A month has passed in the time since I had spoken to Jessica in the nurse's office, and we had set our plan into motion.

We are entering stage one, intimidating Bryce and making him fall for one of us. It's my job to embarrass him in front of his boys, and Jess's to enlist a few into helping our cause. If we manage to turn his boys against him, we could take him down.

All of this work would take a while, but my nights are no longer filled with nightmarish memories, and are full of dreams of the final stage. Redemption.

My face is locked and hard as I slam the opening doors to the school, knuckles pale as they grip on the straps of my backpack.

A steely determination glints in my deep brown eyes, scaring a couple freshman into steering clear of my glare as I stride confidently down the hallway.

I changed in the bathroom into perfectly tight dark jeans, complimented by an expensive leather jacket that highlights my vibrant red hair. My white tank top is tight, showcasing my figure as I stare down anyone who admires it. Brown eyes bore into their gaze, forcing them to avert their eyes.

This style is completely new to me, and I almost didn't recognize myself as I was changing into it. My look is almost always a soft and cozy vibe, I have never shown this rebellious side of me to school.

I sweep my hair over my shoulder, smiling to myself as hundreds of eyes follow my every movement. My mouth is slightly parted, painted with a dark red lipstick as I walk powerfully down the hall.

I arrive at the doors to the cafeteria, slamming it open with a force that surprises me, strutting across the cafe as the room falls silent. My eyes skim over each table, boys quietly gawking at me and girls whispering and pointing with mixed opinions, the look in each of their gaze either full of admiration or disgust.

Clay Jensen is sitting at a table with a book, staring at me with his jaw dropped in shock. His open mouth slowly forms a dangerous smile, and I smirk at him enticingly. His eyes are full of lust and desire as they carefully follow my movements with a thirst that makes my heart slam faster in my chest. Blue eyes meet mine, and they hold an indescribable look that makes my stomach flutter.

A heartbeat pounds inside me and I have to resist the urge to pounce on him as his eyes come to rest on my waist. The burning fire in them makes my body ache in yearning for him.

I shake my head and turn away from his wanting gaze, resuming my rehearsed act of being careless.

Pausing for a second, I lock eye contact with Bryce Walker, who immediately stands up. His tall build blocks my vision of Clay, who sits behind his table full of jocks.

Bryce's eyes mirror Clay's in an almost identical amount of lust, but the warm desire is replaced by the same hunger that haunts my dreams. The same greed that keeps waking me in a cold sweat, tears streaming down my face.

The boys are silent, hitting each other playfully as I glare in their direction.

My eyes come to rest on a certain blonde boy, with a smile as he leans back in his chair. Max Dwyer stares at me with a deep, devastatingly attractive look of longing, his green eyes lingering on my tight outfit and my lips. His gaze trails up and down my figure, and he leans back with a low whistle of admiration.

Usually, this attitude would make me incredibly angry, but hot shame burns in my chest as Max's desire makes my heart flutter. I move my vision quickly away from him to distract myself, skimming over the rest of the boys instead.

Besides Max is Justin Foley, who has an expression of shocked thirst that I roll my eyes at. I know it far too well to care. It never did anything for me when we were dating anyway.

Zach Dempsey's face is full of a joyful confusion, his mouth slightly open with puzzlement as he looks from Bryce to me. He forces his face to become neutral as he catches me glaring at him, and looks away in embarrassment.

My eyes, hot with fury, penetrate Bryce's hungry gaze with a burning anger that causes the rest of the cafeteria to fall silent with unease.

Jessica Davis is standing nervously a couple yards away from me, quietly watching us as the cafeteria remains silent and observant. I nod at her and she pulls out her phone camera, understanding what I was about to do. This was only the beginning.

The pure anger pools in my stomach, growing hotter as I stomp across the cafeteria towards Bryce. He remains standing but a hint of reproachfulness glints under the layers of greed in his gaze.

Clay's eyes dart back and forth, tensing in his seat as I grow closer to Bryce. He drops his book, fists clenched and ready to jump in if I need him.

