“Oops,” Olivia says with a fake smile glued to her lips, straightening her frilly jacket with so many feathers on the collar I can’t help but wonder how she breathes in it. Mum used to like her, they share similar tastes. I push that memory out of my mind, me and Liv are done. “Sorry. I didn’t see you there.”
Giggles come from behind her, I cock my head to the side and I see the girls. Her friends, minions, name it, that’s them. Four of them. Charlotte. Riley. Chloe and Zoey, the only twins at our school. They follow Liv around like their lives depend on it. They are not like the usual minions, they genuinely care about their master. Massaging my stiff shoulders, I turn to my locker, reminding myself to ignore her. She hates being ignored more than anything else in the world but Maria does not take kindly to my silence.
“Of course you didn’t see her, you blind bat.”
I stifle a laugh as I retrieve my notes, shoving them into my backpack. These girls better beware, Maria is good with her mouth, I am good with my fists. As much as I don’t want to start the new session with a suspension or detention, I will not hesitate to throw a good right hook if the situation demands. I adjust the bag sliding off my shoulder and tap Maria, breaking her stare-off with the witch and her minions.
She throws me an annoyed look, I motion to the empty hallway. Sometimes, my calmness irritates her. But the bell will go off soon, we can’t afford to be late because of them, they are not worth our time.
Olivia blocks our path, her minions stand on each side of her to form a barrier to keep us in. I place a hand on my waist and drum my foot into the tiles, it’s too early for this nonsense. A sly smile takes over Olivia’s lips, she can tell I’m getting agitated, she wants me to lose it. Witch. Her gaze darts between me and Maria and I release another sigh. Sighing seems to be all I’ve been doing since they walked in here.
“Mother Theresa,” she says while batting her fake lashes, “aren’t you mowing for us today?” I roll my eyes, maybe I can start by plucking out her lashes. She pouts. “No?” Dumbass. The joke stopped being funny long ago. Yes, my last name is Mower but her joke is lame and that’s why only her minions laugh.
A second passes, my jaw ticks but I keep still and she arches a perfect blonde brow. Drama queen, not today. I have a fight to prepare for, I can pretend my opponent is Olivia while beating the shit out of him. With that in mind, I push past her, yelping when someone pulls me back by my hair. My hair isn’t as long or thick as Maria’s or Olivia’s but I take good care of it and it hurts like hell when someone drags it without care and I make that point known with a dirty slap across the cheek of the blonde culprit.
Olivia gasps, Maria freezes, a hush falls on the corridor and I facepalm. This morning was supposed to go smooth but Olivia had to be herself. I wince at the glare she levels me, with her platform heels, she towers over everyone. Her hand slowly goes to touch her cheek which is fast turning red, Maria snaps out of her trance to stand beside me as if to say: If you try anything funny we will do it again, this time, we will double the slaps. But I won’t let that happen. Maria loves being a part of the cheerleading squad and Olivia is the captain, she has much to lose and well, I don’t. I don’t partake in any sports outside PE.
An apology hangs on the tip of my lips but I swallow it. She deserved that slap. Not only her, all five of them but I’ll keep my hands to myself for the rest of today. Her minions are still dazed, their identical blonde hairstyles and outfits makes it harder to tell them apart but they keep blinking like they can’t believe I slapped their leader. Charlotte glares as I bend to pick my bag, I wink. That will teach them not to mess with me again. Tugging on the sleeve of a shocked Maria, I start for my first class of the day.
“I can’t believe you did that,” Maria mutters. Shock colours her voice, I giggle as we take a turn by the right and see a row of doors. Her class is before mine. “You slapped Olivia. You slapped the Queen B.”
Maria’s hand slightly trembles as she says the last part, I reply in an accent I must have picked from a movie, “Who made her the queen? She’s no queen of mine.” She snorts, we stop in front of her class. The door is locked so she doesn’t go in yet. We hug. “You coming for lunch?” Her mum packs the most delicious lunch for her and she doesn’t have to eat cafeteria food like the rest of us. She nods. “See ya.”
As soon as Maria disappears, I tighten my hold on my bag and look around. I might have been within my rights to slap the Queen of Broadway Heights but Maria called her the Queen for a reason, she will try to get revenge. I’m screwed. No, I’m not. I will be prepared. I have to, this fighter isn’t going down easy.
