I run downstairs, grabbing a granola bar from the kitchen and my father immediately shoots me a look.

"A granola bar does not make up for the breakfast, kiddo!" He tells me in a stern voice and I kiss his cheek over the table.

"Morning dad!" I say and put the wallet in my bag but then I hear the car honking outside so I rush through the front door, shouting out to my father, "Bye dad!"

"Love you, An! Have a nice day." I hear him say just as I close the door.

I notice Breanna's car outside my house and smile. When I get in, she immediately looks at me, as if she's surprised to see me smiling. Well, am I supposed to sulk at the beginning of the day?

"You look happy." She says as she starts driving towards school.

"Well, why shouldn't I be happy?"

She scoffs, "Because Evan literally told you last night to catch rides with me from now onwards because things with Rose are better, and improving. So he wants to pick her up every morning."

I close my eyes at her words for a moment and gulp down whatever I might regret saying. I don't want to say anything, actually but I know she wouldn't get off my back otherwise.

"He should do that, he's her boyfriend after all." I shrug, nonchalantly.

"He's your best friend before that, and has been driving you to and from school since he got his car!"

I narrow my eyes at her, "Exactly Bri, he's my best friend, not my driver."

We reach school without another word, because Breanna knows I would never admit anything in front of her, and go on denying her words. It's just who I am. I like myself this way.

She parks her car and as soon as I step out, the first thing I see is Chris and Caitlyn making out. I mentally barf at the image but the bile actually rises in my throat when I see past them and notice Evan and Rose having a heated make out session as well.

What the hell? Why is every couple making out in the parking lot today? I force my eyes away from them and settle my spectacles on my face. I got them back from Evan's last night right after he indirectly told me that I should look for another ride from now onwards.

'Hey An, you don't mind catching a ride with Bri tomorrow morning, do you?"

"No, of course not. Thanks for letting me know in advance."

Bullshit.

Breanna was correct, I had been catching a ride with Evan since as long as I can remember but it didn't matter now. Breanna is my new ride. He just asked for 'tomorrow', but I know what we meant, he just didn't have the guts to say it directly. I sigh as I go through the school gates, feeling Breanna keeping her hand on my shoulder.

"How do you do it?" She asks and I frown, moving to my locker.

"Do what?

"Pretend that you don't like him." She remarks and I keep the Biology textbook in my backpack, since that's the first period I have.

"It's because I really don't, Bri. What can I do to prove otherwise?" I sigh, and turn to face her.

"Kiss the next guy you lay your eyes on!" She exclaims, and I roll my eyes.

She knows I wouldn't do it, not because I don't want to prove her wrong but because I don't like the consequences that would unroll after it.   Unless of course, I am sure that it would be meaningless to both of us. But what if the guy starts following me around? I may sound obsessed, but I can't take the risk.

I eye Breanna, "Really, you want me to kiss someone?"

"What?" I hear someone from behind me and turn around to find a very shocked Evan standing there.

"What?" I repeat his question.

His eyes flick between Breanna and I, a frown setting over his features, "She's kissing who?" He asks and Breanna laughs. She laughs!

"No one." I say way too quickly.

That only makes the girl behind me laugh harder, "Well, not right now but very soon you'll be kissing someone, Adrianna! It's my gut." She winks and I glare at her, blush rising to my cheeks.

"I am just going to ignore anything I just heard." Evan mumbles to himself before turning to me with a grin on his face, "Good Morning, An."

"Morning, Cyp!" I grin back, immediately making him scowl.

"Is this revenge for not picking you up this morning? I am sorry, alright, just don't use that name here in school." He practically begs and I laugh.

He hates his middle name, and even more when I use it like this. Honestly, I find it adorable and hilarious at the same time. It gets him all flustered.

"I don't mind you not picking me up." I shrug and he stares at me.

"You don't?" He confirms, but there's something behind his tone.

I shake my head and the bell goes off so I turn to Breanna and wave over at Evan, "I am headed to class, see you at lunch?" I say and he nods, mindlessly before I go to class.

As soon as I enter the class, I regret not coming before the bell went off. I am not a nerd, I am an average student but I hate walking in a full class. The most horrifying part is to see Chris sitting at the back, and he's shooting daggers right at me through his glare.

I try to avoid as I sit in literally the opposite corner as him. I don't even want to look at his face, because it would make me want to punch him, and as appealing as that thought is, I know I'll end up with a broken hand.

As soon as the bell rings, I am the first one to shoot out of my seat and head for the door. Apparently, someone is in just as much hurry to get away from the suffocating classroom as I am because I end up bumping into that person.

