Pure Vengeance

Chapter 10

CHAPTER TEN

Noah

I’m not entirely happy about leaving the party, but a part of me knows Adrian is right and I can’t deny it, even though I’m pretty out of it at the moment. He leaves my room, and I’m wondering where he’s gone when he comes back with some coffee.

“Here, drink this.”

I take it and sip it, pulling a face. “I hate coffee.”

“Since when?” he asks.

“Since forever,” I say, but I sip the coffee again, gagging.

“I didn’t know,” he says.

I look at him. “If you’re trying to sober me up, the best thing you can give me is orange juice. It kills all buzzes.” I don’t know why I’m bothering to tell him this, but he leaves again and comes back with a bottle of orange juice. I set the coffee down and take a big gulp of orange juice.

I look at him. “It’s not a magic potion, it doesn’t work right away. You can go, I will not die.”

“I don’t want to leave,” he whispers. “I want to talk to you, but I’m not sure how much of this you’re going to remember.”

“I’ve got a pretty good memory, even when I’m partying.”

“Did you have sex with that guy in the bathroom?” he asks.

“Do you care?” I ask.

“Yes,” he says. “I care. Because you had sex with me, and if you’re sleeping with every fucker on campus, I’ve got a right to know.”

“You say that like we’re going to have sex again. Did you decide you enjoy fucking me?” I ask, taking another deep sip of orange juice.

“Yes.”

I stare at him. “Well, I wasn’t expecting that answer.”

“Listen, I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and I can’t stop thinking about you. I know we’re stepbrothers, but I can’t get you out of my head. I enjoy spending time with you. I enjoy when we have sex. It’s hot, dirty, and fucking sexy.” He blushes crimson. “And I feel like there’s more there than just sex.”

I don’t know what to say, so I sip the orange juice again, then I get up, unsteady. He stands, and I push him back down. “No, you stay there.”

I cross to my desk and sit on the chair. I light a cigarette and swing back and forth. “You’re saying you’ve developed feelings for me?”

“Yes,” he says.

I scoff. “So years of torturing me. Of bullying me. Of playing for favorite with my father. All that is just poof, gone, because you like the sex with me.”

“It’s not just the sex, it’s how you make me feel,” he says.

“It’s an illusion,” I say. “You are very disillusioned as to what I wanted from you. I wanted sex. Nothing more than that, Adrian. I have no feelings for you. And I will not give you more ammo for your little revenge plot you’ve got against me.”

“I didn’t go through with it,” he says earnestly. “You know I could’ve done it at any time.”

I snort. “Or you could be building up to it, gathering more evidence. I’m not going to give you the ammo to use to shoot me down.”

“Noah,” he starts to say.

“Enough.” I cut him off. “Piss off out of here.”

Adrian looks hurt, at least, I believe he pretends to be hurt. He gets up and walks out, pausing at the door, but I swing on my chair and turn my back to him. “Shut the door after you.”

I hear the door shut, and I down the rest of the orange juice before I climb into bed, still fully clothed with shoes on and everything.

I toss and turn most of the night. I know it’s because I’m coming down from the high. I eventually fall asleep in the early hours of the morning, and when I wake up, it’s with a start. My alarm is going off next to my bed. I kill it and wage war with myself. Do I skip class or not? No, I best not.

Maybe I should lay off the coke for a while, too. I was pretty reckless last night with that guy. Whatever his name was. I’m sure he told me, but I didn’t really care. He doesn’t suck dick, so I really couldn’t be bothered.

I drag myself out of bed, grab fresh clothes and go shower. While I’m in there, I let the hot water run over me, clearing my head. I hate the comedown from any drug, but more so with coke. It kills my creativity. It creates a mental block, and now I’m expected to go to an art class and be expressive.

I get dressed and brush my mouth. I feel like I’m going to throw up, but I keep it down. There’s a banging on the door and I groan. “Coming.”

I grab my things and head out. “Jesus, Liam, give a guy a chance.”

“You took forever.” He goes into the bathroom and shuts the door.

I put my dirty clothes in the hamper and throw on my trainers before I grab my portfolio and my bag and head out. When I get outside, I’m disappointed to see Adrian standing there.

“I wanted to make sure you were okay,” he says quietly.

“I’m fine,” I snap. “Shouldn’t you be at class?”

“I don’t have class this morning,” he says. “And if my frat brothers knew I was here, they would kill me. They’re already pissed with me.”

“You defended me, of course they are,” I scoff. “What did you think would happen?”

“So me defending you doesn’t count for anything?” he asks hotly.

I snort. “Hardly. I told you I’m not giving you any ammo, so you can just mooch along and do whatever it is you like. I don’t give a flying fuck.” I walk past him.

“Noah...”

“Behold my field of fucks,” I shout. “And see it is barren.”

I continue to walk when I hear footsteps coming up behind me.

I turn to shoo Adrian away, but I see two of his housemates. They grab me and drag me into an alleyway. I try to throw them off, dropping my things in the dirt.

I recognize the president as he walks up to me. “Well, well, well... where’s your little boyfriend?”

“I don’t have one. If you haven’t noticed, I’ve got a girlfriend.” I spit at his shoes.

“Now that’s not very respectful.” He punches me in the gut, and I lose my breath. “Your brother isn’t here to protect you now, Bennett. We’ll deal with him later.”

“Leave him alone,” I growl. “Or you’ll piss me off, and you won’t like me pissed off.”

“Your brother said you had a violent side, but as I see it, it’s three of us and one of you.”

I yank myself free and punch the guy to my left in the nose. “Two of you,” I say pulling my knife out. “Who’s next?”

The president sizes me up and glares at me. “This isn’t over. Come on, guys.”

They all walk out of the alleyway, kicking my bag out of their way. I lean on the wall, breathing deeply. Fucking creeps. They’re taking this rivalry way too far. I better speak to Richard about having someone walk with me from now on. If they catch me again, I doubt they’ll be thrown off. I was lucky now.

I pick up my things and walk out the alleyway. I head toward the art building where I see Richard standing outside with his girlfriend. I approach him. “Rich, I just ran into some trouble.”

“With who?” he asks.

“The Alphas, who else?” I scoff. “But they jumped me, three to one. I don’t think any of us should be walking around alone. They’re on a mission, and they don’t care if they use violence.”

Richard nods and says, “I’ll let the others know. You’re okay, though?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I assure him. “I’ll catch up to you later.”

I head into the building and open my portfolio to the drawing of Adrian I’ve been working on. Such a vulnerable drawing. I’ve wanted to burn it a hundred times, but I can’t bring myself to do it.