Bully Me (Bully Me #1)

  1

  Kaine Spencer looked out the bus window, dejected. She knew she should be happy that it was the last day of school, but she wasn't. It wasn't that she particularly cared for school, but the last day was known as Senior Prank Day. Although she was a junior, she wasn't exempt from prank day. She was used to being the butt of the joke. She just hoped that she could get through today without being humiliated.

  At 5'10" and 165 pounds, it was hard for Kaine to blend in. She wasn't exactly "fat," just big. It didn't help that there was a gigantic wrestler with her same name. It just gave the especially cruel kids more ammunition.

  The bus pulled up to the school and the kids pushed and shoved each other to get off. Kaine longed to be one of the carefree students that went through a school day without the threat of being teased mercilessly. She didn't even want to be popular. She would settle for being invisible.

  Kaine reluctantly left the bus and made her way inside. Looking around nervously, she was relieved to see that nobody was paying attention to her. She hurried to her locker and grabbed her books, hoping to get to class as quickly as possible. Just as she was closing her locker, a hand slammed into the locker next to her. She gasped, startled.

  "Sup, Kane Hodder?"

  She stared into the eyes of Shane Ellery, the boy who had made her cry more than anyone else. A cruel smile played at his lips.

  "See what I did there?" He asked loudly, not waiting for her response. "Kane Hodder, the guy who played Jason Voorhees? He kind of looks like you."

  Kaine felt her face turn red but continued to ignore him. Trying to defend herself usually only made things worse. Unfortunately, the hallway had quieted down and she could feel people watching the altercation between her and Shane. She put her head down and started walking away.

  "Hey!" Shane snapped, grabbing her arm roughly. She spun around and gaped at him, wide eyed. "Don't fucking walk away from me when I'm talking to you," he growled menacingly.

  "Get away from me, you asshole!" Kaine cried, jerking her arm away. She couldn't believe he had actually grabbed her.

  Shane laughed at her as she hurried away. "You should be grateful!" He called after her. "At least somebody touched your fat ass!"

  She hurried past her first period English class and into the girls bathroom as the bell rang. Since it was the last day of school, she didn't care if she was late. Thankfully, the bathroom was empty. She threw her books down angrily and willed herself not to cry.

  Just one more day, Kaine. Just one more day.

  Her own words did nothing to reassure her as tears spilled down her face.

  One more day. And then what? She would just be back next year to the same insults and taunts. She hated Shane Ellery. She had done nothing to him, and yet he went out of his way to make her life miserable any chance he got. Almost worse was the way that nobody ever stepped up to defend her. For reasons that she would never understand, everybody loved Shane. Kaine could admit that he was attractive. Short dark hair, sparkling blue eyes, and ridiculously muscular, she could see why girls flocked to him. The mystery was why they stayed after seeing his personality.

  Kaine sniffed and wiped her eyes, staring into the mirror. She never used to think that she was ugly. Growing up, people used to always tell her how beautiful she was. She had unique grey eyes, naturally straight light blond hair, long lashes and full lips. As a child, she was loud and boisterous and has tons of friends. Until 7th grade, when her mom died of cancer.

  Kaine and her mom were best friends. When her mom died, a part of Kaine died with her. She stopped putting effort into her appearance, and instead of seeking comfort from her friends, she sought comfort from potato chips and cookies. She sighed and pulled a cookie out of her bag, nibbling on it. Food still brought her a comfort that nothing else could. She didn't really have any friends, but that was ok with her. She preferred to be home reading a book or watching TV than be forced to awkwardly socialize with people.

  The door swung open and Kaine, lost in her own thoughts, dropped her half eaten cookie on the floor. Her face burned with humiliation when she realized how pathetic she must look, a fat girl crying and eating cookies in the bathroom. The other kids were right to call her disgusting.

  Instead of laughing, the girl frowned at her, concerned. "Are you ok, sweetie?" She asked gently, as if realizing that Kaine was about to break at any second. Kaine sniffed and nodded, trying to force a smile. "Fine," she choked out.

  The girl smiled at her sympathetically. "That guy is a dick."

