Being the Bad Boy's Victim (17 page)

My mum copied me so that we were lying side by side.

“But you guys seemed so happy…” she trailed off.

“I know!” I said, throwing my hands up. “I don’t even know him that well, but he’s the only one who’s actually tried to get to know me.”

“What about Jess? I thought you two were really close.”

I sighed. “We are. It’s just that I don’t want to burden her with all my problems, my past.” I added the last part in a whisper.

“You should,” my mum said, sitting up to look at me. “Pumpkin, you need to be able to talk to someone, in case you ever have a breakdown. You need someone to be there for you.”

I nodded in agreement. “You’re right. Jessica should know the real me, not just the one I want her to know.”

“Now, about my Liam-and-Connor problem…” I said, trailing off.

My mum lay back down next to me.

“Oh, just become a lesbian,” she said, cracking a smile, clearly just trying to lighten the mood.

I burst out laughing, looking back at my mum.

“Thank you,” I said gratefully.

“Anything for my baby,” she cooed, pinching my cheek.

I squealed and pulled away, playfully glaring at her.

As for my problem, I knew what I was going to do.

Jessica

“Calm down, you freak!” James shouted, pinning my wrists to the lockers.

I growled and kicked out my legs while continuing to struggle.

“What did you do to her?” I screamed. I managed to break loose after giving his shin a good kick, causing him to let go and grasp his leg painfully.

“Who?” he asked, glaring at me angrily.

“Bella!” I yelled, lifting my leg to kick him again.

Suddenly, he was in front of me again, and he shoved me onto the lockers, using his body to pin down mine.

“What has happened to you? You used to be the shy, quiet girl, who was too scared to even look my way. Now, you are some deranged, psychotic bitch trying to kill me!” James said as I struggled to push him away.

“Yeah, well, that was before you screwed with my best friend, asshole!” I snarled as I tried to find a way to get away.

“You know, all your wiggling against me is kind of a turn on,” he whispered, leaning his face only a mere inch away from mine.

That got me to freeze completely, pressing myself against the locker in an attempt to distance myself.

“Look, I know I said some bad things to Bella. And I feel really bad,” he said, pausing. “If I could take it back, I would.”

“You made her cry,” I snapped, glaring at him.

He sighed and looked away before meeting my angry eyes.

“She put Connor through a lot. He’s one of my best friends and I couldn’t stand to see him so hurt,” he said.

“Hurt? Connor?” I scoffed. “Whatever you say.”

James frowned, annoyed. “She was a total bitch to him. One minute she kisses him, then the next, she’s telling him he’s not good enough.”

My eyes widened at this.

“Wow! So she didn’t tell you?” James asked. “Maybe you two aren’t as good friends as you thought you were.”

With all my strength, I managed to push James away. And without another word, I left.

That girl had some explaining to do.

Bella

My mum left to go pick up Luca and Sophie while I decided to stay home alone.  A knock sounded on the door.
Hmm, I wonder who that could be,
I thought to myself, opening the door.

“Oh, hey J——”

“We need to talk.”

An hour and a half later

“That’s some serious shit,” Jess said after a moment of silence.

I laughed and leaned back on the couch.

“Tell me about it.” I nodded in agreement.

“What are you going to do?” she asked, looking concerned.

“Well, my mum suggested that I become a lesbian.”

Jess collapsed back onto the chair, laughing her head off.

“Are you?” she asked, her eyes shining.

“What? No!” I said, laughing. “No, I’m just going to stay away from guys for now. Focus on school stuff.”

“Bo-ring!” Jess yelled loudly.

I raised an eyebrow as I watched her. “What do you suggest I do?” I asked, slightly annoyed.

She leaned forward. “I say you go out. You know, keep your social life alive. Show those guys you don’t need them to have fun. Live a little… with no drama.”

I thought it over and said, “Not a bad idea.”

She shrugged. “I’m awesome!”

“Yeah, and violent. Is James okay?” I asked.

“Meh, he could combust, and I wouldn’t give a shit,” she said with a simple shrug.

I laughed and smiled. Now’s the time. I need to tell her about Sam.

“Jess, there’s something I need to tell you,” I said nervously.

