“Very poetic,” Jasper drawled.

  “Annie,” Mr Lyle softened, turning to her. “Let me know if they try anything.”

  “How sweet,” James said mockingly.

  Mr Lyle gave James an unreadable expression, a dark emotion brimming within the surface. Annie bristled. This was a suffocating tension that completely went over her head. There was more to this than just prickly students.

  BEEP BEEP BEEP

  The second ring snapped Mr Lyle into action. He hurried out of the classroom, closing the door behind him.

  Leaving Annie with both of the Barons.

  Defenceless.

  She tried to even her breathing, but she wasn’t stupid; being alone with them was painful.

  “Check it, we don’t have much time,” James blurted, moving towards the desk. Jasper got up, moving to the other side. They both tried opening the drawers, tugging at the rigid furniture.

  “Fuck, I knew he would lock it,” Jasper said.

  “What are you doing?” Annie got up.

  “Do you think he has spare keys around here?” Jasper looked around, heading towards the shelves.

  “Uh, hello!” Annie waved.

  “Not now, Howell,” James said.

  That was weird.

  No antagonistic growl or angry retort; just dismissal.

  They must be stressed.

  “Break it open,” James said.

  “He’s going to notice,” Jasper replied.

  “Fuck it.”

  “It’s too early.”

  “We need to do it now, Jasper.”

  “And what if it isn’t here? He’ll know we’re on to him. Tristan can only hold off the alarm for so long.”

  “What are you guys talking about?” Annie baulked.

  “That gives us three minutes! We gotta break this now!”

  “Mate, we can’t break into his desk today. Look, we got two more weeks of detention. We can try again.”

  “You were going to break into Mr Lyle’s desk?” Annie said.

  “Well done. Nothing gets past you,” Jasper grumbled.

  James looked up. He gave Annie a careful look. There was an idea brewing in his head. Annie had seen that look before; James was thinking of a plan, and it would not make her happy.

  “You can get them,” James said firmly.

  “Her?” Jasper pointed to Annie, a bewildered expression etching his face. “What’s she going to do?”

  “He likes her,” James said suddenly.

  Annie’s face blushed. “I beg your pardon. That’s not -”

  “You think -” Jasper interrupted.

  “I’m certain,” James breathed heavily.

  “Am I talking to myself here?”

  The boys looked at Annie with a grave expression. There was no trace of sick humour or malice; just a solemn, brooding sense of misery. She just couldn’t understand what was going on.

  “Somebody tell me what’s going on!” Annie said.

  James walked over to where she stood, and it took Annie every ounce of courage not to retreat in fear. He did that to her. He made her nervous all the time. Whether it was conscious, he had that power and she wondered if he enjoyed it too.

  Was it her discomfort that he enjoyed? He had a habit of being so close to her body. Almost as though he couldn’t trust her to stay in the same room as him. She didn’t trust herself either.

  “Do you know where the keys are?”

  “W-what? Why would I know that?” Annie frowned.

  “I’m not fucking around.”

  “Neither am I!”

  “What’s your relationship with him?”

  “Excuse me?”

  “You heard me,” James said. His stare was unwavering.

  “Have you lost your mind?” Annie intoned. “You’re asking me what my relationship is with Mr Lyle? The history teacher.

  If she thought her questions would rattle him, she was sorely mistaken. He didn’t even flinch at her words. She released a shaky exhale, shocked. He really thought she was... having an inappropriate relationship with a teacher.

  “You’re not joking,” she realised.

  “I’ve got a headache,” Jasper sighed, rubbing his face.

  James’ eyes wouldn’t let go of Annie. He was warring with himself. A dark emotion buried deep. Something he wouldn’t let out. A beast in the darkness. A demon in the abyss.

  “Has he…” he trailed hesitantly.

  “James,” Jasper said firmly. He moved forward, grabbing him by the shoulder. “Don’t.”

  “Don’t what?” Annie asked.

