Taming The Bad Boy By Ivy Coleman Chapter 5

Sam jolted awake due to the ringing alarms that echoed throughout the building. He winced, sleepy eyes blinking as he groaned and rolled over. “Bambi. Get up.” a rough voice grunted as Sam felt himself being shoved. Sam groaned sleepily but the alarms kept violently echoing. “BAMBI! Dammit get up!”

Sam cried out as something jolted his arm with a heavy tug. He frantically awakened as he opened his eyes to see a dressed Hunter standing against the rails of his bed as he tried to awaken Sam. Now Sam was awake he could hear the alarms going off clearly. He looked towards Hunter as he scooted anxiously to the ladders of his bed. “What’s going on? Is it a fire bell?”

Hunter said nothing but threw something dark at Sam who caught it with a struggle. “Is there a fire?” Sam’s voice was high with fear especially when he saw Hunter’s expression. Not once had he ever seen Hunter look worried but right now he could see Hunter trying to think desperately. Hunter was searching through stuff but turned sharply back towards Sam.

“Dammit, Bambi. I said get up.” Hunter growled as he suddenly dipped his arms under Sam’s legs and back and lifted him up and off the bed. Sam yelped as his arms flung around Hunter’s broad neck before he was placed down on the ground. He released Hunter’s neck as he unfolded the dark thing thrown at him and realised it was a jacket—Hunter’s jacket. Hunter nodded his head towards the bundled-up material “Put it on and put the hood up.”

Sam did as he was told but struggled to zip up the hoodie due to his trembling fingers. Hunter grabbed his hand as he yanked him out the door but looked left and right first. Seeing that sight was clear he yanked Sam down the corridor. Sam stumbled after Hunter, his arm felt like it was being ripped off and his eyes began to water again as he swallowed down his fright. “What’s going on?”

Hunter said nothing, only kept searching different pathways with his eyes as he stood defensive and on guard. Sam cried out as Hunter turned another corner and yanked Sam towards a different corridor. “Hunter! What’s going on—” Sam glanced back behind him to see shadows dancing along the walls as well as footsteps and hushed voices filled with excitement. He turned back to see Hunter so concentrated that he looked scary. “Hunte—”

Sam was suddenly yanked underneath the staircase as multiple feet rushed down the stairs. Hunter was leaning back against the walls as he wrapped his strong arm around Sam’s shoulder to keep him pinned to his chest whilst his other hand cupped Sam’s mouth to stop any sounds that escaped it. Hunter’s face rested beside Sam’s as Sam heard the steady breathing of Hunter down his ear. Sam watched as a group of guys all rushed past and felt Hunter’s grip slacken as Sam turned around and pried him off. Hunter looked down at him with his usual empty look.

“What’s going on?” Sam cried quietly as he hugged himself. He didn’t even care how babyish or childish he looked in front of the masculine guy. He had been yanked from his bed and not told a single word of what was going on.

He had a right to be a wuss. Hunter said nothing but grabbed Sam’s hand again and began yanking him down different corridors all over again. Sam clenched Hunter’s hand as he whimpered to himself. He scrunched his eyes shut as he stumbled after Hunter’s fast pace. “Please—I just want to know wha—”

Hunter stopped abruptly as he turned to Sam with a pissed expression. “It’s not a fire bell! It’s an excuse!”

Sam frowned, swallowing his tears as he blinked up at Hunter who was seething. “E-excuse for what?”

Hunter gritted his jaw as he looked away for a moment before looking back to Sam. “To hurt you.”

Sam stumbled back in shock. “Why would they want to hurt me I haven-“

“It’s the tradition here. Each year on this very day the fire alarm will purposefully be set off and the game begins. Everyone has an hour to catch every new rabbit they can and then they bring them to the hall and—” Hunter stopped as he watched Sam’s eyes widen with fear he hadn’t even realised he was still holding Hunter’s hand. “Look. You’ll be fine once the hour is over. Just… do as I say. Trust me”

Sam flinched at the raw look of emotion on Hunter’s face that escaped for only a brief second before he nodded. He followed Hunter numbly as he allowed the giant to pull him down different corridors and kept silent. His heart was thumping and he felt the overwhelming urge to be sick. He felt like he was being hunted—he was being hunted. His fingers curled around Hunter’s hands as he desperately hoped Hunter wouldn’t let him go. “Here. No one will look for you in here” Hunter said as he opened a small closet door that was down the empty side of the building.

“You’re staying with me, aren’t you?” Sam said, hysteria dripping from his voice as his eyes widened and he clutched Hunter’s hand. Hunter opened his mouth to reply when voices flooded the room.

“Shit.” Hunter cursed as he pulled Sam into the closet. Hunter shut the door as he slid down, so he was sitting on the floor with his knees bent but open since there was no room. Sam was pulled down with him, so he was sitting between Hunter’s bent knees, his back to Hunter’s sturdy chest. Hunter’s brows furrowed as he silently cursed, no one ever came down this side of school. Lights flickered underneath the crack of the door.

