Caught In The Middle

The car incident

Quinn bumped into Mila in the halls again the next day shortly after third lecture and Mila giggled obnoxiously making Quinn think she had been searching for her.

“Quinn, I’m surprised you’re still going to class…”

“Why?” Quinn sighed, rolling her eyes expecting some drab insult. She was wearing black jeans and her striped arm warmers so looked quite edgy.

“Oh? You don’t know yet! That’s hilarious that no one has told you, don’t you have any friends looking out for you?”

“What are you on about?”

“Your car’s been vandalized.” She gave a real s**t-eating grin. “Seems I’m not the only person who hates you around here.” She sauntered off with a toss of her hair as her friends all cackled like witches and followed her.

“What the f**k!?” Quinn ran to her car.

She stared at it in mortified shock as she slowed to a walk across the grass and onto the asphalt, walking around her car and seeing that all the tyres had been slashed and the paintwork keyed.

“What the actual f**k!” She screamed, kicking at one tyre as tears threatened and welled up in her eyes. She became aware of voices and looked up to see several groups of people filming her with their phones. She snatched in a breath, determined not to let them film her get upset or cry and stormed off to the admin building to report the damage directly to Chancellor Bayton.

She knew it was Mila who had organized it. Why else would she go to so much trouble to bump into her and say what she said. She had wanted to be the one to tell her! She had probably organized the people to film her reaction too…that b***h had gone too far!

She was going to have to inform Antonio.

Quinn felt sick at that prospect she could almost hear his words. He would use this against her but she had to get his help to get a tow-truck and get her car repaired. She didn’t have any money to do it herself. Antonio kept her on a short leash and supplied everything she needed and didn’t give her any money except for a small allowance for gas, snacks and coffees on campus. He even sent groceries to her house to make sure she ate correctly, the control freak!

As she sat waiting for the Chancellor to be free she messaged Antonio knowing he would be busy at work and certainly not wanting to disturb him, so she wouldn’t ring directly.

- Sorry to disturb you at work but when you get this can you please ring me, I need your help.

She chewed her lip in distress and jumped in fright when her phone started ringing almost immediately.

“Hello?” She answered tentatively, although knowing exactly who it was.

“I’ve got a meeting starting in five minutes, what’s the problem, petalo?” His smooth voice came through calm and faintly amused.

Tears sprung up in her eyes and she wanted to cry her heart out to him. He doesn’t love me, I don’t love him.

“My car’s had its tyres slashed, I need to organize a tow-truck and repair, please, sir.”

“What the f**k? Who did this?” His rage flew over the phone immediately and full scale. Quinn just about dropped the phone, she had really thought he would find it amusing and laugh at her humiliation.

“I’m not sure, I’m just waiting for Chancellor Bayton now so I can report it and check the cameras.”

“You must have some idea, Quinn. That sort of s**t is usually personal vendetta stuff. What the hell have you been up to?” His voice settled into a venomous menace.

“I…um…I’m not sure, sir, please believe me.” She begged, looking up as the Chancellor’s door opened and seeing the secretary and the Chancellor staring at her with concern.

“Miss Malley, please come in now.” Chancellor Bayton said curtly.

“I need to go now…” Quinn said to Antonio. “Chancellor Bayton is free.”

“I’m coming to talk to him, tell him he better sort this out!”

Quinn hung up and stood up seeing the Chancellor’s face looked bleak as he had clearly heard her conversation.

She walked into his office and he closed the door.

“Please sit down, I’ve been alerted to your unfortunate situation and we’ll look at the security footage together now, I’m just getting security and maintenance up to recall the footage on the computer for us.”

“Thank you…”

“Any idea who might have done this to your car, Miss Malley?”

Coming out of the Chancellor’s office on the same floor as the student executive meeting room Quinn saw Reese heading along the hall. He stopped, surprised to see her and she looked upset.

“Quinn? What’s happening, why are you coming out of Mr Bayton’s office. Is this about yesterday?”

“Don’t f*****g talk to me!” Quinn hissed as she barreled down the stairs.

Reese chased after her, catching up on the landing between levels. He slammed her up against the wall and caged her in with his arms as he put his hands on the wall either side of her.

She leaned on the wall and rolled her eyes, avoiding his gaze.

“What is your f*****g problem with me now?” Reese growled, his eyes blazing out from under his dark fringe.

“My problem is the Prince and the Star Quarterback are both playing with a freshman and causing me too much unwanted attention, leave me alone!”

“You could just pick one of us?” Reese joked, but saw her distressed expression. “Has something else happened?” His tone dropped. “Tell me, I’ll sort it out for you.”

“You think you’re such a gangster! Please…you can’t do anything to help me.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Reese’s eyes blazed at the derogatory way she spoke.

“You want to see a true gangster? Watch who picks me up today…” She felt sick at that prospect and covered her mouth.

Reese frowned, going through the words she had spoken. “Pick you up?” He asked confused. “Didn’t you drive?”

“Yeah, but thanks to that f*****g maniac cheerleader who thinks I’m trying to steal her boyfriend and the prince at the same time my car has four flat tyres and the paint is scratched all to f**k! So my brother has to come pick me up and organize a tow-truck!”

She pushed out of his cage by yanking his arm out of the way as he was dumbstruck by what she just said. This was out of control…

“Hang on!” He called, grabbing her arm and halting her. “What f*****g cheerleader?”

“Little miss Vice Captain, Mila.”

“Wait…she thinks Cory is her boyfriend?” He said it like that was the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard.

She sighed and looked up at Reese. He was blown away by the amazing pale green of her eyes as they wavered with unshed tears. “She seems to have this warped sense of tradition that cheerleaders and footballers are to go out with each other, be prom king and queen, whatever…like she’s in bloody high school. And don’t get me started on how those other popular girls in that clique act over you!”

Reese changed weight on his feet, agitated but wouldn’t let her arm go. “Let me get this straight…she said this to you?”

“Yes…a few times they’ve warned me off Cory and you and no matter how many times I tried to get through their dense b***h heads that its him and you annoying me not the other way around, she doesn’t want to know…she’s nuts and in denial that now he obviously slept with her he’s moved on.”

“And she slashed your tyres?” Reese’s tone dropped dangerously.

“Probably not directly…I doubt she’s got the gall to do it herself, but she certainly took the credit when she laughed at me in the halls just before.”

“f**k…” Reese looked away with a frown. “Curry is going to be pissed.”

“I’m f*****g pissed!” She shoved him off and stormed off. “Do you know how much those tyres cost? And I do not need any excuse for my brother to make me owe him back for anything! You have no idea what paying him back means!” Her voice sounded so distressed like her life was on the line as she yelled back while walking down the stairs.

Reese’s golden gaze followed her with concern. “What the f**k? What does that mean, pay him back?”