  Jasper’s eyes darkened, a familiar swirl of tension alighting his dark brown eyes. “It’s none of your business.”

  “It is when I’m stuck in the same detention with you.”

  “So what is your relationship with him?” James asked.

  “There is none.”

  “Hm.”

  “You don’t believe me?”

  “I do.”

  “Then what?”

  “I just have a feeling about something,” James said ominously. He tilted his head as he surveyed Annie with a precise intensity. It was like he was searching for something. “Does he teach your classes?”

  She considered not answering his question. Remaining stubborn was one option. But the way they both looked at her... she couldn’t compel herself to lie.

  “No, I don’t take history.”

  “So why does he know who you are?”

  “Am I supposed to be an outsider to everyone? To even the staff too?” Annie said in frustration.

  “That’s not what I meant,” he rolled his eyes.

  “Look, it’s normal for a teacher to know a student. Even if they don’t teach them. It’s called being a student for over five years, you idiot.”

  “Watch it,” James lifted his brow.

  “You’re the one who implied there was something untoward between Mr Lyle and I!”

  “I have my reasons.”

  “Such as?”

  James kept quiet. He didn’t finish Annie’s sentence, nor did he try to.

  She sighed in frustration.

  She was really getting nowhere asking these questions.

  “Whatever, just keep me out of it,” she waved dismissively. Moving back to her desk, she went back to her textbook, mindlessly reading through passages.

  James and Jasper hadn’t moved from their spots. She could see that in the corner of her eye. They were watching her, considering their next move.

  “Go see where he is,” James muttered.

  “What?” Jasper said.

  “I need a distraction. Just for a few minutes,” James said. Annie looked up, finding his gaze rested on her face. Jasper glanced between them, uncertain and looking like he wanted to say something, but he moved quickly, shutting the door behind him.

  It was just Annie and James. Again.

  It was like a dance that only they knew the steps to. A game of push and pull. A chase between lion and lioness.

  “You made him leave because you needed me alone. Right?”

  “Nothing gets past you, Howell.”

  “Then what is it? What do you want? To finish what you started?”

  Flashbacks of the day where he had her pinned against the wall sped through her brain, eliciting a rain of shivers down her spine. Annie had never been that close before to a man. Let alone the Barons. Let alone James freaking Knightley.

  Now he was standing before her. He could pin her against the wall and no-one could jump in.

  Is that what this was?

  “You’re going to do something for me.”

  “Like hell,” Annie retorted.

  “You don’t have much choice, Howell.”

  “My name is Annie.”

  “I don’t care.”

  “Yes, you do,” Annie said boldly. This statement caught him off-guard. He frowned sharply. “You care.”

  He let out a derisive laugh. “Thinking a bit highly of yourself, are we? You’re probably craving for man’s touch. I suppose Lyle does it for you, doesn’t he? The mature type. Surprising really, but then again, it’s always the quiet ones.”

  “You can bluff all you want. I’ve seen you, James. I see you staring all the time and you think I wouldn’t notice?”

  “You’re fucking delusional.”

  “Am I?”

  He sneered. “Yeah, pretty fucked up and delusional.”

  “So why won’t you leave me alone then? Why now?”

  “Why not now?”

  “Just answer the question!” Annie shouted in frustration.

  “Watch who you’re talking to!” James thundered. He moved towards Annie, threatening her with a menacing glare. She had rattled him. Shaken something inside.

  “You had the whole five years, James! The whole five years of high school to make my life miserable, and what did you do? You ignored me. You didn’t bully me the way you are now. So what’s changed, huh?” Annie exclaimed. Call it reckless, but she couldn’t stop. “Come on, King James! Why the fuck now!”

  “You’re delusional if you think there’s anything more to it. Did you ever think I was just biding my time? Maybe I’m waiting for the perfect moment to catch you when you’re down,” he hissed.

  “That’s bullshit,” she said boldly. God knows why she was saying this.

