The Devil's Lover novel Chapter 2

"Oh my God, is that you, Trance?" A brunette girl with brown eyes asked Trance in the locker hall. He looks at her. It's Joanna. She's been one of the few who's been nice to him two years ago.

"Joanna," Trance called. Little emotions were shown on his face. Joanna quickly hugs him. He feels awkward at the hug. "I was worried about you," she said when she broke the hug. Tears hung in her eyes.

"No need to worry. I'm okay," Trance said, finding it hard to have any kind of emotions towards the affection shown by her.

"You look so different without your glasses," she commented.

"Yeah. You look so much better like this," Joanna's best friend, Trudy also commented on Trance's looks. It's only first day of school for Trance. These are the only two familiar faces he met today. He didn't say anything to their comments. And at that, their faces began to sour. They wonder why he is behaving like this. Like he is a different person and he's not as nice as he was before.

"Whoa! Look who we have here!" A familiar voice rung in Trance's ears. He turns over his shoulder to look at the owner of the voice.

"Peter..." he called, looking confident despite of the arrival of Peter and his gang; Justin, Andy, Noah, and Anthony. They all look at Trance in disbelief.

"You look great, nerd. Lost a few memories, right?" Peter asked in an arrogant fashion. He is clearly not regretful of his sins. Of course, his father is the sheriff. He must've heard from his father about Trance's so-called memory lost.

Trance smiles. It's not a nice smile. It's a wicked one. To his own disbelief, that would be the first time he smiles ever since he got out of the hospital. "I remember a few stupid people in my life," he said and turns his head around to walk away from the locker hall. But Peter blocks him immediately.

"Who did you just call stupid?" Peter asked angrily. Trance only looks up at him with confidence. He's not intimidated at all by Peter. This even makes Peter a little nervous. But he refuses to back down. How can he be nervous over a boy he used to bully all the time? He even raped Trance the last time he saw him. He smiles at the back of his head over the memory.

"Leave him alone, Peter! You've done enough already," Joanna tries to back Trance up. Peter only smirks at her indifferently.

"Strangely,..." Trance suddenly said. "I don't remember mentioning you as the stupid ones but since you're so moved by the calling, you must be one then," Trance said to Peter, scorning him in a way.

Peter looks at Trance in anger. "You asked for it," he said and he rises up his fist towards Trance who stood still on his ground. Everyone had their eyes on them now. Of course, people enjoy seeing other people being bullied as long as they're not the ones being bullied. They thought of it as an entertainment for them. Selfish people...

Trance caught Peter's fist with one of his hands and hold it strongly in his grasp. Peter is shocked to see the strength in Trance. He tries to free his fist from Trance's grasp but the grasp is too strong. He starts to shudder. "No, Peter," Trance said, looking wickedly into Peter's eyes who's now crooking his eyebrows in disbelief. "You asked for it," he repeated Peter's words and pushes Peter back with just that one hand. The strength and speed of it were almost inhuman.

Peter crushes his back to the lockers behind him. The metal is dented a little from the impact. And Peter is agonizing in pain. He feels pain at his back. Then he looks at Trance in fear as Trance laughs a low haunting evil laughter. Everyone there including Peter's gang, Joanna, and Trudy were speechless and had their mouth widened in horror. They could not believe what they had seen. Entertainment, is it? Now they get to see one. They should be happy.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Trudy cried and pushes him away from her path. She can hear Trance is laughing evilly behind her.

~1 year and 10 months prior~

"I love you, Trance," Trudy confessed. Trance looks troubled by her confession.

He crooks his eyebrow and frowns. "Um... Trudy, I'm sorry..." He said, looking ultimately sorry and guilty towards Trudy.

"No. It's okay," Trudy said, giggling a little in an effort to hide her embarrassment. "You must've had someone else then," She continued, giggling nervously again.

"It's not that," Trance said, still refusing to look at Trudy. He just stares down to the pavement.

"Then, what?!" Trudy asked, getting a bit angrier at Trance's rejection of her love confession.