I slap my forehead with a sigh, how prepared can I possibly be in a school where everyone listens to her? Ah, fuck. I know things never go according to plan but it’s falling to pieces right at the beginning. The plan was simple: Be the best friend I’ve always been to Maria, try to make sure she forgets about our dumb bucket list and live out the rest of the school year without any drama but look at me now.
The whole place is silent as I resume walking, my heart beats so fast I have to take deep breaths. I make the short journey to my class with my hand balled into a fist, ready to strike should there be another attack. Thankfully, there is none, I arrive in front of my class, safe and sound. The voice of the Calculus teacher is audible from outside, I work up a quick lie in case I need one and push the door open.
Mr Sam doesn’t notice me, he’s so focused on the algebraic equation on the board and I tiptoe to my seat. Only now, there’s one problem. Someone is on my seat. And that someone is Benjamin.
Benjamin Carter.
Blue eyes, black hair casually falling over his forehead and sexy body. The hottest boy in my school is on my seat. I mentally fan myself. Mr Sam clears his throat, I force a smile on my lips and slide into the seat beside Ben. He doesn’t acknowledge me. Of course he won’t, I am not in his league. He acknowledges girls like Maria, Olivia and her minions, not a girl who’s so tall and skinny, she will easily pass for a boy.
Once for Halloween, I wore a cropped wig and everyone was convinced I was Hayden, my hot sexy elder brother but they had one question though. When did Hayden lose so much weight? Good times.
I shouldn’t be bothered Ben is ignoring me, I don’t need the attention, but I am. Why? Because he’s on my seat, the desk pressed against the wall by the window. Our classroom is sectioned into rows, with a reasonable gap between each desk. I always take my place there so I can have a distraction when the class gets boring and it is bound to. Mr Sam is a good teacher but I’m an easily distracted student. I catch Ben doodling on his jotter. What’s he even doing in my class? Since when do jocks attend advanced classes?
Mr Sam drones on and on, the boredom sets in and I snap. “You are on my seat,” I say through gritted teeth. Ben barely spares me a look. He pulls out his phone, curiosity takes over me and I strain my neck to get a glimpse of the video playing on his screen but he twists his body so I see nothing. “Benjamin.”
Twisting his head in my direction, his eyes fall on my hand which I hide under my desk. He smirks. “Hey.”
Breathe, Tessa. Breathe.It’s just hey. I know it’s a simple word but it’s coming from him and that makes all the difference. I feel my cheeks heating up under his stare and avert my gaze to the board. Holy cow. Ben spoke to me.Now is really a good time to fan myself. Hold on, what’s wrong with me? I need to get a grip. I don’t do boys. High school isn’t for dating. I fiddle with the pendant on the necklace Hayden gave me. It’s my good luck charm, I wear it everywhere, even in the ring. The coldness of the necklace pressed against my palm manages to calm my thoughts, I forget Ben for a second and focus on the formula on the board.Mr Sam is explaining the formula, saying something about a pentagon. Or was it a hexagon? Whatever it was, it ends with a gon. Ben nudges me with his foot twice, for some reason, I choose to ignore him.His chair squeaks as he drags it closer, his breath fans my
I hate crowds, so why am I here? In a pub with noise and more noise, shitty beats in the name of music. Maria slides a glass of iced coke to me, I make a face and take a sip while she gulps the weird content in her shot glass with a grimace. Lucky her. I need a clear head and sharp mind for tomorrow’s fight. In less than a year, we will both be eighteen and eligible to drink and party the right way. I squint at the bright, colourful lights swirling above the small crowd moving on the dancefloor, bobbing my head to the beat. Though our fake IDs allow us entries into a few clubs, alcohol is off limits. For fun, we have them serve our drinks in shot glasses and act like it’s the almighty margarita we have heard so much about. Only tonight, Maria got lucky. She got her first real taste of margarita. “Ryan Raynoldz, smash or pass?” she asks, shot glass turned over to catch the last drop of her cocktail. I fake gag. The man might be fine but no
There’s one thing Maria and my parents don’t know about me. I fight illegally in an underground ring. Mum and Dad will have a mini heart attack if they learn their daughter is somewhat of a champion at underground martial art, thanks to Hayden. And there’s no way to tell Maria without her diving into a series of questions, wanting to know why I haven’t beaten half the school’s population for giving me shit.The song—an original from Maria’s unnamed album—playing from the tiny speaker on the table filters into the room, the tension in my joints melts and I shuffle to stand in front of the mirror to start my stretches. I hear the faint cheering from outside and my heart skips a beat. Ten more minutes until my turn. Swiping my brown hair out of my face as I bend to touch my toes, I focus on keeping my raging heart under control and regulating my ragged breathing. In. In. In. Out. I exhale and repeat the process.Today&
