In My Skin

CH 32 || Mr. Pokerface

My hands trembled and pain shot through my palms as I tightened them into fists. If I showed signs of nervousness, it was game over. Guys like Rick were like sharks smelling blood. Give them a weakness and they pounce on it, relishing the fact they were holding some sort of power.

So, I stood tall, schooling my features into something unbothered. "I'm not your babe, asshole."

Maybe insulting a guy twice my size wasn't the smartest thing to do—I could literally hear Killian's nagging voice inside my head. But Chris really managed to tick me off. Or the three shots finally kicked in, I wasn't sure. So yeah, maybe I should have waited for him and Cody to get here, but how was I supposed to know that Chris' weird ass friend would interrupt us?

I made to move past Rick, but his arms shot out, forcing me to backpedal. Fuck. I should have taken a few self-defense courses. Then again, Rick was so big it probably wouldn't make a difference.

"Get out of my way," I said, but my voice had lost some of its confidence. I side-glanced my ex, but Chris had clamped his mouth shut and frowned at his feet. Yep, no help there. Not that that came as a surprise.

A cold, disgusting feeling slunk down my spine. Get back with him? What a freaking joke.

Rick smirked at me. "Why the rush, kitten?"

Ugh.

"My friends are waiting." And I had to get a fucking move on before a certain friend decided to come look for me. Who would give him the satisfaction of catching me being irresponsible? Not me.

Rick took another long drag from his cigarette. "Oh yeah? The little feisty one downstairs?"

"Suz, yeah." I paused, and added after an afterthought, "And Killian and Cody. They should also be here by now."

If the situation wasn't so tense, I would've laughed. Rick choked on the smoke he'd just inhaled and erupted in a loud coughing fit. His pale skin turned completely white. "Y-you know them?"

Seeing his reaction, it finally clicked. He was the guy who got into a brawl with Killian around Halloween. The one with the raspy voice. No wonder he seemed intimidated. What did he say again? Killian nearly broke his arms? Well, how convenient.

"As I said, they're my friends." I made a show to check my phone. "And they're here. Are you going to let me pass or should we wait for them? 'Cause I'm totally cool with both."

He jerked his shoulders up and down. "Sure," he said in a tone as if he hadn't been the one blocking my way. "Go ahead."

Finally.

Feeling slightly suffocated from all the smoke, I sped through the hallways and somehow ended up in a small side yard. A brick wall rose to my left slightly hidden behind a shed.

My breath came out in a whoosh and I sank into a crouch, gripping my hair. So much for being a bad bitch. Any second longer and my facade would have crumbled. And I still didn't know who sent me those threats. Except that it hadn't been Chris. He seemed honestly surprised at least.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

I shut my eyes tightly. I kind of wanted to see Killian now. At least he never made me feel weak. A little stupid sometimes but not weak. Should I message him? But then what? Tell him I might have a stalker and confronted my ex to see if it was him? Even in my head, that sounded ridiculous and sort of whiny, like I was pining for his attention. Then again, he'd told me to talk to him if anything happened.

But just as a last resort, a small voice whispered inside my head.

Argh! Why was this so hard?