CHAPTER SONG - Apocalypse, Cigarettes After Sex

Instincts took over in a flash the moment I heard him call my name. I ran. Like there were fire ant's up my butt, I ran. I wouldn't say I'm quick by any means, I was hardly passing gym but in this moment I might as well be a track star.

"Lina!"

Glancing over my shoulder, I zipped around the corner, "Crabcakes." I muttered to myself and picked up my pace. I dodge the last corner and grabbed the handle of the first door I saw. Without looking I slipped in, shutting the door behind myself. No way am going to stand through another moment of that man trying to convince me how sorry he was, how much of a mistake it was. My sister was right, he was a pig. Of course, her words were more colorful but I'll stick with piggy.

A big fat piggy. Fine, he wasn't fat, or a pig. He was actually really handsome, the kind that made my heart swoon the moment I saw him across the hall. Beside the point because once a cheat, always a cheat. Didn't change that he could be a model if he wanted, a cheating, lying model.

I sighed, titling my head back on the door. Maybe I can just wait—

"You realize this is the men's locker room, right?"

I jumped at the voice, hitting my hand on the handle and hissing at the pain. I swung my head down, pressing my back into the door and hand to my chest, cradling it. "I didn't until now, thank you." I muttered squinting my eyes to try to see the man better but thanks to the steam in the locker room it was a little bit of a challenge. But heck, even from here I knew exactly who I was talking too, and the realization was like a bucket of ice draining on me. You know the bucket challenge the kids did back in the day? I never did it myself, but I imagine it would be like this.

Sweet-cakes, this man could be a model too. The kind I see in those magazines my sister always carries around, vouge or something. His head was titled down to the ground, jet-strained hair covering his forehead, freshly washed and dripping down his face. Nor was he wearing a shirt, or pants for that matter. Sitting in only his black underwear, and abs on full display. From here, I can see the tattoo inked across his side. A large sparrow with spread wings, carrying a twig with leaf's on it. It sorrowed across his side, reaching above his abs. His toned stomach I could clearly see, and I swear it was made to marvel at even with a jagged slice by his mid stomach.

Word's slipped past my mouth and it took me a second to catch up with them, "Why do you look like a flippen runway model?"

When I finally realized what I just said, I slapped my hand over my mouth. A little hard. "Oh god." I groaned into my hand, hoping he didn't hear that either. There I go, adding onto the never-ending list of embarrassing moment in my life. I should name the list at this point. Color code it and everything because man was it getting long.

With eye's pulled wide and check's burning, I watched him slowly lift his head up. The steam fading in the locker room let me see the golden flacks in his hazel eyes and let me tell you, they were piercing into me. Dang it, now he looked even more handsome, not that I didn't know this already. His face sharp in ever place it shouldn't be and always in a permeant scowl. Sometimes I wondered if he ever smiled. I have seen him smirk and laugh but never just normally smile. Overall, Mateo Ramos was unapproachable by all means and here I was, approaching. Lovely.

He stared at me for a moment, making me want to shrink into myself but I stood frozen. Back pressed into this door so hard that it was starting to hurt. With a voice so smooth you could call it butter, he spoke. "No way you can see clearly from all the way over there, come a little closer." he smirked.

I opened my mouth to speak but clamped it shut at the annoying voice coming from behind the door.

"Lina!"

I glanced over my shoulder, in this moment wishing I had the superpower to look through objects. I needed to find an escape, right now. I snapped my attention back to the room, glancing around with a little bit of panic starting to rise. I really, really didn't want to deal with Tony's blabbing right now.

"Do you need to get out of the building or just a hiding spot?" Mateo asked, watching me closely, well I tried not to think too hard about him sitting in front of me half naked. I promise you, it was all I was thinking about and the thought was making me flush. Badly. Do I look like a stained tomato to him?

Without looking at him I answer, "Hiding spot, please. Only if you know one, if not it's fine. I could hide in—" I scanned the room, "A locker. I don't know if I'll fit but it's worth a shot. I might be able to bend somehow in there. Or maybe the bench, I could hide under it. Although he would probably see right through that." I babbled, till finally I was lost for words and took the chance to look at him.