She watched me, concern clouding her face.

“What is it?” she asked.

I took a deep breath before starting. “It all started sophomore year…”

Another hour later

Jess was now sitting on the same couch as I am, holding me in a comforting embrace.

“That’s awful,” she whispered, rocking me back and forth.

“I know,” I whispered back, my voice weak.

She pulled away, looking into my eyes.

“Let’s do something,” she said, standing up.

“What?” I asked, looking up at her.

“Come on,” she said, pulling me up. “We’re going to the football game.”

“What? Why?” I asked, now completely confused.

“Because I refuse to let you stay at home on a Friday night, crying about what some inconsiderate, good-for-nothing asshole did to you,” she announced. She looked me over, frowning. “You need to change.”

Thirty minutes later

“It’s almost six, the game’s at seven,” Jess called out as I dug through my closet. Now I know what you’re thinking. Thirty minutes and she still hadn’t picked out an outfit? Ha! No, I had picked out at least twelve outfits, but not one got Jess' approval.

“Jess, I can’t think of anything else to wear!” I complained, dramatically collapsing to the floor.

“Out of my way,” she said, nearly stepping on me as she entered my closet.

I watched from the floor as she pulled out my old light blue skinny jeans and white shirt that had slits all over the back.

“Wear this,” she said, pulling out my black leather ankle boots.

“Isn’t it a little too much?” I asked, standing up and taking the clothes.

She didn’t even hesitate before answering. “Of course not. You’ll look great. Trust me. And the party afterwards is always really fun,” she said.

“What party?” I asked.

She gave me a warning look and I quickly started changing.

“Mind if I borrow something?” she asked.

“Go a——”

“What is that?” she asked.

I stood awkwardly with my shirt off, ready to put on my top. She sighed and pulled out a red lacy bra. I looked down at the plain white one that I was wearing, letting out a groan of defeat as I took the red bra from her hand.

Forty-five minutes later

We gave each other once-overs as we got ready to leave. Jess was right, I looked really good. And she did, too.

She wore a light blue long-sleeved shirt with a plunging neckline, along with a pair of black skinny jeans. Meanwhile, she made me switch into my faded skinny jeans that had rips and tears all over it. She insisted it helped complete my badass look, which I have to agree with.

“Leggo,” she said, leaving my room.

I followed her, after making sure to tell my mum where I was going.

“You two have fun!” she said with a wink.

“Oh, you know we will,” Jess said, grinning.

My mum laughed and returned to typing on her computer as we left.

This is going to be one interesting night.

“Connor!” I shrieked, standing up in dismay as Jack stumbled back, clutching his face.

Connor immediately looked my way, distracted. Unfortunately, Jack took this to his advantage and punched Connor back, square in the jaw. I panicked and sprinted towards the field, pushing through the crowds of people in order to get around the fence. Just as I got there, Connor lunged at Jack, knocking him over. They began rolling around, throwing punches left and right.

“Guys, stop!” I screamed, ready to step in. But before I could reach out to pull Connor off of Jack, I was yanked backwards.

“Don’t get in the middle of that,” James told me, restraining me from moving forward.

“James! Do something!” I said, struggling under his hold. I felt a hand on my shoulder and I looked to the side, at Matt.

“Matt, stop them,” I pleaded, glancing back at Connor and Jack.

Jack was now on top, raining blows down on Connor. It didn’t last for long, though, because Connor managed to flip them over so that he was the one on top.

“It’s okay, Bella. Calm down,” Matt said, trying to reassure me.

The coaches finally stepped in, pulling them apart.

“Save it for the game!” the coach roared.

I pulled away from James, rushing towards Connor.

“Are you okay?” I asked, wincing at the sight of his bloody lip and already bruising jaw.

He nodded slightly before pushing past me and walking over to the rest of the team. Covering the hurt I felt and ignoring the pitiful looks, I made my way back to my seat.

“That was interesting,” Jessica stated, looking at me.

“Why didn’t anyone other than me try to stop them?” I asked, annoyed and confused.

She shrugged and looked around.

“People are used to them fighting, it’s nothing new,” she said, watching me carefully.

“Why are you staring at me like that?” I asked suspiciously.