Though my legs and hands are shaking furiously, I power my way to Bryce and clench my fists. I reach him, somehow staying just as intimidating even though he stands a whole foot and a half taller than me. I lock a death glare with him, and he takes a fearful step backwards.

"Sit your ass down." My voice is so strong and venomous that he somehow obeys, keeping the eye contact as the hunger only grows stronger in his eyes, and I have to force the shock out of my eyes.

I land a perfectly placed kick to his shin, and Bryce crumples in his seat into a huddled position. He slams his hand on the table in pain, hit fury in his eyes. He won't punch a girl, at least not until that girl pushes him too far, which I'm sure I'm bordering the line for.

The jocks are silent, unsure of what to do.

My hand wraps around Bryce's beefy neck, barely covering a quarter of it's size. "Don't look at me like that every again, or I'll kick a whole lot higher next time —" I laugh as Bryce's eyes nervously dart to his lap — "and I don't miss..."

I raise my foot menacingly and dig my fingernails into his skin. He winces as a pathetic whimper sounds from his throat.

"If you even think of touching another girl against her will, you'll be sorry. I'll be painting these walls with your blood, Walker. You really don't want to fuck with me, I can promise you it'll be the worst mistake of your miserable little life."

Genuine fear shines in Bryce's eyes as I push my nails in even deeper. Drops of blood fall from the marks my fingernails left and my legs shake harder, but I ignore them as Bryce stays frozen in shock.

"You will never have any idea what I'm capable of."

My red hair falls into his face from the terrifying closeness of our eyes, mine boring into his with a fury that shocks me. I release him by throwing his head back but keep my furious stare locked into his blue eyes.

The entire cafeteria is eerily silent and I pause for effect before turning away from Bryce, surveying the entire room with my fiery eyes.

No one moves and a great satisfaction leaves me before I strut out of the cafeteria, willing myself to stop trembling. I hear footsteps quick behind me and slam the door back open, refusing to look back.

A fury of urgent whispers rise throughout the hundreds of students and grow distant as I stride confidently down the hall. Pushing my way through a crowd of incoming students, I find an empty classroom and crash into it.

My hands slowly stop shaking as I stand against a desk, sitting down on it with my hands in my hair, in disbelief at what I had just done. The silence of the room calms me and I process the events gradually, my mind racing.

Holy shit, I can't believe I just did that.

Will it work? I made myself seem really scary.

I wouldn't stand a chance against him if it were to actually come to blows like I said it would, but he looked scared enough.

That was so fucking cool. Jesus, that was the best feeling ever. I think, poking my tongue into my cheek with a proud smile.

The door flies open and I yelp, jumping in fright as it slams loudly against the wall. I cover my face with my hands as an immediate reaction, the bravery I had just experienced quickly leaving me.

"Ellie?" a low voice asks and I open my eyes to see Clay Jensen standing in the doorway.

His eyes are wide with admiration, and a great smile spread across his face in undisguised amazement. Dark hair tousled and fluffy, his arms are crossed as he stares at me on the desk.

My tense body softens immediately as I realize it's him, the anxiety bottoming out of my stomach as he jogs over to me.

Clay's blue eyes are bright and alive with excitement, and he's unable to shut his mouth as he gazes at me in awe. The swirling longing in his eyes burns even stronger as he looks down at me.

I suddenly realize how much taller he is than me as he draws closer. In almost all of our encounters, we had been sitting or laying down somewhere. Now, as I rise to my feet, I realize how he towers over my petite body and it fills me with even more desire than before.

"You are the hottest person on this planet." Clay's voice is nearly a whisper and butterflies awaken in my stomach as he comes closer to my face.

He smiles at the fiery want in my deep almond eyes and his hands immediately latch onto my waist as he pulls me into a sweeping kiss. Our synchronized lips move together perfectly as though they were made to fit like puzzle pieces.

A gasp falls from my parted lips as Clay's strong hands move to my bottom, cupping it and lifting me up into the air. My legs wrap around his torso and he pushes me roughly deeper the wall of the classroom, slamming my back into it as my hands wrap around his neck.

