《Crestfallen》 Chapter 1: 1: Peachy Chapter 1: 1: Peachy "Hey, nutcase!" My best friend called from the other end of the hall. Half the students looked up at her and then over at me. I mentally face palmed myself as I walked down the hallway with my head down. My hand subconsciously tightened around the strap of my backpack. "Thanks for that." I muttered, angrily running my tan hand through my golden blonde hair. Her big brown eyes held innocence as she shrugged. "Thanks for what?" She asked with a malicious smile on her glossy lips. "As if you don''t know." I sneered yfully, tucking my backpack into my locker. "You know, you''d think the school would build lockers wider than the average width of a backpack. Then again, maybe they''re just trying to decrease the amount of kids that get shoved into lockers." "Yeah, maybe." Macy replied, shutting her locker with her binders in hand. "Or they didn''t pass geometry because they had Mr. Labonte as a teacher." She snapped, holding out her math exam which was marked as a 46% in angry red marker. "Ugh, so true." I agreed, giving her a sympathetic look. A loud yelp echoed through the hallway and I looked over to my left. Lo and behold, a kid was behind shoved into a locker by none other than Jeremy Storm, the school prick. Most people consider him to be the resident bad boy, but in my eyes, he''s just one of the many bad guys who seem to rule this world by walking all over people. "I guess my locker assumption was inurate, you win," I said, smiling at Macy. She leaned against her locker which was conveniently beside mine. Her eyes, however, weren''t on me. Her brown doe eyes were trained on the figure who was currently smashing some poor kid into the lockers. I turned around and watched him, cringing every time there was a crunching sound. "He has so much pent up anger, I actually almost felt bad for him for a moment there," I told her, unable to remove my eyes from the scene. No one dared stand in his way. Everyone loved him and he loved them as long as they didn''t get on his bad side. "I''d help him get rid of all that pent up energy any way he wanted." She purred, lust pooling in her eyes. I cringed as I turned around to fully face her instead of craning my neck. "Please tell me you mean that you''d be willing to be his personal punching bag, not what I think you mean." I tried, pleading with my eyes. She smirked at me and let out a smallugh. "Nope, I''d let him park his car anywhere he wanted." She cooed, putting her hands on my shoulders, purposely trying to make me ufortable. She was very sessful. "Oh, look! I think I hear Mr. Labonte calling me for some geometry, I''ll see you for second period!" I lied as I shuffled away from my sex-addicted best friend, I was pretty sure she was a virgin though... I shivered as I reyed her words in my head. Ga-ross. I headed into French ss and sat in the back of the ss. It''s too early in the morning for another The bell rang and students started filing in. Mme. Breault started teaching us subjunctive verbs and how to conjugate them. Yes, it''s just as boring as it sounds. Ten minutes into ss, someone opened the door without warning. I stopped my heavy note-taking to see who it was. To my surprise, it was Jeremy Storm. He handed her a bright pink slip of paper and watched her as she read it. "Transferring from Spanish halfway into the first semester? That''s quite risky, isn''t it?" She questioned aloud. When he made no move to reply, she simply smiled. "Bienvenue dans notre sse de fran?ais, j''esp¨¨re qui vous parlez au moins un peu de Fran?ais." [Wee to our French ss, I hope you speak at least a little bit of French.] "Nope, not even a little bit." He replied with a smirk. I was confused. Did that mean he understood French because he knew what she said, or he didn''t because he said he didn''t? "Well, take a seat. Since Mr. Pearson isn''t here today, you can take his spot." She told Jeremy. I looked to my left, the only seat beside mine, and silently cursed Carter for not being here today of all days. He strode over to the seat like he owned the ce, which he probably did because rumour has it that he''s almost as rich as Bill Gates. Okay, maybe not that rich, but it gives you the gist. Mme. Breault continued teaching and Jeremy ruffled through his pencil case, making a surprisingly loud ruckus. Soon enough, he gave up whatever he was doing with a huff. Next thing I knew, his finger was poking my elbow. I flinched away and he looked at me amusedly. I waited for him to say something, but he seemed mesmerized by something. I looked behind me to see if Tiffany, the queen bee, was standing behind me for some reason, but she wasn''t. When I turned back around, he