Chapter 3 The Untouchable and the Warrior

When Maya entered her second-period classroom, she immediately scanned the room for the most inconspicuous spot available. Spotting an empty desk in the absolute back corner, she kept her head down and hurried toward it.

She had already drawn enough unwanted attention by skipping an entire academic year. Sitting near the front like a teacher's pet would just paint a massive bullseye on her back for the rest of the student body.

But right as she went to slide into the plastic seat, a large, heavy body suddenly dropped into it. The metal legs of the desk let out a loud, violent squeak against the linoleum. Maya leaped backward in shock, terrified the entire desk was about to tip over onto her.

"Sorry, sweetheart. This seat is officially taken," Cliff Radford declared. He leaned back in the chair, a smug, incredibly punchable grin plastered across his face as he settled his broad shoulders.

The classroom immediately erupted into a wave of muffled, cruel laughter. The only reason the students didn't openly cheer was the presence of Mrs. Cruise, who was currently scrawling notes on the whiteboard, her sharp nose twitching in silent disapproval. But then again, Mrs. Cruise always looked like she was smelling something rotten.

"Out of the chair."

The gruff, low command cut through the classroom like a physical blade, instantly silencing the giggling students. A sudden, electric trickle of awareness raced straight up Maya’s spine.

Cliff Radford sneered, leaning his head back to look at the massive silhouette standing right behind Maya. "What did you just say to me, old man?"

"Out. Of. That. Chair," Ajax growled in response, repeating the words with a slow, terrifying rhythm.

Maya let out a silent, internal groan. Classic douchebag behavior right before said douchebag gets his skull crushed.

She looked toward the front of the room, catching Mrs. Cruise’s eye. If she wasn't entirely mistaken, there was a distinct, satisfied glint in the elderly teacher’s expression as she watched the confrontation unfold.

It made total sense. Cliff Radford was another textbook elite jock. He was the varsity football captain, the star quarterback, and the undisputed golden boy of Riverton High. Every single girl in the building seemingly drooled over his generic, athletic looks—except Maya. She couldn't stand his extreme arrogance. Cliff genuinely believed he was God’s gift to humanity, and the student body constantly enabled his delusions.

More importantly, Cliff was legally untouchable. His parents possessed an obscene amount of wealth and regularly threw massive donations at the school board to make his constant disciplinary issues vanish. Last semester, Cliff had literally blown up an old school bus in the center of the football field as a prank. Anyone else would have been expelled and faced criminal charges. Cliff? He walked away without so much as a detention, while Riverton High suddenly received two brand-new luxury transport buses and imported artificial turf.

Maya heard the heavy scrape of a desk behind her and knew Ajax had shifted his stance. His massive, towering presence hovered directly behind her shoulder blades. She stiffened, pulling her elbows tightly against her ribs, inhaling sharply as two massive, heavy hands suddenly wrapped firmly around her upper arms.

"Excuse me, sweetheart," Ajax murmured. His voice was surprisingly soft as he gently but firmly lifted her entirely to the side, clearing her out of the blast zone.

He stepped into her place, looming over Cliff like an eclipse. "Now, get your ass out of that chair, or you’ll be finishing this class out that second-story window."

Cliff stared up at Ajax, his expression defiant, but Maya didn't miss the way his knuckles turned stark white where he gripped the edges of the desk. "You touch me, Richmond, and your life is officially over. My dad will have you thrown in a cell so fast—"

Cliff was probably right about his father's influence, but the threat didn't seem to register with Ajax at all. His massive, scarred hand reached out, moving with terrifying speed straight for Cliff's throat.

Without thinking, driven by pure panic, Maya reached out and clamped both of her hands around Ajax's thick wrist, halting his forward momentum.

Ajax paused, his eyebrows shooting upward in genuine surprise as he looked down at her small dark hands gripping his arm. Maya immediately dropped her gaze, her throat tightening. She wasn't sure which one of them was more shocked by her intervention, but she knew Cliff was on the verge of a literal panic attack. The quarterback's eyes were bulging as he stared at Ajax's open, crushing palm hovering inches from his neck.

"Don't," Maya whispered, her throat incredibly dry. "He’s... he's not worth it."

Ajax let out a low, vibrating growl deep in his chest. Instead of pulling away, he closed his massive fingers around her hand, holding it securely. He turned his head slightly, leveling a lethal glare at the scrawny kid sitting in the desk directly behind Cliff.

"Move," Ajax commanded.

The poor kid didn't even hesitate. He scrambled out of his chair so fast he tripped over his own backpack, scattering papers everywhere before diving into an empty seat across the aisle. Maya couldn't blame him in the slightest; her own heart was beating a frantic tattoo against her ribs, and the aggression wasn't even directed Exton her.

With his free hand, Ajax effortlessly lifted the heavy metal desk-chair completely over his head. Maya shrank back as far as his grip would allow, terrified the heavy object was going to slip and crush both of their skulls.

Before anyone could breathe, Ajax raised his heavy black boot and delivered a brutal, uncompromising kick to the front of Cliff’s desk.

The force of the kick sent Cliff and his chair flying backward across the linoleum floor. The desk slammed violently into the back wall, bouncing forward with a horrific screech before Cliff frantically threw his legs out to stabilize himself from flipping over entirely.

Oh, no he didn't. Maya wanted to bury her face in her hands and scream. Does this guy have a literal death wish? Does he realize what he just did to the school's golden boy?

She looked up at the back of Ajax's head, her brow furrowing into a deep frown. Why are you doing this to me? I don't even know you!

Ajax calmly set the empty desk down exactly where he wanted it, using his grip on her hand to guide her gently into the seat. "You good?" he asked, his voice dropping to a low rumble.

Maya nodded rapidly, keeping her eyes glued to the faux-wood surface. "Thank you," she muttered begrudgingly.

She couldn't help but wonder what this display of chivalry was going to cost her. The Greek warrior could clearly handle himself in a physical brawl, but the bitch squad was going to absolutely lose their minds over this. Barbie and her minions were honorary members of Cliff's harem, and they would undoubtedly view this public humiliation as an declaration of war against Maya.

Ajax grunted in response. But before he claimed the desk right next to her, he leaned down, lowering his massive frame until his face was inches from hers. Maya held her breath, freezing completely to avoid making contact.

"You know, sweetheart," he whispered, his warm breath brushing against her ear, "one of these days, you're going to have to actually look me in the eye."

Maya's eyes went wide with shock, but she remained completely motionless, refusing to give him the satisfaction. She didn't breathe until he finally pulled away and settled his massive frame into the adjacent chair.

After a few excruciating seconds, Maya finally managed to inhale. At the front of the room, Mrs. Cruise calmly picked up her dry-erase marker and began teaching the lesson as if a major physical assault hadn't just transpired in the back row. The satisfied glint in her eyes confirmed everything: she truly, deeply despised Cliff Radford.

"Mrs. Cruise!" Cliff bellowed from the back wall, his face purple with rage as he stood up.

"Don't dish it out if you can't take it, Mr. Radford," Mrs. Cruise said without even turning around, her voice dripping with ice. "Sit down and turn to page forty-two."

Maya let out a long, exhausted sigh, sliding as low into her plastic seat as humanly possible. The very first day of her final semester had launched with an absolute explosion.

She could not wait to see what tomorrow looked like. Yippee.