  Annie shook her head, reading the tormented look in those dark green eyes. He wasn’t telling the truth. When his rage came to the surface, when the emotions bubbled up, Annie could read the bullshit better than the poker face.

  “Why are you doing this, James?” Annie mumbled. Maybe it was the way she said his name with such reverence, reserved for lovers, that James faltered slightly, unbalanced by her words.

  “Shut your mouth,” he said.

  “You’re never going to tell me, are you?” She whispered.

  “Shut up,” he growled.

  “You’re a coward.”

  “I said -”

  “That’s what you are.”

  “- SHUT UP!”

  James bellowed loudly, startling Annie on impact. He turned, shoving everything on the desk until it smashed to the floor. The sound of a glass vase crashed into angry pieces, scattering the area. He panted, his chest rising and down.

  “You want me to ruin your life? Is that it?” James said heavily.

  “I don’t want to do anything, James. I want nothing to do with you and this Baron shit, you know that!” Annie replied. “But you dragged me into this. Not me.”

  James narrowed his eyes on her. “Drag you into what?”

  “I had a relatively normal existence before you humiliated me! Sure, I was a nobody, but people left me alone, James. And then you had to push me around, setting a target on my head; I can’t even fade into the background if I wanted to because of you!”

  “You should be flattered that someone like me is paying any attention to you!” James sneered.

  “Are you kidding me?” Annie let out a shocked breath. “You need help.”

  “Me?” He laughed emptily. “Give me a break. The school freak telling me I need help, now I’ve seen it all! Have you got a single friend here? Hm?”

  A sharp pang tugged at her heart. He was hitting a vulnerable territory. How did he know which part to stomp on, which part to hurt her with?

  “You already know the answer to that,” Annie bit out. “What’s your point?”

  “My point? You should be grateful -”

  “Oh god,” Annie rolled her eyes. “Here we go again. Blah, blah, blah, I should be flattered that you paid attention to me, I should be grateful a Baron is talking to me, blah, blah. Come up with something new!”

  James looked affronted. This was a new side to Annie Howell that he wasn’t always ready for. He opened his mouth to spew another threat, but Annie lifted her brow, crossing her arms. Her body language screamed, ‘What else you got?’

  “When did you grow a pair of balls?” He breathed.

  “Since a group of bullies tried to ruin my life,” Annie said.

  “We didn’t ruin your life, Howell. Nowhere near.”

  “But you ruined Natasha’s.”

  Now she was in trouble. She could sense it. James leaned forward, grabbing Annie’s arm tightly. His face was stoic, set and brimming with tension. She wriggled in his unrelenting grip.

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” he warned. “I’d be careful if I were you, Annie. Opening that mouth of yours is going to get you in trouble,” his gaze glanced downwards, watching the tremble of her lips.

  “You were looking for something about Natasha. Weren’t you?”

  The spark in his eyes flashed. She had hit the jackpot.

  “I’m right, aren’t I?”

  “Do you want to go down with him? Is that it? You want to go down with your precious Lyle?”

  “Why do you keep saying that? He’s not my anything!”

  “It looked like it to me,” he said.

  “What?”

  “I’ve seen the way you look at him.”

  “Oh my god,” she breathed. “You’re actually insane. Legitimately.”

  “Don’t lie to me, Annie,” he growled. “It’s important.”

  “No, you idiot! There is nothing going on between me and Mr Lyle! How could you even think that?”

  “Yes, Mr Knightley, how could you even think that?” Mr Lyle boomed from the doorway. Jasper was behind him with an apologetic expression towards James. He could only hold him off for so long.

  “Let her go,” Mr Lyle said firmly. There was a detached anger bubbling inside of Mr Lyle; it was clear - he was furious with James and hated the sight of him.

  James made no motion of letting go, and Annie wondered if he considered fighting the history teacher.

  “We’re just talking, Mr Lyle. It has nothing to do with you.”

  “It does when you’re in my classroom. Let her go. I won’t repeat myself.”

