He might not have been out to kill me after all, but the bitter chill may do me in at one point or another. As the day wore on it grew colder, and as we reached the Vale, the closer to the water we got, the colder the temperature became. I was shivering violently by the time I pushed off of the last rung on the ladder and flopped onto the roof of one of the shops lining the main road. Gary was seated on the ledge overlooking the pier. I watched for a moment before joining him, the snow gently falling around him, how quiet the town seemed to be save for the faint sound of the water lapping against the shore and the muffled voices of the adults walking the streets.
The scene may have been serene if it weren't for his fidgeting and I placed a hand on his shoulder in the hopes of getting him to relax. Bad choice on my part it appeared, for his head whipped around immediately and the expression he wore made it very clear he didn't like, nor want to be, touched. I raised my hands defensively.
"Sorry. Can I sit next to you at least?"
He didn't answer.
"Not like I care, I'm gonna do it anyway," I dusted the snow off of my would be seat and watched as the pile fell to the ground and landed on the head of an unsuspecting woman. She shrieked and wildly swatted at her clothing to get the snow off, all while cursing. I clamped a hand over my mouth to suppress the laugh that threatened to force its way out.
Gary chuckled beside me. "Nice job."
The woman looked up at the two of us, shaking her fist. "Oh, I'm gonna get you!"
"Well come on then, you old hag, come and get us!" Gary yelled down at her and pushed another mound of snow, the frozen mass landing at her feet. He glanced my way, giving me a look that said 'Your turn'.
"We're gonna get in so much trouble," I shook my head, smiling to myself as my hand sat at the base of another pile, just begging to be shoved like the rest.
"Isn't that the point?" Gary winked, a wicked smile on his face.
I needed no further convincing, and wiped the ledge clean of the packed snow, this time catching her on the neck. She squirmed and squealed while it slid down her back, soaking her clothes and freezing her skin. The woman was infuriated, so much so that she tossed her bags to the ground and picked something up off the ground, and it wasn't until I was hit above my left eye that I realized she was throwing rocks at us.
I wiped the back of my hand across my forehead, a streak of blood staining my pale skin. "That crazy bitch," I said, turning to show Gary my injury. "Look at that! She could've taken my eye out."
I spun around pushed off of the ledge, making quick work of shoving the accumulated snow toward where Gary and I were sitting and grabbed a fistful of it.
"This is war," I declared, and rained down upon the evil woman my icy, cold wrath. It didn't take long before Gary had joined in on the fun, and I had to commend him on his aim; she had taken many blows to the face, hard ones as she had red welts forming on her cheeks, and most of them were dealt by him.
Gary seemed to be enjoying himself, snickering and smiling as he formed one ball after the other, and eventually he directed his aim away from the woman and toward innocent passersby, ultimately dragging them into our snowball—and rock—fight.
Sirens wailed in the distance, and through the fog I could see the red and blue lights coming closer and closer toward us, toward the mob of angry people covered in snow and shouting up at the sky. They raised their fists at us, promising pain and well deserved punishment once we descended from our vantage point, and all Gary could do was laugh, lost in the moment.
I nudged him. "Cops, Gary, shit. Do you have any idea what Crabblesnitch will do to us if he finds out we left campus?"
He was still smiling at me when he dropped his hand and let go of the snowball that rested in his palm, but this time, it hadn't reached his eyes. "Don't worry, those pigs won't catch us, and the head will never know we left."
"They're getting awfully close, though," I said warily, staring up the road. Traffic had delayed their arrival to the scene and I couldn't have been anymore thankful. "We should get out of here. It's late enough, don't you think?"
"Aww, what's the matter? You afraid?" Gary pouted. "Quit being such a baby, Erin."
"Hey, look, it's that psychopath from Bullworth!" One of them shouted from the street, and I glanced over at him questioningly.
He was angry, and visibly so. Gary's posture had changed from lank and relaxed, to rigid and his deep brown eyes were narrowed into small, angry slits that focused on the vocal crowd with dark intent. He stood slightly hunched over, like a predator poised, awaiting the perfect moment to pounce on its prey. The people below raged on, shouting for the police now, for them to come and pick this deranged boy up before he caused anymore harm to the citizens of Bullworth.
"Gary, what are they talking about?" I took a tentative step forward, toward the ledge he braced himself against. "Gary?"
"It's none of your business," He snapped. "Let's get out of here."
Relief washed over me at his words. I wanted nothing more than to leave here before the police made it past the long line of vehicles just up the road. I couldn't get in trouble now. I pushed past Gary and began my descent, carefully setting my foot down on each rusty, ice covered rung. My caution had done little to help me, as my foot slipped halfway down and I fell onto the hard ground, ankle twisted into an unnatural position. It was a horrid sight, and I could feel the nausea coming on.
I tugged my foot from its spot as Gary hopped off of the ladder, landing at my side. I pushed myself up, trying to keep weight off of my injured foot and reached for the bicycle that leaned against the wall across from me.
"You're not going to get very far," Gary said as he climbed onto his bike. He sounded angry and I couldn't be sure whether it was directed at me.
"Oh, thanks for pointing that out, Captain Obvious," I hissed. "Now how the hell am I supposed to get back?"
Gary shrugged. "Not my problem. Have fun limping back to Bullworth," He said.
Gary kicked off and started pedaling down the alleyway. He reached the end before I yelled after him. "You're just going to leave me here? If I get caught, I'm taking you down with me, you asshole," I leaned into the brick wall.
