chapter 2

Orion was not brooding.

All he was doing was sit down in his large leather chair, glaring out the windows, contemplating how that talking Raggedy Anne doll could even dare talk to him the way she did. It wasn’t like she wasn’t afraid of him.

He was usually one of the first ones at school and had followed her this morning. He had witnessed her shaking knees as she walked towards her locker and the stubborn set of her shoulders as she opened it. How she smiled - and no, it wasn’t a pretty smile - as she found it devoid of the red card and practically floated away.

Orion left her alone the entire day up until lunch hour. He thought he was being kind offering her a way out of confrontation. She couldn’t even dream about how much his shirt cost nor his shoes. Hell, she couldn’t even afford to buy them nevermind to pay him back with interest.

Not only did she reject his offer, but she also had the audacity to talk to them - him - as if she was better than him?

So, no, Orion was not brooding.

He was only contemplating the best way to go about destroying the life of Iris Holmes and the ones she loved. It was only fair, he reasoned, as she not only insulted him but also his closest friends and Orion wouldn’t stand for it.

“Would you stop brooding?” asked Carmilla, dryly.

“I am not brooding,” Orion snapped and turned in his chair to look at her.

Carmilla was sitting on the leather couch, receiving her monthly pedicure, in the center of the jokingly named Playroom of Orion’s house. The Playroom was overflowing with the newest and best vintage entertainment consoles along with Carmilla’s magazines scattered on each coffee table. Bookcases lined the wall filled with actual books, mangas, and old school DVDs, and CDs. They started calling it the Playroom after they read Fifty Shades of Grey when the lost a bet to Benjamin. It was an incident they never talk about.

There were many such incidents.

Carmilla was beautiful, Orion thought absently. So different from Iris Holmes. His nose scrunched, disgusted that he thought of her and his best - only - female friend in the same sentence. Carmilla deserved better.

He couldn’t help it though. Carmilla was an Italian woman with brown skin, light green eyes, and short-styled dark tresses. She was as tall as him and used any excuse to dress extravagantly in even taller heels to lord over him. She was one of the two women in his life he could honestly say he liked and admired, especially with her cutthroat ability to shut everyone up.

If you were in my position, you would probably be the minimum wage worker.

Everyone, except Iris Holmes with her short figure, vivid long, red hair, and her pale skin dosed in freckles. She was frustrating. Especially with her bright green eyes glaring at him.

There was nothing, absolutely nothing, about her that he found appealing.

He ignored how he thought she was pretty when she smiled this morning.

“You’re doing it again,” Carmilla said and waved away the nail technician. She scurried away.

“I’m frustrated,” Orion admitted.

As if on cue, a gentle piano tune filled the air. Sitting at said instrument was Benjamin tickling the keys.

Carmilla groaned and rolled her eyes. “The redhead.”

Just as she spoke, Marcas and Jackson walked through the door, each of them carrying an armful of their favourite snacks.

“You talking about me?” asked Marcas as he and Jackson dumped the snacks all over the coffee table. Both boys then sat across from Carmilla on their own couch.

“You’re not interesting enough to talk about,” said Orion sat down next to Carmilla.

Marcas was offended. “Excuse me? The tabloids would disagree.”

“They only find plastering your hide on the cover page interesting,” said Benjamin softly from where he sat. He changed his tune to something a bit for uplifting. Orion couldn’t tell if it was another one of his own compositions or someone else’s.

They all laughed as Marcas sputtered, turning a similar shade of red as his hair. Orion noticed that is wasn’t just a Marcas thing but a ginger thing altogether.

Orion took a breath to observe the rest of his friends.

Marcas was a Scotsman in the making. He had vibrant red hair, pale blue eyes, and a strong jaw. Orion spotted green nail polish on his hands. Unlike his fellow ginger brethren, Marcas’s skin was freshly tanned from spending his summers on the beautiful beaches of Greece. As well as in the arms of the equally tanned women of Greece.

You have severe mommy issues. Don’t even try to deny.

Jackson was built like a quarterback with bleached white hair, dark brown eyes, and a tattooed covered black skin. He lived for looking rugged in his designer clothing, opting for a rough and tough look when he was a total softie. While he would never admit it, Jackson once cried watching a horse die in a war movie.

You didn’t get enough hugs as a child.

And then there was Benjamin with his skinny and pale features, his brown doe eyes and his long, slender fingers. Orion couldn’t help but notice that he had lost weight. The last year had taken a toll on his friend and it was definitely beginning to show.

How’s your silence working out for you?

Orion groans through gritted teeth, interrupting their laughing session. No matter how he wanted to forget about the verbal attack he had experienced, he just couldn’t get it out of his mind. Couldn’t get Iris Holmes out of his head. She was like a fly hovering over his ear just as he was about to fall asleep.

“Evidently, I’m not the redhead running through your mind,” said Marcas. “You never groan that way when you think of me.”

