Alex, emboldened by Ellie's lip-biting and fickleness, put his hand on her shoulder and his grin widened. "It'll be [i]wicked[/i]," he promised.

The rest of the lecture period passed, and Alex didn't take many notes. He kept re-playing in his mind the way Marcus looked at Ellie, leaning on the desk like he owned it or something. Part of Alex knew that he was being ridiculous, of course, it was his first day at a new school, he didn't know any of these people, how could he expect to have any influence? And yet Ellie seemed to have awakened something in him, something primal and possessive that knew no reason or logic, just impulse.

The acid blotter still sitting in his jacket made Alex think he ought to go try to meet some people and unload a few, maybe give out some samples to attract new customers, that kind of thing. "Networking." He was about to bid Ellie goodbye (for now), when he saw Marcus approach and grab her ass.

Alex lunged forward and grabbed Marcus by the collar, his face contorted in irrational rage.

"[i]Da fuck[/i] you think you're doin?" he snarled, his face just inches from Marcus's. "Fuckin cunt, [i]keep off[/i], eh?" Alex bared his teeth, his usually sleepy-looking blue eyes now wide and intense. Marcus was stunned speechless, gaping at Alex in awe and fear. Leeview High was not a school that saw many fistfights; they were generally more of a cyber-bullying crowd. The rest of the class looked on as well. Their initial shocked silence dissolved into whispers. Alex let go and took a step back, trembling, with his piercing stare fixated on Marcus.

"Y'all stay the fuck away from my party," Marcus said in disgust as he walked away.