From the corner of his eye Esai looked at her. Despite Jordan's attempt to intimidate her and the horrific scar across her eye, she didn't flinch and kept her head up. When his father told him this morning that a new girl would arrive at school and that it was his task to make her feel at home, his response had been indignant. He really wasn't in the mood to waste his time with some dumb chick who was too stupid to stand up for herself. The moment his father told him that her eye had been cut out, he had changed his mind immediately.

Yeah, it was kinda sinister that a mutilation intrigued him. Yet, there wasn't much he could do about it. He was way too curious to the story behind the scar and the reason she moved to Oakland. He however knew better than asking about it.

"Are you a senior?" he asked.

Alesia nodded.

"Cool. Me too. Why don't you show me your timetable?"

She stood still, stepped away from the flow of people in the middle of the hallway and zipped open her backpack. Esai's eyes followed the movements of her elegant fingers and for a moment he imagined how they opened some other zipper, stroking across something else than her books.

She opened her agenda, took out a piece of paper and handed it to him. Her eyes were gray as the sea and kept his glance. Red spots crept up his neck. It was impossible, but somehow he had the feeling she knew very well which route his thoughts had taken. Since he didn't want to fuck up his assignment by having heated thoughts, he quickly turned his attention to the note.

"We have a few classes together," he said. "You start with biology, I see. You want me to take you there?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "Sure." He held out the piece of paper. Their fingers touched when she took it and a paralyzing feeling shot through his arm. Quickly, he shoved his hand in his pocket. What the hell was that?

His eyes shot to the side. Subconsciously he expected a blush on her cheeks, but there wasn't, as if he had been the only one feeling that spark. A little confused he started to move again.

"Come on then," he said a bit gruffer than he'd meant to.

"You don't have to show me around if you don't want to," she answered. "I'm grateful that you stepped in when that guy was bothering me, and a little bit of company on my first day of school isn't exactly an unnecessary luxury, but if you believe you've been compassionate enough for one day and rather spend your time with your friends instead of hanging out with the local freak, I get it. No hard feelings okay?"

On a whim he grabbed her shoulder and turned her around so she was leaning with her back against the lockers. He stared into her left eye, the only one which could stare back.

He swallowed. Yeah, what now? What the hell did you plan to do anyway?

Esai had no clue, and a little awkwardly his fingers loosened around her shoulder.

"You're not a freak," he said eventually. Before he knew it he raised his hand. Lightly, his thumb brushed the scar below her eye. "Even with that scar you're fucking beautiful."

It was no lie, she really was a beautiful girl. Her skin was smooth, her lips full, her eye enchanting, her nose cute. And if he was honest, that scar made her look bad ass.

"Who the hell are you? The kind of guy gettin' off on scars?"

The snark was so unexpected he stepped away from her. Despite her cute face she had a sharp tongue. He shouldn't be surprised; why should the club care about a fragile little thing?

"I'll be fine. Have nice day." She pushed him away, swung her backpack over her shoulder and rushed away.

Esai gritted his teeth. How the hell could he fuck up something so simple? The only thing he should have done, was cosying up to that girl. Now however, he had done the opposite by antagonizing her.

During the classes that followed it was hard to keep his attention to subject. How was he supposed to tell his father that she didn't want him around? The pit in his stomach wasn't only caused by his father's disappointment; her not wanting to have anything to do with him kinda hurt. Quieter than usual he worked on his assignments, ignoring her during the classes they had together. She however sat two seats away from him and he could feel her presence the whole time.

With a sigh, he blew his disappointment away.

"What's goin' on with you man?" Dezi nudged him halfway the fourth class.

Esai didn't know how to explain himself to his best friend. All he did, was shrugging his shoulders. "Had a short night."

"Hot chick huh?" Dezi smirked.

Nope – he had been all alone. He however gave his friend a meaningful smirk because he offered him an easy way out. Dezi believed him and in silence Esai continued his school work.

Alesia had caught the question of Esai's friend. The fact that he made no mocking comment about her, made her doubt, even when his friend conformed her suspicion that he was a player, which supported the thought that he was interested in her because he'd never fucked a mutilated girl. But right now, Esai didn't look like someone with a hurt ego because he was missing out on a conquest, it felt like his hurt was deeper. She had to admit she didn't care that much about his flirting; she was used to Angel and well, he had quite a reputation when it came to girls.

Since she had nothing to lose, she stood up when class was over and called his name before he left the room. He turned around, his eyes widening as he saw her. She went to walk next to him. With a nod, he told his friend to leave them alone.

"I'm sorry," she said. "For how I reacted. It's just..." Her shoulders slumped down. "I've been through a very rough time. Or been through... Actually I'm still in the middle of it." She gave him a sad smile. "I honestly could use a friend."

The smile he gave her made a little spark ignite inside her; a tiny bit of warmth after what happened to her family.

"I will be a good friend," he promised with a smirk. "And whether I have a scar fetish or not – I will behave."

He swung an arm around her shoulder; his wrist loosely dangling down her shoulder so she could easily shake it off. She however didn't; after everything she had lost, a little bit of kindness was what she needed, for the loneliness was tearing her apart.

"You wanna hang out after school?" he asked. "Or do you got plans?"

"No, got no plans." Despite the fact that she loved her granny, she rather spend some hours with someone who wasn't staring forward numbly.

"Awesome!"

After the last class they met outside. This morning she had taken the bus, but Esai walked towards the parking lot.

"You ever been on a bike?" he asked with a promising smirk.

"Yeah, one of my best friends has one." She chuckled as his shoulders slumped down. "You're disappointed now?"

"Kinda," he admitted shamelessly, handing her a helmet. "Girls use to hold me tighter during their first time."

Her lips curled up as she strapped her helmet. What a charmer.

"You're talking about sex or riding a bike now?" she asked, used to Angel's dirty talk.

Esai chuckled. "I like your mindset."

He rolled back his bike and mounted it. She sat down behind him and glanced at a group of girls, who were looking envious at her. This almost felt like some crappy chicklit in which the new girl ran off with the hunk of the school on her first day.

She scooted closer to him, wrapping her arms tighter around him than necessary.

"This tight enough for you?" she asked.

He looked over his shoulder. He was a hot guy anyhow, but his smirk was the reason she wanted to press herself closer to his hard body. She placed her feet on the right spots, then Esai left the schoolyard.

Even though her grasp around him had been playful, she kept holding him close. Pressing her cheek against his back, she closed her eyes. Memories flushed through her mind; memories of the times she had been on Angel's bike. Never before she had been separated from him and Gilly for such a long time and their absence made her many wounds fester. A tear rolled down her cheek, quickly she wiped it off.

She had left Santo Padre. Her life had taken a new turn, it was time to create new memories, with new people, in new places.

That letting go of your past wasn't as easy as it sounded, was proven when Esai stopped the bike in front of a building. A row of bikes was shining in the sunlight. On the large sliding door, she recognized the symbol of the Mayans MC. Her hands clenched into fists around Esai's shirt. He laid his hand across her fist and looked over his shoulder.

"What's going on?"

"Is this the reason you came to me today?" she asked, cringing as her voice crack. She pulled her arms away from him and slid off his bike. "Because someone told you to do so? What are you, their prospect?"

She read the confusion in his eyes. "What does it matter? I..."

"What does it matter?!" she yelled. "What did they tell you about me? That I am some tragic girl that could never survive on her own? Who needs some tough guy to keep her from falling apart?"

She spun around and rushed away.

"Alesia!" he called out.

She didn't look over her shoulder; instead she raised her fist and flipped off.

She needed no one, and especially not some stupid motorclub.

They had done her enough damage.