I plopped down on the bench in the courtyard with a frustrated growl, my entire body seeming to buzz with anger over what had just happened.

“So, do you come here often…or just when you are upset?” I whipped my head around to see Josh and rolled my eyes in annoyance as he made his way around the bench and took a seat beside me. “What’s wrong?”

“This is all YOUR fault you know,” I said turning a glare toward Josh.

“Ok,” Josh said, making no point to argue but simply accepting my accusation.

“You and that stupid sexual spanking comment of yours has provoked every immature boy here at Chilton to tease me relentlessly and I just got berated by Matt because of it as well,” I sneered still irritated.

“I’m sorry, I wasn’t trying to make you uncomfortable or cause you to get teased. I was simply debating my side as instructed,” Josh explained, “I get the immature boys teasing you about it, but why would Matt berate you over it?”

“Apparently he has been receiving just as many snide comments as I have and doesn’t appreciate being asked by random guys if I like my hair pulled when I’m being spanked,” I retorted. “OH and APPPARENTLY he is under the impression that I am somehow five years old and he can just scold me like a child…publicly I might add, he made a spectacle of it in the main corridor.”

“So what did you say?” Josh questioned cocking a brow.

“I told him that he wouldn’t have to worry about the questions anymore because we were done,” I said simply before letting out a sigh of frustration. Josh’s jaw nearly dropped.

“Are you serious?” he questioned sounding shocked.

“Do I sound like I am kidding?”

“Well, that was a lot simpler than I thought it would be,” Josh said with a smirk, I immediately threw eye daggers in his direction. “It’s a joke, I was joking.” I rolled my eyes in frustration.

“Yea, well, I am fucking sick and tired of being the subject of everyones jokes today. I am sick of this school and its immature boys.” I spat growing more heated by the moment.

“So let’s leave,” Josh said simply, my head shot up at his nonchalant attitude toward my seemingly massively hellish day.

“We only have twenty more minutes for lunch,” I said shooting him down.

“So?” Josh questioned not finding my argument valid, “haven’t you ever skipped before?”

“No,” I said simply, he cocked a brow at me in shock.

“Never?”

“Never,” I repeated, now suddenly finding myself contemplating his suggestion.

“It’s up to you,” Josh said with a shrug.

Grabbing my backpack and throwing it over my shoulder I stood from the bench, “Let’s go.”

Josh cocked a brow, a smirk playing on his lips, “look at you Miss Badass.”

“Mmmmhmmm…start walkin' before I change my mind,” I said taking off across the grounds, Josh directly in tow.

“So where is it we are going exactly?” Josh asked keeping pace beside me as we stepped off campus.

I shrugged, I didn’t have a clue what one would do while skipping school seeing as how this was my first time. “I dunno, where do you want to go?”

“I dunno,” Josh mimicked, “what is there to do here?”

“During the day?” I questioned, “I dunno.”

“Some tour guide you turned out to be,” He teased with a smirk.

“Hey, you are the expert at skipping school…what do you usually do?”  I asked as we walked aimlessly down the street.

Josh shrugged. “I usually just went home,” he admitted.

“How deviant of you,” I teased rolling my eyes, “going home is not an option.”

“I’ve only ever been on Chilton grounds, take me to one of your favorite spots, preferably one where someone won’t see us and call the dean,” Josh suggested. I stopped walking to think for a moment, a smile tugging at my lips.

“Yea, ok…come on.” I said grabbing Josh by the sleeve and pulling him down an alleyway. He allowed me to tug him along without question or resistance as I quickly made my way through the streets. Reaching our destination I took a seat under a familiar tree with a sigh, Josh took a moment to take in the scene around us before taking a seat next to me and cocking a brow.

“I know I said we should go somewhere where no one would see us but…” Josh said letting his sentence trail off to smirk in my direction.

I rolled my eyes, “Very funny, you said to take you to one of my favorite spots so here we are. You should feel privileged, I don’t tell anyone about this place.”

“Yea but a cemetery…that’s very Emo of you.” he teased looking around.

I dismissed his comment and gazed up into the sprawling branches hanging overhead. “I think it’s beautiful, I love this tree, It’s the only one like it in the whole town…like it doesn’t belong here, just got stuck here by mistake.”

Josh let out a nervous chuckle, “Yea…I know what that’s like.” He said dropping his head and picking at the grass deep in thought.

“Where did you live?” I questioned, “Before here I mean...”

“New York.”

 “Do you miss it?” I questioned.

He shrugged bringing his eyes up to meet mine, “Some of it I guess.”

“Girlfriend?” I asked, possibly a bit too quickly.

Josh chuckled and shook his head, “No.”

“Parents?”

 “Definitely not.” He said clenching his jaw.

I noted his sudden frustration over the mention of his parents and sighed. “See over there,” I said nodding toward the double plot not even 50 feet away, “My parents.”

Josh’s once clenched jaw went lax as he turned his eyes to me. “Oh shit…I forgot...I’m sorry.”

I smiled and shrugged. “It’s ok…”

“Is that why this is your favorite spot…your parents?” He questioned, his eyes sad.

“No actually,  I hate the cemetery…it’s just a constant reminder that they are gone,” I admitted with a sigh, “but I love the tree.” Josh nodded before dropping his head again to pick absentmindedly at the grass.

“Do you live with family or on campus?”  He asked.

“I live with my brothers…professor J and Nick.” I said dropping the bomb, Josh’s eyes widened.

“You live with two professors and you are skipping school?” Josh questioned seeming both shocked and slightly impressed. I nodded.

“So why do you hate your parents so much?”

“I don’t know my mom,she left when I was little. My stepmom is a gold digging bitch who is only like ten years older than me and my dad is an asshole who tends to drink too much and knock me around so I guess it’s good that I got shipped here. I don’t have to deal with his bullshit anymore.”

“Wow,” I said shocked by Josh’s open confession, “I’m sorry.”

Josh simply shrugged it off, “We all have something.” I nodded before taking the jar of peanut butter out of my bag causing Josh to chuckle. “Do you have a loaf of bread in there too?”

“Just a spoon,” I said dipping the spoon into the jar and eating a large glob, “is that weird?”

“Not at all,” he said with a smile, “It’s convenient actually, I’m starving.” I smiled and took another bite of peanut butter before handing the jar to Josh. “So, on a scale of 1-10…how much trouble are we going to be in for skipping school?” he asked taking a bite of peanut butter.

“It only goes to 10?” I questioned, Josh cocked a concerned brow. “Have you ever gotten the belt before?” I asked, He shook his head before taking another bite of peanut butter and returning the jar to me. “Well then, you are in for a treat,” I joked, a slight smirk on my lips.

“Did you just smile when you said that?” Josh asked with a chuckle, “not nice.”

“It’s not so bad, just try not to view it as sexual,” I teased.

“Guess I deserved that one,” he said with a chuckle.

“Yes you did,” I nodded taking another bite of peanut butter and handing it back to Josh. “My brothers don’t like you ya know,” I confessed, “they think you are bad news.”

Josh nodded taking another bite of peanut butter, “And what do you think?”

I locked eyes with him and smiled. “I think they are wrong.”

Chapter End Notes:

What do You think? Trouble brewing...