Chapter Six

     As Sean and I approached the lecture hall, I heard the rest of the group follow in step behind us, clearly talking about something amongst themselves. Not even bothering to listen, I grabbed Sean's hand and lead him to a row of empty seats in the back of the room near the wall. Seeming to understand, the other males follow, grabbing seats as well.

I let go of Sean's hand, him sitting next to my right as Mark sat to my left. Dark was next to Mark just like Anti was on the other side of Sean.

     The lecture hall was filled—packed, almost. Every seat was claimed near the front, hardly anyone sat in the rows near the top, making it a perfect place to sit. Down below, the man who I could only presume to be our professor stood in front of a whiteboard, Expo marker in hand as he wrote in large chicken-scratched letters: Welcome to Engineering!

     I smiled as I continued looking around the room. I spotted several cabinets filled with certain tools used for building. I even saw a few blow torches! Across the room, there was a smaller cabinet filled with eye-protection for basic engineering. My right leg began to bounce up and down in pure excitement and anxiety.

Continuing to scan the room, I even began to glance through the crowd looking for people I knew. Then, I saw him. My leg stopped bouncing and my hands gripped my armrests, my knuckles turning white from the death grip.

"You alright?" I look to my left, seeing Mark look at me with pure concern.

"Yea. No. I don't know."

He tried again. "You see someone you don't like?"

I nod my head, lifting my arm up to point at the man.

     The other boys look at me, their gaze locked on the man I was pointing at.

     "Mike," they speak in unison. As if he was able to hear his name, Mike turns around, his gaze locking against mine as his lips stretch into a grin. He quickly stands up, immediately ushering himself out of the row as he jogs up to the top seats, sitting in the row in front of us as he faces me, his body sitting in the seat in front of me.

     "Hey, beautiful."

     "What the hell do you want, Mike?"

     "Did you like your drink?"

     I fucking knew it.

     "You piece of shit."

     "I never received a text from you either. Perhaps you need my number again?"

     "Why does this shit happen to me," I whisper to myself. I felt Sean's arm wrap over my shoulders in a comforting way as I slightly buried my face in my hands. As if just now noticing, Mike looked at the males on either side of me.

     "Who are these guys? Do I need to deal with them, my sweet?" I dig my nails into my palms to force myself not to scream.

     I lift my face from my hands, taking a deep breath as I try to muster myself to speak in a calming tone. "No. Now do me a favor and go. The fuck. Away."

     He continues grinning at me. "Now why would I want to do that?" His arm reached over the seat as he placed it on my knee, slowly inching up to my thigh, his hands cold and bitter like snow. My reflexes kicked in as I swiftly moved my leg up, kicking him in the face with it.

     He didn't budge. Instead, his grin grew wider at the fact I just kicked his face. Fuck.

     "Nice panties."

     My face flushed fifty shades of red before I launched up from my seat and gripped him by the neck, lowering myself so I'm eye level with him. He seemed to be a little frightened at the sudden action, but didn't show it. Instead, he gave me his shit-eating grin. "Don't. Fucking. Mess with me right now."

     He continued smiling. "Come on, baby." His free arm reaches up to stroke my hair as he leans his head in, forcing mine to come closer to his. Thinking of the next possible thing, I slapped him.

     Before my frustration takes over and controls my actions, I shove him backwards, launching him a few rows away from me with a sickening thump from each chair he hits. "If you ever do that again, you won't have an eye." Unable to recover fully, Mike rushed up from his position, his head clearly swaying as he headed back to his original seat.

     Still fuming, I sat back in my seat, taking deep breaths as I try to calm myself down. Asshole. No wonder why I don't wear dresses often.

Anti reaches over Sean, placing his hand on my arm as he says, "You alright? I can see the steam coming out of your ears."

I shrug my shoulders. "Just don't want to be in a class with that dick bag all year long. There's something odd about him that I can't quite place yet."

Dark joined into the conversation, nodding in agreement at how odd it is for Mike to suddenly act like he's known me for my whole life. I hardly even know the guy but he seems to be everywhere now, almost as if he is tracking me. No, that couldn't possibly be it. If he was, I would've figured it out by now.

