HAVE YOU EVER HATED SOMEONE to the point just their name makes you mad?

Well, that's how I feel about Joshua Alexander Carter.

And it all started because he kept stealing my crayons in kindergarten.

Yes, I know that is a stupid reason to hate somebody, but over the years, he started annoying me everyday in school.

And when I get home, he would still annoy because my parents and his parents are best friends.

But Joshua's older half brother, Asher, was the definition of perfect. He was a year older than us, but that didn't matter. He was so kind and he would stop Joshua from annoying me.

I grew a crush on him, and when I was in eighth grade, we shared our feelings for each other. We have been going on strong for three and a half years.

Through our whole relationship, Joshua would tease me and make me want to punch him. None of the stuff he said was mean, but he was just annoying.

The only time he didn't annoy me was when he went and stayed with his mother every other weekend.

But that ended when she passed away two years ago from lung cancer.

Joshua completely changed after his mother's death. He stopped talking to everybody, and he skipped classes. He would fight and cuss out everybody who looked at him the wrong way.

You could say he was the bad boy of Midville.

Now, it's the first day of my junior year, and I couldn't be happier. I wasn't ready for the learning part, but I was ready for soccer season to start.

"Leah, are you excited for today?" My mother asked me as I entered the kitchen for breakfast.

My mother's long blonde hair was curled today, and she was dressed in a dark green blouse and white pants. My mother helps out with the children at the daycare.

I looked at her light blueish grayish eyes. My half sister, Campbell, has the exact same eyes. I, on the other hand, got poop brown eyes.

Thank you Dad.

At least, I got my mother's honey colored hair. The only difference was that my was short and her wasn't.

"I am. I'm ready for soccer season, though," I replied as she handed me a plate with a grilled cheese on it.

My mother smiled, and I asked,"Where's Dad?"

She handed me a glass filled with orange juice before answering my question. "He's at the hospital. One of his patients had to have an emergency surgery."

My father, David Perry, was one of the biggest surgeons in the country. He has never lost one patient. He has some pretty close calls, but he always fixed it before things got worse.

"Oh, I didn't hear him leave," I replied before biting my grilled cheese.

"Tim is starting at his new job today," Mom informed me as she fixed herself a grilled cheese.

Tim is my adopted brother. We fostered him when he was twelve, and we adopted him a couple months later. His biological parents are douchebags who left the country without him and never looked back. They also lied about Tim's heart condition.

Turns out he was perfectly fine the whole time.

"That's awesome. I'll have to call him later," I replied, pushing my shirt hair behind my ear.

"Is Asher picking you up?" Mom said, changing the subject.

I shook my head,"No. He said he was running behind so I'm just going to drive to school today."

"That's weird. That boy has multiple alarms set in the morning according to Adeline," Mom replied, talking about Asher's mother. "Have you talked to Joshua recently?"

I furrowed my eyebrows,"No. We really haven't had a full conversation since his mother died."

"Well, Adeline was talking about how his behavior has gotten worse. They are thinking about sending him to boarding school."

I stayed silent as I finished the rest of my breakfast. I finished my drink before placing the dishes in the sink.

"Thank you for breakfast, Mom," I thanked her before adding,"I better get going to avoid traffic. I love you."

My mother hugged me, and she said,"I love you, too. I'll see you after school, and I want to know all about the first day."

I nodded,"Will do."

Then I grabbed my bag and my lunchbox before leaving the kitchen. I walked out of my house, and I pressed the unlock button on my keypad.

My small dark blue car beeped, and I opened the door. I turned on the engine, and I put my seatbelt on.

I backed out of the driveway before starting my way to the school. Houses, buses, and some other cars passed by me.

When I finally made it to the parking lot, I had to stay in the line for ten minutes until I found a parking place in the very back.

After getting everything I need out of my car, I walked inside the school building, looking for my locker.

I found it a few minutes later, and I put in the combination. It popped open, and I threw my things in there.

"Leah!" I heard my name being called.

I looked to my right to my best friend, Vanessa, running towards me. Her long brown hair was in a braid, and her hazel eyes looked so warm and happy. When she reached me, she pulled me into a huge hug.

"Oh my gosh! I missed you so much!" Vanessa exclaimed after we broke apart. Vanessa has been visiting her grand parents in Utah for the past two weeks.

Vanessa and I have been friends since kindergarten. We met in class, and I was so shy and scared since I was new to town. Vanessa came up to me, and offered me some candy.

