Chapter 13
Raven
I turned slowly at the familiar sneering voice. Maddie stood there, arms crossed, with Tyler hovering behind her like an oversized accessory. And behind them, her court of loyal sycophants had already assembled—Jessica from Chemistry, Becca from English, and several other faces, all hungry for the coming drama.
Tyler's eyes traveled over my transformed appearance with poorly concealed interest. The nervousness in his posture was subtle—the slightly widened stance, the tension in his shoulders. He was still afraid of me after yesterday, though trying desperately to hide it.
Cole tugged gently at my sleeve. "Let's just go," he whispered. "Not worth it."
But I was already moving forward, my heels clicking rhythmically against the polished floor. I stopped directly in front of the power couple, close enough to notice the foundation caking in the creases of Maddie's smile.
"Look who it is," I said, my voice silky and controlled. "Our school's power couple. The cheerleader who's slept with half the sports teams, and the quarterback whose IQ matches his jersey number." I tilted my head. "I'm curious though—what would make such royalty acknowledge someone as invisible as me?"
The crowd went silent. Maddie's face flushed crimson beneath her makeup.
"What the FUCK did you just say to me?" she snarled, stepping forward. "You think because you dressed like a two-dollar hooker I won't recognize what you're doing? Trying to steal my boyfriend, you desperate bitch!"
Her eyes narrowed with cruel amusement. "God, it's actually sad. No matter how many times Tyler humiliates you, you just keep crawling back for more. What is wrong with you? Do you actually enjoy being rejected or something?"
Her crude outburst seemed to snap Tyler out of his cautious state. His eyebrow twitched, and suddenly he was looking at me with new clarity—as if remembering his social position.
"Damn, Raven," he said, voice dropping lower as his eyebrows arched with renewed confidence. "Still can't get over me, huh?" His smirk widened as he looked me up and down appreciatively. "Didn't know you had all this hiding under those baggy clothes. Gotta say, I'm impressed with the upgrade. Shame it's still you underneath it all."
The crowd pressed closer, phones already recording. Jessica's voice cut through the tension first.
"God, she's been obsessed with Tyler for what—three years now?" she said, loud enough for everyone to hear.
"Remember how many times he pranked her?" Becca added with a laugh. "And she still wrote him that pathetic love letter."
A guy from the football team chimed in: "I bet she just lost it yesterday in class. Deep down, she's still completely in love with him. Why else would she suddenly look hotter than Maddie?"
That last comment earned some appreciative murmurs and a few snickers.
Cole stepped forward, his face reddening. "Don't talk about my sister like that! One more word and—"
"Raven, let's go," he added in a lower voice. "This thing with Tyler... it's complicated. You can't explain—"
"Oh my God, Cole," I interrupted, laughing with genuine amusement. "Please tell me you don't actually think I could be interested in this evolutionary regression?" I gestured toward Tyler. "I have standards. Low ones would be an improvement for him."
Though I'd spoken softly, the words seemed to hang in the air. The background chatter ceased abruptly. Tyler's expression hardened, the remnants of fear now completely replaced by wounded pride and anger.
He stepped closer, towering over me. "Listen, Raven," he said, voice low and threatening. "I know you've been acting weird lately, but my patience has limits." His eyes raked over me again. "Since you're looking so much better now, I'll let it slide this time. Maybe we could even talk... privately."
Maddie yanked his arm. "What are you saying?" she hissed, eyes narrowed to slits. "She's not pretty! She's just trashy!"
I looked between them, disgust curling in my stomach. This was what had broken the original Raven? This pathetic high school drama?
"Let me make something perfectly clear," I said, my voice dropping to a dangerous register that made several bystanders take instinctive steps backward. "You're ugly, Tyler. Not just your face, though God knows that's a tragedy—I mean your soul. Your muscles are a sad compensation for what nature deprived you of elsewhere. Your intelligence is so non-existent that scientists could study the vacuum between your ears. And your girlfriend—" I glanced dismissively at Maddie, "—is the perfect match for you. Vicious enough to compensate for your weakness, stupid enough to think you're a prize."
The silence was absolute. Not even breathing disturbed the shocked vacuum my words had created. I hadn't raised my voice—didn't need to. The cold, matter-of-fact certainty cut deeper than any screaming match could.
Tyler's face contorted with rage. He lunged forward, arm outstretched to grab me. Cole moved to intercept him, but he was too slow.
I wasn't.
Before Tyler's fingers could brush my jacket, I caught his wrist in a precision grip, twisting it backward at precisely the angle that sent shooting pain up the arm without breaking bones. His knees buckled instantly.
"Fuck! FUCK!" he shouted, face contorted in pain.
Maddie shrieked, swinging her designer purse toward my head. I ducked slightly, maintaining my hold on Tyler. The heavy bag connected solidly with the side of Tyler's head instead.
"BITCH!" he yelled, glaring at Maddie. "Who the fuck are you hitting?"
"Who are YOU calling a bitch?" Maddie screamed back. "And how are you letting this loser take you down? We beat her up before, remember?"
A cold smile spread across my face. Yes, you did beat up Raven before. Beat her so badly she gave up on life. But don't worry—I'm going to make sure you experience every ounce of pain you caused her, multiplied tenfold.
I increased the pressure on Tyler's wrist slightly, watching his face contort.
"From this moment forward," I announced to the now-silent crowd, "anyone who spreads rumors about me having feelings for this waste of oxygen will find their fingers broken. One. By. One."
The spectators glanced at each other nervously, sweat beading on foreheads. No one spoke.
"What's that?" I asked, smiling sweetly. "No comments? Let me ask you all a question: do you really think I would be interested in a man who cries because a girl half his size is holding his wrist?"
"No, definitely not!" Jessica blurted out.
"It was all a misunderstanding!" added another voice.
"With your looks and skills now, Raven—Tyler doesn't even compare," someone else chimed in.
I released Tyler's wrist with a slight push, sending him stumbling into Maddie. They collapsed in an ungraceful heap of designer clothes and wounded pride.
Turning to Cole, whose expression hovered somewhere between shock and awe, I smoothed my jacket.
"Cole," I said brightly, "shall we continue shopping?"