     "You said you knew him from high school, right? What exactly happened?" Mark asked.

     I stared at the seat in front of me, not really wanting to recall what happened to my new friends.

     I think Sean saw my uneasiness, causing him to speak up. "It's alright if you don't want to tell us, (Y/n). Just know that we are here for you and that we care for you."

     Instead of answering him back, I mumbled something so quietly that even I could barely hear it. Somehow, Anti picked up on it.

     "He, what?" The brunette abruptly stood up, his eyes furious as he stared at me intently, seeing if I was saying the truth.

     I couldn't stand to look him in the eyes as I nodded my head, my eyes caring down to the floor now.

     "That prick raped you? How the hell do you keep that a secret! Why didn't you tell us sooner? I would've broken his neck by now!"

     "Anti! Calm down," Dark growled, shutting down the fuming male as he settled back into his seat.

     "(Y/n), why didn't you tell us?" Sean quietly asked, trying not to prod too much. I sighed, still unable to look up.

     "It's something I'd rather forget. I don't want to remember what happened that night." The blood, the gun...

     "(Y/n), you know—"

     "Good morning students! Please take out your textbooks and some scrap paper for your notes over page two-hundred and twenty-seven. We will be going over the simple construction of computers and the design, velocity, motherboard, and model it will contain.

     I signed, my body taking over as I listen to my professors instructions. Although it was hard to keep focus after what worked its way into my mind, soon enough, I'm enticed by the session. 

. . .

By the time the lesson was over, our teacher turned us lose early due to it being the first day. Since we had a few more hours of daylight left, Mark suggested we head downtown to look around and get a layout of the place. We of course took Mark's car again since it was able to fit all of us.

     Throughout the car ride there, I couldn't help but stare out the window, my mind sprinting through endless thoughts, exterminating the world around me as I focused on my inner mind.

     Why couldn't I? Why didn't I?

     How could I forget?

      Soon enough, Mark parallel parked the vehicle against one of the sidewalks, shaking me out of my state as I hopped out of the car, my mind focused on the new sights before me.

     As we walked down the side walk, we looked into the shop windows, seeing if anything caught our eye. Occasionally, one of us would stop to take a look inside the summer-vibe shops. So far, none of us found anything that we couldn't live without.

     To be honest, I really didn't care if I found something I wanted, I wouldn't get it anyway. I was already saving money for other things rather than objects that I'd throw away.

Continuing to make our way across town, Sean brushed up against my side, slightly mumbling under his breath "Are you alright?"

I gave a slight nod, not exactly wanting to engage in conversation. Instead, I stared at the trees and shops ahead of my path, the scenery consuming my thoughts and dragging me down to a happier time in life.

I remembered running through forests, acting as if I was being chased as I climbed trees. When I was younger, I always thought I was pretty hardcore. I'd always want to participate in daunting tasks by myself since no one was there to compete against me. I guess now, even if they do accept me as a friend, I could have some people to bring my fear factor back.

"(Y/n), look at this!" Dark said, catching my attention as he pointed in a window. I retraced my steps and stared at the glass, examining the object that was introduced. In front of me stood a little glass animal that resembled an elephant. This animal had a hole cut in its back and was filled with glass-colored roses and peonies. Grooves were cut into the elephant to give it texture, drawing my gaze as I studied the beautiful artwork.

Placed by the artwork was a white piece of paper with the price. Even though it was fifty-five dollars, it wasn't worth it. I needed to save my money for other necessities. With a small sigh, I spoke, "We should probably get going. It's almost seven and I need to finish up a bit of homework."

The group agreed, heading towards the car. I casted one last glance at the glass masterpiece before following behind the males and slipping myself into the car. As we drove off into the night, I couldn't help but think about the designs on the elephant.

Later that night, when we arrived back at the dorms, I placed myself in my room and began to sketch the elephant, it's architecture so vivid and full of life—it entranced me so wonderfully. It was almost as if I needed to see it, to be reminded of the beauty in life.