Passion overflows him, and I can practically feel the heat radiating off his chest. The kiss is much rougher than normal, as if something had switched inside of him, pulling at my hips and pushing me harder and deeper into the wall.

My head hits the wall and I pull back to take a breath before he connects his mouth to mine again, and I smile against his lips. Despite where we are, or how dangerous it is, I want him. Here and now.

I want you is the only thought I'm left capable of having, repeating like a broken record in my brain. I want you, I want you, I want —

His lips are on my neck now, and my thoughts shut down until I'm practically brain-dead. His mouth travels down to my neck; he has to know how crazy it makes me. A shiver courses down my body from his touch and he smiles against my jaw as I breathe in a rush of pure ecstasy next to his ear.

He deepens the kiss, pushing me harder into the wall as my heart beats stronger than ever before. I keep the connection at our lips and remove my leather jacket, throwing it aside and leaving me in my tight white camisole.

My shirt has been accidentally moved down to expose it during the roughness of the kiss. I am very aware of the cleavage in my tank top when a soft breeze from the open window sweeps across it.

Clay pulls away to catch his breath and his blue eyes catch mine as I lean my head back into the wall, longing for his lips on my neck again. He obliges, using one hand to hold me up and the other to move up my torso towards my chest.

His fingers graze across my breast, grabbing it as support while he bites lightly on my neck.

Heaving for breath, I bite my lip to suppress my moans as Clay works harder at my neck, moving his hands up to my hair. I squeeze my legs tighter around his waist to contain myself from loudly yelling his name.

I'm very aware of the sounds of movement of other people outside of the door. The dangerousness of the situation, how anyone could walk in, only makes me feel more desire for Clay, and I briefly wonder how fucked up I am for thinking that.

He yanks off his hoodie and resumes his place at my throat in nothing but a tight black t-shirt. I want to rip it off him, to see those muscles on his chest I had felt rippling under my hands in my car a month ago, but I'm too weak, too overpowered by the ecstasy of his lips on my neck to move.

His nimble fingers start to play delicately with the straps of my top, pulling them roughly over my shoulder. His strong build leans deeper into my aching body, smothering me against the wall. He leaves trailing hickeys down my collarbones, raising his hands lower down to the button of my jeans.

I gasp again as Clay shifts me higher up the wall so my legs rest on his strong shoulders. My jeans are pulled down to my knees instantly, and I barely have any time to process as he brings his warm face to down my stomach.

He smiles coyly up at me as he moves further down my body, and his fingers latch onto the waistline of my underwear. Within seconds, a strike of electricity flies all the way from my legs to my brain as his face meets my core. I don't know how he got so good at that, but I find my fingers digging into his shoulders as his tongue works expertly at my heat. Pounding in my stomach clouds my mind, traveling across my entire body. He becomes faster, maintaining a strong eye contact with me. My head tilts back as my mouth parts and my back arches off the wall, nearing what feels like an insurmountable edge.

"Fuck!" I lose my control over my voice, exclaiming loudly as I fall over the edge, sending a pool of heat into my stomach and a trembling shiver flooding through me.

My eyes widening with panic, I clasp a hand over my mouth.

I was supposed to stay silent.

Clay instantly retracts himself as a loud bang shakes the room. I drop painfully from the wall as he lets go of my waist and backs up, whipping around to face the door in a panic. My shaking hands pull my bra straps back over my shoulder and tug my pants back up just as a tall figure arrives in the doorway.

Mr. Porter stands like a statue, holding the door open and shifting his gaze from my boyfriend's panicked eyes to mine. His eyes travel over the empty classroom, pausing momentarily on my leather jacket laying astray on the floor and my hair.

My hands immediately go to the floor to grab onto Clay's hoodie, throwing it over to hide my purple hickeys. He pushes his t-shirt down, clearly trying to hide his erection from the counselor, who surveys him with suspicious eyes.

Red strands of hair fall over my face, tangled and messy from where Clay's hands had latched onto it. This, combined with the bright pink blush and the way Clay keeps looking nervously at me, gives away what happened.

