Hateful Saint by Ivy Blake

Chapter Three

Ava

I was lucky that my alarm clock had actually gone off on time or else I definitely would have overslept. I’d struggled to sleep the night before, as I’d guessed, anxiety being my number one enemy. Thank fuck my uniform fit me properly and made me look quite cute. I had to admit that I’d spent a little too long staring at my reflection in the mirror, smoothing down my pleated skirt and readjusting my blazer and tie to make sure that I looked as pristine as possible. I didn’t have a uniform at my old school and that was always an issue when it came to deciding what to wear. By the second week of high school, I had already decided that I didn’t care about keeping up with trends or dressing to impress other people, which saved me a hell of a lot of time in the morning. I was even more appreciative to have a uniform now because it meant that all the students at Valley High could be equal in some way. Or at least that’s what I told myself.

My phone buzzed with a message, and I lunged onto my bed to retrieve it. I smiled when I saw who it was from.

Hope you have a good day at school, even though I know kids suck. - H

I started typing out a response when the sound of a car horn outside startled me. I looked outside of my window and saw a banged up looking car with Sophie in the passenger seat and who I could only assume was Megan driving. Shit, I hadn’t even had breakfast yet. That was the price of being vain, I suppose. I tucked my phone away and decided that I’d respond to Harrison’s text later. I grabbed my backpack and my shoes and tactically jogged to the kitchen to grab some bread. I heard another car horn sound outside. Fucking hell, Megan was impatient. Great first impression. I decided to make her wait a couple minutes longer as I made myself a coffee and put it in a flask . That would teach her to rush me. I didn’t function if I didn’t eat and considering this was a pretty big day for me; I needed all the energy possible to make sure that I didn’t do or say anything that would fuck up my reputation.

“Hey, thanks for waiting,” I said as I opened one of the back doors. Sitting in the back seat was a blonde girl who practically looked like a Barbie. She gave me a sideways look as she applied her lip-gloss but didn’t say anything while I fastened my seat belt.

“Morning!” said Sophie, chirpier than ever. “Ava, this is Megan and her sister Lola.” Megan turned in her seat as she reversed out of my driveway and gave me a small smile.

“Hey,” she said.

“Hey,” I said awkwardly. “Thanks for giving me a lift, by the way.”

“No worries, we’re all going in the same direction, anyway.” I couldn’t tell if I was reading into things or if Megan’s tone was actually a bit frosty, but I decided to ignore it and sip on my coffee to wake myself up some more.

“How are you feeling?” asked Sophie, interrupting my daydream as I stared at the cars in front of us.

“I am honestly feeling like shit,” I chuckled, “and I’m not looking forward to all the questions.”

“Just tell them to fuck off. You don’t owe anyone anything,” said Sophie, before she took a bite into her croissant. “Any tips from a former newbie?” Sophie directed this question at Megan. I watched her face in the wing mirror as she grimaced.

“Ooh, maybe make sure you know where you’re going,” she chuckled, and Sophie joined in. I frowned, realising that there was probably some inside joke between them that I didn’t understand.

“What Megan really means is avoid tall football players at all costs,” Lola chipped in, finally putting her makeup and hand mirror away.

“What?” I asked, shocked by the fact that she’d actually decided to engage in conversation with me and while firing shots at her sister. I could tell that she had a bit of fire in her. I was getting mad Scorpio vibes.

“Shut up,” Megan chimed in, a hint of annoyance in her voice.

“Did I lie?” Lola challenged her.

“Woah, put the claws away. It all worked out in the end, right?” said Sophie, ever the peacemaker. I realised that they were talking about Austin. By the look on Megan’s face, I got the impression that she felt a bit defensive about him being the topic of conversation.

“He was an asshole to her when we first arrived. I found it quite amusing actually,” Lola hissed to me as she tapped away at her phone screen.

“Damn,” I said under my breath. I remembered all the things that Sophie had told me about Austin, Megan, and all the shit that had gone down with Austin’s family a few months ago. I wanted to bring it up, but even I knew that I had no right to do so. I’d feel less bad asking Lola about it, when she was on her own, of course.

“We’re here, ladies,” said Megan as we drove through the big, fancy iron school gates. I spied the turrets of some of the school buildings while Megan pulled into a parking space. Hogwarts who? This place looked insane.

“I’ll help you find your classes, don’t worry,” Sophie said. We all got out of the car. “Let’s get your timetable from the office.” I nodded, feeling grateful for the help.

“Thanks for the ride,” I said to Megan. I was honestly struggling to find more to say to her.

“No worries,” she said, slinging her bag over her shoulder. I was still trying to figure out if she was shy or just uppity, but hopefully I’d figure it out soon.

“I’m meeting Austin, so I’ll catch you guys later.” Megan waved us goodbye and walked in the other direction. There was a weird feeling in my chest as I realised that Ross probably wouldn’t be too far away from Ross, considering the fact that he was one of his best friends. Part of me wanted to see him and just get the whole reintroduction thing done as quickly as possible, but the other part of me just wanted to prolong it for as long as I could.

“I’ve got shit to do in that direction,” said Lola, barely looking up from her phone.