She rolled her eyes. “Do you know why they were fighting?” she asked, her tone implying that the answer was obvious.

I was silent, thinking over everything that happened. “Well, you said it was norm——”

Jess threw her hands up in the air and exclaimed, “They were fighting over you, Bella!”

I frowned and shook my head. “Wha——? No, that’s ridiculous!”

“Bella, you saw Jack point at you right before Connor punched him. Are you really going to try and tell me it was just a coincidence?”

I looked back at the field, noticing that the game was about to start. On cue, the ref blew his whistle.

“I wonder what Jack said to make Connor punch him,” I murmured as I watched Connor, who was the quarterback, scan the field for an open player.
Hmmm, number sixteen, isn’t that funny? My lucky number.

Two hours later

Jess and I stood up, clapping and cheering as Connor and Matt were carried off the field after having scored the winning touchdown of the play they did together.

“Ready for the party?” Jess asked excitedly.

I nodded and grinned at her, following her as we joined the crowd exiting the field.

“Bella!”

I turned to see Jack waving at me, motioning me to come over to him. I frowned and shook my head, but the pleading look he gave me made me feel bad.

“I’ll be right back,” I said, walking out onto the field, past our team, and towards Jack.

“Hey!”

“Why did Connor punch you?” I asked.

Jack seemed slightly surprised by my straightforwardness, but he just shrugged it off. “He’s crazy.”

“I saw you point at me and say something to him right before he punched you,” I said, crossing my arms.

Jack narrowed his eyes slightly. “Someone’s observant,” he said dryly.

“So? What…?”

“Bella needs to go,” someone said, dragging me away from Jack.

I looked up to see Matt, a blank expression on his face. His grip on my arm was tight as he led me through the crowds, towards Jess.

“What the hell, Matt!” I snapped, annoyed that he had cut in.

He frowned and looked down at me. “Bella, I know you know Connor and Jack don’t get along. You saw it firsthand.”

“And?” I asked, impatient.

“And? Why are you talking to him? Are you trying to get Connor mad again?”

I stared at him, completely confused.

“Why would Connor care if I talked to him? It’s not like I’m trying to fuck him or something,” I said, placing my hands on my hips.

“Bella, you don’t know Jack. It’s never only just talking, he…”

“Wants to get in my pants?” I guessed. “Cause you know, that’s pretty funny since that’s also what Connor wants. You know, those two really aren’t that different. I’m surprised they aren’t friends.”

Matt stared at me, speechless. I took this moment to get in Jess' car.

“Bye, Matt,” I muttered as I slammed my door shut.

Jess followed suit and started her car.

“That was… intense,” she worded carefully, pulling out of the parking lot.

I nodded, lost in thought.

“Jess, maybe we should skip the…” I started. Suddenly my body was flung forward, causing me to thank God my seatbelt was on.

“What the hell?” I asked, after my heart had regained its normal pace.

“We are not missing the party because of those guys,” she hissed out in a deadly tone.

My eyes widened and I nodded my head. “Okay, okay, we can go!” I said, holding up my hands in surrender.

She returned to her bubbly self and resumed driving.

“It’s going to be so much fun!” she said excitedly.

“Psychopath,” I blurted, covering my mouth in horror.

Jess burst out laughing.

“Calm down, Bella. I’m not going to kill you,” she said in between laughs.

I joined in her laughter, leaning against the door as she pulled onto a random street.

“Damn it,” she muttered. “I took the wrong turn.”

“Whose house is it at?”

“It’s at Connor’s house,” she said slowly, watching me carefully.

“Great,” I muttered. “Alright, take a left over here. It’s on the right,” I said, pointing.

Ten minutes later

The music was blasting from the house as we parked the car in some random person’s driveway. We entered the house, pushing past the already nearly wasted teenagers.

“Bella! Over here!” James called.

I looked back at Jessica questioningly, but she just shrugged and nudged me in his direction.

“I’ll go with you,” she said.

I nodded, feeling more confident as I walked over to James who was standing with most of the guys from the football team.

“What’s up?” I asked casually.

“Mike here doesn’t think you can take three rounds of shots faster than he can,” James said, smiling knowingly.