Amusement flashed on his face, eye's softening a little as he watched me. He bit his lip, as if he was trying not to laugh and I narrowed my eyes. "So... help?"

He jerked his chin in the left direction. "Shower stall, behind that wall."

Why didn't I think of that? I turned, running in that direction without a single thought. I would deal with the rest later, for now I just needed to not be found because I had no energy to stand in front of Tony and not cry. I slipped on the wetness of the ground, catching myself on the wall and hurried behind it, squatting to the ground. My back pressed into the wall, hands shaking just a little bit as I waited, sucking in a deep breath.

The door swung open, and my breath hitched. A moment of silence passed before either spoke. Tony's voice made me coil into myself a little. "Oh, hey man. Did you see a girl run in here?"

"No."

Another moment of quietness passed. "You sure? I swear I saw her run in here."

"If she's running, she probably want's nothing to do with you, but either way I saw no one. Ask me again and you won't be asking anything in the foreseeable future."

I inhaled sharply at the blunt cruelty in his tone and pressed my hand over my mouth. Was I breathing too loud? I paused for a second, holding my breath as if my life depended it on, maybe right now it did. Tony and I were done, and there really was no point of dragging out but that seemed to be exactly what he wanted to do. I can't do that, even looking at him I felt the tears pooling and I wasn't going to let him know that. He didn't get to see me like this.

I deserved better than a fat lying piggy.

A quiet moment passed in the steam fading locker room. "Okay, well thanks." Tony said and I heard the door shut.

I didn't move from my hiding spot, slightly embarrassed by the whole running situation and very embarrassed by the runway comment. My cheek's heated up again as I thought about it, and I finally took that breath my lungs were desperately in need of.

"You going to come out or just going to hide in there forever?"

Staying in here forever didn't sound like the worse idea, especially right now. Mateo kept talking, "If you're staying in there forever let me know, I'll bring you some food or whatever."

A smile slipped onto my lips. I could almost hear his smile. I know it's nutty, but I promise it's a thing. You know when a person's tone changes, and it becomes lighter, softer even? And without looking, you could almost hear that smile lifting onto their face. I was tempted to get up and see if he was really smiling but stayed glued in a crouch. His tone did a whole flip flop thing when Tony came in, he spoke like it was made out of razor blades. As if it was meant to slice you into tiny, unfixable pieces. Now it sounded like he wanted to laugh.

I sighed to myself because it's not like I wanted to stay here forever, but it I stood right now I knew I wouldn't last much longer. I tried not to cry about it, I promised my sister I wouldn't but clearly, I have broken that promise. It's not like this was easy, and it wasn't something I had experienced before so I hardly know how to deal with it. The tears didn't seem to help, but they don't seem to stop either. I just wish he would stop showing up, stop begging to talk to me. Till then I will just keep finding a way to run away from him.

I don't understand Tony. Why by any means did he care about my forgiveness? He cheated, which meant he shouldn't care. No one in their right mind cared about someone and went out and cheat anyways. So, really why did it matter if I forgave him? Not that I was going to because oh man did my chest clench in hurt now.

I loved the guy, I did, and I thought he loved me. Clearly, I was massively wrong. Now, here I am sitting in the men's locker room shower stall, hiding from a man who I love. One day I'll waked up and it will stop hurting so much. One day I will stop loving him, but for now I'll hide.

"Forever it is."

I snapped my head up, startled by how quietly he managed to get over here, or maybe I was that caught up in my own head. Mateo was staring down at me, regarding me with hardness in his eyes that I didn't feel comfortable with. "Want some advice?" he asked.

I nodded, keeping my gaze on him no matter how much I wanted to tear it away. Mateo wasn't a man that was easy to look at. Looking at him felt like it was against the pull of the universe. That's how he held himself, and looking, touching, speaking about, or even thinking about him felt like you would end up crucified. Plus, there was also that fact he was still half naked. That fact was fire truck loud.