“See ya,” said Sophie. Clearly, this was the normal morning routine, but that didn’t stop me from feeling awkward about it. I didn’t get the sense that I’d be cozying up with Lola or Megan any time soon, which wouldn’t be the worst thing. Might make carpooling awkward, but I could think about that later. I was quite glad, though, that it was just me and Sophie. I could finally let out the big breath that I hadn’t realised I had been holding.

“It’s pretty cool, isn’t it? Wait until you see the two swimming pools,” said Sophie. She’d caught me gawking at the buildings as we walked into the first big building in front of us. Two swimming pools? Fuck me.

#

* * *

I was so glad that my morning classes had gone by without a problem. Both my homeroom and chemistry teachers hadn’t made a big fuss about me being new, which was a fucking relief. I’d been worried that they’d force me to stand up and say an interesting fact about myself, when in reality, they just wanted to get on with their mornings. It was a win- win situation.

Sophie had promised to meet me at lunch, and so I was standing in the hallway outside my class, waiting for her to finish whatever she was doing. My stomach was growling impatiently, clearly unsatisfied by my sparse breakfast. I hoped the cafeteria had something nice. To be fair, anything would be better than the shit my old school used to serve. I shivered from repulsion at the memory.

Students were walking around me as I stood outside my class, clearly picking up on the fact that I was new or that they recognised me and were confused as to why I was back. I tried to smile politely at those who smiled at me, but then gave up after a bit because my mouth started to hurt and I just felt a bit fake doing so. Even when I had been here, it’s not like I’d been friends with all these people anyway, so it seemed a bit facetious for me to act that way.

“Ava.” I turned to see where the smooth velvety voice was coming from and nearly dropped my phone in the process. It had been years, and he’d cut his hair, but his eyes were still exactly the same.

“Ross,” I said as calmly as I could. I didn’t want to let him know that he’d caught me off-guard, even though that is exactly what had happened. I had to physically look up at him because he was so tall.

“You’re back,” he said in a tone I couldn’t quite figure out. Ross had an amused expression on his face, but I could sense a coldness in his demeanour and something else lurking behind his eyes. My heart was beating furiously in my chest and for some reason, everything I had rehearsed in my head about our inevitable reunion seemed to have disappeared.

“No shit,” I chuckled, in an attempt to lighten the mood. “You happy to see me?” I teased. Ross flexed his jaw and looked over my shoulder before looking at me once again. His eyes burned into mine and when he didn’t answer my question straight away, I realised that there was clearly something he wasn’t saying to me.

“I guess that’s a no…” I trailed off awkwardly, wishing for Sophie to show up. This hadn’t been how I’d expected things would be after so many years. Sure, I’d expected it to be a bit weird, but not like this.

“I’m surprised you’ve come back after everything,” Ross growled, narrowing his eyes at me. I’d been focusing on the way that his blazer and shirt fit his muscular build so well when his words snapped me back to reality. I frowned at him.

“What do you mean?” I wasn’t in the mood for cryptic messages. I preferred things straight up.

Ross laughed, but it was absent of any real joy. “Playing dumb doesn’t suit you, Ava,” he said, bringing his hand to my chin. His eyes fell to my lips curiously before meeting my eyes. While his touch had sent shivers down my spine, his words had put a bullet in my chest. I stepped back, out of his grasp.

“What the fuck, dude?” I said, a bit louder than I intended. But honestly, with the way Ross was acting, I didn’t care that people were looking at me.

“I don’t think I stuttered,” Ross shot back, closing the gap between us. “You know you shouldn’t be here.”

“Well, I missed you too,” I said coldly, turning to walk in the opposite direction. Sophie would have to meet me somewhere else. Ross grabbed my arm roughly and turned me back around to face him.

“Get off me-” I started protesting. I tried to squirm out of his grip, but Ross just gripped my arm tighter.

“Cut the shit, Ava,” Ross said in a bored voice. I stood still and glared at him. Why was he acting so fucking weird?

“What do you want?” I was annoyed and confused. There was no way that this was the same Ross I had left behind. What happened to the little boy that had barely been able to hurt a fly? Whose favourite pastime was playing in his tent and making up imaginary worlds?

Ross quirked his eyebrow and his lips curled into an unsettling smile.

“I want you to come to my party tonight,” he said after a moment.

“What?” I spluttered. Had he not just basically told me to fuck off?

“I didn’t realise you’d become deaf when you left,” said Ross.

“I didn’t realise you’d become an asshole since I left,” I shot back. Ross narrowed his eyes at me again, now twisting my arm painfully. I gritted my teeth, trying not to show him how much he was getting to me. Ross lowered his lips to my ear, his warm breath felt both ticklish and unnerving.

“The theme is beach party, and dress up is required,” he said before letting me go.

“Yo, Ross!” I looked up to see Austin and Nate, who were just as massive as him, standing at the end of the hallway, waving for Ross to join them. I glanced down at my wrist and saw the red marks that were forming there. Ross began walking towards his friends as if nothing had just happened between us. I watched Austin look between me and Ross, his brows knitted together.

