Page 75 of The Rebel of Raleigh High
29
SILVER
“What the helldo you want me to do with that?”
The next morning, I look down at the helmet in Alex’s hand like it’s about to jump up and bite me. I woke up tangled in his arms, and for the first time in a string of seemingly endless, torturous days, I wasn’t immediately crushed by the knowledge that I’d have to go to school alone and face Jacob and Kacey. I knew I’d have at least one ally roaming the halls of Raleigh High, and that, along with the surprisingly crisp, unexpected sunlight flooding in through the bedroom window of Alex’s trailer, had me feeling surprisingly upbeat about the day ahead.
Now that same sunshine means I’m supposed to ride to school on the back of Alex’s bike, though? He laughs mercilessly. “No getting out of it,Argento. It’s a nice day. No ice on the road.”
I wrinkle my nose, eyeing the bike. “I don’t think so.”
“What? You don’t trust me?”
“Sure, I trust you. It’s all the other people on the road I don’t trust.”
Alex takes the helmet and places it on my head before I can stop him, pushing it down firmly. “Don’t worry. I got you. I’ll take care of you, I promise. Now get on the damn bike.”
He throws his leg over the motorcycle, the blacked-out visor on his helmet hiding the highly entertained look on his face, and starts the bike, gunning it so I can feel the throb of the engine through the soles of my feet.
If my mother knew what I was about to do…urgh, who am I kidding? She probably wouldn’t mind. Dad had a motorcycle in high school, and she rode around on the back of that thing for years. It’d be reassuring to think there was someone out there, willing me not to follow Alex’s command, and that they’d be highly disappointed by my reckless actions, but I think even Grams would tell me to stop being such a pussy and get on.
I mimic Alex’s easy leg swing, and though I’m sure I look a hell of a lot less graceful than he did, I manage to get on without falling flat on my face. I feel rather than hear Alex laugh when I wrap my arms around him as tight as possible. The guy’s gonna end up with bruised ribs by the time we arrive at Raleigh, but it’ll serve him right for insisting I do this. I bite back a shriek of surprise when he kicks back the stand and we surge forward. My fears are forgotten the moment he pulls out of the trailer park and hits the main road, though.
The wind pulls at my jacket, rushing through the open vents on the helmet, and a feeling of pure exhilaration sweeps over me. Alex leans into a corner as we hit the winding road that leads down into the valley toward Raleigh, and I let my body lean, too, resisting the urge to fight gravity…
…and it’s fucking amazing.
We’re flying, the bike rumbling between my legs, and I finally get it: this is what freedom feels like.
I release my death grip, throwing my hands up into the air, whooping as we reach a straight, flat stretch of road and Alex opens up the throttle. By the time we arrive at school gates fifteen minutes later, I’m enjoying myself so much that I want to tell him to just keep on driving.
The colors and sounds of the parking lot are heightened as I jump off the back of the bike, pleased that I somehow made it look as though I’ve performed the maneuver a thousand times before. The old Silver would have panicked when she pulled off the helmet, irritated that her hair had been ruined and was sticking up all over the place, but now I don’t give a shit. I don’t even attempt to tame it as I thump Alex in the arm, beaming from ear to ear.
“Oh, man, you are so screwed. You have to teach me how to ride one of these things.”
When he takes off his helmet, the guard that Alex always wears around Raleigh is firmly in place, but I can see how pleased he is from the small smile that tics at the corner of his mouth. “Can’t do that, I’m afraid,” he tells me, his face perfectly serious. “I can’t have a girlfriend who’s cooler than me. Not my style.”
“I’ve always been cooler than you, Moretti.”
Alex reaches out, taking a piece of flyaway hair and tucking it behind my ear. His hand cups the side of my face, and I lean into his touch. I feel so damn light. Like I could lift up off the ground and just…float away. “I think you may be right,” he says under his breath.
“What the fuck isthis?”
The sour, angry note to the voice at my right brings me crashing back down to earth. It’s Zen. And behind her, Kacey…
Both of them are wearing their cheerleading skirts, white socks pulled up to their knees, and matching expressions of disbelief. “Alex?” Zen says sharply. “I thought after the other night, you andImight be spending some time together.” She sounds reproving, like she’s telling him off. Alex looks to me, eyebrows raised, like I might be able to explain why the fuck she’s speaking to him like that.
“Don’t look at me,” I say, laughing quietly. “This one’s all you.”
“Was I even speaking to you,slut?” Zen sneers.
In a heartbeat, Alex's back is straight, shoulders drawn back, anger flashing like liquid mercury in his eyes. “Watch your fucking mouth,” he growls. “Call her that again, and we're gonna have issues.”
Zen’s mouth falls open. She looks stung. Hurt, even. “But…I’m sorry. I don’t get it.” She screws her eyes closed, shaking her head, curls bouncing. “Silver’sscum, Alex. She’s a fuckingnobody. Everyone at this school knows she’s poison. You can’t seriously wantherover me.”
“I’d take just about anybody overyou, but that’s beside the point. Silver’s fucking magnificent. She has more brain cells in her little finger than you spiteful, nasty little cunts have to squabble over between you. The fact that she’d even look at me twice makes me the luckiest bastard in the world. Now kindly fuck off. We’re bored of looking at your average, ordinary faces.”
Holy fuckingshit. Alex can’t know much about Kacey and the girls I used to call friends, but he couldn’t have thrown a better insult if he’d tried. Average?Ordinary? Fuck me. Kacey’s spent every waking moment of her life doing everything in her considerable power to make sure everyone around her sees just how extraordinary she is. She glowers at Alex over Zen’s shoulder, her fury twisting her features into a mask of hatred.