"Fuck!" I curse as I crash with the doorframe.

The person doesn't even have the courtesy to stop and apologise, and I immediately know it why when I see his back. Of fucking course, it has to be Chris! Something takes over my mind as I run after him and pull on his shirt to make him come to a halt.

"What the fuck?" He curses, turning around to see me.

His jaw clenches when he notices that I am the source of hindrance. It's in that moment I look into his eyes and notice how gray they are. Like, holyshit, they are the most beautiful gray! And gray isn't even supposed to be beautiful. That's like my least favourite colour!

"What the hell is your problem, Brooks?" He snaps and I shake myself out of the trance.

"You tell me, Jones! Where the hell are your manners?" I cross my arms across my chest.

He frowns at me, "Honestly, I don't have time for your bullshit."

Before he can turn around, my hand reaches out to hold his wrist, to stop him from moving. As soon as I touch him, I feel a sense of tingling underneath my palm so I retract my hand away.

"You pushed me!" I exclaim and I don't know how we haven't gathered an audience yet, but I am thankful for it.

"No, I did not." He shakes his head.

Is this guy for real?

"Yes, you did! Do you have issues in owning up to your mistakes, Jay?" I grin and his face immediately falls.

"How the fuck do you know my middle name?" He asks, taking a step closer and I suck in a breath, my playful mood gone.

"That is not the point. You need to apologise, for today as well as yesterday." I look straight into his eyes, stopping my eyes from wandering anywhere else. He's wearing a cologne, and his standing close enough for me to take it in.

At least he has a good taste in that.

"You are delusional if you think I am going to apologise to you." He laughs and shakes his head.

Before I can retort, an arm snakes around my waist and I frown, looking behind me to find Evan staring at Chris with a hard look in his eyes. I want to step away from Evan's touch because I would hate to get all flushed in front of the guy who refuses to bend down his ego in front of me!

"Everything alright?" Evan asks, his question directed at Chris.

Chris just smirks back so I offer Evan an answer, "Yes, everything's fine." I say, fidgeting a little and Evan probably senses it because he lets go of my waist.

"See you at practice, Smith!" Chris says before disappearing down the halls and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

I choose to ignore Evan as I rush to my next class, but I know he'll be right behind me because we share the english class, and so does Breanna.

"What was that about?" Evan asks from behind me and I don't think it's important to answer him.

Honestly, I am a little pissed that he had to come and interrupt when I was arguing with Chris. The point is, that guy needs to realise his place. He isn't god, and to me, he's nothing. So he really needs to apologise for being disrespectful. Another reason why I don't want to tell Evan is, because it simply does not concern him. When it will, he would know. Till then, I know how to hold my own stand and he's aware.

Breanna raises her eyebrows at me when I take a seat beside her and I just shake my head, indicating that I don't want to talk about it. Evan sits one seat behind me and I don't talk to him for the rest of the lecture even though he tries to pass me notes.

When the bell rings, I get out of the class and disappear before either of my best friend can call me out. Thankfully, I don't share any other classes with either of them for the rest of the day. But, of course, there's lunch.

I love food, and I love food hour, but I hate conversing and smiling while my lips are supposed to be so close to the burger. That's where all my focus should be. I am the first one to reach the cafeteria, and Breanna comes just after me at the table.

"What's up? You cranky." She comments and I give her a sarcastic grin.

"Thanks, I really appreciate that."

She laughs, "Of course, what are best friends for?"

Honestly, the whole Evan-Rose thing and Chris-being-an-asshole thing are getting on my nerves at this point. And there's a huge, huge possibility that the anger being built up from Evan prioritising his relationship over our friendship is being projected towards the silly arguments I have been having with Chris.

Am I already going nuts? I am not even eighteen yet. Two months, and then I can consider going crazy.

"Where did you disappear after history?" Breanna asks, taking a bite from her sandwich.

"To the next class." I sigh and she gives me a looks, like she would eat my head if I didn't spill what was going on.

"I got into another argument with Jones, last evening and this morning." I finally tell her and her mouth drops open. "Gross, Bri! I can see your half chewed sandwich from here."

That immediately makes her shut up, but not for long as she swallows the food, "How did you not manage to tell me this over the phone last night?" She asks, sounding offended.

"I didn't want to worsen my mood by talking about it." I shrug.

"You never want to talk about anything." She points out.

That is true, but I like it that way.

"Where's Evan? I can't see him anywhere." I say, my eyes roaming around the cafeteria to place him.

