Chapter 4: Vermin

Avery

Thankfully, Mrs. Kyer returned and the Hoity Hags plastered on their fake smiles and pretended to offer me assistance. Not having the energy or desire to cause a scene, I accepted their outstretched hands. One day, one day…none of this will matter and I will be far away from here. Far away from the dragons that I fear and the abuse that I am forced to endure. Humans can't treat other humans as badly as I am treated here. Surely there is safety and a place for me to belong there because I surely don't belong here. I am no dragon.

Waiting for the other girls to shower and dress, I stayed outside of the locker room talking to Mrs. Kyer since I knew that I was going to have to find a way to earn enough credits to pass this course. She knows my physical limitations and has agreed to allow me to write papers about each test that I fall short of passing. I am grateful that the teachers respect me enough to allow me to make an extra effort to graduate. I need to be done with classes and the Naga Tribe. I quickly excused myself and showered.

I had two classes before lunch and they went by quickly. So far, I am not in any classes with The Trio and I am immensely thankful for that too. I get in line and load my food onto my tray. As I was exiting the line, Jessica flipped my tray. Spilling its contents all over my dress she says, “Could you be any more of a klutz.” I sigh as I turn to leave. “That's right, little mouse. Scurry off like the vermin that you are!” she taunts.

She's right. I am nothing more than a filthy useless rat. I rushed to the restroom in an effort to try and remove the spaghetti sauce from my dress. I stripped it off and began scrubbing it. “Avery, I am sorry,” Trisha said as she entered the restroom. Trisha is a sophomore that I tutored when she was a freshman. She is from a middle-class family in the tribe.

“I wish that this year was over already so I could leave.”

Her big brown eyes met mine in the mirror. “You will still keep in touch with me, right?” she asked.

“Of course, I will,” I lied not knowing if I would be able to or not. All I know is that I want to, as she is the closest thing that I have to a friend.

“I have some spare clothes in my locker. I will be right back,” she says as she hurries off while I use the hand dryer to dry my still-stained dress. I don't want to use my pay for clothes but if this is any indication of how this year will go, I will need to go shopping.

As I was examining my busted lip in the mirror, the Hags walked in. I quickly rushed inside a stall and locked myself in. I curled up on the toilet seat hoping beyond hope to remain hidden. I could hear them at the sinks chatting as I heard plastic containers hitting the counters. I could tell that they must be plastering on more makeup to hide their ugly hearts. I had grown up around these vile and disgusting girls. No amount of makeup or gallons of perfume could mask their stench. I had to stuff my dress into my mouth to prevent me from gagging at the putrid combinations of their perfumes. If any of them become queen, they will kill off the species with their fragrances alone. Serves them right if any of the Trio are dumb enough to mark them as a mate.

While I was hiding, I overheard them talking about the Trio’s Grand Ceremony, which is quickly approaching. The Hags plan to seduce the Trio into choosing them as temporary mates if they aren't their Fated ones. They go on and on about what they plan to wear and go into detail about what they plan to do for the guys. I feel my cheeks heat up at the mere mention of a blow job. I would never do that to any of the Trio, not that they would want me to either, but the thought of having a guy be at my mercy like that is very appealing. Maybe when I can finally escape the land of dragons, I will find a nice human boy who will let me.

Thankfully, the Hags leave before I hear Trisha come in and whisper for me. I come out of my hiding place and she gives me a T-shirt and a jean skirt to wear. They are a little big because she has boobs and is fairly curvy. I wish that I had a body like hers. Hell, I wish that I looked like any of the girls here. If I could have average beauty, I would sell my soul to the devil himself. But knowing my luck, the devil would be a dragon. I laugh at myself. That is about as likely as me being the princess that my mother used to sing about.

After I braided my hair and thanked Trisha, we went our separate ways. We can't be seen together or else she will become a target too. I remember last year when Heidi saw me tutoring Trisha. A few days afterward, Heidi and the Hags took Trisha to the mall to shop. They told Trisha that they knew a boy who liked her and was going to meet her later at a dance club nearby. The Hags said how they would help Trisha pick out the perfect outfit too. Later that night, the Hags dropped Trisha off at the club. She waited for an hour before she went inside. They had dropped her off at this seedy BDSM club. I only know what BDSM is because Trisha explained it to me as we researched it. Trisha was lucky that no man assaulted her that night and that's why I made sure to keep our friendship hidden.

I walk into my next class which is honors chemistry and quickly take my seat. The Trio is in this class so I keep my head down until Mr. Chen says, “Cassius, Avery is your new lab partner and I expect great things from you both this year.” Fuck, could this year get any worse?

Cassius takes a seat beside me. He leans in close to whisper, “You had better get me straight A’s when you do my homework. Also, you will let me copy off of you. If you don't, I will do more than give you a fat lip.” I nod as I hear the other girls whine about not being paired with any of the Trio, especially Cassius. I would gladly trade any of them if that were an option. Graduation Day can't come soon enough!