I slept in a different room that night. I found a guest room without Damien's help, and curled into myself on top of the king bed. It was by far the best bed I had ever slept on, and would probably be the best for the rest of my life. My heart hurt, and I scolded myself when I woke up from the alarm next to me.

Feelings are bad. Feelings get you killed.

I made my way down stairs as the sun began to rise, making my way to the fancy coffee pot in the corner. The smell immediately filled the air when I started it, my eyes closing at the pleasure from it.

"You started the coffee." It came out more of a statement, my eyes snapping open to meet the dark ones from Charles. He didn't sneer at me, but his gaze was still cold and distant. I grit my teeth before nodding curtly, opening and shutting a million cabinets before finding the mugs.

I filled me a cup and sat down, watching the sun through a small window before me. "What day is today?"

"Tuesday." I looked back up to him fast, my eyes wide open.

"How long was I passed out for!?" He huffed while pouring himself a cup, moving to sit before me.

"Two days, but you were perfectly fine." I rolled my eyes as I took another sip, my ears perking at the slightest noise above us.

"Yeah, a concussion is perfectly fine." I grumbled, watching as his jaw locked.

"Really? You think a concussions bad?" He shot up, his chair shooting back behind him. "Damien had just gotten shot, and all you can care about is your own fucking concussion?!"

I shot up not far behind him, heat rising to my face as fury flared through me. I was mad, correction, I was pissed. "Considering I'm the one that took the bullet from your precious gang leader, and am now currently being held here against my will, you're damn right I care about my concussion! I don't know where your parents are, or where anyone's parents are, but I am all my mother has, so I apologize for worrying about my own god damn health!"

He looked stunned as I shouted, not even uttering a word back to me. I spun on my heal and tore out of the room, passing the open mouth stares of Joey and Jake, with Damien himself not far behind them on the stairs. I ran up and went into the room I slept in, opening the bathroom and turning the shower on.

I was so mad I wanted to cry. I wanted to break down and let tears I hadn't released in so long fall and punch the mirror thousands and thousands of times. Fury rolled through me like water, overpowering my senses until I finally shot my arm out and punched the mirror right in front of me.

It shattered, blood rolling off my knuckles as glass poured onto the ground. I looked into all those shards, my dark brown eyes hiding away the secrets from my past. The hidden tattoos under my clothing reminding me of just how much I hide. It's pathetic really.

But I just take my shower, out my clothes on, and suck it up.

***

To say I spoke much with the guys during the day would be a lie. I avoided them like the plague, but it was lunch time, and I haven't pulled a prank in a while. But the real question is, what am I going to do?

Razor blades in their muffins? Snakes in their back packs?

Okay, maybe those are a bit too extreme.

I decided to leave for lunch early, escaping the goonies that Damien practically had stalking me by going to the bathroom with 'girl issues.'

Works every time.

I setup balloons filled with pain to the tables Damien and his gang usually sat at, right where Damien, Joey and Charles sat. When they went to sit down and pushed their chairs closer to the table, the balloons would explode and cover their Crotch with red and yellow paint.

I grinned from the back corner of the cafeteria, my head down and my long sleeves covering my arms. I ducked my head down when I saw his group begin to trickle in, before looking up when a chair in front of me got pulled out.

I furrowed my eyebrows at the boy sitting before me, Isaac Rodgers. He was the all American football player and almost every girls dream boy, right behind Damien Asher. I raised an eyebrow at him, his blonde hair in messy curls right on top of his blue eyes.

"Uh, hello?" I asked quietly, looking up to check for Damien and his little group he kept himself within.

"Yeah, hi. Fern, right?" He scratched the back of his neck, a light rosy blush inkling along the tops of his cheeks.

"Yes, can I help you?" He gave me a sheepish smile when the doors to the cafeteria opened again, slamming against the walls.

It was like he was a light and everyone around his was moths. I swear to god, Damien Asher was a god to these high schoolers, with girls practically drooling and guys cringing with both envy and hatred. Idiots.