  Kaine looked up, surprised. "Who's a dick?"

  The girl laughed. "Shane. He just picks on you because he's an insecure piece of shit."

  "Oh," Kaine said, a small smile pulling at her face. She was grateful to see someone else who thought the same thing about Shane that she did. "I thought it was because I'm fat and ugly."

  She had meant it as a joke, but as soon as it came out of her mouth she realized that it came out as self loathing and pathetic.

  The girl just laughed and shook her head. "You're not fat, and you're definitely not ugly. I'm Lucy."

  "Kaine," she introduced herself, smiling at her potential new friend. She definitely looked like a Lucy. Short, with dark curly hair and a smile that lot up her whole face. She was adorable.

  "I just moved here a few weeks ago. I don't really know that many people yet. The last few weeks of school are a really bad time to try to meet new people." Lucy dug in her bag, pulling out her phone. "Give me your number. We'll hang out sometime."

  Kaine raised her eyebrows at Lucy's forwardness, but rattled off her number nonetheless. It might be nice to have a friend like Lucy who didn't seem to care that befriending Kaine wasn't good for popularity.

  "Cool. I'll text you later," Lucy said, smiling.

  Kaine couldn't help but smile back. "Hey," she said suddenly. "How do you know that Shane is a dick?"

  Lucy rolled her eyes. "He asked me out my first day here. I said no, and he immediately got all defensive and told me that I wasn't that pretty anyway, and that he was just trying to be nice by asking me."

  "Total dick move," Kaine agreed. She couldn't imagine anybody not thinking that Lucy was pretty. Clearly, she had hurt Shane's pride.

  "When do you have lunch?" Lucy asked.

  "Umm...4th period."

  Lucy raised her eyebrows. "Really? Me too. I've never seen you in there. Well, come find me at lunch. We'll sit together."

  "Sure," Kaine smiled, trying not to sound too eager. She was too embarrassed to tell Lucy that she spent her lunch period in the library, doing homework. She had learned early on that eating in front of people just gave them more reasons to make fun of her. Lucy bounded out the door, and Kaine felt better than she had in a long time. Looking at her phone, she realized that first period was half over already. It was too late to go to class.

  Grabbing her books and taking a look in the mirror to make sure the signs of crying weren't evident, she made her way to the library. Right before she reached the door, an arm reached around her neck and grabbed her.

  She felt the cold metal press into her cheek.

  "Keep your mouth shut, Piggy."

  Tears streamed down her face as she recognized Shane's voice.

  "Make a noise and I'll slit your fucking throat."

  Kaine was too scared to make a noise either way. Shane turned her around and walked her into an empty classroom, shutting the door behind him. He flicked on the lights and roughly shoved her forward and she fell on her hands and knees, gasping sobs. "Clumsy bitch," he muttered. Kaine turned over and scooted away, staring at Shane and desperately searching his eyes, hoping for an indication of what he wanted with her.

  She felt a small sense of re
lief when she saw that what she had thought was a knife was a metal ruler. Shane dropped it on the floor and crouched down in front of her, placing his hands on the wall on either side of her head. "That wasn't very nice of you to walk away from me when I was talking to you, Piggy. You think you're better than me?"

  Kaine shook her head furiously.

  His jaw clenched in anger and his eyes darkened. The rage in his eyes was so chilling that Kaine started shaking.

  "Too good to talk?"

  "No," Kaine choked out. "I'm sorry."

  He stared at her, unblinking. “You do, don’t you? You think you’re better than me."

  Kaine had no idea why, but she knew he was furious at her. She took a deep, shaky breath. “I don’t think I’m better than you. I’m sorry if you feel that way. But I don’t."

  Shane stared at her for a minute, and she stared back, too scared to break eye contact. He started breathing heavy and in one quick move, he ripped her t shirt open.

  "Oh, God!" Kaine cried, trying to cross her arms over her chest. "Please don't. I’m sorry."

  Shane ignored her and continued ripping until her shirt was completely off. He grabbed the front of her bra and tore it open. “Fuck," he muttered, squeezing her breast. Kaine shoved him away and crossed her arms over her chest, sobbing. He looked at her almost confused, then looked at her torn clothing in his hands. He got up and ran out of the room without saying anything else, and Kaine sat on the floor, stunned.

