CHAPTER 13

He took a step closer to Rose and kissed her.

"What was that for?" Rose whispered when he pulled away.

"Take me back?" Asked Drake. Then without waiting for a reply, as if he already knew the answer, he took her hand and turned to walk out of the hall. But Rose didn't move. Drake turned to look at her, confused. She shook her head.

"No…Drake…I'm sorry…" He frowned, not understanding it…was she actually rejecting him? But then Rose pulled her hand away and knelt down beside Talen, gently pushing his fringe out of his bloody face and holding his hand in both of hers and suddenly it was clear to him, and hitting him in the chest like a freight train. Before Drake could do anything, the teachers were there, and he was heading to the Head Master's office, and later the psychiatrist. He would be forced to attend daily sessions instead of his twice a week, and would have detention for the following month, as well as a letter home to his parents. But Drake didn't care about all that; he had a far worse sentence to deal with. Rose had actually rejected him. She had said no. She had humiliated him in front of the whole of the school. No one humiliated Drake Merwin and got away with it! But…for some reason he didn't feel angry at Rose…sure he was fucking fuming at Tatum and the next time he saw him he would come away with worse than just a bloody face! But then he saw in his mind Rose's disappointed face, so innocent and gentle, everything Drake wasn't, everything Drake hated, but he didn't hate her. No, the opposite in fact. He sighed, for the first time, defeated.

Brianna was there when Drake left, to put her arm around Rose and say she did the right thing. She was there with Rose watching as the paramedics sorted out Rose's date. She was there as Rose sat on her bed in the dorm and cried and cried. She was there for all of that, hardly saying anything, her presence speaking a thousand words. And she made everything that tiny bit better. It wasn't until just gone midnight, when the girls were both in bed, the light off and sleep supposedly taking them that Rose spoke at last. Brianna should have been asleep, but something told Rose she wasn't.

"Thank you." She said quietly, and Brianna said nothing. But Rose knew she'd heard it, and knew she appreciated it.

Brianna constantly surprised Rose. When Rose had first arrived at Coates her copper-haired roommate had been hyperactive and loud, but since the whole Drake thing started going downhill, she had been Rose's rock. They still had fun times, but less and less recently and right now Rose didn't really fancy having fun times with anyone. She knew she'd done the right thing, but wished she hadn't. It seemed weird thinking back to their rollercoaster romance…if it could be called that. All it had seemed to consist of was someone hitting someone, and then them kissing. And Rose knew that wasn't right. So she'd had to say no. She wasn't sure if anything would happen with her and Talen…probably not, even though he was completely perfect. What was wrong with her taste? What she was really hoping was that Drake would miraculously change. But there was no chance of that happening, was there? Anyway, she probably wouldn't like him if he did.

"Can I see?" Asked Dr Flannery from the other side of the room. Drake looked up over the easel he was working at to see the little man sitting behind his desk smiling and blinking through huge specs. Drake shrugged and the little man half walked half skipped over to admire Drake's artwork. He stared for a while at the large brown scribbly mess Drake had created by scribbling angrily with every colour on top of each other. Then he nodded to himself. "Interesting…very interesting…" He murmured. Drake laughed.

"Oh come on, it's a scribble, what the fuck's interesting about that?" Dr Flannery blinked, confused.

"Why, my boy, this picture speaks a thousand words! For one thing, it makes a change from your usual paintings. This 'scribble' is not pain or death related, it isn't a weapon or a dying person or animal. Mr. Merwin, I am incredibly impressed with the progress you have made!" Drake rolled his eyes.

"The only reason it isn't pain or death related is cos I couldn't be arsed to draw anything today…that doesn't mean anything!"

"Ah but Mr. Merwin, that just tells me a whole lot more. You see, why could you not be…err…bothered to draw anything today? That is the question that begs an answer! That is the question that I'm asking myself!"

"Wouldn't you be better off asking me?"

"Well, dear boy, if there's something you'd like to talk to me about…why of course…come, sit!" And with that he bounced back over to his desk and beckoned for Drake to follow him. Drake slumped into the chair opposite. "In your own time…" Drake sat there staring into Dr Flannery's expectant eyes. Yeah, there was a reason why he couldn't be arsed to paint anything, why he couldn't be arsed with anything at the moment, but he wasn't about to tell the shrink that. So he reclined in his chair and zoned out, thinking of guns and suffering and death and smiled to himself. Eventually Dr Flannery coughed, a little high-pitched cough, a sound Drake had come to associate with Dr Flannery getting impatient. Drake rose an eyebrow. "Tell me about your social life, Mr. Merwin." He said. Drake shrugged.

"I don't like people."

"Well…who do you sit with at lunch time?"

"Soren and Ladris."

"So are they your friends?"

"Not really."

"Do you have a girlfriend?" Drake glared his hardest glare at the shrink who loosened his collar slightly. He opened his mouth to press the issue further, but couldn't quite manage to get the words out with Drake looking at him like that. So reluctantly he changed the subject.

"H-how's your schoolwork going?"

Brianna hummed to herself as she walked to Maths. She was late, purposefully so, seeing as this was her least favourite lesson, and so walked alone. As she made to turn a corner, someone grabbed her and yanked her down in the space behind a large staircase. She turned to face her kidnapper, but had to wait until her eyes adjusted to the dark for her to be able to make out who it was.

"Drake?" She asked, trying not to sound nervous as she saw the sadistic blonde glaring at her.

"You tell anyone what I'm about to tell you and I will hurt you. Bad." He hissed, Brianna nodded.

"You can trust me." She said, curious as to why Drake wanted to talk to her. He glared at her for a while longer, and then satisfied he could trust her; he sighed and looked at the floor.

"I want Rose back." He mumbled, and, looking at him, Rose felt almost sorry for the bully.

"Well…she doesn't want you-" Brianna began and immediately regretted it as, like a wolf lunging at its prey, Drake grabbed Brianna by the shoulders and pushed her back so her head hit the stone wall so hard that she saw stars and her vision swam. It took her a minute or so to get her senses back, then she clutched the back of head, which known pounding like a fist hitting her again and again. Drake's face was right in hers.

"You're gonna tell me how to get her back, or else." If anyone else had said that line to Brianna she would have scoffed at how stupid and cliché it sounded, but when Drake said it, it sent shivers up her back. She wondered how Rose could like this guy. But she supposed it was better to be on his good side than his bad. And he was hot. Rose shrugged.

"Well…I do think she still likes you-" Brianna began and Drake smirked.

"Of course…" Brianna ignored him and carried on.

"BUT, she wants you to show her that you like her back. Drake scoffed.

"Oh come on, I kissed her like the other day!"

"Well…it takes more than just a kiss for a girl to feel loved." Brianna shrugged, suddenly feeling awkward having this topic of conversation with the psychopathic bully who Brianna didn't even think was capable of such an emotion as love. Drake frowned.

"Like what?" Brianna shrugged.

"Umm…little romantic gestures are always nice?" She suggested, she wasn't the girliest of girls, but she just thought of Finn. Then, on cue, she blushed. Good thing it was too dark for Drake to see. But he was preoccupied.

"Like what?" He repeated. Brianna shrugged again.

"Umm…girls like flowers…surprises…presents…?"

"Flowers. Got it." And he got up, about to leave, but stopped, pinning Brianna to the wall. "If this doesn't work…" He hissed. "I think you know what'll happen…" Then he got up and left, without as much as a 'thank you'. Brianna sighed, and hoped against hope that the flowers would work…