"Very subtle way of changing the topic, but good point. Where is he?" She turns around in her seat to do just what I was doing.

It's like he could hear us, because a second later the cafeteria doors open and he steps in with his arm holding Rose very closely as they laugh. He looks happy, really happy and I haven't seen him this happy since a long time. I immediately look away and gulp the food.

When they reach the table, I smile up to the two of them, ignoring the very visibly mark on Rose's neck. It makes me want to throw up, but I take a sip of the iced tea.

"Hey Rose!" I say and she smiles at me.

"Hi An, what's up?" She grins and my smile immediately falters.

An? Since when the hell is Rose calling me An? My father calls me An, and Evan is the only other person who has ever called me that. Even Breanna knows that name is off limits for anyone else. You can call me by my middle name, I wouldn't give a damn in the world, partly because it's not embarrassing but 'An' was like a no-go zone.

It's like Evan and Breanna both realise it at the same time what Rose just said and their eyes follow me, waiting for me to react. I just force a smile on my face and nod at Rose, acknowledging her but not answering her. Evan immediately shoots me an apologetic look but I shake my head at him, asking him to do nothing.

Rose takes a seat by Evan, almost sitting on his lap, the sudden shift in the mood going unnoticed by her. I try to slip out, trying not to get any attention but it's hard because Evan immediately asks me when I stand up from the table.

"Where you going?" He asks and I give him a small smile.

"I have to get an assignment from the locker and my next class is at the totally different end, so I don't want to be late." I shrug and he nods, because he's aware that I hate getting past people in a full classroom.

Breanna is trying to get my attention but I ignore her as I get out of the cafeteria and practically run to get a breath of fresh air. I end up in the ground, and take a seat at the bleachers, begging for my breaths to calm down.

It feels better out here, the green grass is soothing to my eyes and no one's here so that is another positive factor. I close my eyes nonetheless as I take tiny breaths, letting my insides calm.

But, it's like my luck has abandoned me today because someone clears their throat from behind me and I almost fall over.

"Fuck!" I hold my hand over my chest as I turn around to find a very smug looking Chris.

Wasn't he in the cafeteria? What the fuck is he doing here? That's when I notice the cigarette between his middle and ring finger. I want to roll my eyes but I am afraid that with the amount of times I have been doing that since yesterday, I'll pass out doing it.

"That thing isn't allowed in school, you know that right?" I say and he chuckles.

Fuck, I have never heard him chuckle. If he wasn't such an asshole, I would have awed at him. He's extremely good looking, his hair styled perfectly and his rugged jeans and black t-shirt clinging to his well built body.

"I don't give a fuck about school, you know that right?" He gives out an amused smile and comes down to sit by my side.

Why is he sitting by my side? And why is my heart racing a little faster? God, I need to understand myself.

"But you give a fuck about basket ball. If Coach caught you smoking, you'll probably be benched for the entire month of games, and that cannot be good for you, considering it's senior year and all." I say and he blinks at me.

There's a look behind his eyes, something I can't put my finger on but I let it go without overanalysing it.

"You're very observant for a girl who likes to yell at people." He smirks and I hold in a scoff.

"The only person I yell at is you." I tell him honestly, because it's the truth.

I tell him face on that his actions have offended me, and I have never done that with anyone else. It's probably because he aggravates me so fucking much.

He offers me the cigarette from his hand and I stare at him. I have never once smoked in my life but the offer is tempting, especially because I have heard people say that it brings a sudden sense of calm within you and I need that calm right now. Because I don't want to explode, I cannot explode!

I take it from his hand and take a puff, which immediately makes me cough. He chuckles at my reaction and I wrinkle my nose at the distaste of it.

"How the hell do you smoke that?" I ask, my voice cracking a little.

He takes a drag and let's out a puff, "Like that." He shrugs and I roll my eyes, not being able to resist further.

"You are an asshole, you know that? I really don't like you." I tell him, because at least I can say it to him without giving a fuck about what he would think of me. His opinions don't matter to me, so whatever he thinks, that doesn't either. Makes things easier for me.

"I know." He nods and then puts down the cigarette beneath his shoe and steps on it, crumbling it underneath his feet.

He immediately turns towards me, scooting closer than I'd appreciate but I am too caught up in my head to say anything to him. His eyes bore down into mine and I suck in a breath at the intensity behind them.

"Don't ever touch me again, alright?" He says and I am too lost to respond.

But he takes my silence for an answer as he gets up and disappears.

•••

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