forum Under The Painted Sky (O/O CLOSED)

Started March 18, 2019 by Deleted user

tune

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"Yes, sir," Sterling agreed with a nod. "Thank you. May I sit, now?"

“Yes, you may,” the teacher nodded, and began his lesson. The entire time, Eden chose not to pay attention. Throwing her bag on the ground next to her chair, she lifted her legs on the desk, pushed her head back and closed her eyes. That was how they all wanted to play this, huh? Trying to cage her up? She’d cause more trouble. She’d create more problems. They wanted to tighten the leash on her? She’d bare her teeth more. She’d sharpen her claws. She worked this hard to be the way she wanted to be—to be this way. She wasn’t going to be controlled. She would not be a puppet anymore. She was an untamed animal, and she would remain that way.

Sterling couldn't help but watch the mysterious girl while class went on. It was funny, how she managed to completely ignore everything, and yet the teacher had said she was a good student… What was she hiding under that fierce façade?

“Eden,” the girl’s eyes opened slowly upon being called by the teacher. “Would you mind answering this question for us?”

The teacher held out a marker and Eden stared at it for a couple of seconds before she pulled herself off. She walked towards the front of the class, took the marker, and slowly began to write. When she was done, she handed him back the marker and took her seat again, making herself comfortable in the same position.

“Perfect,” the teacher nodded before he went on with the class.

Brains. That’s one thing she was hiding. The girl was obviously smart if she didn’t even have to pay attention to know how to do the work. Why wasn’t she in a higher class? Sterling was sure she could handle the work…

Upon feeling eyes on her, Eden furrowed her eyebrows, opened her eyes and looked at her side. She cocked her head a little, quirking an eyebrow as if to ask, “What do you want?”

Sterling smiled a little, giving her half a smirk. “Nothing. I’m just observing. You’re smart, even if you don’t pay attention.”

Eden sighed, lowering her head and closing her eyes. This man certainly had the guts. What would his reaction be when he learns of her position? Surely he’d leave her alone.

When it was time for lunch, Eden immediately pulled herself off of her desk. She grabbed her bag and threw it over the desk, satisfied with the way students backed off to let her pass.

She wanted to cool off. Would there be someone to start a fight again? Throw a punch so she’d have an excuse to throw one back? Shaking her head, Eden made her way to the school’s ground.

Sterling pulled his lunch (curtesy of his mother) from his locker and glanced around the halls. He didn’t want to go sit in the cafeteria, knowing that the girls would be all over the “mysterious new guy” and all. A familiar shape caught his eye, and he smiled a little to himself as he recognized the girl as Eden. Maybe he would ask her about that tutoring…

“Hey, tutor. You free?” he asked with half a smirk when he’d caught up to her.

Eden nearly groaned out loud, but maintained her blank expression. She was confident that she had lost him, but getting rid of a bug was proving to be rather difficult.

“No,” she replied curtly, refusing to even look at him.

Sterling kept up with her, his free hand stuck in his pocket. “Oh, no? Well, I was thinking we could study over lunch. Since the teacher asked you to tutor me and all.”

“You seemed to be doing pretty well during class,” Eden rolled her eyes.

Sterling shrugged his shoulders, continuing to look down at her. “Pure luck.”

Feeling his eyes on her, Eden stopped walking, sighing heavily and looking up. “I don’t like games, Sterling, unless I’m the cat.”

"Who says it's a game?" Sterling questioned, cocking his head to the side.

Eden released a humorless laugh, shaking her head. She took slow steps towards Sterling before fisting his shirt in her hand and pulling him down, eyes narrowing as they locked with his.

“Isn’t that what’s it all about?” She murmured in a low voice. “To people like you?”

Sterling narrowed his eyes at her words. They cut deep into his skin, reminding him of his reputation. He was a flirt, a player. He'd slept with so many girls, none of which he could recall the names of.

"What do you mean?" he asked lowly, though he was sure he knew what she meant.

Eden let out a cold smile. “I’m sure you know exactly what I mean, Sterling,” she tightened her grip on his shirt. “So before you even start, I’ll let you know that you’re wasting your time and efforts. Move on to your next victim.”

"For your information, Ms. McArthur, I haven't done anything like that since I moved here," Sterling informed her, ignoring the flash of pain in his chest. She knew. Of course she knew. How she knew, he had no idea. But she knew… "And I'm trying to keep it that way."

“Fantastic,” she smiled bitterly, loosening her hold on his shirt and stepping back. That’s what they all said. That’s what they all end up ignoring, too. “Good luck on your little quest, Ainsley.”

"The only 'quest' I have, McArthur, is the one where I try to keep from falling back into my old habits," Sterling declared, glaring at her by now.

Eden smiled in satisfaction at having gotten on his nerves. “And you’re doing a wonderful job at it,” she offered a coy smile. “Keep it up, Ainsley. A good guy like you shouldn’t mingle with my kind, don’t you agree?”

"Good guy" my butt…

"What does it matter to you?" Sterling asked, raising an eyebrow at her. "It's my life, is it not? Do I not get to decide what to receive?"

“Oh, no, you do. Absolutely,” Eden faked a smile, though her eyes remained blank. “But don’t involve me in your decisions. Now if you’ll excuse me…”

“I’d still like to get to know you. In a strictly hands-off way,” Sterling declared, putting his hands in his back pockets. “I’ll just end up sitting with you during lunch, anyway, so you might as well make this easy on yourself.”