The air in the small dormitory room was thick with tension, but Railings refused to let Hawthorne's words get under his skin. Instead, he threw himself onto his bunk, staring up at the dark ceiling, the steady rhythm of Hawthorne's breathing in the bottom bunk the only sound in the room.
But sleep didn't come easily. His mind was racing, replaying their conversation over and over again, trying to decipher Hawthorne's true intentions. Was he really just trying to provoke Railings, or was there something more behind his words?
He huffed, turning over to face the wall. Hawthorne always found something on Railings and the taller male always fussed over Hawthorne's words at the end of each day even though he was in denialists. Railings sighed, turning over the other side.
"You're disturbing my sleep Railings, stop turning over a hundred of times." Hawthorne scoffed, finding amusement in teasing Railings once more.
"I don't have time for you." Railings could only say through the dark.
It was by surprise for Hawthorne not to reply to that. Both boys fell asleep in a lion's den, their hearts pumping with hatred. Hawthorne was the first to wake up as he got ready for breakfast. A sly grin stretched across his face at the sight of Railings' shampoo.
He didn't wait a single thought as he grabbed a dye mixing it with the shampoo, that sly grin replaced by an evil smile. Once the deed was done, Hawthorne casually slipped out of the room, whistling a tune to himself as he made his way to the dining hall.
It was all about fun to him.
Kent Hawthorne had two best friends, Jones and Sam. The trio was surprisingly different from each other, far different. While Jones was a good nerd student who cared about getting good grades at school, Sam was a troublemaker who found pleasure in giving his teachers a headache. Kent Hawthorne was different, he was a playboy and only a troublemaker when it involved Railings.
"How is it going with Railings? I heard you two are best roommates." Sam teased, making Hawthorne snort.
"Best roommates." Hawthorne scoffed at that. "I'm always tempted to read how to get away with murder everytime I see Railings." He hated him that much.
Sam let out a loud, obnoxious guffaw, slapping Hawthorne on the back with a playful smirk. "Railings? The walking stick-in-the-mud? You'd think he'd have more fun with that pole up his ass!"
Jones, on the other hand, wrinkled his nose in disapproval. "Kent, you two are going to get yourselves expelled at this rate. What's the point of all this bickering?"
Hawthorne let out a deep, exaggerated sigh. "Oh, Jonesy, you don't understand. It's not about fun," Hawthorne continued, leaning in conspiratorially. "It's about the game. You know how Railings gets all huffy and puffy? It's like he can't take a joke! And the best part is, I know how to push his buttons, and he falls for it every time. It's like a cat and mouse game, and I'm the cat."
Jones frowned. "A cat and mouse game where the cat and the mouse both get thrown out of the school?" He shook his head in disapproval. "You should stop, before it goes too far."
But Hawthorne just grinned. "Oh, come on, Jonesy. Lighten up. Where's your sense of adventure? Besides," he added, leaning back and putting his feet up on a nearby table, "If I stopped, where would the fun be?"
"KENT HAWTHORNE!!"
"Oh hell just broke loose." Sam muttered under his breath.
A purple haired Eiluned Railings stomped inside, fuming. His fist clenched, ready to punch someone. That didn't faze Hawthorne though, the shorter leaned against the chair with an amused smirk.
"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO TO MY SHAMPOO!?" He barked and that amused Hawthorne even more.
He tilted his head, "What, Railings? Don't you like the new look? It suits you."
"WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS SO CHILDISH!?" His anger boiled.
Hawthorne scoffed, "Why am I always so childish?" Hawthorne repeated, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "That's a loaded question, Railings. Why are you always such a humorless tightwad? It's called having fun, ever heard of it? You should try it sometime, might help you relax that stick up your ass."
The room fell silent, save for the low, ominous growl emanating from Railings' throat. The hair on the back of Hawthorne's neck prickled as he realized he may have gone too far. But there was no backing down now, he had pranked Railings and it was so good seeing him getting that angry.
In the ensuing silence, the air around the two rivals crackled with tension. Railings' fists clenched at his sides, veins bulging with fury.
Finally, Railings spoke, his voice low and dangerous. He hissed, "I'm going to make you regret this, Hawthorne. Every single day, I'm going to make you regret it."
Hawthorne, still smirking, raised an eyebrow. "Is that a threat, Railings?"
"What if it is Hawthorne?" He raised his eyebrow.
"Oh, I'm trembling in my boots," Hawthorne retorted, his smirk widening into a grin. "I can't wait to see what your sorry ass has planned."
Railings stared down at Hawthorne and Hawthorne's heart skipped a beat. He swore he couldn't breath for that second, and that made his expression to change but he quickly recovered.
"Okay Hawthorne." Railings'voice was low as he turned over his heel, walking away.
The two friends who were used to the battle that just unfolded before them sigh. "Looks like you've succeeded in making Railings angry once again."
Hawthorne shrugged, "He got his panties in a twist, he should rest and he'll be alright."
"You should be careful, you really don't want to be expelled from school." Jones was worried about him.
But Hawthorne didn't care, he sighed standing up as he left the two friends behind. Classes were rather draggy but Hawthorne managed to get through them.
He was playing basketball at the court with friends when he caught sight of Railings. He snorted, looking away as he continued to play.
"Kent." A low voice called for him.
He turned, finding Rosemarie who stood a few feet away.
