Toronto
A fist slammed into the metal locker beside my head and my math book cradled in my arms slipped and fell to the floor with a loud clunk.
I sucked in a mouthful of air and froze.
The fist belonged to Killian Kane.
The Killian Kane.
Rumor was he’d been suspended from school numerous times for fighting, and the only reason he hadn’t been expelled was his father donated a lot of money to the school.
And yeah, I was scared of him. You’d be stupid not to be.
Thankfully his fist indenting the locker wasn’t to get my attention; it was to get Josh Clery’s attention—the guy who unfortunately had the locker beside me.
“Ki… te,” Josh stuttered as he turned around, his face pale, hands at half-mast.
Killian’s nickname was Kite. And at first thought, the word conjured a beautiful kite flying through the air in a gentle wind.
This was not the origin of his nickname. Far from it.
Because the word Kite also meant “to prey on others.” And Killian lived up to that nickname. Although in his defense, he did it sort of fairly.
He fought the older kids who bullied the younger ones. He banned wedgies after some kid was found in the changing room hanging on the wall hook by his underwear.
If Killian heard about shit like that, he dealt with it.
Often that meant dealing with kids older and bigger than him.
He was fearless, and there was a part of me that was awestruck by him because nothing deterred him from his purpose.
Unwavering.
Unbending.
My perception of a Greek god was pretty much Killian. One of the god’s who had a temper and knew how much power he wielded and used it.
He was good looking, but that wasn’t what made him attractive. It was how he drew you into him like a string on a marionette with his steady green eyes.
I’d never spoken to him, and he’d never said a word to me, which was a good thing since no one wanted Killian Kane’s attention.
Although, on a few occasions when I saw him in the hallways, I swore he watched me. And when our eyes would lock briefly, he always looked away while I’d lower my head and walk away as fast as I could with my heart racing and legs quivering.
He did that to me, made me breathless, which wasn’t a good thing.
Killian supposedly moved here from Ireland a few years ago, but I’d been at a different grade school than him. He was also a year ahead of me, so even though we were now in the same high school we didn’t have any classes together. And I was glad because I’d never be able to concentrate with him so close.
The first time I’d witnessed Killian in action was in the cafeteria.
He was in a rock band with a few guys from school, until ‘the fight’. The second Killian walked into the cafeteria that day there was tension. I’d heard the hushed whispers and the rumor that Killian had hooked up with the lead singer’s girlfriend. I hadn’t thought it was true because Killian had never been seen with any girls.
His band mates had stood when he’d approached, and I’d been terrified for him because there were three of them and only him. I’d wanted him to turn around and walk out. But Killian would never have done that, and he didn’t. He’d walked right by them and went and got his food.
It was when he had his lunch in hand that it happened.
The lead singer stepped into his path and dumped Killian’s tray on the floor.
Killian remained completely calm. But that was where his nickname came into play.
Because he’d bent, picked up his tray and now ruined lunch, then threw it in the garbage. Then he’d strode back to him.
The predator approached his prey. And there was no doubt they were prey to him.
I’d never heard the cafeteria so silent before. The only sounds were Killian’s footsteps and his ex-band mate’s chuckles. They’d either been really brave or completely stupid considering Killian’s reputation. Maybe they’d thought since they were on school property, he wouldn’t do anything.
He did.
I had no idea how Killian did it as it happened so fast, but in one move he had the lead singer on his back and on the floor. Within seconds the guy was begging. I couldn’t see exactly what Killian did to him, but it was calm, controlled, and without a flicker of fear.
A new guy, Sculpt, who I didn’t know except by name, had stood up from his table and moved closer to Killian. I assumed to back him up if the other band mates jumped him.
They didn’t, probably because Sculpt was even scarier than Killian. Sculpt’s tattooed, bulging arms and dark, almost black, intense eyes were pretty intimidating.
Ever since that fight, Killian and Sculpt hung out together, and I’d heard they started their own band with a couple of guys from another school.
And now I stood frozen at my locker, an arm’s length away from Killian Kane. Afraid to move, breathe or otherwise, lest I gain his notice.
My math book lay at my feet, canvas school bag slung over my shoulder and Killian so close to me his broad shoulder brushed mine when he grabbed Josh by the T-shirt and slammed him into the locker.
My heart jumped at the loud bang of Josh’s spine hitting the metal.
“I fuckin’ warned you,” Killian growled.
And it was a growl or maybe a snarl because he said it between clenched teeth. He tilted his body in close to Josh, and Josh had nowhere to go, trapped between furious Killian and his locker.
“I warned you what would happen if he came to my school and dealt that shit.”