*Elizabeth's POV*

My friends helped me a lot, especially Diana by distracting me. The rest of the day went quietly.

A few more days had passed and my temper was getting the best of me. He was getting the best of me! He had been so rude towards me. And only towards me! Whenever his gaze landed on my face, he would give me that look like I was an abomination to the world.

Having gym as my next period, I was sure that it would help me vent out a lot of my stress. So, I was really looking forward to it.

Reaching gym that was in the basement after I had changed into the gym uniform which was white in color. It was a big basketball court, filled with my classmates.

Forced of habit, my eyes automatically scanned the room for Mrs. Shane but landed on an unexpected specimen. His eyes were already on me and were cold as usual. Nevertheless, I felt a chill go down my spine.

What was his problem?

But a part of my sub-consciousness commented, 'He looks super hot in the uniform.'

'Shut up!' The nobler part of the inner voice tried to shut the less noble one. However, even the nobler part couldn't deny the fact that he was looking extremely hot.

"Boys and girls, choose a sport and report to me. I will assign you all partners." Mrs. Shane announced after a long speech, which I zoned out from while debating with myself and simultaneously admiring Rome.

Realizing that I was only good at basketball else I would have had to go for laps. I chose basketball while I still had the chance. Picking up the last ball, I made my way to Mrs. Shane. She had been in a deep conversation with that unfriendly human who had an unfathomable effect on me.

"You really don't know any of these games? Well that's a shame if it really is the case!" her voice held clear amusement in the tone.

"I really hate to disappoint, however, my situation still remains the same. And to be honest, I was never a sportsman. Can't you do anything else for me, though?" he asked very innocently.

My heart melted into a puddle like how an ice cream melts under the sun after seeing that puppy look on his face and hearing the adorable helplessness in his voice.

He looked so innocent, so cute!

"I think I can help," words automatically left from my mouth before I could even process it but then I did repent offering him my help. He cast that gaze of his on me, openly showing his disgust at me as if I was one of those hideous monsters from the movies.

"Well sure! Elizabeth can teach you..." Mrs. Shane tailed off looking at me and raised her eyebrow, indirectly asking me to complete her incomplete sentence.

"Basketball," I replied bluntly and suddenly not feeling that enthusiasm.

Why did you have to open that damn mouth of yours! I couldn't help but scold myself.

What's done was done and there was no turning back, with that in my mind I went ahead to offer him the ball I had been holding. He didn't react at first and pretended like I wasn't even there till Mrs. Shane left us to ourselves. That was when he silently started to walk away from me without another word.

"Aren't you supposed to learn something from me?"

"You can never mind your own business, can you?" he suddenly turned and came to stand chest to chest with me, so close that I couldn't help but flinch.

"Maybe some other time, I will teach you how to," he hissed at my face.

Shock coursed through my body and I couldn't lie that I wasn't scared because I was.

How could he talk to me like that? How dare he?

I gathered all the remaining courage inside me and pretended to be nonchalant though I was freaking out from within, "I can always tell Mrs. Shane that you should be taught some manners first, especially how to talk to a girl."

His jaw clenched in an attempt to withhold his temper. His hands turned into fists at his sides.

He looked like he was going to snap at me when Mrs. Shane chimed in, "Will you two even practice something or just keep staring at each other all day?"

Those words from the teacher in-charge made him take step or two back while I straightened myself. Exhaling the breath that was caught in my throat, I started dribbling the ball and then passed it to him. When he stood still with the ball in his hands, I decided to guide him, despite his ill-mannered ways.

"Dribble the ball." I stated monotonously.

He kept still, staring at me like I hadn't said anything. I sighed in annoyance and frustration before repeating my statement in a more commanding tone. However, he did slowly start to dribble the ball.

I could say that he didn't have much trouble with that. Occasionally though, he lost the balance and the ball would bounce away. I attempted to teach him how to pass the ball, and grumbling something peeved he threw the ball away before walking out on me.