  She couldn’t believe he had touched her. Thank God he was gone. She felt relieved for a second that he had left without really physically hurting her, until she realized the severity of her situation. She was completely topless in an empty classroom. At some point, there had to be a class in here today. The thought of an entire classroom seeing her half naked shifted her into gear. She frantically pulled out her phone, looking for anybody to help her. The only people in her phone were her dad, her brother, and her grandparents.

  Shit. Shit shit shit.

  She didn't even have Lucy's number. There was nobody who could help her. Looking around frantically for something to cover herself with until she could get to her gym locker, she heard the doorknob turn.

  Oh, no. Oh God, please, no.

  She prayed it was a girl or even a teacher. A teacher wouldn't laugh at her. At the very least she prayed that it was one person and not an entire class coming in. She thought hard. Did the bell ring? She didn't hear it.

  The door opened and a handsome boy walked in by himself. He saw her and froze. "Oh, shit."

  She recognized him immediately. Camden Lawson was her biggest crush. He was gorgeous with shaggy blond hair and the clearest blue eyes she had ever seen. He had a sexy surfer look. He was also on the wrestling team with Shane. She gasped and clutched at her chest, terrified that Camden was here to humiliate her further.

  Sensing her fear, Camden took a step back. "It's ok, Kaine. I won't hurt you. Are you ok?"

  She shook her head.

  "Where are your clothes?" He asked softly.

  She opened her mouth to answer and immediately burst into tears.

  "Shit," Camden muttered, pulling off his jacket. He cautiously made his way over to Kaine. "Here," he said, holding the jacket out to her. Kaine stared at him. There was no way she was moving her arms. Realizing her dilemma, Camden scratched his chin. "Here, turn around."

  Kaine turned reluctantly, still not sure if she could trust Camden but seeing no other options. Camden put his jacket over her shoulders and she hastily finished putting it on, zipping it up completely before turning around. She managed a small smile. "Thanks, Camden," she whispered. He smiled back. "You're welcome, Kaine."

  She hadn't realized until now that Camden knew her name. She felt a little bit flattered until she realized that most people knew her name because of Shane. Camden stared at her for a minute, as if trying to read her face. Finally he asked the question she was dreading. "What happened?"

  She shrugged. "Nothing. I'm ok."

  He wasn't letting her get off that easily. "No Kaine, you're not ok. You're half naked and terrified. Who did this to you? Was it Shane?"

  At the mention of his name, her eyes filled with tears again. God dammit. How many tears had she been forced to waste over that asshole? And what the hell had she ever done to him?

  Taking her tears as confirmation, Camden clenched his fists. "Shane, huh? Did he hurt you?"

  Kaine shook her head. "No. He didn't...make me do anything. He just ripped my clothes off and ran out with them." She didn't tell him about Shane grabbing her breast. That was too embarrassing. Camden looked relieved that Shane hadn't physically hurt her. "Ok. Are you sure you're ok?"

  Two more students came in the classroom and sat down, giving her a funny look.

  Kaine nodded and grabbed her books. "I'm fine. Thanks." She rushed out of the room before Camden could say anything else.

  Camden sat down at his desk, fuming. He knew that Shane was a cocky asshole, but ripping off Kaine’s clothes and leaving her half naked and humiliated was too much. He had been tolerant of him all year, but this was the last straw. He cracked his knuckles and smiled, thinking about how good it would feel to kick the shit out of Shane later.

  2

  Kaine hurried down the hall and into the gym locker room. Luckily, it was the last day of school and nobody was too concerned with her clearing out her locker. She grabbed her gym shirt and extra sports bra and tore off Camden's jacket, throwing on the bra and pulling on the shirt. She breathed a sigh of relief once she was dressed again. She grabbed Camden's jacket and slipped it back on. She couldn't help but notice how good it smelled. She was almost disappointed that she would eventually have to give it back to him. There was something safe and comforting about having something of Camden's so close to her.