“I really shouldn’t,” I said, remembering what happened last time.

“Come on, Bella. Afraid you’re going to lose?” Mike teased, his eyes glinting mischievously.

I raised my eyebrow and scoffed.

“Afraid to lose, my ass!” I snapped. ”Let’s do this shit.”

All eyes were on us as I stared at the shots laid out in front.

“Ready?” James asked. ”One… Two… Three… Go!”

I slammed down my last shot glass just as Mike was about to chug his first. Cheers erupted through the room and all the guys laughed at Mike, making fun of him as he scowled in embarrassment.

“Any challengers?” James called out, scanning the crowd for anybody daring enough to try to challenge me.

“I’ll do it.”

We all turned towards the staircase, watching as Connor lazily walked towards us, his hair still damp from his shower.

“You sure?” I asked. “’Coz I’m pretty sure I kicked your ass last time."

A bunch of “ooohs” echoed throughout the room as Connor made his way to the counter, standing in front of me.

“How about we make a little bet?” he said, his eyes twinkling dangerously.

I gulped nervously. This couldn’t be good. The only problem was, I could never back away from a challenge.

“What are you suggesting?” I asked, keeping my voice steady.

He smiled smugly, taking a step closer. “If I win, you have to jump into the pool—completely naked.”

Once again, the room was filled with “ooohs” and all eyes turned to me.

“And if I win?” I asked, my heart beating rapidly.

Connor shrugged, leaning sideways against the counter. “Ditto,” he said.

I grinned and nodded in agreement. There was no way I could lose. I already beat Connor before, I could certainly do it again.

“On the count of three,” James announced.

Butterflies filled my stomach as I stared at the shots, ignoring Connor’s presence.

“One… Two…”

That is when I felt a hand on the exposed part of my leg, where the jeans were ripped.

“Wha—”

“Three!”

“He cheated!” I said angrily, stomping my foot. Despite the fact that he had distracted me, he only beat me by what seemed to be half a second.

“You lost, Bells. Time to strip,” Connor said, his eyes sparkling mischievously.

“James!” I cried out, giving him a pleading look.

He probably still felt guilty about what happened during lunch because he nodded his head.

“Alright, there will be a rematch,” he announced, causing all the guys to groan in annoyance.

I smiled at Connor’s pissed expression. I was grateful that I was getting a second chance. An evil idea popped into my mind as I glanced at Connor. By now, I was feeling a little woozy, but not enough to be seriously tipsy.

“One.”

I inched my top down slightly, catching Connor’s eyes.

“Two.”

And another inch.

“Three!”

I pulled it down one more inch before downing all the shots like nobody else, while Connor was just starting on his second.

“She cheated!” he yelled, glaring as I pulled my top up.

“What are you talking about?” I asked innocently.

“Take it off! Take it off! Take it off!”

We all turned to look at Jessica, who was grinning like an idiot. Soon everyone was chanting as we followed Connor outside.

“But she cheated!” he complained once more, glaring at me.

I winked at him, pulling my top down slightly, just to piss him off. And it worked—a little too well. Connor took off his jeans and t-shirt, but stayed in his boxers.

“Whoa, whoa! The bet was completely naked,” I said.

“Yeah, well, we both cheated,” he admitted. “So I decided I’m going to keep my boxers on, and you’re going to keep your bra and panties on.”

This statement caused cheers to erupt from all the guys.

“No! No way in hell!” I snapped, taking a step back. My heart picked up pace as Connor mirrored my movement and advanced upon me.

“Come on, Bells. It’s only fair,” he said, standing directly in front of me.

I crossed my arms defiantly, glaring at him.

“Oh, well,” he said with a sigh.

The next thing I knew, my shirt was torn from my body, while James and Matt were holding me still as Connor tried to get my jeans off. Due to my struggling, Connor could hardly unbutton my jeans. So, he resorted to ripping them off, using the tears and holes. The cheers and wolf whistles grew louder as I stood awkwardly in my lacy red bra and thong Victoria Secret set.

“Damn, Bella!” someone called out.

I turned and scowled at everyone, crossing my arms over my chest in an attempt to cover my boobs that were already spilling out of my bra.

“Jump already!”