What the hell? I didn't even say anything! Did he just get pissed off by seeing my face?

He was being unreasonably and unbelievably brash.

The dreadful period never seemed to come to an end. It was getting even more under my skin just to watch him learn to play volleyball with Yana. They were laughing! And talking! And enjoying! I could literally feel my blood boil inside.

Seeing no other way to vent my emotions that were piling up, I walked up to Mrs. Shane and announced, "I want to run. Three laps in three minute."

"You sure, you don't look you are in right mindset at the moment?"

"Oh, trust me coach, I've never been better," I mocked before casting a quick glance at my tormentor.

Trusting my judgment, she walked me to the tracks before I took my position at the starting line.

"Go!" Mrs. Shane's voice echoed. And that was all I needed to run with all I got, I ran as fastest as my legs could carry me using the aggression as their fuel.

I hate him. I hate him more than Daisy. I hate him more than punishments. I hate him more than anything.

The words kept echoing in my head, fueling my strength and my will to run faster. The first lap was over, the second lap went good. Though, the third lap got the best of me.

"Well done, Elizabeth. You finished three laps in two minutes fifty five seconds!" Mrs. Shane exclaimed impressed, "you can go, have a shower."

I concentrated on my breathing to slow it down to normal making my way back to the shower room.

"Well, well, well. Look who we have here. The rejected Barbie!"

I turned around to face the devil's wife reincarnated, feeling myself losing the control on my tamed temper at her lame attempt of taunting while Yana remained unfazed.

"What is even your problem with your life?" I questioned with a hoarse voice.

"Nah, nothing. Just thought of reminding you just how much of a rejection you are! That's why your dating history is almost next to nada!"

I moved ahead to punch her right in the eye but suddenly, someone grabbed hold of my wrist in a painful grip. With torture in my eyes, I gazed up to meet his icy blue ones.

"Looks like someone else needs some lessons on how to behave like a girl," he taunted haughtily, his cold eyes never once giving him away.

Rome then proceeded to push me away from Yana rather really roughly, while he put his arm around her shoulder and turned slowly before exiting dramatically. I didn't even realize that I was crying. Somehow making to the shower room, I took a cold shower, wondering why the heck I was even crying. That was the only place where I could sort my feelings out and clear my head of his nonsense. I changed into my black dress and rushed to the canteen for lunch right after the shower.

And what relieved me more that anything was to find Diana sitting with Lola and Janet at our usual table. I couldn't help but quickly walk up to them and hug the first girlfriend I could reach, which was Diana, in tears. Not in my entire life had I seen a disastrous day as today.

What did I do wrong to have deserved that? Why couldn't he ever treat me the same as others?

"It's alright, sweetie. Everything will be just alright!" Diana consoled me as she made me sit beside her and gently rubbed my back.

"What did he do now?" Janet asked, feeling sorry for me. I told them what had occurred during gym and saw their expressions transform at every other word before fury was the only emotion remaining on their faces.

"How mean!" Janet exclaimed.

"Jerk!" Diana spat out, her eyes almost burning with rage.

"But why is he doing that?" Lola asked, baffled.

"Only one way to find out," Janet was the one to reply, staring behind us. We turned to follow her gaze and found Rome entering the canteen with another girl who I recognized to be Mandy, the girl who harboured all sorts of superstitions. Janet got up and marched towards him. A murderous look on her face. I thought she would slam him down and punch him right in the face, but instead she stopped before him.

The conversation had started but I was way too far to hear anything. There was some serious talking going on for a few minutes. Then, to my utter astonishment, he smiled and even laughed in the middle!

"What the hell is happening over there?" I asked Diana without moving my gaze away from him.

"I have no idea, babe!" She replied back, staring at the scene like me.

"He looks even more handsome when he smiles and laughs!" Lola exclaimed from behind us.

I automatically faced her and delivered my disbelieving gaze to her.