Ever since then, we have been close. Her older brother, Brent, is actually married to Campbell, and they had a set of twins two years ago. They are the cutest babies you have ever seen.

"How was Utah?" I asked her as I shut my locker.

"It was hot, but they were a lot of shirtless guys so that made up for it," Vanessa replied, leaning against the lockers. "Where's Asher?"

I shrugged,"He said he was running behind. He should be here soon, though."

"Any plans for your fourth year anniversary? It's coming up in what a month? Two?"

"October 12, and I don't know yet," I replied as we started walking to our first class.

"I can't believe it's been four years. I remember you almost fainting because he held your hand a few days before you two got together," Vanessa told me with a laugh.

I shook my head,"Gosh, I was so nervous back then."

As soon as those words left my lips, hands went over my eyes, and a familiar voice said,"Guess who?"

"Hmmm, Robert Patterson?" I guessed even though I knew who it was.

The hands removed from my eyes, and I turned around to see my handsome boyfriend, Asher Carter.

His electric blue eyes looked down at me, and his dark brown hair was brushed neatly to the side. He smiled down at me, showing his two perfect dimples.

"Good morning," I said before his lips crashed on mine.

Kissing Asher was like magic. Every movement was perfect, and I was addicted to it.

"Ew," I heard Vanessa mumbled.

I pulled away from Asher, and he said,"Good morning, Leah. Vanessa."

Vanessa grinned,"Asher, my buddy. How in the hell are you running late the first day of your senior year?"

"I slept through my alarms," Asher replied, wrapping an arm around my waist.

Asher was 5'11, but he still towered over my 5'3 height. I know I'm like every basic girl. I don't really like being short. If I had the chance to be tall, I would take it.

"What have you guys been talking about?" Asher asked us as we continued to walk to our first class.

"Our fourth year anniversary, and how fast these last couple years have been. I mean, you are graduating this year."

"Yeah. I'm going to miss high school," Asher replied as we stood outside the juniors' homeroom.

"More like you are going to miss the parties, football games, and of course, Leah," Vanessa replied, crossing her arms across her chest.

Asher laughed,"Don't worry, Van. I'll miss your annoying ass, too."

"Aw, I feel so special," Vanessa replied, dramatically, with an eye roll.

The bell rang, signaling us to go to class.

"I'll see you at lunch, okay?" Asher asked me, making me nod. He kissed my forehead before disappearing in the crowd of people.

Vanessa and I walked into the classroom, and we sat down beside the window. Our teacher came in a few moments later, and she started her lecture on the school rules and blah blah.

After homeroom, we went to our first period; English. The teacher in there also informed us about the stuff we are going to learn this year.

In the middle of his speech, the door opened, revealing Joshua Carter himself.

His medium brown hair was messy like every time I see him, but it looked good on him. Unlike Asher, Joshua has icy blue eyes that made you freeze under his glare. He had his black leather jacket thrown over his shoulder, and his white shirt outlined his six pack and his biceps. He had a few tattoos on his arms.

Girls fixed their hair and smiled, flirtatious, at him as he made his way to his desk which was two rows over and behind me. I just rolled my eyes, and I looked back at the teacher who didn't say anything.

The teacher continued the lecture, and I felt like somebody was staring at me. Glancing around, I didn't see anybody looking in my direction.

Once the bell rang, I gathered my things and we walked out of the class into the crowd of people.

"That is probably going to be the easiest class this year," Vanessa told me as we walked to our next class.

"Hey!" A deep male voice yelled behind us.

Vanessa and I looked back to see literal Satan walking up to us.

"Joshua, what can we help you with today?" I asked, trying to be kind to him.

"I need to talk to you, Annie," Joshua said, using that stupid nickname he gave me years ago.

My middle name is Ann, not Annie. But he doesn't grasp that.

"About what?" I asked him, crossing my arms across my chest.

"Maybe we can talk in private?" He suggested as his eyes glanced at Vanessa. Then his eyes looked back at me, and I felt like I couldn't breathe under his stare.

"I'm good," I replied as the late bell rang. "And I'm late. Thank you, Joshua."

I threw an arm around Vanessa's shoulders before walking away from him. I heard him mumbled something, but I couldn't hear over the chatter of freshmen trying to hurry to get to their class.

"That was weird," Vanessa said as we entered our next class.

"Especially since we haven't really talked in two years," I agreed, sitting down on my seat.

We were in science class so instead of desks, we had long black tables with stools.

Joshua walked in a few moments later, and he glanced over at me as he sat down behind me.

I can already tell today is going to be literal hell.

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•Kensli•