My head was pounded As I awoke, my forehead drenched with sticky, sweat. My heart hammered at my chest and I paused everything to catch my breath. Breathing deeply, I threw the covers from my body, shocked at the sudden cold in the air. I fumbled through the half-hearted light to get ready for school.
I could hear dull murmurs of voices coming from the kitchen and decide to investigate, although, knowing my oh-so-great amount of luck with that, especially after the other night, I went at it a little bit differently.
Grabbing hold of the first thing I could find, I crept down the wooden stairs, overly aware of the creaky hot-spots, I dodged the, narrowly. The murmurs turned into voices the closer I got.
Recognisable voices.
I breathed a sigh of relief, and stopped in front of the archway to the kitchen.
"Gabby, why are you holding a slipper?" Rob mused, a small grin etching its way into his amused face.
I studied Rob, his blonde locks were scraped back, in a messy look, he supported a blue button up shit, with the two top buttons undone, his jeans were a darker shade and were tainted with fashionable rips and scrapes. He shoved his hands into his pockets and raised his eyebrows at me.
"Why are you in my house?"
He blushed, coughing a little and rubbing his nose lightly with the back of his palm. He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted at the last minute.
"Robert's offered to drive you to school before church," my dad gushed, stepping out from the other room, "I thought it was a kind gesture." He added, urging me to go with a wiggle of his eyebrows.
I rolled my eyes at him, turning back to Robert, I was grateful to say the least, I found that helping out at the church lately had become uninteresting, dull. I say lately, it's more like since the night with Adam.
More or less.
And I really didn't want to go today.
It had been a few days, five to be exact, and every single day of school since he took me to that club, Adam had been watching me like a hawk, he was everywhere. I'd be on the way to the toilet and he'd be in the corridor, watching-- Not watching me pee. Just watching me walk there. Or I'd be in the lunch line, and he'd be there, standing in his usual corner. Watching.
It wasn't though he looked bored, whilst watching, it didn't look like he was forced to, more so that he was... observing? But obviously that wasn't the case, and he just thinks I'm a snitch and wants to protect himself.
Even the kids at school had began noticing it, I mean this was practically an alien invasion. Adam never showed up to school, even on a good day, the last time he had been in school before all this, was a few days after the fight with Jayden.
It was a mystery, and I hate unsolved mysteries.
I threw the slipper to the floor, and gave Rob a thankful smile, I think he may have caught on that I didn't want to go to church in the mornings.
Maybe it was the constant complaining.
Or maybe he just had a sixth sense.
Without second thought, I decided to skip breakfast, knowing Rob's reputation with the microwave, and nodded my head towards the door, motioning Rob to leave.
"Bye dad!" I hollered, "I'm off to school!"
He shouted a muffled, "Okay." But didn't come to see us out.
I turned on my heel and got into Rob's old, black car. "Your one way ticket to hell has arrived." Rob announced. I chuckled half-heartedly, already dreading the day.
It was the lesson before lunch when I heard it, Rob and I were in maths, partnered up. As usual seeing as he was practically Einstein reborn and I was a struggling, existential-crisis on legs, whom was, no doubt, completely failing everything. Especially maths.
I was thankful at first, when my name had been called out to go to the Receptionist, at the front of the school, but as I actually walked there, I couldn't help get a dreadful feeling. Fearing the worst.
What would happen to me if they discovered the illegal fighting club, what if they already knew I went there? What if they have called me down there to ask me about Adam? Did they know about all this? I would have to tell them everything. I can't lie for the life of me.
The more I worried, the stronger the feeling became.
But it turned out it was for nothing like that at all.
When I arrived at the front desk, responding to the receptionist as she asked for my details, she the led me to a girl that was sat just to the side of the office. I guess I was so lost in my panic I hadn't noticed her.
The girl was, no doubtably, pretty. She had a narrow heart-shaped face, her chin was slightly pointed, with a defined jawline and high cheekbones. Not to mention her doe-like, almond-coloured eyes, which complemented her dark complexion beautifully.
"Gabrielle, this is Andrea Porter, this is her first day here and she will be your buddy for the day." The receptionists paused for a brief moment, allowing Andrea to smile peacefully at me, I returned the gesture, "Just show her around, let her get a feel of the school, we thought you'd be perfect to help her."
She didn't allow me a second to breath before speaking again, "You're so generous, thank you." She finished, nodding at Andrea before waltzing back behind the desk.
Andrea stuck out a hand courageously towards me, a massive grin on her face, "I'm Andrea." She stated.
I stifled a grin when her face dropped, "The receptionist said that already," she stated, but her grin flashed back at me as I took her hand.
"It's alright," I giggled, "I'm Gabrielle Marshal, but my friends call me Gabby,"
Her nose scrunched up in thought, "Marshal? As in Father Marshal from the church down the road?" She questioned, tilting her head slightly, "You wouldn't happen be related to him, you both do look eerily similar--"
"Yeah, I am. He's my dad."
She nodded, "Yeah, about a week ago when we first got here, the first thing my mum made us do was go to church. She said it would be the best way for me to find friends." She laughed, and I joined in, but one of the receptionists' head snapped up towards us, a snarl on her face.
"Don't you two have lessons to be in?" She scowled, I sighed ignoring her comment, and began leading Andrea towards maths.
I didn't even think once about looking up from my sandwich at lunch, I didn't need to. I didn't need anything but my own senses to know that Adam was staring at me again.
It was a weird trick I had gained over the past few days, it started with a tingle, like needles, down my spine and when I looked up, I would meet Adam's eyes. The feeling, over the few days he had been here all the time, grew into not only a spiked tingle down my spine, but all the hairs on my arms and at the back of my neck lurched up.
So I sat there, momentarily forgetting about the lurking, surprisingly attractive guy that seemed to follow me wherever I went, and ate my sandwich in peace.
Andrea was sat next to me and I was surprised to how well we actually got on together, she was definitely beginning to grow on me.
And I could tell she was beginning to grow on Rob too.
Throughout lunch it wasn't difficult to notice the way she would angle herself closer to Rob, always trying to make conversation with him, get to know him better, or just sit next to him. It was clear that she had a thing for him.
Or at least liked his face, because it's probably close to impossible to be completely infatuated with someone over the span of one lunchtime.
"Uh, Gabby?"
I looked up toward Andrea, her arched eyebrows knotted together, I nodded, urging her to go on but her eyes seemed far away.
"Who's the guy staring at you?" She paused, "Or me?" Her head tilted as she shifted her eyes away from him.
"Just ignore him."
My head snapped over to Rob's when we simultaneously spoke, "You know?" I barked, staring at him in confusion. I was sure he didn't know. Almost 99% positive I tried to keep Adam's involvement with me a secret from him. "It's nothing--"
He gazed at me with brooding eyes, "There's a lot I do notice, Gabby."
My face contorted into one of confusion, "What? How? Wait, what do you mean?" I fired at him.
He rolled his eyes, which was something completely unusual for him, and stood up before storming off. I sat there gobsmacked, my head feeling as though it would fall off my shoulders. I was at a loss for words.
Andrea shrugged, and then spoke quietly, "Is he always that stroppy?"
I wanted nothing more than to not speak about it anymore, so I shrugged, silenced by his abnormal actions and vague words, and ate more of my sandwich.
Not before realising I wasn't even hungry anymore.