“Oh, please.” Jackson rolled his eyes. “The only people who groan about you that way are unsatisfied housewives. But seriously,” he turned to Orion, “what happened this morning? I thought we agreed to lay low, let the redhead drive herself anxious thinking we’re playing a cat and mouse game. Nevermind that we agreed to keep things on the down-low because of what happened last year. Radcliffe’s cellphone was clean by the way. Not that it matters after how she spoke to us today. Don’t tell me you’re just going to let her off the hook for that.”

Carmilla let her frustration be known. “Especially after today! Who the hell does she think she is?”

“She’s right,” said Benjamin as he stood from the piano.

“Excuse me?!” Carmilla scoffed.

“Let’s be honest, Carmilla,” Benjamin continued. “You’ve never worked a day in your life. That clothing line was already in the works before your name was taped over it. Marcas has mommy issues, Jackson has that plus daddy issues, Orion is pretending to not have these issues.”

The silence was thick.

You, all of you, are nothing but sad children thinking you’re worth more than you actually are.

The words ghosted through Orion’s mind. How is it that Iris Holmes could haunt him so only after two conversations? He admired her in some roundabout way. She used his own ways against him and Orion was - admittedly - getting bored with the same routine of cowards with barks louder than their bites. Something in Orion just knew that Iris had sharp canines hiding behind her secondhand doll appearance. Her pretty smile and chubby cheeks could trick anyone into thinking otherwise.

After today, however, it was clear that she wasn’t one to be walked all over, especially with the way she had ripped into them and gutted them open for the school to see.

A familiar thrill rushed through his veins as his fingers begun tapping excitedly.

“She may be right,” Orion said softly, successfully shattering the silent tension. “About all of us. However, I was also right about her. I pushed the right buttons today.”

Carmilla scoffed again, throwing her hands up into the air. “Congrats! If you haven’t noticed, we were there and got humiliated. Some of the girls were talking and laughing about what happened during lunch. I refuse to be a laughing stock.”

“You’re also right, Carmilla,” Orion conceded. “My pride’s wounded and I’m sure everyone else’s is as well -

“-Mine’s not,” chirped Benjamin.

“-Which is why we’re not letting her get away with it.”

“Good,” said Carmilla. “I say we ruin her.”

“Don’t be stupid, Carmilla,” Jackson snapped. “You’re better than that. We can’t go in guns blazing. We’re being watched, remember? Because of what happened last year.”

Another incident they don’t talk about.

Orion talked before it could get awkward. “Exactly. We can’t take our usual route of letting the school dig into her. Besides, it wouldn’t even work. She doesn’t strike me as someone to walk away without leaving a scar and you heard her. Sticking a red card to her forehead isn’t going to scare her away anymore. We need a new plan.”

Iris Holmes was a prideful person, Orion knew, however, she was also a determined and greedy one too. He recognised that hungry look in her eyes. Hungry for success and recognition with the determination to achieve it all for herself, no matter how much she tried to convince herself it was just for her family.

With that in mind, Orion said, “And I have one.”

“Well, are you going to enlighten us?” Marcas asked.

Orion shrugged and stood up, stretching like a cat about to pounce. “Maybe. All you need to know is that we leave Iris Holmes alone. Like Jackson said. Let her play cat-and-mouse alone for a while. Now, I’m sure you guys can entertain yourselves with these snacks. I’m going to the kitchen and bribe Nanny B into making me something to eat.”

With that, Orion left as they sputtered indignantly, shouting that she had to make them something too.

Benjamin followed him and stopped him in the gaudy hallway. Portraits and landscapes hung on the walls with sculpture decorating the gaps between them.

Orion turned to look at Benjamin and said, “I don’t care how much you beg. Only I can have Nanny B’s cooking. Get your own Nanny B.”

“That’s not what I want to talk about and you know it.” Benjamin rolled his eyes and Orion smirked at the gesture. “Don’t you think we should just let it go? It’s not like we lost our fearsome reputation.”

Orion tsked and patted Benjamin on the back. “For someone who claims to know me as well as you do, you surely do disappoint me with your question.”

Benjamin sighed. “Come on. We drew a lot of attention to ourselves last year. I thought we agreed to keep low. And we both know you haven’t been. We put a spectacle every other week.”

“Each and every time we performed a spectacle - as you call it - was because they deserved it. Running their mouths as if they know what happened.”

Benjamin gnawed on his lip. “I just don’t want any trouble.”

Orion threw an arm around his smaller friend. His shoulder bone felt sharp. “Don’t worry. Give it a month. Then this entire thing will be over. Now, come on. I’ll share Nany B’s cooking with you and only you.”

As both of them went searching for the elusive nanny, Orion couldn’t help but feel like a liar. Something in him was saying that it would take a lot to get rid of Iris Holmes.

When was the last time he was this excited?