"Get up, pull your shoulder's back and push your chin up. Hiding won't help you."

I swallowed, watching the towering man in front of me. Holy bunnies, he was really dang tall. I wonder if he knew how tall he was. "How tall are you?" I wonder, out loud, again. Oh lord, if you're listening to me can you please help me learn to control this mouth you gave me? Please and thank you.

Mateo raised his perfect brow at me, a slight tilt in his lips. "Random as fuck but almost six foot last time I checked."

I nodded, bring my elbows to my knees and getting more comfortable. I was only five four, last I checked, I thought as I rested my head on my fists and asked, "Have any more useful advice?"

Maybe if I kept talking, kept my attention on Mateo instead the sadness in my chest those tears would fade away. His gaze didn't slip off me for a second, and I found that it warmed my skin like the sun. He leaned on the side of the shower stall, his hair still dripping. A single drop rolling down the side of his face, leaving a little path of wetness that I found myself trailing, shamelessly.

He watched me like I was interesting to him. "I have a lot, but I don't know how useful it would be for you."

I nodded, snapping my attention back to his eyes, that were so deeply dull in this moment. I regarded him for a moment, wondering how it felt to not care so much. I wish I didn't care about anything like him. "Share some anyways." I said, sucking in gulp of air.

He regarded me before squatting down to my level, coming face to face with me. Holy moly he was even more beautiful up close. Like make my mouth water, beautiful. No way is it fair by any means for a man to look like that. All holy, and mesmerizing. Lord, you up there? I just wanted you to know, wow.

In front of me Mateo started talking, "If you're looking for an escape out of the building, bathrooms and classrooms are a no go. Locker rooms, gym's, and larger rooms are were you should go. They usually have back exits because of protocol and safety. Otherwise, all exits are usually open through out the day other then the exit by the history class in hallway two hundred. That one is kept locked during the day because again, safety."

I watched him, amused by his so called advise. He kept going, "The only classroom in this school with an exit is math three-oh-eight. The back door leads to the park behind the school. If by some chance you end up there, run thirty feet to the left and slide behind the rock wall. Then, just run tell you reach the forest, keep going and you'll end up at south hill mall."

He didn't stop at that, and I was more than thankful because I could feel the tears dissolving the more he talked. "If you need a hiding spot in school, go up to classroom one-oh-five and up the stairs. Second level has a fire escape. Climb up that, and you'll end up on the roof. There is a ladder on the side of the building, used for janitor purposes but if you climb down it, you'll end up the east side of the school. Again, from there you have options."

He finished talking and I felt myself able to smile. "Do you use that escape advise often?" I asked, realizing he knew his way around this school very well.

"Not as often as I wish I could."

I furrowed my brows in confusion. "What do you want to escape from?" He didn't looked like he needed to hide from anything's.

Before he could answer the door of the locker room swung open and he stood up. "Mateo, fuck are you doing? We have a meeting to get too, and your father sounds pissed so you know this afternoon---"

Maddox Vallero stopped beside Mateo. Maddox was his best friend, if that's what guys called it. Point is those two were always together. Where one caused trouble, the other was near enough to spot. Maddox was just as tall as Mateo, maybe an inch taller but that was hard to clarify from the ground. Which, I was still occupying.

He has golden brown hair that could be consider blond, or brown, or both. It started longer at the top, and shortened into a fade on the side. And as usual, it was wild and untamed. The man walked like he was called from heaven for the sole duty to bang girls. I have heard the talks around school. I have heard how well he fulfills his duties. I am well aware of Maddox, and Mateo for that matter.

He snapped his head in my direction, and a dark set of grey eyes with hidden blue specs hit me. The blue so light, it blended underneath the grey into almost nothing. Like Mateo, he had a straight face, a little more squared jaw but just as sharp. Just like Mateo's it was edged to perfection, curved like a blade to slice. Lord, really? Unfair.