  Kaine considered her options. She really just wanted to go home, but she didn't want to give Shane the satisfaction of seeing her run. Taking a deep breath, she held her head high and walked to her second period history class.

  Kaine managed to make it to lunch without another confrontation with Shane. She considered eating in the library, but remembered her promise to eat with Lucy today. She wasn't about to give up her chance to make a friend just because she might run into Shane the asshole again. She couldn't avoid him forever. Walking into the cafeteria, she scanned the room for Lucy.

  "Kaine!"

  She followed the voice and saw Lucy waving her over. Kaine smiled in relief. Before she took a step forward, a large body blocked her path.

  "Where'd you get that shirt, piggy?"

  She gasped, looking up at Shane. Kaine was a big girl, but Shane was huge. He towered over her by at least 3 inches, but his muscular form made him seem even bigger. Trying not to be intimidated by his hateful leer, Kaine tried to stare him down.

  "These are my gym clothes. Because some pervert thought it was hilarious to rip my clothes off of me and grope me."

  His eyes narrowed at her. "I didn't touch you, you fat bitch," he lied.

  She nodded. "Sure, Shane. Whatever you have to tell yourself to feel like less of a piece of shit." As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she instantly regretted them. She was furious at him, but getting him mad was a bad idea. After seeing the hateful gleam in his eye when he was touching her, she wasn't sure what he was capable of.

  Shane eyes widened at her boldness, then he smiled. A slow, cruel smile. "Oh sweetie, you fucked up now." He took a step towards her.

  Before he had a chance to move any closer, he went flying across the room. Kaine gasped and jumped back as Camden jumped on top of Shane, pummeling him with his fists. "What the fuck!" Shane yelled, pushing Camden off of him. Shane jumped on Camden, grabbing him by the shirt. Camden easily pushed Shane back, grasping him by the throat. As big as Shane was, Camden was even bigger. Shane gasped for breath. "What the fuck, Cam?"

  The whole cafeteria was cheering, watching the fight between Camden and Shane. Camden punched Shane again. Realiz
ing that he couldn't get back up, Shane tried to put his hands up and protect his face. Camden took the opportunity to punch him in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Shane rolled over on his side, gasping for air. Camden stood up and watched Shane pathetically grasp his stomach. "Get up," he growled.

  Shane sat up, still clutching his stomach. A trickle of blood ran down his face. "What the fuck?" He repeated. "What's your fucking problem?"

  Camden grabbed him by the collar and dragged him to where Kaine was standing, shocked. Camden hauled Shane up and pushed him towards Kaine. "Apologize."

  Shane glared at Camden. "For what?"

  Camden tightened his grip on Shane's shirt. "You know what for. You're not going to ever bother her again. You're not even going to look at her. And you're sure as hell not going to touch her. Apologize."

  Shane glared at Kaine with a hateful look. "Sorry, Kaine. It was just a prank." The look in his eyes told her that he wasn't sorry. In fact, Camden had probably made things worse for her. But the fact that he had cared enough to defend her warmed her heart. Kaine nodded awkwardly at Shane. "Whatever," she muttered. Camden let go of Shane and pushed him away. "Fuck off, Shane." He turned to Kaine. "Are you ok?" She nodded without speaking. She could feel the entire cafeteria starting at her.

  "Hey!"

  Kaine turned and saw Mr. Murphy storming toward them. "You!" He said, pointing at Camden. "And you," he directed at Shane, who was glaring at Camden. "Come with me. Now."

  Shane and Camden followed Mr. Murphy out of the cafeteria.

  Kaine glanced around, feeling 100 sets of eyes on her. Putting her head down, she hurried to Lucy's table and smiled sheepishly at her. Lucy stared at her, wide eyed. "Did Camden just beat up Shane for you?"

  Kaine laughed. "I'm pretty sure it wasn't for me. I think that fight has been a long time coming."

  "Maybe, but Camden threatened him to leave you alone. I think it's romantic," she said dreamily.

  Kaine burst out laughing. "Romantic? Lucy, there's no way that Camden has any kind of romantic feelings towards me."

  "Why not? You're so pretty. And he's so hot. You'd make a perfect couple."