"What? I just said the truth!" She exclaimed defensively. I sighed and turned back to look at him. Abruptly, his gaze fell on us making me immediately to avert my gaze and faced Lola again but she was still staring in his direction, so did Diana.

"Here she comes!" Lola whispered screamed sort of excitedly as Janet came back and sat in her usual seat.

"What took you so long? What did he say?" Diana asked in a tone which showed just how much she was disinterested but I knew otherwise.

"Lizzy, he isn't that bad! Instead, he's a really sweet guy. A gentleman! He didn't stare at me rudely and never said a cruel word. And... He's damn funny, and... Quite interesting," she said the last line with a blush on her cheeks.

"Then why does he behave rudely with me?" I inquired, feeling pity over myself. She shrugged in answer.

"Maybe you should try talking to him calmly," Diana suggested.

"Whenever I talked to him, I was very gentle but he always barked in answer," I pointed out after recalling.

"Then try talking to him angrily, as I did," Janet suggested.

I sighed loudly and said, "Okay, I'll keep that in mind."

I went to throw the left overs from my tray that Diana had bought for me while the rest of them continued to eat. My mind had been preoccupied with the incident that occurred few moments ago. Turning around, I saw him trying not to drop his phone which was ringing. At the same time, he was trying to juggle the two full trays that he held in his other hand. I felt like helping him but I had second thoughts.

'What if he gets mad at me again?' But I shook that thought away and went to help him anyway. I took the trays from him so that his hands were free to use the phone. Instead of being grateful, he glared at me, answered his call and talked to the caller.

He talked merely in sounds like 'Hmm...', 'Huh?', 'Um', 'Ah' , 'Oh' and many more which were more than enough for me to get distracted. But the death daggers that he kept giving my way lingering on my mind frequently. It agitated me. I tried to look busy and glanced everywhere else but him while he continued to talk.

After he ended the call, he kept his phone inside and snatched his trays from my hands.

"What's your problem? Can't you behave gently with a girl?" I asked, feeling hurt, confused and enraged all at once.

"You know what? You are my problem. Why can't you mind your own business? Always trying to poke your silly nose in my matters. Oh! Now I get it, you are one of those irritating, obsessed stalkers who don't take 'no' for an answer. Please just do me a favor and just stay the hell away from me!" He spat out, his voice merely a hiss in the end.

I could feel my tears trail down my cheeks slowly even when I tried to stop them from rolling down my cheeks. I instantly left that place breaking into a sob. Running out to the stadium since there weren't many students to witness me breaking down, I sat in a corner and wept. Like a little child.

I hadn't realised that my friends had witnessed everything making them follow and sat next to me, offering comfort and sympathy.

Did he think that low of me? Did he have to insult me like that? What in the holy fudges had I ever done to deserve his wrath?

Out of blue, Lola's phone beeped as well as Janet. Soon followed by Diana's and at last mine my phone vibrated in my back pocket soon after. All of us took it out and found everyone had got the same message, a video - my video. Someone had shot the conversation between me and Rome which ended with me leaving the lunchroom in tears. They had titled the video as 'The Cry Baby!'

Now the whole school would tease me with that name!

I felt even worse and my eyes overflowed with another round of tears, until my vision blurred and I couldn't stop them.

The pain and embarrassment suddenly becoming unbearable, I stood up and rushed away to the parking lot while my friends tried to stop me by calling my name. And to make my day even more worse, everyone in the hallway laughed at me as I passed by them.

"Hey, cry baby!" Someone hollered.

This only hurt me more to the point that I was trembling. I made it to my car and was about to sit in when I saw Rome and Mandy playfully chasing and tickling each other. They didn't seem to pay attention to anything else. I felt more irated, humiliated and hurt to see him enjoying at my expense and have fun while I cried because of him. I immediately climbed into the passenger seat and left for home, not caring what anyone would say about me running away like a coward.