Chapter 1:Same old
It was a dark, stormy night as Thomas Wildman sat down in the living room of his apartment, scrolling on his phone while his best friend, Melissa, played video games. He continued browsing until his friend's loud swearing broke his concentration and he finally zoned back in and checked the time. He frowned and said, "It's nearly 10 pm, shouldn't you be getting home?" Melissa continued playing and said "Can't, my mom threw me out again" Thomas sighed and said, "What'd you do this time?" She chuckled and said, "Oh nothing, she just decided to give me a lecture on being tidy and more ladylike or whatever and how not doing so would make me unattractive".
Thomas said"And? what happened next?" Melissa looked at the floor and said"Then I told her that she shouldn't talk when she's been divorced and nags like an old headmaster". He nodded and said, "Oh no wonder she threw you out". Melissa sat the controller down, faced Thomas, and said"Hey, Maybe I went too far but she started it...I'm perfectly fine the way I am and there's no way in hell I'm gonna become a pretty princess just for the approval of an old hag who's done nothing but belittle every single thing I've done".
Thomas looked at her confused but before he could ask what she meant, Melissa sighed and said"Don't ask...some stuff is just better left unsaid". He nodded his head and said, "Okay, you can stay until things cool off at home but if you resent her as much as I think you do then, I guess you could always move in with me for a bit". She giggled and said, "I don't know, you might be a closeted pervert just waiting to get a peep or two of me". He frowned and said"Don't flatter yourself...everyone at school might go crazy over how hot you are but only I know what's underneath that" She giggled and said"Why are you making it sound like I'm some super evil villain?" He said"because you are; don't think I forgot the day we first met".
[Flashback 4 years ago]
It was a chilly, beautiful morning as Thomas closed and locked the front door to his house before heading off on the walk to middle school. His mornings were always peaceful as his parents were long gone or just didn't come home some nights due to work which left him on his own most of the time. Despite this, he had many friends who kept him company, and school life was great until fate crossed his path that morning. As he continued his walk, his peaceful rhythm was interrupted by loud, obnoxious laughing from a pale, raven-haired girl walking with a group of boys, directly in front of him.
He rolled his eyes before crossing the street to the other side and continuing on his way until he reached the fenced-in path that cut between two houses and directly onto the school grounds. As he came out the other side, he noticed that same girl from before, and boy did she look prettier from the front. He stood there admiring the girl until she turned back around which unleashed chaos. One of the guys grabbed her butt which she clearly didn't approve of since the next thing Thomas saw was those 3 boys being tossed onto the ground like rag dolls in a matter of seconds.
Sadly, the girl didn't stop there and continued until a security guard ran over and restrained her. Thomas resumed walking and fast but unfortunately, the girl pointed at him and said something to the security guard who then hollered for him to come over there. He did as he was told before being escorted to a waiting room in the office with the girl. He sat there and tried to ignore the clear tension in the room by browsing on his phone but was interrupted by the girl. She said, "I know you saw everything...if you know what's good for you then you better talk".Thomas sighed and said, "I don't respond well to threats, so try asking nicely and maybe I'll consider helping you like I originally planned to before you put on the tough girl act".
She walked over to him and said"You must not know who you're messing with huh?" He said, "Now that I got a good look, I do...you're Melissa Princeton, the toughest girl in school".She smiled and said"Good boy," Thomas said, "That still doesn't mean I'm obligated to help you just because of your reputation and some verbal threats...I took no part in that mess". Melissa grunted and said, "Umm...err, Thomas, will you please help me out of this mess". He smiled and said"Sure Melissa". After 2 hours of listening to both sides and looking at camera footage, the principal suspended the three boys for sexual harassment and let Melissa go with just a day of in-school suspension since she used excessive force.
The rest of Thomas' day went on without a hitch and finally, he headed home but he didn't get far before he felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to see Melissa standing there with a smile. He sighed and said, "What is it now? I did everything you asked". She giggled and said"Ooh, you really aren't scared of me...why don't we hang out a bit?" Thomas frowned and said"No disrespect but you seem like you carry a bit of baggage and I want no part of it. I would like to go back to being strangers so bye and have a wonderful day, Miss".
