I really hope this outfit will keep me warm for today. I mean, it should bu-

Why the hell am I worrying about my outfit!

I take a few deep breaths and I fix my ponytail. Today, I have on a cropped gray sweater with black jeans with my converses.

Zoe and I haven't talked since yesterday. We have been avoiding each other around the house and honestly, I am okay with that. I am done trying to get her out of the mess she builds for herself.

I grab my bag and rush downstairs and out of the door. I walk to the bus stop and wait patiently for the bus to come. When the bus comes, I walk inside the bus and sit at the seat closest to the driver. 10 minutes later and we arrive at school. I walk out the bus and into the school building. I ready myself to have to elbow my way through the crowd, but instead the weirdest thing happens.

The people move to the side as I walk through the hallway.

I looks around giving everyone confused glances wondering why people are treating me like I am apart of the "it" crew.

When I reach to my locker, Issac is standing there with a bouquet of peonies in his hand. He searches the crowd and when his eyes land on mine, a smile comes to his face. I walk over to him and I give him a confused look.

"I'm sorry about yesterday. I shouldn't have said that. It was insensitive and rude" he says and I can hear how genuine he is in his voice. I look up into his eyes that now look a little blue today and I don't see any signs of him lying. Just pure emotion. Honesty. But that's how Issac always is.

"No, I'm sorry I shouldn't have lashed out on you yesterday when I was frustrated It wasn't fair to you. You only tried to help and I pushed you away." I say and feel the guilt I am feeling grow so much that I feel a lump in my throat for making Issac feel that way.

"Yeah that kind of hurt" He says with a smile on his face. A small smile comes to my face when Issac hands me the bouquet of peonies.

"I can't believe you remembered that I liked peonies." I bring the vibrant colored flowers to my nose to smell its fragrant scent and I close my eyes to fully enjoy the scent of peonies.

"I figured it would come in handy one day."

"Thank you Issac." I say and I go on my tippy toes and bring my arms around his neck and embrace him in a hug.

Damn him for being tall and me being small.

We pull away and I open my locker to put the flowers in and I take out my books for class. Once I close my locker, I look over to see Asher walking in with Zoe. I can't suppress the grimace that forms on my face while looking at the manipulative man-whore and my oblivious, stupid sister.

Zoe quickly glances at me before going to the other side of the hallways to her locker and Asher comes over towards here. When he comes over here, I completely ignore his presence and close my eyes and focus my mind on the fact that Issac bought me peonies.

Asher hasn't spoken to me. He has only given me glances in my direction in which I glared at him. The bell rings and I walk away and to my next class.

"Bay!" a voice yells and I turn around to see Issac jogging over to me.

"Yeah?"

"Meet me after school outside. I can give you a ride home."

"O-Okay." I say and walk away.

...

I can't believe her. She didn't even show up to lunch. And neither did Asher. She just left me. I spent my lunch in the library where I could be alone instead. She just got in Asher's car a while ago and they drove off somewhere. She skipped so many classes.

Right now, I am walking to my locker to get my stuff before heading to my next class. My eyebrows furrow together when I see a large crowd of people around my locker area. People have their phone out taking pictures and I hurry over to my locker. I elbow through people and my heart drops when I see what's on my locker. My vision becomes blurred by the tears threatening to fall from my eyes, but I quickly mask it knowing the amount of people around me.

On my locker is the peonies Issac got me drenched in black paint and the peonies have lost it's vibrant pink color. The black paint has dripped all over the floor and is on my locker. In red paint, it says, 'I always win.'

Victoria

This was a message.

I rip the flowers off my locker and dump it in a trash can and open my locker. Maybe they just bought peonies and drenched it in paint. Maybe they didn't break into my locker and steal my flowers. When I open my locker not only are the peonies gone, but my locker has been trashed and it's filled with toilet paper.

Stay calm

I can feel my anger flare and for once, I want to be reckless and just punch something, punch her but I can't.

I turn around and look at everyone in the crowd. I give them my most deadliest look and they scurry away. I see Issac walking with Armani over here and I just want to hide away and not face Issac.

Ever since I have befriended Issac, these things are happening to me. And I want to blame him. I want to hate him.

But I can't. And it's frustrating.

Issac looks at me and realizes my stressed state and quickens his steps to reach me. When he looks at me, his eyebrows crease together.

"What happened?"

"Someone broke into my lockers, took the flowers you gave me and drenched it in black paint messing up my locker and the floor. Then they trashed my locker. And filled it with toilet paper. Then they wrote this on it."

"Victoria" Issac seethes and his jaw locks in anger. His grey eyes have turned to a dark storm and I have never seen Issac this mad.

Armani looks at the scene in utter shock. He walks away and comes back about a minute or so with paper towels, cleaner, a bucket of water, and rags.

"I'm so sorry Bay. This is all my fault." Issac says feeling guilty and his head drops. I walk over to him and lay my hands on each side of his face and bring his head up so he can look at me.

"It's fine. Go to class. I am going to clean this up."

"You actually thought I would go to class and let you clean this up alone."

"I don't want you getting in trouble because of me."

"But you are in this mess" he says and gestures to the locker and the mess. "Because of me."

"Issac-"

"I'm staying Bay." he says and walks over to the garbage can and roll it over to my locker.

"Thanks Armani for the rags and cleaner." I say to him with a smile.

"Yeah. Sorry about all of this." he says and walks away.

I start taking up the loads of toilet paper in my locker and throwing them out while Issac cleans the paint off the floor that has unfortunately dried. I take a rag and help Issac scrub the paint off the floor.

"I really am sorry Bay. Maybe we should stop being fr-"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence Issac Evans because if you do I will punch you in the face and kick you in the crotch."

Issac eyes widen in shock and then he returns to scrubbing.

"I know being your friend comes with...issues because of your psycho ex, your status and reputation. I know that. And i have thought about it. You know ending this. But I never could. You have gotten underneath my skin Issac Evans and I don't know how to shake you off and I'm not sure I actually want to."

"Well I'll be damned. Is Bay Stewart professing her love to me?" Issac says with a smirk on his face.

"I can still punch you in the face you know."

He laughs and continues scrubbing the paint off the floor.

I realized that I can be friends with Issac Evans. I just can't fall for him. That's an easy goal for me to achieve.

Don't fall for Issac Evans.

Simple.

Author's Note:

Hi Everyone! I hoped you liked the chapter.

I will be making character aesthetic collages and I will upload them in a chapter soon. Most books include their character aesthetics in the beginning, but I didn't know I was going to actually do it, but I said why not? So, they will be uploaded after chapter 19, but before chapter 20. Sorry you have to wait so long, but I already wrote chapters 16-19, so I will just have to upload it right after 19.

Any questions?

Don't forget to vote, comment, and share!

Anyway, thank you for reading!