He sat there at the edge of the alley, front tire peeking out onto the sidewalk. Suddenly his body turned and he pushed the bike in my direction, grumbling something along the lines of hindrance, and 'you're a pain in my ass', and he hooked his hands under my armpits and ordered me to hop up onto the handlebars with his assistance. I sat on the metal bar and glanced down at my ankle. It was swollen, and felt as though it was ready to burst through my sneaker. I'd have to go to the nurse when we returned. There was no way in hell that I would be able to hide this.
It took much longer for us to reach the tunnel outside of Happy Volts than expected, though it wasn't much of a surprise, with Gary having to pedal twice as hard to keep the both of us going at a decent speed to stay out of the eye of the police, which seemed to be everywhere now after the ruckus we caused earlier. Dark skies had settled overhead, making for a rather long, unsettling trek through the path leading to the football field. I limped behind Gary, staying close enough that I knew where he was, but far enough to give him an adequate amount of space.
Stadium lights illuminated the field, giving us a clear sight of the horde of prefects and staff that patrolled the area. They shuffled through the snow, all bundled in heavy coats and scarves, appearing not at all thrilled to be appointed to whatever task they had been assigned. I wondered if they were looking for us, or if this was a part of their usual nightly routine. I wouldn't have known; today was the first time I had actually gone outside and done something since my arriving here. Gary stopped short, just out of their line of sight.
"Do you know another way back to the dorms?" I asked him quietly. I dropped to the ground. I couldn't stand anymore, the pain had become unbearable.
He shook his head. "This is the only way. We have two choices," Gary started, gazing down at me. "We can either make a run for it, which guarantees you getting caught, or we can sit and wait until they leave."
I grimaced. Neither choice sounded all that appealing, but I supposed it'd be better to wait than to try and run past the pissed off looking prefects back to my dorm. "How long do you think that'll take?" I asked.
He leaned out into the light and squinted at his watch. "Curfew is in an hour," He sat down next to me, heaving a defeated sigh.
"So we wait," I groaned. I was tired, hungry and in pain, my mood matching his sour one, and rivaling its intensity. I'd had enough today.
"Looks like it, unless you want to risk it and bolt," He said, staring out at the field.
I laughed dryly. "My crippled ass isn't going anywhere."
Silence, weighted with exhaustion and annoyance, hung heavy in the air like fog, creating a rift between the two of us that I dared not try to cross, nor find another way around. The quiet was welcomed like an old friend with open arms and I relished it more and more with each passing second. Gary shifted around, constantly changing the position he sat in and the more he moved, the more noise he made. A low hum rumbled in the back of his throat while his fists drummed on the cold flesh of his thighs, and for the second time I placed my hands on him, grabbing his wrists and staring into his eyes, challenging him to say something in protest, to rip his hands from my own like a cranky child.
"It's late, I'm hurting like a motherfucker," I said evenly. "I do not need you twitching and making unnecessary noises next to me while I'm trying to stay calm."
"Are you trying to threaten me?" I felt his arms pull back, but I held them in place, tightening my hold on his cold skin.
"No. I'm warning you; if you keep it up, I will choke the living shit out of you." A smirk played on his lips. "Well aren't you a violent one." "Only when I need to be," I let go of him.
"Why, can't solve your problems with words?" He snickered. "You should be friends with Hopkins. You two would be great together."
I scowled at him. "I'm perfectly capable of using my words, I just prefer using my hands."
Gary raised an eyebrow. "Huh. Do you, now."
"Oh, shut up," I said, facing the field. The group numbers were beginning to dwindle. It shouldn't be much longer until we can begin moving again.
"Hey, you said it, not me."
"Earlier, on the roof," I began after a moment. "Why were they calling you a psycho? I know you basically told me to fuck off before after asking...but I'm curious."
"They're idiots, that's why they called me a psycho," Gary said quietly. His chin rested on his knees while he spoke. "It's not true."
"I'm sure it's not."
"Are you patronizing me?" He asked pointedly. His eyes stared into my own, and I wasn't sure if I shivered due to the bitter cold outside, or the chill his gaze sent through me.
"No, I'm not," I said. Gary quirked a brow and watched me silently.
"You've got no reason to believe I'm crazy."
"Yeah."
"Have you heard anything about what happened two years ago?"
"When the whole school went to hell? I heard about that, but what does that have to do with—" I stopped speaking as soon as everything clicked.
This was the infamous Gary Smith, the boy who had attempted to take over the school while making life miserable for everyone here. No wonder he had looked on so disdainfully at Happy Volts earlier today.
"So I guess you have heard about me."
"I guess I have," I nodded. Every nerve ending, every inch of my body was tingling. Electric. Alive with a newfound excitement. I cupped my hand over my mouth to hide the grin that was forming. This was perfect.
He laughed. "Are you afraid of me?"
"Afraid of you? No, I'm actually..." I paused and shook my head, thinking twice about the words that were about to come out.
"You're actually what?" He asked, leaning toward me slightly.
"Nothing," I said. His eyes narrowed.
"Tell me."
"There's nothing to tell."
"Doesn't seem like it," He said. "Spill it, rich girl."
"It's none of your business," I said, sticking my tongue out at him teasingly.
"If it's about me, I think it is my business."
"You're persistent, aren't you," I remarked, turning away from him.
"You've got no idea."