Page 37 of His Untoward Hate

There was no one.

Suddenly, he froze in his tracks when silhouettes of men appeared at the far end of the hallway, only a few meters away, their shadows swallowing the dim light. A wave of panic instantly washed over him. He quickly turned the other way to run, but before he could, he slammed into someone. Jude’s head collided with a hard chest, forcing him to clutch his forehead in pain and adjust his eyeglasses on the bridge of his nose.

“Where are you going faggot?” a husky, familiar voice asked.

Jude looked up grudgingly and saw a big, tall guy towering over him, wearing a black mask.

“Tame him,” the unknown man in front of him commanded.

Jude was caught off guard as he turned around for a chance to escape when two guys suddenly grabbed him by his arms. He was about to scream for help, but someone covered his mouth with a hand. An overwhelming wave of fear and panic rose through him. His anxiety hit instantly, making it hard to breathe, especially when someone’s hand was on top of his mouth. Jude struggled desperately to break free from their grip, but they were far too strong.

They lifted him off his feet while he kicked and thrashed helplessly as they dragged him toward the parking lot, where the darkness made everything even more terrifying. Everything went blurry as tears began streaming down his face.

Once they reached a spot hidden from view, they finally dropped him. A rough shove sent him crashing against the concrete wall, pain shooting through his back from the impact. Jude let out a pained wince.

Jude looked at them in terror, although he could not see them clearly. Despite the tears also blurring his vision, their faint presence alone was enough to frighten him.

They seemed familiar.

The taller and more masculine guy in the middle slowly approached Jude. He instinctively tried to back away, but there was no space left for him to go. The cold concrete wall behind him trapped him in place.

The guy in the middle cupped Jude’s face with his dominant hand, gripping it harshly. The pressure from his hold sent a sharp wave of pain through his nerves.

“Stay the fuck away from Sky Granger faggot, before we kill you,” he threatened.

Jude tried to remember the sound of his voice, but the recollection remained frustratingly out of reach, especially with the face mask distorting and changing his tone.

“Do you understand?” he seethed.

The stranger’s eyes dilated so fiercely that they seemed ready to pop out of his sockets.

Jude only nodded his head anxiously, tears continuously pooling down his cheeks. The masked man released his hand from Jude and stepped back. Jude’s eyes hazily dilated in terror when he signaled to the two boys behind him to come over, and before he knew it, a fist connected right to his face. He groaned in agonizing pain, stealing the air from his lungs when another punch connected with his stomach. Jude immediately clutched his abdomen, overwhelmed by the sensation. He felt like choking up, and his airways abruptly constricted.

Another blow landed on his face, followed quickly by one more to the other side of his cheek before he could even recover. Jude already tasted blood spreading inside his mouth. The three men made him like a punching bag before Sky’s promise.

“P-lease s-top…” he trailed off. “W-hat d-id I do?” he begged between ragged breaths, each word sounding like it might be his last.

It was like he could not take it any longer.

Jude still managed to speak despite the blood pouring from his mouth. He tried to resist them with all his might, but the two immediately reacted and restrained both of Jude’s arms.

“What did you expect? You were a mistake the moment you were born. Nobody wanted you, nobody likes you, and nobody ever will. And listen carefully, faggot. Stay the hell away from Sky. If I catch you anywhere near him again, you’ll wish you’d never set foot in this school.”

“I think he’s had enough,” said his companion, taking a step back from the scene. “Let’s move. We don’t want anyone finding out we were here.”

“I’m not satisfied yet,” he snarled, his eyes blazing with cruelty. “One more punch.”

Before he could brace himself, a fist slammed into his face with bone-shattering force. A sickening crack echoed through his skull, stirring something in his blood-brain barrier. Seering pain erupted from his nose as he felt something break. Before he knew it, warm blood immediately gushed from his nostrils, spilling over his lips and chin. He could taste iron on his tongue as the world spun violently around him and stars blasted across his vision.

“You’re bringing so much trouble in this sch—”

Before another fist could land against his jaw, someone from behind stopped it from coming in midair.

Jude struggled to catch his breath.

“You’ll regret why you did this…”

A very familiar voice cut through the air: very deep, very firm, very sharp, very commanding, and very powerful.