Damaged and the Beast (Damaged #1)

“What the fuck does that mean?”


“You know what it means. I need time to think.”

“I’ll fix shit with Nick.”

“Good, but you can’t just fuck up people then apologize and act like it’s cool. Maybe you need to hurt bad people for the business, but not someone who never did anything except want what you have. I hate to break it to you, Coop, but lots of people want what you have. Your money, your looks, your long list of pussy, your family, me, the Harleys. You can’t pound on people for being envious.”

The anger in Cooper’s expression faded until he just looked tired. “How much space? Like for how long?”

“I don’t know. There’s no rule book for how long to punish a guy for putting another guy in the hospital.”

“I didn’t plan to fuck him up like that. I didn’t even hit him that hard, but his head bounced off the curb and I knew it was bad.”

“Did you leave him there?” I whispered, imagining Nick lying on the ground.

Cooper sighed. “There were people around. His idiot friends jumped in… Shit, I fucked up, but you promised you wouldn’t leave me.”

“I thought you did something bad like hurt an asshole or even fucked another girl. I wasn’t sure I’d be okay with those things, but I told you what you needed to hear. It wasn’t those things though. It was you hurting a nice guy who helped me out a few times when I was struggling with schoolwork. He didn’t have it coming.”

Cooper frowned at any positive mention of Nick. He still held a grudge and I knew forgiving him wasn’t really my call. Nick was the one who suffered and he was the one who needed to forgive Cooper. I just needed time to figure out if Cooper would pound on every guy I talked to for the rest of our lives.

Leaving him standing on the quad, I returned to class. Skye said nothing when I joined her. When she spoke after class, it was about Tyler and his ability to bench press her. Admittedly, Skye’s descriptions of Tyler’s amazing strength did make me laugh. Yet, a hard ball of tension remained in my gut as I headed to my last class.

Cooper wasn’t in Spanish, so I sat in the front. Manuel mainly reviewed old lessons because so many students in his classes had done “mucho crapido.” Everyone laughed at this comment and the fifty minutes flew by. I was still thinking about the two empty seats in the room though. As I walked towards the door, I even looked back at Cooper’s regular spot and wondered what to do.

“Farah,” Manuel said, calling me back into the now empty room. When I was standing in front of him, he smiled and I knew I was in trouble. “Normally, a counselor would handle this, but it was felt because of your situation that requesting you go to the Admin building might be too…stressful.”

Assuming he meant my dating situation, I waited for the bad news. “Am I in trouble?” I asked when he didn’t continue.

“I want to assure you how many students are in the same boat as you. These tests are meant as a wakeup call for the lazier, more disorganized students. They can also reveal problems with students who really put effort into their studies.”

“Did I do badly on your test?” I asked, knowing the answer.

As Manuel glanced around then smiled softly, I felt my eyes burning. “Technically, you didn’t pass any of your exams,” he said and I immediately felt lightheaded. “Yet, the administration allows instructors to bump a grade into the passing range when we feel the student is struggling, but not for a lack of effort. In your case, all of your instructors know you are a good student. You attend class, participate, and actively learn, but clearly the first month hasn’t been easy and you’ll likely need tutoring.”

“Am I suspended or expelled?” I said, crying now. “Am I in trouble?”

Manuel reached out to comfort me then thought better of it. “No, Farah, it’s fine. This was why we didn’t want to call you into the Admin building. It’s sort of like the walk of shame for those students who aren’t putting in the effort.”

Breathing deeply, I tried to calm myself. It had proven to be a long day though and it wasn’t even four.

“Your exam scores were all bumped to D’s. I know that sounds bad, but you’re not on academic probation,” he said. “We just want you to get a tutor or two to help you catch up.”

“I study,” I babbled, feeling ashamed to have sat in his class every day and learned so little. “I don’t know why I did so bad.”

“Many students have trouble with tests especially the first ones,” he said, but I knew he was full of shit. My scores were bad enough that it wasn’t test anxiety. It was a lack of knowledge. I just didn’t know what I should have at this point. How had I fallen so far behind?

“Can I leave now?” I asked, needing to get home and cry for a while before work.