Page 86 of A Dead Man's B-Side
She huffed back towards me. “Looks like I owe you f–”
Another knock came. Swift and sharp, like the crack of a belt. A storm quickly brewed in her eyes as she marched back towards the door.
I couldn’t help but smile at the thought that popped up in my head. “Ten bucks.”
She threw me a smirk over her shoulder. “Shit bet, that is.”
“You taking?”
“I’ll indulge.”
I couldn’t help the smile overtaking my face–at the easy money I was going to make.
She opened the door with more effort, except this time, while I tried leaning as far back without toppling over, Paris suddenly threw her head back and barked out that strong laugh of hers, slapping a hand on her thigh. “No way!”
She stepped aside, and lo and behold, Wolf Kingsley strolled in with a weird look he sent to the hysterical girl who hadn’t stopped laughing.
“Oh, piss off!” The words flew out of my mouth before I could stop them, and I found that I didn’t want to stop them. Wolf was like a damp towel after a shower. Slightly helpful but ultimately inconvenient–and often uncomfortable.
He focused on my voice and found me glaring over my shoulder, except the lasers I was trying to send out through my eyes weren’t what had his eyes widening. He eyed me from head to toe before blinking rapidly, as if trying to wash away a dream. “What are you doing?”
Paris seemed to have calmed down and went to close her door before another voice sounded, “I didn’t know there was an after party.”
Ajax’s confident tone rang as he pushed the door with a rough arm over August’s shoulders, or more like holding him in a chokehold as he dragged him inside. “Sorry,” the smaller boy said guiltily to Wolf, who hadn’t paid him any mind. “I followed you and… he followed me.”
Paris yelped as the swing of the door almost made her trip over. Upon seeing him, she glared. “No. No, absolutely not. Go back to your dorm.”
Wolf was still standing, watching me with his head tilted to the side. “Why are you dying your hair?”
At the question, Ajax, who only a few moments ago was arguing with Paris, “Don’t worry, no one’s judging your… loungewear. Though it isn’t doing you any fav–” focused on me. “Ah! You took my advice, huh?”
I rolled my eyes and scoffed. “Yeah, because what you gave me can be counted as advice.”
“This is the worst! You can’t all stay here. It’s against the rules.” Paris said with a stomp of her foot. She crossed her arms over herchest and refused to move from her door until they stepped out, as if that would stop the three boys from moving deeper into her dorm.
Ajax smirked back at her. “Haven’t you heard? We make the rules now.”
“Don’t get cocky, airhead.”
Wolf should have gotten the last word, had Ajax not worked his jaw before standing and leaving Paris’ dorm, to her satisfaction, before returning a few moments later, dragging a disgruntled Rain by the arm.
It wasn’t, by any stretch of the imagination, a fault of Rain’s that she was dragged into this. But Wolf treated it as such when he, too, left Paris’ dorm with angry stomps, just to return with a silent and wildly confused Marigold.
The moment she’d stepped in after him, the pencil Rain was holding snapped in half.
I still never understood what Marigold had over Rain, but it sure was entertaining to watch.
I caught Paris’ eye and, over the simmering tension, mouthed, “Ignore them.”
I know I was going to.
When she had returned to finish my hair, it had caught the attention of almost everyone in the room, save for Marigold, who was busy admiring the sweater she had probably worn a number of times before.
I really didn’t understand what her deal was.
“Your hair!” August exclaimed, as if I shaved it off.
Wolf, who made himself comfortable on Paris’ bed, nodded along with him. “What are you two doing? Is Paris experimenting on you?”
