Authors Note: Thank you for all of the positive reviews, I really appreciate them! You guys are seriously the best. Enjoy and review!
For the first time in Alex's life, the school day felt like it had passed in the blink of an eye. All too soon she found herself at the bottom of the stairs that led up to Tess's office.
Mitchie took her hand and squeezed it. "It's okay Alex. I don't think it'll be as bad as you think it's going to. It's just a few hours and then we can meet up for dinner."
Alex nodded, forcing a smile before dropping Mitchie's hand and beginning her climb up the stairs. There was that familiar weight planted firmly on her chest that refused to budge, making it hard for her to breathe. At the top of the stairs she looked back to see Mitchie still standing there. They waved to each other and as Mitchie walked off Alex couldn't help but feel like she was leaving for war or something, like the next time she saw Mitchie nothing would be the same.
Walking slowly down the hallway, Alex stopped at the door to Tess's office. She made a fist and pretended that the wood of the door was the blonde's face, knocking rapidly.
"Come in." Tess said in a singsong voice.
Alex composed herself for a moment, trying to look as pissed off as possible before opening the door. Tess looked up from her desk and smiled. "Miss Russo welcome to the first day of your two month period of detention. Kindly shut the door behind you."
"Sure." She did as she was told, kicking behind her and smiling slightly as the loud sound made Tess jump. Sitting down at the desk in front of Tess's desk Alex couldn't help but look around. It was the same room that Alex had been having detention in all year but without Mrs. Costanzia's things there it was completely unfamiliar. Tess had put up stupid, motivational posters that said things like, "shoot for the moon even if you miss you'll land among the stars" and "always be true to yourself." Her desk had a fake apple with a cartoon-style worm coming out of it and a cutesy name card that said "Miss Tyler" in purple cursive. "I see that you have literally thrown up every single teacher cliché into this room. Nice. You're really trying to play a part aren't you?" Alex looked up at her smirking.
Tess frowned for a moment. "Alex, Alex, Alex. Do you want to be in detention for the entire last two years of your time at Millbury? It seems to me that you haven't quite gotten it through your thick skull that I have the power here. I don't know why since you've NEVER had the power when it comes to you and me."
Alex grunted. "No wonder you're a teacher. Having power over people always did give you such a pathetic little hard-on."
At that Tess laughed. It might have been her blind hatred but Alex was sure that it was identical to Cruella Deville's laugh. She stood up, making the younger girl suddenly much less bold. There was still a small part, however hard she had tried to kill it, that was attracted to Tess. Alex noticed the sensual way her tongue went out to slowly run across her pink lips and the way the top of her shirt was unbuttoned to reveal the slight plunge to her cleavage.
Shutting her eyes for a moment, she willed her heartbeat to slow down. "Dammit!" She exclaimed aloud, smashing her fist against the desk. Her mind focused on images of Mitchie, her gorgeous, charismatic, entrancing girlfriend. The girl she loved. And it worked. Her heartbeat began to regulate and it was easier to breathe.
The sound of Tess's laugh reached her ear. This time it was a soft chuckle and it sounded so close. Opening her eyes Alex stared down at the slight hands and manicured fingers that were suddenly on the edges of her desk. "You're still attracted to me, I know you are." Her voice was a dangerous kind of low, evoking the same calm a predator feels before pouncing on its prey.
Alex met Tess's eyes with as much confidence as she could muster. Cool blue to hard brown they stared at each other for a few minutes, the silence pressing urgently against both of their eardrums. Finally Alex spoke. "Everything about you is ugly to me, Tess."
She bent down so fast it was almost inhuman. They were inches apart now. Alex could smell her perfume, the same vanilla scent she had been wearing for years that used to get Alex hot but now made her want to throw up. "I don't think you believe that, Alex."
"How could I not? I thought we were in love but all along you were just playing around with me because you're a sadistic bitch. It was all real to me. Everything. But when I found out I was just a joke to you, someone that you laughed about with your friends and to your real girlfriend…fuck." Alex didn't want to think about it anymore. Two years and she had just begun to heal, to become a real person again, capable of letting someone back into her heart and Tess just had to come barging back into her life.
