uncomfortable for her. Not to mention that her answer had implied we’d be spending more time together. I liked the sound of that.
Silence descended as we continued through the maze of hallways. We passed through the year seven Geography section. The walls were lined with colourful flow charts relating to world trade and drawings of the planet, scrawled with bright pens. We pushed through a set of side doors that led to the school grounds. The fierce wind rushed in to greet us. Invisible tendrils of ice scratched at my face. I pulled my scarf from my bag and wrapped it around my neck, deflecting some of the cold. Gabriella’s clothes were pretty inappropriate for the weather, but she didn’t seem to be bothered much by the cold.
To our left was the packed lunch area — a large grassy recess, set between two protruding sections of the school. Worn picnic benches, warped and bleached from years of facing the elements lay scattered around in no particular order. On the opposite side, a small bank of grass sloped up onto the school football pitch. I pointed towards it.
“If we cut across there, it’ll be quicker than walking around,” I explained. “The art block is across the road.”
“Sounds good.”
We climbed onto the pitch and made our way across, aiming for the gated exit in the northeast corner. As we neared the opening, I realised the shortcut had been a huge mistake. Coming through from the other direction, followed by his gang, was Terry Burton.
Adrenaline surged through my body. What do I do? Half of me wanted to turn back, but the other half didn’t want to look like a coward in front of Gabriella. My legs kept walking even though my mind screamed at me to leave. Time ran out. We were spotted. TJ nudged Terry and pointed in our direction. A dark smile spread across my tormentor’s face. Gabriella seemed to sense my unease and stopped to look at me, concern etched on her face. “Alexander, are you okay?”
I nodded and kept my head down as we started moving again. Maybe he’ll leave me alone because I’m with a girl. I was kidding myself. There was no way, Terry wasn’t a gentleman. It would just be twice as humiliating this time.
Their crude banter died down as they reached us. They stopped short in a curve, barring our way forward. Once again there was the gasping of breath and the exchanges of glances as the gang took in Gabriella for the first time. Terry, ever the classy guy, stared directly at her chest. After a few seconds he managed to prise his attention away. He took a final blast on the joint he was smoking and then crushed it under his boot heel. He stared at me through bloodshot eyes.
“Eden! What a lovely surprise! And there I was thinking you’d had enough for one day.” My body stiffened. “And who’s this stunner?” he said, leering towards Gabriella. Instinctively I grabbed the new girl’s wrist and pulled her behind me. I had no idea where my courage was coming from.
Terry leaned back again and narrowed his eyes. “No, wait…don’t tell me that this hot piece of ass is actually with you?’ He started snorting with laughter and his gang joined in, baying like a bunch of demented hyenas. I could feel the rage growing inside my stomach, like someone had lit a fire. I tried to relax, knowing that if I lost control and hit him, I would get destroyed. So I tried to keep my response calm, but my words came out shaky and flecked with anger. “Gabriella and I are not together. She just asked me to show her around. Is that okay with you?”
Terry's mouth shrunk into a thin line. When he spoke, it was through clenched teeth. “A little bit feisty today ain’t we Eden?” he hissed. “Trying to impress the bird? Might want to watch your mouth though mate, else it’s liable to get smacked.”
I felt Gabriella tense behind me. Her hand squeezed mine, probably a comforting gesture, but it was stronger than expected and I almost cried out in pain.
Terry’s expression relaxed and his tone lightened. “What you said does make sense though,” he mused, “there is no way a fine thing like this would be seen dead with a freak like you.” He moved to the side so he could see Gabriella clearer and regarded her with a flick of the chin. “So babe, since you and this loser ain’t hitting it, how about you come with me and find out what a real man can do?” On cue his gang started whooping and making crude gestures.
Gabriella shook my hand off and paced towards Terry. She cut right through his personal space and stopped inches from him. Even in heels, she only reached his chest, but her bare faced confidence unnerved him and he took a step back.
Gabriella crossed her arms and rested on her back leg. “That’s funny,” she said, scrutinizing Terry first and then his friends, “I don’t see any real men here, apart from the one behind me,” she turned and winked. “I also know you cacacazzi wouldn’t have a clue what to do with me if you got me alone. So if you’ll excuse me boys, we have classes to get to, so move!” She shoved Terry out of her way and walked through the space where he’d stood. He made no effort to stop her. The others were silent and parted like the Red Sea, allowing her through. Turning, she gestured for me to follow. I gave a confused shake of my head, but followed, thankful.
I passed Terry just as he came to his senses. He yanked me by the hood of my jacket. I made a strangled noise as I was dragged backwards. He turned his back to Gabriella, all his attention focused on me. “You go on sweetness,” he said, waving a hand in the air. “Eden and I have some issues to sort out, like his attitude. Don’t we mate?” He slapped a humiliating hand against my cheek a few times.
I didn’t expect what happened next.
Gabriella whirled around; her face contorted with a rage the likes of which I had never seen. Her teeth clenched and eyes blazed.
“Let him go now!” she screamed. Her voice sliced through the air like a razor. Goosebumps shot across my skin and a chill rolled down my spine.
I felt the material around my neck go slack. I chanced a glance up at Terry. His eyes had glazed over and he was staring across the pitch into space.
What the hell?
I looked at the rest of the gang. They were shuffling around looking sorry for themselves.
Terry began to speak. His voice distant and disjointed, like he was about to fall asleep. “I’m…sorry…think… smoked too much…we’ll go now.”
My mouth hung open as I watched the crew leave without another word. I stared after them, watching them disappear into the distance. Gabriella’s voice brought me back down to earth.
“Well they were asses.” Her tone was light-hearted and when I turned to look, her expression had reverted to one of angelic tranquillity. She flashed her perfect teeth at me. “Sorry about that little outburst there. I don’t like bullies. Oh and don’t think I didn’t notice you trying to protect me. You’re a sweetheart Alexander.” She planted a quick kiss on my cheek. I was lost for words as it bloomed like a rose. Gabriella laughed. “Come on, let’s go. I don’t want you to be late for helping me.” She gave my arm a gentle tug.
As we continued our trek across the field, my mind was working overtime. I struggled to process the enormity of what had just happened. This incredible girl had made Terry Burton leave me alone, by telling him to. It was like she had a weird control over him. I thought about the reactions I got when she was in close proximity to me. I already knew that she had an effect on me. Very different, but an effect nevertheless. There was definitely something going on with Gabriella De Luca.
We reached the Art block — a squat blue building situated between the canteen and gymnasium. It was always buzzing with life. Art students pushed in and out of the main doors, carrying models and large plastic folders heavy with coursework. I asked to see Gabriella’s timetable.
“Uh okay, it says here you’re in class A Six. I think it’s the second door on your left once you go inside. It’s a double lesson so it lasts for two hours.” I grimaced. I’m pretty sure she knows what a double lesson is! “Um, it also looks like this is your last lesson today. A half day. I uh, don’t have any of those, although I start later on a Monday.” I handed her back the timetable.
“Thanks Alexander. I’ll see you tomorrow then. You okay to meet me at the main entrance in the morning?” she tapped her timetable with a white tipped fingernail. “I don’t know where Performing Arts is.”
The butterflies began fluttering around my stomach again. “Uh yeah, that would be amazing, I mean fine. Um…yeah…no worries. Well…I better go to class and um-” Gabriella mercifully cut me off from my stammering. “I’ll see you in the morning. Shall we say eight forty?” I drew in a deep breath, composing myself. “That sounds good.” “Oh and Alexander, don’t let those guys bother you. People like that always get what’s coming to them in
