Sterling stepped into his third period classroom and glanced around. He wasn’t surprised by the looks the girls gave him, not by the looks the guys gave him because of the girls’ attention. This was normal, especially when he was at a new school. Everyone was curious about the cute new guy in school…
His eyes caught a familiar face, and he smiled. Making his way over, he sat in the empty seat beside Eden before he noticed the bruise on her cheek. He frowned a little, wondering if he should ask about it.
Eden’s eyes opened when whispers filled her ears, turning louder. Though she didn’t want to sound arrogant, students always stopped talking whenever she came into the room. She was feared and she liked that. That meant nobody bothered her, and she could live in silence. But she was in the room, students knew that, so why was it getting louder?
And then she felt something shuffle next to her and she turned her gaze towards the noise only to find the new student—Sterling, was it?—make himself comfortable. She almost scowled. Why couldn’t he leave her alone?
Sterling felt eyes on him — in a different way than usual — and turned to face Eden. Seeing her looking at him, he shot her a smirk and nodded a greeting.
“Nice mark you got there,” he said as he looked back toward the front is the room.
Eden rolled her eyes, turning her head away. She breathed in deeply, closing her eyes.
“Want me to give you one, too?” She questioned, voice cold and blank at the same time.
“I prefer to get my marks in different ways from fists or feet,” Sterling answered, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.
“Perhaps we can make an arrangement with a wall,” she muttered, crossing her arms. Of course she knew what he meant. She was familiar with his kind. She’d put many in their places, too. How long would it take for this one to realize it was better to leave unscathed than with bruises?
Sterling hummed and shrugged his shoulders a little. “We could. I could make that work.”
Eden scrunched her nose in disgust. Of course he managed to twist her words. What had she been expecting?
“Perfect,” she said instead. “Perhaps slamming your head into one would make you smarter.”
Don't say it this time… She's clearly had enough. If you actually want her to like you, then maybe you should quit it with the suggestive remarks…
Sterling chuckled a little. "If anything I think it would make me dumber, but okay."
Eden said nothing. She didn’t crack a smile, didn’t let his witty remarks amuse her. She leaned back against her chair, her hand reaching out to touch her bruise. If her brother saw it, which he would because they lived together, he’d be furious. He always was when she got into fights, but there wasn’t anything he could do to stop her. She liked living like this. Feeling nothing, causing fear in others. Others might not like the lifestyle, but she had no problem with it.
Sterling let there be a minute of quiet between the two of them, closing his eyes for a moment as he leaned back in his seat. The teacher still hadn't arrived, but he certainly wasn't complaining about that.
"How did you get that?" he finally asked, his voice quiet. He don't even look at her again when he spoke, instead opting to leave his eyes shut.
Eden’s eyes remained closed, and there was no emotion on her features, but her fingers twitched. She breathed in deeply, wondering if she should respond or not. She decided to do it.
“Took me by surprise,” she murmured as if it was no big deal. As if it was something she was used to. Then her lips twisted upwards slightly and she let out a small chuckl. “But gave me a reason to strike back. What’s it to you, new student?”
"Just curious, I suppose. Was it a guy? Who hit you, I mean," Sterling wondered, cracking an eye open and look over at her. "Did a guy do that to you?"
“Does it matter?” She quirked an eyebrow in amusement, feeling his eyes on her. “When will you realize trying to talk to me is pointless?”
Sterling chuckled a little and shifted to face her, opening his eyes. "Yes, it matters. And I'll never realize that. I'm very stubborn when I want to be."
“Fantastic,” Eden sunk into her chair, heaving a tired sigh. She didn’t open her eyes, and she didn’t respond again, either. Get rid of one problem and another one pushes itself on you. Sooner or later, she’d be rid of this problem, too.
"Was it a guy?" Sterling repeated more softy this time, his eyes moving to the front of the classroom again.
Eden clicked her tongue again, frustrated.
“Here’s a question, Sterling,” she opened her eyes and glared at him. “What’s it to you?”
Sterling shrugged and glanced at her out of the corner of his eye again. "I just think it's wrong forms guy to hit a girl, even if she can beat him to a pulp anyway."
Eden took a deep breath to calm herself down. She closed her eyes, and once she was sure she was calm, she opened them again. They were blank.
“Funny,” she muttered. “Such pure ideals.”
"You still haven't answered my question," Sterling pointed out. "I can't tell if that means you're protecting someone — though I would guess not — or if I'm right."
“What reasons do I have to answer to you?” Eden scoffed, shaking her head. “You’re being annoying, and I dislike being annoyed, transfer student.”
"I would be less annoying if my question was answered, pained princess," Sterling replied with a small smirk.
Eden slapped her hands on the desk, pulling herself to her feet. Upon hearing the noise, her classmates immediately quietened down. Eden paid them no attention—she simply set her gaze on Sterling, her eyes hardening.
“Ah, you really are annoying,” she breathed out, clenching her fists. “If you like your face the way it is, I suggest you watch it.”
Sterling's smirk didn't waver, but his eyes did soften. Looked like he'd hit a soft spot, and she didn't like that very much…
"Sure," he murmured quietly. "I'll keep myself in check."
Eden took her seat again, folding her arms and leaning back. Right before the teacher entered, another student came inside. He supported a black eye and another bruise on his cheek, along with a bandage over his nose. Upon seeing Eden, he bared his teeth. The younger girl merely lifted an eyebrow, closing her eyes as if to tell him he had asked for it. It offered her no amusement, but it was her life. She was the one who chose it, after all.
“‘Suppose that answers your question, no?”
Sterling looked toward the front of the classroom and grinned. Now that was awesome. The girl could definitely stand her ground.
"That it does," he answered. "Well done."
That caused her lips to twitch a little, but she held back the chuckle. If he was surprised by that, what would he think after he learned what she truly was?
Eden chose not to respond. She didn’t have any reason to, after all. The teacher stood in front of the classroom and clapped his hands.
“All right,” he said, looking over at the students. “We have a new student today, right? Would you please stand up?”
Sterling sighed and did as asked. It would be the same for every class he attended, no doubt… He glanced around the room and shot everyone his signature smirk, some of the girls blushing at the sight.
Eden nearly snorted. Of course. It wasn’t a surprise to her. The reactions he received wasn’t, either.
“You missed quite a lot of the first chapter,” the teacher started, clasping his hands. “If you need any help, I’m available after school. For now, though, I’d suggest you get someone to tutor you…” his eyes roamed around the class, finally resting on Eden, who had her eyes closed. “Ah, Eden. Perfect.”
Eden’s eyes snapped open and she glared at the teacher. “No.” She responded bitterly. The teacher shook his head.
“Eden, you’re a star student, but your behavior is getting out of control,” he said to her. “Perhaps socializing would help. No more arguments.”
Eden gritted her teeth.