"Well, are you with Damien?" I chuckled as I shook my head no, tearing my gaze away from Damien and his drawing light.

"No, he practically hates me."

"I wouldn't really be able to tell with the look he's giving me right now." I looked over to find Damien glaring at Isaac, a look well known among gang leaders.

Maybe they had a gang leader school where they taught them this glare, maybe at this school they also taught them to be cold assholes. I dunno. Seems like he has it down pat though.

"Yeah I'm sorry about him, but I promise, he hates me." He visibly relaxed, causing my eyebrow to raise a bit again.

"Okay, since you missed yesterday we got assigned a work page due on Thursday, so can you come over either tomorrow or tonight? Since we only have two days to do it and everything." I huffed, biting my lip.

Just as my mouth opened a loud pop sounded through the room, and a screech right behind it. I looked up to find Joey standing in front of where he was sitting with paint covering so much more than his crotch, his torso and bits of his face as well.

I laughed along with half of the cafeteria, the other half probably too scared to laugh. Just as he began to look around two more pops were heard, Charles shooting up from his seat while Damien just looked at his pants with a clenched jaw. I turned from my seat to look back at Isaac, who's face was shocked and his mouth hanging wide open.

"Okay, I'm pretty much about to die so, I'll talk to you later? I'll text you about coming over okay?"

I shot out of my seat just as Damien did, his eyes set on me. This is it, this is how I'll die. I always figured the gang that killed dad would do it, or maybe mom would finally fly off the deep end, but noooo. I had to get killed by an attractive gang leader with a killer jaw, and plump lips, and a body I could just...

Oh god Fern, running for your life from a hot angry Italian is probably not the time to picture the things you would do to him. Stupid teenage hormones.

I ran around a corner before turning straight around, hoping to get away from the dead end hall before they caught up with me. It seems as if luck wasn't on my side right now, because a seething Damien stood before me with Charles and Joey.

"Oh, hey guys! Fancy seeing you all here." I smiled, waving slightly at them. They just have me their cold glares, causing me to lower my hand before reaching into my pocket and taking out an Oreo I had saved from this morning. "Cookie?"

Joey burst out laughing, stalking forward to take my Oreo from my hand. "Don't mind if I do."

My mouth was open as I stared at him blatantly eat my cookie. Mine.

I mean, I knew I offered it, but I didn't actually think they'd accept it!

"Okay princess, you know this means you have to be tortured right?" My face immediately paled at that word, memories flashing in front of my brain. Image after image assaulted me, causing me to shiver and start shutting down.

Damien saw straight away and began shaking his head at me, walking forward to put his hand against my cheek. It relaxed me almost instantly, his smell enveloping me as he leaned in and tried to embrace me as close as he could without getting me covered in paint.

"I'm sorry." I muttered, my eye shooting open when I realized he began to chuckle under me. Seriously, me!

"Don't think you're getting out of your torture."

-

Turns out their idea of torture was worse than the whips and knives I had been subjected to years earlier.

Okay, that was an exaggeration, but it was still pretty bad.

Hours after hour of Twilight: the Audiobook, and I was ready to rip my ears out. They made me watch the movie too, while I begged and pleased to just take me out of my misery and shoot me directly in my eyeballs. Obviously, they didn't comply with my multiple requests, but did finally shut it off and put in the first Lord of the Rings movie.

I practically squealed in excitement, mouthing along to the words next to Damien. He chuckled and would inch closer and closer to me before he finally grew some and put his arm around me. Now, normally I would rip their arm off so fast they wouldn't even be able to breathe.

But with Damien, I simply relaxed into his touch and curled closer to his skin. I sniffed him as discreetly as possible, and felt my blood warm and my heart race when his thumb began to run circles on my bare hip.

That's how we fell asleep, after putting in the second of the trilogy, my heart racing, and my body encompassed in Damien's big burly arms. But I was okay, he was okay, and I already breaking my first rule to myself.

Never fall for a boy.

Fuck.