Rosemarie was one of the closest girl Kent Hawthorne was close to. To be precisely, Hawthorne was a man hoe and he saw women as his playthings. A total asshole he was when it came to women. Rosemarie was different, Hawthorne treated her more in respect and didn't see her as anything but.
Rumors had it that the two liked each other and everyone believed that they were a cute couple. While Hawthorne turned a blind eye to the rumors, Rosemarie found pleasure in them because it was true, she liked Kent Hawthorne.
"Hey," Hawthorne said. "I thought you'd be busy, are you not attending a musical lesson?"
Rosemarie smiled, "Our teacher is not in so I came to give you some chocolates."
Hawthorne's smirk softened into a genuine smile as he accepted the chocolates from Rosemarie. "You know you didn't have to do that, but thanks." He popped one of the chocolates into his mouth.
Rosemarie's smile widened. "Well, I know how much you like your sweets. And besides, I heard there was a little incident involving your roommate." Her eyes twinkled with mischief as she nudged Hawthorne's arm. "What have you been up to?"
Hawthorne's grin took on a mischievous edge as he shrugged, rolling his shoulders in a nonchalant manner. "Oh, nothing much. Just your typical day at Wytham House." He glanced over at Railings, still playing basketball with his friends, though his movements seemed a little stiffer than usual. "Our boy Railings seems a bit out of sorts, wouldn't you say?"
Rosemarie bit back a laugh. "Out of sorts? More like he's lost his mind! Or maybe his dignity?"
"He's certainly lost something," Hawthorne mused, studying Railings' movements. "Maybe he just can't handle the color purple? Although, I have to say, he's sporting that shade quite well."
Rosemarie giggled, her eyes dancing with amusement. "He's not exactly the kind of guy who likes to make a scene, is he? Unless he's challenging you to a duel or something." She leaned in conspiratorially. "Heard you guys were getting along like a house on fire. Care to fill me in?"
Hawthorne scoffed, his grin widening even more. "Getting along? I think you're using that phrase a bit too loosely there, Rosie." He leaned back against the wall, his hands casually tucked into his pockets. "You could say Railings and I have a bit of a 'love-hate' relationship. A lot more hate than love, if you catch my drift."
Rosemarie shook her head, chuckling at Hawthorne's casual dismissal of the tension between him and Railings. "Oh, I catch it. You should stop entertaining him and focus on your studies."
"I'm focusing on my studies, but focusing on Railings is thrilling as well so I might as well focus on both." He looked at Rosemarie. "I should get back to basketball."
"Oh yeah! I'll head to the library, you should give your mother a call alright? She wanted to talk to you." She have Hawthorne a smile before she walked away.
Hawthorne went back to play and the afternoon passed within the blink of an eye. He was coming out of the shower with a towel over his shoulders. Railings was laying on top of his bunk bed only with his shorts.
"Had fun today Railings?" He smiled, leaning against the bathroom door.
"You just love getting under my skin." Railings stared at Hawthorne.
The shorter male shrugged, "What can I say? You amuse me."
"Goodluck with that Hawthorne." There was a meaning behind that, Hawthorne knew.
He shook his head heading towards his closet and changed clothes. Once he was done, he walked over to throw himself on top of his bed but he halted almost immediately.
"WHAT THE HELL!!!" He barked, making Railings smile.
"Love the surprise Hawthorne?" He smiled his way.
Hawthorne placed his hand on top of his bunk bed, it was wet. Every inch of the bed was wet together with the blankets.
"How can you do this?" He hissed under his breath.
"What? Looks appealing?" Railings raised his eyebrow in question.
Hawthorne's nostrils flared as he inhaled sharply through his teeth, his entire body tensing. "You've gone too far this time, Railings," he growled. "If you think you're going to get away with this, you're delusional."
Railings met his gaze, his expression utterly impassive. "Is that a threat?"
Hawthorne's eyes narrowed. "You want to play that game, Railings?" Hawthorne asked, his tone icy. "Fine. You're on. But mark my words, when I'm done with you, you're going to wish you'd never crossed me."
Railings matched Hawthorne's stare, his jaw set. "Oh, please. You think you're some kind of mastermind, Hawthorne, but you're just a two-bit prankster with an overinflated ego."
"Two-bit prankster?" Hawthorne scoffed, rolling his eyes in a derisive manner. "Coming from the guy who's idea of revenge is turning my bed into a goddamn swimming pool? I'm insulted. Truly."
"Tut-tut," Railings chided, his smile widening into a full-blown smirk. "You can dish it out, but you can't take it? I thought you had thicker skin than that, Hawthorne."
Hawthorne's nostrils flared once more, his body trembling with barely contained rage. "Thick skin is one thing," he spat, his words dripping with venom. "But having to sleep in a puddle? That's a whole other level of low. You're a real piece of shit, Railings."
"And you're just a spoiled little brat who's used to getting his way." Railings shot back, undeterred by Hawthorne's vitriol.
"Spoiled brat?" Hawthorne echoed, his voice rising in volume as he stood toe-to-toe with Railings. "I earned everything I have, and I've never relied on anyone for a goddamn thing. And you—you're just jealous that I'm better than you."
"Better at what?" Railings snorted. "Ruining someone's life? Being a complete and total asshole?"
Hawthorne's lip curled into a sneer. "Fuck you Railings, Fuck you!" He walked towards the door and opened it as he stepped. He left the room after banging the door shut.