured there was no harm in giving it to him. She had already planned to keep riding with him to work now.
She walked farther back into the kitchen to tell the cook she was leaving. “See you this weekend, Steve.”
He didn’t even look up from the dishes. “Bye, Elle.”
Elle walked back through the swinging doors and went to the cash register, putting in ten dollars’ worth in tips instead of breaking the hundred. Elle smiled. She didn’t want to take Nero’s money. But I did work for it all night. She turned some lights off and grabbed her coat before walking to Nero, who was waiting by the door.
Her smile never disappeared when Nero drove her home. As they reached her house, Nero parked at the next house down, making Elle curious as to why he had done it. When he spent a long time kissing her goodbye, Elle realized why, remembering her family looking out the window earlier.
She lay in her bed that night, still unable to stop smiling. Being with Nero made her happy in her life once again. She had forgotten the feeling.
That night was the first in years Elle fell asleep with a smile on her face.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Thanks for Killing Our Fucking Dreams
Elle sat in Spanish, looking at the clock. My, how things can change. This time, Elle didn’t mind the ticking when she usually wished somehow time would freeze so the ticking would stop. This was a monumental moment in her life.
She had been terrified of lunch time ever since…
Brrring.
“Can I solve this problem?” she asked her teacher. Elle decided to finish her algebra problem as everyone else ran out of the classroom to go to lunch. It’s not like she was in a hurry to sit all by herself at lunch anyway.
“Go ahead. Shut the door on your way out.”
Elle didn’t have time to even nod before the teacher ran off into the teachers’ lounge.
Elle finished her problem and went out to head to lunch, sure to close the door behind her. Her classroom was all the way in the back of the school.
As she started heading down the hallway, she began hearing laughter from a crowd. Elle kept walking to get out of the back hallway and into the main one. When she did, she came right into a group of people. She already knew who the girls were, but she hadn’t met the guys yet.
“That’s who I was telling you about, Sebastian.” Cassandra pointed toward Elle.
Elle saw a guy walk forward who looked almost identical to Cassandra. The only reason they didn’t was because they were of opposite sex.
“So, you’re the little bitch who disrespected my sister?”
Elle tried to pass him. She knew exactly where this was going.
“Oh, no, you don’t. We’re going to take a little walk.” Sebastian hooked his arm in hers and headed back down the back hallway.
“Get off me.” Elle tried not to move with Sebastian and then began fighting him.
Another guy hooked her other arm and both of them started pulling her down the hallway.
Elle desperately tried to fight them, kicking and screaming. Tears started to fill her eyes and a powerful feeling came over her that what was about to happen to her would change her forever.
Elle was now being pulled through the back school door. She saw the girls following behind her through her tears while she heard their laughter over her screams…
Elle shook her head. It doesn’t matter anymore. She had already cried too many nights because of that day, and the memory was too bad to bring up. I don’t want to ruin a good day.
Elle was having a good day, too. Nero had picked her up again, another house down of course, and Amo had brought Chloe safe and sound to English this morning. Now she was going to have a great lunch, no matter what anyone decided to throw at her.
When the bell rang, Elle got up smiling.
Chloe smiled at her. “Someone’s happy.”
Elle laughed. “Yeah, you don’t look too unhappy yourself.” She had told Chloe last night why she had been upset yesterday. Chloe actually stood up for Nero, agreeing with what he told her in the car. Needless to say, Chloe enjoyed having three big shields to stand in front of her.
Elle stopped in the doorway, looking at the guys leaning against the lockers. “Yeah, I guess they aren’t so bad.”
Chloe stopped beside her. “You’re right.” Chloe paused. “Well, besides the beast.”