  James clicked his tongue, giving Annie a grim stare. There was a message behind those dark eyes.

  Anger.

  That’s what it was, but she couldn’t figure out if the anger was directed towards her or toward something else. It looked like...no, it couldn’t be.

  It looked like he didn’t want to let go.

  Eventually, he finally released his grip, letting Annie move away from him slightly. He breathed heavily, rubbing his face.

  “You’re this close to extending your detention, James,” Mr Lyle crossed his arms.

  “That’s Mr Knightley to you, sir,” James said pointedly.

  He stiffened at the reply.

  Annie jumped in before another confrontation ensued.

  “Mr Lyle? Could we be excused? It’s six o’clock and dinner is about to be served,” she said.

  He glanced at her briefly.

  “Please,” she breathed.

  Blinking softly, he loosened his rigid posture, nodding in agreement. James tensed at the effect Annie had on the teacher. “You’re right, Annie. Run along now, boys. Don’t want to miss dinner now, do we? Be back tomorrow at 5.30pm - sharp. I won’t tolerate a late arrival. No exceptions.” He directed that statement towards the boys, his gaze excused Annie.

  Nodding softly, Annie grabbed her things quickly, watching James from the corner of her eye. He was standing there, rigid. There was something haunting him. She barely knew the guy, but she felt like she could read him like a book. Surely, it wasn’t just her. She was sure the Barons felt the same as her.

  But as she glanced at Jasper who was nonchalantly grabbing his bag, sauntering towards James, he didn’t appear to notice the brooding danger lurking under James’ green eyes.

  If she didn’t do something, he was going to attack Mr Lyle. She just felt it.

  “James,” she called. James’ head turned towards Annie instantly at the call of his name. It was an unusual thing; Annie calling his name like they were friends, not enemies. She walked up to him with a careful, soft look. “Let’s go.”

  She was mad.

  She had to be, she thought.

  Just a second ago, she wouldn’t be caught dead trying to speak to him softly. But the potentially escalating tension prompted her to take action. Conflict was something she struggled to handle.

  Maybe James also read her like a book too. He observed her. Maybe he saw her struggle too.

  James hardened his jaw, and she felt him walk past her. So that was that. Or so she thought. She felt him tug at her hand, pulling her to follow him. She baulked at their hands intertwining. He was holding her hand.

  James Knightley was holding her hand.

  What. Is. Going. On.

  Had she stepped into a parallel universe?

  “Um... that’s not what -” Annie murmured.

  “We’ll be going, sir,” James said brightly, winking at Mr Lyle. Mr Lyle frowned, watching the two. Jasper gave an incredulous stare, dropping his mouth in disbelief.

  They walked out of the room, with Annie mostly bumbling along. Once they were out of sight, she ripped her hand out of his grip. Almost as if his touch burned her skin. James twisted, flexing his fingers, almost as though he was scarred from her touch.

  “That wasn’t an invitation to hold my hand,” Annie said.

  “Then what was that an invitation for?”

  “For you to not beat someone up.”

  “Worried about me, Howell? Some might say you’re starting to fall for me,” James mused, leaning against the brick wall.

  Jasper sauntered towards them, an incredulous expression etched on his face. “What is going on with you guys?”

  “Nothing,” Annie said.

  “Everything,” James countered. “Curls over here has a crush on me.”

  “I knew it,” Jasper scoffed.

  “Excuse you?”

  “Don’t be embarrassed. It’s a common occurrence,” he winked.

  “Okay, you’ve officially lost it,” Annie drawled.

  She walked the other way, determined to hide under her blanket, locking herself away in her bedroom. A modern day Cinderella, if you will.

  “Hey, aren’t you gonna have dinner?” James called.

  “No!” She called back without turning around.

  “You gonna starve then?” He called.

  “I’d rather not wear my dinner, thanks. I’ve learnt my lesson with you; I’ll eat my dinner, just not when you’re in the dining hall!”