"Aww, poor Alex. You're still nursing that broken-heart?" Tess reached out and touched Alex's cheek, making Alex turn her head violently away. "I'll admit it, you were only supposed to be for fun. But I did care about you Alex, I still do. I was so excited to come back to Millbury and see you again. And I'm not disappointed. You're even more beautiful than you were back then and despite my best efforts, fiery as ever. It must be all that hot Latina blood." Her hand went back to Alex's face, like a pesky fly that Alex had to keep swatting away.
"Forget this." Alex stood up abruptly, rushing to the door. "What you're doing to me is harassment, I'm gonna go right to Dean Torres and…"
"And what, Alex? You might as well tell the Dean all the dirty details about how you fuck his daughter because that's what I'll do if you ever try to slander my name." Her hand reached out again, brushing against Alex's lips.
Alex swallowed but did nothing. She was still looking into Tess's eyes but now it felt like she was drowning in the icy blue of her irises. Tess had her. The last think Alex could ever do was hurt Mitchie again. Not only would it hurt her but the Dean would be sure to take Mitchie far, far away, to a place that Alex could never follow.
"That's it Alex," Tess said, her hand moving to cup her cheek. "I'm glad I finally found a way to tame your naughty behavior. And you should know, the same rule applies to your precious Mitchie. Tell her a single detail about what really goes on in our detention session and Daddy Torres finds out just how dirty his little angel really is."
"And what exactly is it that will really be going on in our detention sessions?" It took all of the strength Alex could must to keep herself under control. She wanted to rip Tess's arm out of it's socket, pounce on her and bring her crashing to the ground, screaming for mercy. She wanted to hurt her in the worst way possible.
"You know, I was thinking about that. We were always so good together, you and I." Tess brushed strands of her own glossy blonde hair away from her face, bringing it closer until their lips were almost touching. "I was thinking we could use this time to get…re-acquainted, play some games together like old times." Before Alex had a chance to reply, Tess was kissing her, forcing her tongue into her mouth. It was a hard, dominating kiss that made her feel as though she was being branded as property. Alex balled her hands into fists, her nails sinking deep into the skin at her palms. It was her worst nightmare come to life. After what felt like hours, Tess broke the kiss. Alex snapped her head away, gasping for air as she concentrated on staring at the tiles of the floor.
"Please, Tess. Don't do this." Alex didn't know what else to do. All she had left was begging.
Tess straightened up, walking back to her desk and pulling out a tube of lip gloss. "I know it's not a traditional form of punishment but I think it'll do wonders for that bad attitude that you've been carrying around. And you know what? I actually think you might grow to like it." She smoothly re-applied and popped her lips. "You know, I'm feeling pretty generous, you can leave early today. I'll see you tomorrow in class though, bright and early."
Alex got up silently and left, looking everywhere but at her tormentor. Walking back down the hallway she felt the harsh prick of tears welling in her eyes. There was no way out. Tess had her completely beat.
She walked back to her room in a daze, comprehending nothing but the feeling that the world was falling down all around her. At the door to her room she composed herself once more, trying to make herself look ok but having problems remembering what it truly was to feel ok. Finally she gave up, opening the door in the hope that Harper would be too busy doing homework to notice anything off.
"Surprise!" Alex stood in the door, gaping at the sight of Mitchie standing in the middle of the room, a smile, a real smile, not Tess's demonic imitation of one, gracing her lips. Sitting on her desk were two plates of hot food. Alex wanted to die. "I thought you might be too tired from detention to want to go all the way down to the dining hall so I brought the food to you." Afraid that Mitchie would see the turmoil on her face she rushed towards the other girl pulling her into a tight hug.
"T-thanks Mitch. This is so nice of you. I-I, I'm so God damned lucky to have you as my girlfriend."
"Wow, what's gotten into you? Maybe detention isn't such a bad thing after all if it gets me greetings like this." Mitchie laughed and Alex forced out a harsh chuckle.
"Don't say that." In that moment, Alex made up her mind. She had let Tess win in the past but no more. She had something worth fighting for this time around, something that made her physically unable to give up. She had Mitchie. Her brain was already wracking ways to get back at Tess. There had to be a way to escape the detention from hell and God dammit she was going to find it.
A/N: I know, I know, you guys probably hate me for this chapter. I don't blame you. Let me just tell you though hat things might get worse before they get better. But they WILL get better.