CHAPTER 6: MEETING CRAZY PEOPLE

The D-day had arrived, and Zachary stood in front of the Moore mansion with a suit on and the keys to the Maybach in his hands. He glanced at the steps of the mansion nervously as this would not only be the first day he attended his college classes looking like a young millionaire, but it would also be the first time that he would be walking in tandem with Jessica Moore. He tried to straighten his suit; courtesy of Malachi, as he heard voices drawing closer and just as he expected, Jessica walked out in a short black skirt, a large blue sweater and boots. Her hair was in a messy bun and her books littered her hands. Zachary smiled. Even when she wasn't trying, she looked beautiful. He stepped up and held the door open for her to enter.

"Zach. Is that you?" She asked as she drew closer to the car.

"Yeah."

"Don't you think the suit is a bit too formal for school?" Jessica asked with a small smirk.

"I'm a bodyguard so I assumed..."

"You go to West Brook the same as I do, don't you? Wouldn't it be better if you looked like my friend rather than a bodyguard? You know like be undercover and all that."

Zachary glanced at his clothes causing Jessica to chuckle. She turned around and gestured for one of the staff to come over.

"Please take him upstairs to see Deux. Tell him to get Zach some new clothes. Anything that isn't a suit and is appropriate for college."

The staff gave her a nod and walked off. Zachary hesitated a bit but followed suit. Three minutes later, Zachary walked out of the mansion in a black hoodie, black jeans and a white top. His sneakers were limited edition Nike Air Jordans and the Patek Phillipe watch on his wrist was more than the whole outfit together.

"Woah. Looking good already."

Zachary smiled at Jessica's small praise but knew better than to think these clothes were his. He would have to tread carefully and return them in good condition to avoid any problems.

"Come on. We don't have all day." His ward shouted out.

Zachary got closer and brought out the keys from his pockets, but Jessica swiped them from his hands and grinned.

"I'm driving."

Zachary watched her rush into the driver's seat and use her head to gesture for him to get in. He chuckled, walked over to the passenger's side and entered the car. With that, Jessica turned on the car and drove off.

They arrived at school and to no one's surprise, Lyla and the clique were already waiting by their cars for their queen bee to arrive. Once they parked and alighted the car, screams filled Zachary's ears as the girls squealed and hugged each other.

"He let you take the car?" One of the girls asked.

"He didn't have a choice." Jessica mocked.

As they spoke, Zachary went round the car and stood behind Jessica. Lyla and the other two girls glanced his way and frowned.

"New boy toy Jess?" One of the girls questioned.

Lyla was about to answer but Jessica beat her to it. She grabbed Zachary by the arm and pulled him close enough that he could smell her hair.

"Maybe. Maybe not. You'll have to wait and find out Hillary." She said dismissively before she turned to Zachary.

"Okay Zach. I'm good here. You can go to classes, and I'll meet up with you later."

Zachary shook his head. Malachi had already warned him about her skipping school when she had the chance, and he was not going to mess up on his first day. Lyla eyed him and he could feel shivers go up his spine.

"No need. We have the same classes together this morning. Let's go."

Zachary took her hand in his and began to pull her along, causing Lyla to glare at him. He had done it because classes were starting soon and because he really didn't like being around Lyla, but he had underestimated Jessica's curiosity.

"You're an odd one aren't you?" She spoke as she grinned at him.

Zachary glanced back at her and smiled timidly.

"I'm glad you think so."

                                                                                  ••••

The day had gone by in a blur with Zachary and Jessica getting looks and hearing whispers about themselves, so much so that most of the school already thought that they were dating. They had classes together for most of the day but when it was noon, they had to separate. Zachary had wanted to still go her classes as it was his job to protect her, but she had insisted that she could take care of herself in a three-hour class and that she wouldn't try to skip school when he held the car keys.

Reluctantly, Zachary agreed to it but said that he would be at the door waiting for her when her lecture ended and with a wave, Jessica walked off and disappeared into the sea of students. He sighed as he watched her go, hoping that he wouldn't get in trouble because of it. He turned around and began to walk off towards his own class. Jealous looks and inviting smiles filled his eyeline as guys wanted to be him and the girls wanted to be with him. Their expressions towards him now were different to what they were when they thought he was a poor guy from the slums.

Some girls waved to him while some blew him kisses which he readily accepted as he leaned into the rich boy role. Zachary reveled in the new feeling but was cut short when he bumped into someone. More like she blocked his path. Red hair and cashew-colored eyes looked back at him but not with anger or a liking. She looked at him with curiosity. He did the same since her subtle punk aesthetic left a lot to the imagination.

"I'm sorry. I should have been watching where I was going." Zachary apologized, trying to be friendly.

"Uh huh. What's your name?" She answered disregarding his apology.

Zachary eyed her. Was this a way for her to flirt with him?

"Zachary. Yours?"

"Red."

Zachary raised a brow basically silently asking her if the name was real or it was a choice because of the color of her heavily dyed hair and like before she totally ignored it.

"Where were you born?"

"Uh..."

"State? Parents? Any friends? Washington DC? Do you have a tattoo?"

Zachary raised his hands to stop her.

"Cool down. That's a lot of questions that I don't feel inclined to answer. Excuse me, I have a class to get to."

Red didn't seem bothered by his reaction, instead she grabbed him by the wrist and raised up the right sleeve of his hoodie to reveal nothing. Zachary pulled back his arm in anger.

"What the hell? Stay away from me." He shouted.

He side-stepped her but she wiggled close enough to pull up the left side of his hoodie. An infinity tattoo was revealed. She gasped. Relief coated her features, but surprise and fear coated Zachary's. He never had a tattoo on any inch of his body and that was definitely not on his wrist as of last night.

"You came back. After all these years, you finally came back."

Zachary stared at his arm in disbelief. How the hell did he get that and who the hell was this crazy lady? He faced her, his face getting feral.

"Red. Is everything all right here?"

Zachary could only watch on in confusion as the deranged girl turned back to face some guy with tattoos and a mop of black hair.

"Damien, I found him. I found Izaiah."

Damien looked up from Red and then at Zachary with anger in his eyes.

"You bastard." He said as he moved closer to Zachary as if he was about to fight.

Zachary took a step back cautiously, his mind burdened with questions. Was he about to get into a fight? Who was this Isaiah character Red was talking about and why was he even involved in this? Seriously, what was going on?