2. Expiration Time And Threats

A Chapter by nessa

I blink a few times, attempting to regain some sort of control over myself until I can't bear it anymore and I burst out laughing. "You must be f*****g ridiculous if you think I'm going to hook up with you."

He rolls his eyes at me and shoves his hands into his jean pockets. "Oh, you think this is funny?" He c***s his head to the side. "How would you think this would feel if this went viral? If everyone in school got it in a special text message and your status of perfect little girl got roundly damaged? Would that still be funny to you?"

I stop laughing the second I feel my throat closing up. He's disgusting. I can't believe I actually thought he was attractive up until now.

"Leave it or take it. It's your choice, Charlie." He shrugs his shoulders casually.

I take a look around the class before I force myself to look straight into his eyes. There is no way he's going to let this go without getting what he wants.

"How do I know you really will delete the file?" I snap at him. "Or much worse, where do I have the security that you won't record us two, too? That you aren't just f*****g with me?"

"Because," he bends his legs at the knees a little, kneeling down slightly to get to my eye level, "I promise."

Wow, he promises. Am I actually supposed to believe that?

"You think I'm going to go with it? From what I've heard during your short time here your promises actually suck a*s." I cross my arms in front of my chest to put some more space between us. I don't like that he's standing so close to me now.

"I'm not forcing you into anything here, Charlie." He states flatly. "It's all up to you. I just gave you an offer. You can decline it. The question is, do you really want to decline it when your entire reputation is at the stake? When your reputation is all you care about?"

My jaw clenches. "My reputation is not all I care about."

"Whatever, Charlie." He sighs and leans in closer to me. "I gave you an option, the question is, will you take it?"

I watch as Charlie slowly walks away from me, her gaze intently focused on the glossy hallway floor beneath her feet. I lean against my locker just as she stops and opens hers. She pulls out a book and a notepad and I expect her to hurry to her next class but she doesn't do any of that. She just remains standing there, holding her stare blanky on the inside of her locker.

"What's up with the stalking of Charlie Brooks?" Alec asks me as he comes to my view, nudging his head toward Charlie.

Stalking? I'm not stalking her.

"Mind your business, dickhead." I turn away from him and quickly open my locker to get ready for my next class.

He steps to the side to be able to look at my face. "Really mature, Seth." Even though I'm not looking at him I can sense him rolling his eyes. "You're the older one from us two here but you keep behaving like a damn three year old child. How long are you going to keep this up?"

I grab the first book I see before snapping the locker shut and turning to face him. He is damn wrong if he thinks he can be talking to me this way after the s****y year he decided to spend with her, here in Richmond, instead of spending it with us in Omaha.

"I'm not keeping anything up." I narrow my eyes at him. "But you're not getting any less s**t from me, than the amount you deserve."

He shakes his head slightly and huffs out a laugh. "You're being ridiculous with this. Just get past it already, man."

Does he think this is funny? Because I will not hesitate to show him what I think of him, if he doesn't stop invading my personal space immediately.

"You're the one that has been ridiculous for the entire past year, brother." I mock him with calling him brother and clench my fist in attemp to calm myself down a little. I can't start a fight with him. Not now, when we're still on a school property. "Why did you even bother to come around and f**k up our lives again? Why don't you go back to live with her?"

I shove my hands into the pockets of my jacket and step away from him. He doesn't say anything, because he has to know, somewhere deep down, that I'm right. He just keeps silently watching me with challenge seeping throught his eyes.

"I don't care anymore." He inhales a deep breath and drops his gaze to the ground before bringing it back to my eyes. "Just... just stay away from Charlie. I don't want you to hurt her like you do everyone else in your wake."

I bark out a laugh. He can't mean this seriously. He has to be completely brainwashed if he thinks he can tell me what to do now. She brainwashed him even more than I thought. "Why should I? Because of Samantha?" I raise my brow at him. "That you care about her sister and certain people around her, doesn't mean I do as well."

I spin around before he gets to say anything and retrieve my phone from the pocket of my jacket. I scroll throught my messages until I find what I'm looking for. Charlie's number.

It wasn't hard to get it. It wasn't hard to get it all. Maybe she should be more careful when it comes to people that she surrounds herself with.

I'm still fumming and my hands are shaking from the argument I just shared with Alec but I manage to type in what I want pretty quickly. I hit send.

Changed my mind. The offer expires tonight. You have time to decide until midnight before the tape goes viral.

I'm sure I'd regret the words I just sent her, if I could feel regret at all. It's not my fault, though. I wanted to give her more time. I really did want to. Before Alec decided to cross my path and breathe on my f*****g neck once again.

I may seem like an a*****e to Charlie but my actions aren't random at all. I have my own reasons. And the faster we get over this, the better for everyone.

I rinse my face with cold water to pull myself together before I bring my gaze up to my refection in the mirror in front of me. I pull the tube of lipstick out of my backpack and run it quickly across my lips, then retrieve my small flower make up bag and dab some of my favorite Dior powder onto my face. Once I'm done I remain watching the girl in front of me, mentally forcing myself to keep it together. I have to be strong now.

The sound of my phone indicating a new text message pulls me out of my contemplativeness. I swipe my finger across the screen and silently pray it's not another one from Holder. I have no intentions of talking to him. Not now, not ever.

I know it will eventually come to it, he is a part of our group and we share the same friends, but I want to avoid any encounter with him for as long as possible.

The message is from an unknown number and my curiosity gets the best of me, so I click the icon and open it.

My eyes quickly scroll over the text and anger boils inside me. I know it's from Seth immediately. No one else could be able to send this kind of message to anyone.

I shove the phone back to my pocket and huff out from the anger and frustration currently coursing through me. How dare he blackmail me like this? How dare he use the incidents of my personal life against me like this?

First the offer, then the letter and now this text? He is fucked up in his head if he gets off on making fun of people around him this way. Blackmailing is not funny. And if he thinks it is, then he has some serious issues.

I bring the letter to my front, then slowly unfold it. I know he's the one who wrote it. I have heard a fair share of rumors about him. Richmond Preparatory High School is basically the cradle of gossip. Gossip seems to be the only thing important here but I guess that's the thing about private schools.

I've heard rumors claiming how possessive he can be and how he always gets his way. How he beat a kid so hard once he ended up in juvie for half a year. But those rumors are missing one very important point. They don't mention how he stops at literally nothing.

He doesn't feel even slightly bad to be blackmailing a random girl that he knows for only few weeks into hooking up with him. He doesn't feel a seed of remorse over writing a thread letter to someone.

My grip around the rumpled paper tightens and I look down at it, to read it one more time before barging out of these stupid restrooms to call his out on his s**t.

Oh honey,
what a shame. You and Holder, the school power couple, breaking up? How unpleasant.

I wish I could say I'm surprised but I'd be lying. Although, I must say I'm a little impressed by you. I definitely didn't expect you to resist him for that long.

What a shame you didn't get to experience the greatness of Holder Arrington in bed. I guess you should've spread your legs apart a little sooner.

Oh, wait. Wasn't that exactly what you two were doing when that uninviting text that ruined everything came?