“Dude, why are we here it’s a waste of time.” Someone groaned from outside.

Sam almost squeaked in surprise as he covered his mouth with his hands. A rough voice broke through the murmuring lot.

“I want that little rabbit. I bet the Lion’s keeping him for himself.” Sam shivered in disgust as he clenched his eyes shut and trembled against Hunter. The footsteps finally faded away as Hunter sighed, leaning his head back but stopped when he heard sniffles.

“Are you—” he stilled when he felt two small hands clutch into his shirt. The small body in front of him trembled and a face nestled into his chest and cried. Sam expected to feel his fingers being pried off, to have Hunter shove him away and start spitting insults at him for finally breaking but to his surprise he was met with a warm hand soothing over his hair as the other wrapped around his back. Hunter sighed as his hand hesitantly hovered over the weeping head before he placed it on the ridiculously soft caramel locks and soothed his hand over it. Once he had started, he found he could not stop stroking the locks as they used between his calloused fingers, he mapped out while he waited until Sam had stopped crying and when he looked done, his two fingers nudging him as he tried to look at the smaller boy to sce it he had finally stopped crying, Hunter tilted his head down, chin to chest as he squinted his eyes through the dark. He shook his head, making a chi sound between his teeth when he saw Sam sleeping against his chest, his fingers curled up in his tear-soaked shirt.

Hunter rolled his green eyes but stood up, holding Sam to his chest as he opened the door and began walking back down to their dorm once the hour had finished. There was no more alarms only silence and the sound of Hunter’s padded steps as he turned another corner. His arms begun to ache, but he did not once let them drop in the slightest. His eyes remained forward as if his heart would suddenly weaken if he glanced down at the sleeping mass in his arms.

“Tutt. Tutt.”

Hunter stilled, his muscles flexing defensively as he gritted his jaw and turned his head to see who it was, but he didn’t need to look to know who the voice belonged too.

“Hiding the rabbit. How bad of you.” The blond head was already coming from its hiding place as Lyle came out from the shadows he lurked in. His pink lips were drawn back into a smirk as his blue eyes flashed over the sleeping rabbit. Hunter growled lowly as he narrowed his eyes. He mentally cursed as he couldn’t do anything since he was holding Sam. In a cold, empty tone he replied “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I found him passed out.” And with that he glared sharply at Lyle whose smirk widened. He continued to walk but was well aware of the cocky blond following him with a cherry lollipop hanging from the corner of his grinning mouth.

“So now the bride and groom are going back to the suite?” he teased as he eyed the position they were in. Hunter chewed the inside of his cheek as he inhaled slowly to stop himself from kicking Lyle in the chest. Instead, Hunter said nothing but continued to walk as the dorm finally came into sight. Lyle’s eyes flashed to the dorm and in a panic, he quickly walked in front of Hunter as he walked backwards, not yet done with his teasing but knew he could not step into the dorm with Hunter.

They reached the door as Lyle struck his arm out and stopped Hunter from entering. Hunter glared ahead before slowly turning his burning gaze towards Lyle who seemed to light up from the reaction. Lyle leaned forward as his lips slowly pronounced each word with unbelievable joy. “You’ve got a soft spot for him.”

Hunter saw the joy burning in Lyle’s manipulative eyes. He felt defenceless as he knew what Lyle was like and what Lyle would do if he believed Hunter finally had something that could make him vulnerable.

“No. He’s my roommate. They’ll think I did it if they find him and this one’s got connections with the Head. His family can have anyone out of here with the snap of their fingers.” Hunter lied but his lie was convincing and so Lyle faltered for a moment. Not only did that make it so Lyle would be uncertain whether Hunter really did care about him, but it would also make Lyle back off as he now believed if he tried anything with Sam he would get kicked out. Hunter had no idea whether Sam even had a family or not, but Lyle bought it, his hand sliding down in defeat as he stalked away with one final glare and pursed lips. Hunter kicked the door shut behind them as he sighed. He was stressed and tired and wanted nothing more than to just go to sleep.

He tried to lift his arms and put Sam on his bed, but his arms wobbled, weak from holding him for too long, instead he just placed him on his bed and climbed his way onto Sam’s bed.

As Hunter wrapped the blankets around himself he questioned why he helped Sam anyway. Lyle’s words hit him which caused his face to twist into an angered expression, angry at himself for even having a moment of weakness. From now on, Hunter needed to stop getting so close to this boy. He needed to stop pinning him to walls, to stop whispering things to him and to stop faltering every time he had the chance to hit him. But at the thought of hitting Sam, Hunter felt a pain in his chest. He scrunched his eyes shut as he nestled his head beneath the blankets as if he could leave his thoughts outside of the blankets. He didn’t know why he was treating Sam so different, but it needed to stop. In the end he just pinned it down to the fact that Sam was small and innocent looking. The fact that Sam hadn’t actually tried to fight him, so he gave Hunter no reason to hurt him.