The first round lasts fifty minutes. Blood rushes to my ears, I am bleeding behind the mask and my heart beats so loud above the cheers, I can hardly hear what Coach is saying. He squats in front of me, holding the water bottle to my mouth and I take a swig until my stomach protests. I wince when I lift the hem of my tank top and see blood. Coach presses a warm towel to my side, my teeth sink into my lip to stop from screaming or punching him. He should have discouraged me from getting into that ring tonight.“Are you okay?” Coach asks with a worried expression and I nod. I am not in the least bit okay. My body hurts like hell. I need to soak in a tub full of ice for a week and lock myself inside with buckets of ice-cream. “Tee.”“I’m fine.”At a regular taekwondo competition, we would have gotten helmets, shin guards and body protectors. The rules would have also applied—no kicks below the waist; headshots. But he
My head hurts, I’m certain I’ll see stars if I pry my eyes open so I bury my face in the pillow. Thank God today is Sunday, I don’t have to face anyone and Maria is still too busy getting her beauty rest from last night’s concert so she won’t notice I am missing. Mum’s voice reaches into the room from outside, my body goes rigid. I relax when I realise she’s on a phone call, rolling to my uninjured side at the sound of a knock. “Sweetheart?” “Mum.” The door opens without a fuss, I am grateful I didn’t lock it last night. I was too tired to think. Mum’s full head of curls pokes inside, I doubt she can see anything in this darkness called my room. “Sweetheart?” Putting on my phone’s flashlight, I wave it at the door so she can find her way to me. “In here.” My bed creaks as she lowers herself on the edge, I panic when I hear her fumbling for the switch of the bedside lamp. “No, not the lights.” She giggles but doesn’t attempt to touch it again, I use my
By Monday morning, I am still trending. It turns out a video of me getting dunked with iced coke by the Queen B herself is far more interesting than a video of Ben pecking Olivia in the middle of the cafeteria. Either way, the entire school is having a laugh at my expense and my fame doesn’t seem to be expiring soon. I don’t need the spotlight, they should be going crazy over Maria’s voice in the background of the original video. She sounded like an angel but no, those teenage devils will rather come for innocent me. “Sweetheart, you are going to be late,” Mum calls from somewhere downstairs. “I’m almost done,” I reply. I hear shuffling and her footsteps fade. Another ping comes from my phone, I ball my free hand into a fist, glare at my reflection in the mirror before taking a look at the sender. This time, it is Daniel, he wants to know if I am okay. Okay? I scoff. If they are taking turns sending me messages, then they must be super worried by my silence o
The hallway is silent, way too silent for a noisy school. Everyone is watching, feasting their eyes on us and waiting to see what Ben will do. As for me, I want to crawl into a hole and disappear. But I can’t move. Ben is so close to me I can see the cut on his lips, how the pupils of his blue eyes dilate in annoyance. He places both hands on either side of my head, leans till his nose brushes my ear and shivers spread down my back. His breath tickles my neck, I shut my eyes tight to avoid meeting his gaze and hug the textbooks to my chest like they can save me from his wrath. “Where were you Saturday night?” he asks in a clipped tone doused with anger, oblivious to the scene he is making. His voice is loud enough for anyone close to hear, my eyes flutter open and I swallow hard. From my peripheral view, I notice a few girls bring out their phones to start recording. Maria gawks at us, I can imagine the wheels in her head spinning out of control. It is not wh
I skip the second and third period. When the bell rings to signify the start of fourth period, I am feeling much better. AP Calculus class is empty, I take my place beside the window and plug in my earpiece. Maria’s voice floats into my ears, my head bobs to her cover of Beyonce’s solo. She has a whole album dedicated to covers. I chuckle at the reminder of this morning incident, she slapped Ben on my behalf. She has never slapped anyone in her life, not even a fly, she’s all bark and no bite, a total sweetheart. On instinct, my eyes lower to the seat I occupied on Friday. Will he come? If he will, I hope he trips on his way in and breaks his neck. Pressing the can of coke I snuck into class to my stomach, I drag down my shirt as the door opens. Abigail, a redhead with hot brains troops in. I know her name because she answers almost all of Mr Sam’s questions. She doesn’t say a word to me, no surprises there, we are not friends but her furious glare has me squirming. Okay, th