"Hello." I mumbled, adding this moment onto the long growing list of things I would forever be embarrassed about. He blinked at me for a second. "Hello." he mimicked, regarded me like he wasn't sure what the heck was going on.

Then his eyes flashed with realization. "Hey! You're in my Bio class."

I nodded, giving him a tight smile, "Observant, aren't we."

Mateo puffed a breath of amusement, leaning on the wall again and watching me but Maddox's nose wrinkled, like my comment annoyed him. He looked over at Mateo, waiting for an explanation and Mateo gave one. "Apparently she's going to stay in there forever." he said, gesturing his chin in my direction.

Maddox nodded, as if that was a completely normal response. "Okay, that sounds like a solid plan. A for effort. No criticism at all."

I glanced between them. "It's not exactly something I had planned per say but It's what's happening in this moment." I added, feeling my cheek's warm again with embarrassment.

Maddox look back at me, regarding me for a moment, trying to figure out if I was serious or not before turning to Mateo. "Is she crazy? Like in the head or something? Should I go find someone to help her? She must have gotten lost." he glanced towards the door, as if his waiting for someone to come through it.

Mateo chuckled at his questions, but I wasn't as amused by him. "Hey! That's rude." I snapped at him, but my snap sounded more like a whine.

He turned back to look at me, narrowing his attention at m. "Do you need help? Is someone looking for you?" he asked extra slow, like he was sounding out the words because he wasn't sure if I couldn't understand him. Alright, this is getting ridicules. I dropped my elbows off my knees and stood to my feet, coming to stand right in front of him. My head spun a little from the sudden movement.

"Look, Maddox." I emphasized his name with annoyance slipping my tongue. I pressed my hand to my forehead, blinking through the dizziness, "I'm not crazy, I was just hiding from my ex-boyfriend."

"In a stall?" Maddox replied without a beat. "You have a better hiding spot?" I shot at him, even more annoyed that he kept talking to me like I was crazy and because now he was smirking like this was funny. Perhaps it was, but not to me, not right now. But he glanced around. "About a hundred." he nodded.

I sighed and glanced between them, again. Now that I was up, I realized that they were both blocking off the entrance to the stall and I was standing cornered, trapped. "Good for you." I mumbled looking behind them for a way out as I dropped my arm to my side.

Mateo glanced over his shoulder as if he was trying to figure out what I was looking for before turning back to look at me. I cleared my throat, "So, now that's over, can you two move?" I asked, my voice starting to dip because I really had no way out unless they moved. I was at their mercy and I preferred to be at no one's mercy.

They watched me for a another second, making me want to shrink so hard that I almost winced, then Mateo nodded. A chuckle slipped past his full lips and that sound alone was pitch I would never forget. Never. Not in a million and one years.

He side stepped an inch just enough for me to squeeze through. "Sure, love." he replied, watching me like I was his sole attention keeper. I stepped sideway, pushing past him but with the little amount of room that he gave me I felt my butt graze his lower region. I for-sure heard the sharp inhale he took. And I for-sure felt his palm hold my hip as I moved past him.

I quickly rushed past him, stopping a few inches away from him and turning. I should thank him; he was kind enough to help me escape Tony. Now I just needed to escape the school without being caught by him. I smiled at Mateo. "Thank you for helping."

He nodded, his eyes watching me so instantly that it made me have to look away. He didn't say anything else, and I took that as my que to leave Turning, I headed to the door but before I could grab the handle of the door, he spoke again, "That boyfriend of yours, if he a problem for you?"

I spun around, finding him watching me with arm's crossed and Maddox not to far, leaning on the wall with his head resting back him on the wall. "Ex." I clarified.

Maddox rolled his eyes releasing a little huff of annoyance, but Mateo nodded. "Ex. Is he a problem?"

I shrugged because why did it matter. "Sort of."

Maddox snorted making me shoot him a hard stare. But he only raised his brow at me. "How is this a sort of type of question? It's a yes, or no sweetheart. Yes, he is a problem, no he isnt a problem. Mateo are you sure she is okay in the head?"