“What if I don’t come?” I shouted to Ross defiantly, knowing that he could still hear me. Ross stopped in his tracks and I heard a deep chuckle ripple through his chest. He looked over his shoulder and flashed a wolfish grin at me.

“Oh you will,” he said in a sultry tone before turning back to Nate and Austin, who were laughing along too. I rolled my eyes at the sexual connotations, but I didn’t have the time to shoot back a response before the boys left.

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost!” I jumped as Sophie appeared behind me.

“Shit, you scared me,” I said, quickly pulling down the sleeve of my blazer so that Sophie couldn’t see the marks that Ross had left . “I just had a weird ass interaction with Ross.”

“Oh yeah, what happened?” asked Sophie. We started walking down the hallway towards the lunch hall. I was still in shock about the way Ross had treated me- as if we hadn’t spent our childhoods together. And while it pained me to admit it, I also couldn’t get over how good he looked. Puberty had certainly had his way with him. I mean, where did that jawline come from? Not to mention all that muscle. It was a real shame that he’d become such a jackass.

“He was just being a dick for no reason-”

“I told you,” Sophie said with a shrug.

“But then he invited me to his party.”

“For real?” Sophie stopped in her tracks and faced me.

“I was just as surprised as you-”

“I heard they can be pretty wild, but also pretty good. It’s up to you at the end of the day,” she said, cutting me off.

“You’ve never been?”

“Not since Ross started having them at his house. I’ve been to the odd thing with Austin and Megan, but that’s about it. Maybe it’ll be a way to break the ice?”

We walked into the dining hall together and I struggled to take in the size of the place with my eyes. I had to remind myself to keep my cool. This was my school now, and it was soon to become my normal.

“It could be,” I said absentmindedly. I eyed up all the different options for food. Sophie reached for the tofu stir-fry, so I followed suit, hoping that her taste didn’t disappoint. I followed Sophie to a table, ignoring the looks that I was getting from students I recognised and many that I didn’t.

“This is where we usually sit and you’re always welcome to join,” Sophie said brightly, taking a seat beside me.

“Thanks, I appreciate it,” I replied, trying my best to ignore Ross at his table a few feet away from me. Out of the corner of my eye, I could tell that he and his friends were taunting some of the younger boys. Going off the way Ross had grabbed me earlier, I came to the conclusion that terrorising people was probably a hobby of his.

Another girl came to join us at the table, who I hadn’t seen before. She had a cute blonde bob and sharp fringe that really suited her face. Megan was walking behind her, her head down. Once she sat down, I realised that she wasn’t sad but occupied with something on her phone.

“So what’s it like moving back, Ava?” asked a girl opposite me. I think her name was Freya but because I wasn’t 100% sure, I didn’t want to risk it.

“I’ve not been here long, but it’s quite… urm a lot, I guess,” I laughed nervously, moving my food around on my plate. “Valley High is pretty fucking nice though,” I added, which earned me some laughs from the table.

“You’ve got that right,” said maybe-Freya. “You joined any clubs yet or been invited to anything?” My first day was barely over and yet this girl was already asking for my entire itinerary. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel the slightest bit of pressure. Before I could respond, Sophie jumped in.

“Ross invited her to his party,” she said smugly. Turning to me Sophie stage whispered: “Freya’s been dying to get an invitation.”

“Oh, really?” I asked, my eyes darting back over to Ross’s table. This time he was leaning back in his chair as if he didn’t have a care in the world as his eyes scanned the dining hall. They fell on me for a moment, narrowing into slits.

“Don’t be so dramatic, you make me sound so desperate,” whined Freya, and my attention snapped back to her.

“It’s probably just another high school party, right? I don’t see why it’s such a big deal-”

“If you get an invitation to one of their parties, it makes everything around here so much easier,” Freya said, cutting me off. Her eyes were serious and made me wonder just how strong the hold was that those boys had over this school.

“At the end of the day it’s Ava’s decision if she wants to go or not.” My eyes moved to Megan, who’d chipped in for the first time all lunch. She shrugged nonchalantly and gave me a kind smile. “The boys aren’t as bad as everyone makes them out to be.”

“Of course you’d think that, you’re fucking one of them!” exclaimed Freya a bit too loudly.

“Shhhh!” Megan said, her cheeks turning a deep pink. A few heads had turned to our table and the four of us burst out laughing at the awkwardness of the situation.

“Speaking of which, how are you and Austin?” Freya waggled her eyes as she leaned in to get the tea. A smile spread across Megan’s face and she kept her voice low as she went on to give us the most recent gossip about her and Austin.

Even though I was interested in her relationship with one of the most popular boys in school, I struggled to keep my attention on Megan. My eyes kept drifting to Ross’s table to see what he was doing. Every now and then I’d catch him looking at me and we’d engage in a stare off until his stupid smirk made me uncomfortable or one of his friends nudged him and we were back to the start again.

Our interaction earlier had rubbed me the wrong way, and I wanted to say something about it, to see if we could start over. I guess his party would be a better chance to do that because I assume there would be alcohol to loosen us both up and take the pressure off.

As I looked into his frosty eyes one last time, the same question lingered in my head. What game was Ross playing?