I bite my lip to hold back a smile as Clay shuffles nervously, trying to hide his reddening face from the teacher's prying eyes. My neck tingles from where my boyfriend's lips had just been, but I ignore it as I keep steady eye contact with Mr. Porter, and my legs have resumed their shaking.

"Aren't you two supposed to be in class?" Mr. Porter asks slowly, his words drawn out and forced like they were painful to utter.

Clay and I look at each other anxiously and both rush out words at the same time.

"It's our lunch period," I say at the same time as Clay, who stutters, "We're studying for a test!"

Panic-stricken, I shoot Clay a death glare and he freezes in fright. That has to singlehandedly be the dumbest thing I have ever seen Clay do.

Mr. Porter shifts his questioning gaze from one of us to the other, raising his bushy eyebrow in unmasked disapproval. My brain goes into hyperdrive trying to find a way out of this."

"It's our lunch period," I say quickly. "We came here to study for the A.P. test we have in history. Clay... uh... Clay is my tutor. He's the Atkins family tutor," I curse myself for mentioning Jeff, because now Clay is looking curiously at me and I have to force my voice to sound steady all while holding Mr. Porter's examining eyes.

Clay stands silent, looking down at the ground. He's always been a terrible liar.

"Don't let me catch you lying to me. Now, go study somewhere else or go back to lunch," Mr. Porter says pointedly, furrowing his eyebrows. "Now!" he adds furiously.

He breaks the uncomfortable eye contact as he darts his gaze over to Clay, who refuses to meet it.

"But we really need to study —" Clay begins.

"You can study in the library where a teacher can keep a closer eye on you two," Mr. Porter interrupts, narrowing his eyes at the pair of us, awkwardly still at his words.

I look over to Clay, standing stationary with a frozen panic in his eyes, and discreetly kick his ankle. He jumps in response and looks around the room for his stuff.

Shoving him his backpack, which was thrown across the classroom, I nod awkwardly at Mr. Porter before I grab my own bag and slip out of the doorframe.

Clay jogs to keep up with me while I flatten my messy hair and adjust my outfit back to normal. I hand him back his hoodie and throw my leather jacket back over my shoulders. I find my old stride as he catches up to me, his stride much longer than mine.

"That was close," he sighs and I finally let myself go, laughing loudly into the quiet hallway.

"There's no way he couldn't tell, dude!" I giggle, keeling over in laughter.

"That was so worth it though." Clay looks back down at the ground, trying to adjust his pace to mine.

"You looked like you were gonna throw up!" I giggle and he blushes.

"This is so weird, I've never been in a situation like that before." Clay runs his hand through his dark hair with a smile.

"What do you mean?" My eyes drift over to meet his and he slows down his pace, turning to face me with a sweet smile plastered across his cheeks.

"Just, like, holy shit!" Clay laughs and I giggle again, picking up my pace to keep up with him. "I've never had to lie to a teacher before. It felt so cool!"

"You're such a nerd." I nudge him playfully and he pushes off the side of the hallway, clutching his stomach in laughter.

"Seriously! That felt so fucking cool!" Clay's laugh is adorable and I lean into his shoulder. "I swear, Ellie, you're amazing. I'm so lucky to have you... I can't wait for you to meet my parents tonight. They'll love you."

A flash of anxiety strikes through me as I remember how I had promised a month ago that I would meet his parents tonight.

They'll probably hate me, they'll say I'm not the right girl for him. I'm too much of a risk, and I'm a bad influence on him. He got in trouble at school for the first time because of me, didn't he? Fuck fuck fuck fuck —

Clay kisses my forehead, which jolts me from my thoughts, both of us ignoring the various catcalls and whistles from the students around.

"I'm so proud of you, beautiful." I smile at the new nickname. "You've made me so happy and they'll see that. I want them to know the reason I'm a whole new Clay."

Guilt tears at my stomach and he places a soft finger under my jaw, lifting my face to his. "I love you, Ellie. You don't have to say it back, I just want you to know —"

"I love you too," I mumble quietly, biting my lip as his eyebrows scrunch in confusion.