The Mad Dog's Leash

Before winter break, the new transfer student kept accidentally running into my childhood sweetheart.
First, she'd twist her ankle. Then, she just couldn't understand the homework.
But my childhood sweetheart, Roman, is a possessive, unhinged germaphobe.
So when the new girl, in front of me, hiked her skirt up and pretended to fall into his arms, Roman just stepped back.
He watched her crash into the swimming pool and start to flail.
"If you don't want to live," he said, his voice cold, "dying is always an option."
1
My childhood sweetheart, Roman, is a germaphobe and dangerously possessive.
He can't stand anyone touching him. Except me.
At his worst, he'd flinch if his own parents got too close.
Im the only leash that can hold this "mad dog."
In eighth grade, as the housekeeper's daughter, I was sent to the same elite prep school as the young master.
On the first day, I was walking past the gym in my school uniform skirt. Some idiot whistled at me.
Roman grabbed a metal chair and threw it at his head.
Even at a prep school filled with entitled brats, Roman was on another level.
He was red-eyed, a total psycho, ready to fight the entire lacrosse team. But I just stood there. I said his name, just once.
He froze.
The psycho vanished. He just... turned and looked at me, his expression wounded.
Mad dog to good dog, just like that.
That day, the rumor that the unhinged school prince had been tamed spread across the entire campus.
Soon, a new saying followed:
If you piss off Roman, Sienna might be able to save you. If you piss off Sienna? You're dead.
It was cringey, sure, but it was accurate. And that rumor held true all the way through high school.
Until sophomore year, when she showed up.
2
Her name was Sadie. Long, dark hair, an innocent face.
She turned every head, not because she was stunning, but because she looked exactly like me.
Even that aloof, don't-touch-me vibe was a cheap copy.
I saw Roman stare at her.
As she passed us, she flicked her hair and shot me a look. Pure provocation.
What she didn't see was Roman's brow furrowing, just slightly. A look of pure disgust.
After first period, the teacher called meas class presidentto her office. The gist: "Please take care of the new student."
I nodded. When I got back, Roman was waiting for me, leaning against the doorframe. The second he saw me, his face lit up and he pushed off the wall to walk toward me.
Sadie "happened" to be walking by at that exact moment. She stumbled, a perfect, graceful trip aimed right at Roman's chest.
Roman just frowned and took one step back.
Thud.
Sadie hit the floor, hard.
Roman didn't even look down. He was already at my side, smiling.
3
"What's up? Teacher need something?"
The girl on the floor, however, delivered her lines with impressive timing. She looked up, her eyes watery.
"Sienna... I just got here. I didn't do anything to you, did I? Why would you... why would you do that?"
She looked so fragile, all damsel-in-distress. The few kids in the hall looked over.
She thought she'd won.
She didn't get it. This is our school. They weren't looking at her with pity; they were watching a train wreck.
I'm known for being nice. I'm the class president. I don't use the "mad dog" to bite people just because they're annoying.
But Roman stepped next to me, his whole body tense, radiating "don't-touch-her" energy.
The air in the hallway got cold. People backed away.
Before the "psycho" could fully emerge, I grabbed his hand.
"Let's go," I said. "She clearly doesn't need help."
Instantly, the tension snapped. The only thing in Roman's world was our joined hands.
4
The school gives us a two-hour lunch break, so most students go back to their dorms for a nap.
I had to run back to grab a textbook.
I passed the courtyard behind the cafeteria and heard voices. Then I heard my name.
"Sienna is such a bitch! Shes always in the way! You need to figure out a way to get rid of her!"
I looked. It was Sadie, sitting on a bench, eating from a lunchbox. She was completely alone.
Then I heard another voice, a mature man's, coming from nowhere. It sounded robotic.
"Then earn more Conquest Points. Points solve everything."
Conquest Points?
I froze.
"You said this face was his type!" Sadie complained, stabbing her food. "Why isn't he falling for me?"
"He is," the voice said. "The Conquest Value rose by one point today."
I was stunned.
Roman. My Roman... was "conquerable"?
"So what's next?" Sadie asked. "That whole 'innocent girl' act isn't working."
"Then change tactics. Men like novelty. Sienna is cold and aloof; she probably never shows him any affection. You be warm. Be passionate."
"Fine. I'll try."
...I slipped away.
5
Sure enough, Sadie changed tactics.
After class, she bounced over to our desks, a stack of textbooks in her arms.
She was like a hyperactive sparrow, chirping away.
The guy in front of us finally snapped. "Can you shut up? The teacher just explained this. Were you even listening?"
Sadie tossed her hair. "I can listen and still ask questions, can't I?"
"They're simple equations. If you still don't get it, you should probably see a doctor."
"You don't get it," she said, leaning past him to smile at Roman. "I'm not really here for the answers. I just wanted an excuse to talk to you, Roman."
She propped her chin on her hands.
"I like you."
The class went dead silent. Kids who were asleep were suddenly nudged awake.
Roman, who had been doodling, looked up. He looked at Sadie. Then he looked at me, clearly waiting for a signal.
I just turned my head and looked out the window, pretending to be bored.
I heard him grind his teeth.
His voice dropped ten degrees. "I don't need you to. Get lost."
Sadie's smile faltered. She opened her mouth to try again, but Roman grabbed the nearest textbook and hurled it.
"Can't you understand English?"
The book smashed into the wall an inch from her head.
A few kids snickered. Sadie stared at me, her face burning, and then stomped off.

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