seemed to have snapped out of it. "Can I borrow a pencil?" He whispered, making direct eye contact with me and shing me his pearly whites. I nearly fainted on the spot and it was a good thing I was sitting down because otherwise, I would''ve fallen due to how wobbly my knees felt. His bright green eyes reeled me in until I swore I could see the stars in them. Snapping back to reality before it was weird, I coughed like the weirdo I am. Well, no. I choked like the weirdo I am. I started coughing uncontrobly because I was choking on my own spit. I''ve never cringed so hard in my life. Once I finished, half the ss was looking at me and the teacher was eyeing me wearily. "Ms. Hall, are you okay?" She asked me, only further embarrassing me. "Peachy," I replied, giving her a cringe-worthy thumbs up. I turned back to see Jeremy on the verge of This text is ? N?velDrama/.Org. I angrily opened my pencil case and whipped out a freshly sharpened pencil. I frustratedly mmed it down on his desk, making a louder sound than I thought it would''ve made. Again, I wanted to crawl into a ball and die. For the rest of the ss, I kept my head down and I hardly even looked up to see the board. When the bell finally rang, I got out of there as fast as I could, rushing to biology so that I could tell Macy how I ruined my life in the span of one French ss. Chapter 2: 2: Beefy Hands Chapter 2: 2: Beefy Hands "You did all that, in 108 minutes?" Macy asked me incredulously. "It''s a talent, I know." I replied. I''d just finished exining the events of the previous events to my best friend here, and this is the reply she gives me. "Okay, just... Breathe. Yeah, breathe." She said, taking deep breaths for herself. I think this is stressing her out more than me. Since we worked in pairs for biology, Mme. Suthend had allowed us to pick our partners for our senior year. It was a tradition of hers. "Ah, fuck." Macy eximed suddenly. I turned to face her and saw her using two fingers to peel her eyelid off of her eyeball. "Oh, God, what are you doing?" I questioned, turning my head away from her and putting my hand on the side of my head so that I couldn''t see her. "I''m trying to get this damn eysh out of my eye. It''s been bothering me since P.E this morning." She stated irritatedly. "You rememberst year, when we learned that eyshes were the body''s adaptation to protect your eyes?" "Yeah." I replied, looking back at her to find her furiously blinking her eyes. "Well I can''t remember thest time I got something other than an eysh in my eye. What a great defence mechanism." Macy said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. "It''s sad because it''s true." I agreed, smiling at her pain. Sadistic, I know. Mme. Suthend began teaching while Macy and I engaged in a frivolous conversation. The ss flew by and lunch came faster than I''d anticipated. "I''ll meet you at our lockers, I just gotta get my pencil back." I told her once I remembered that he hadn''t given my pencil back at the end of French ss and I knew I''d forget by tomorrow. "You''re actually going to go?" She asked, clearly astounded. Her eyes had even widened a fraction. "Yup." I said, popping the ''p''. I waved goodbye and she watched me nervously. I''d be lying if I said I wasn''t a tad nervous too. Actually, I''d be lying if I said I wasn''t super nervous. I wandered the halls and made my way through the hundreds of students until I finally saw a faintly familiar blob of brown hair. Who am I kidding. That fohawk wasn''t a blob, it sat on his head so perfectly that it was impossible to deny it. As I reached him, I realized that he was in a circle with his friends. Fabulous. I took a deep breath and pushed my way through two of the skyscrapers who were clearly over six feet tall. My height of 5''8" was patheticpared to theirs. The people I''d pushed aside were Liam and Chris. The only other people in the circle were James and Jeremy. They''d all stopped their conversations to look down at me expectantly. "P-Pencil." Was all I sputtered. Queue the face palm. The boys all startedughing in sync and it creeped me out. "I''m cringey, we''ve established that, pencil please." I said with a surprising amount of confidence. The boys finished off All content is property ? N?velDrama.Org. their chuckles and watched me. "I lost it." He said with a certain nonchnce that ticked me off. "You... Lost it?" I repeated, staring up at him nkly. He nodded and said, "Are you deaf too?" I ignored hisment and addressed the issue at hand. I was no longer afraid, I was just pissed. "How could you lose it, it''s been one fricking ss since I gave it to you!" I eximed, thankfully not attracting a crowd. What? Did he lose it in between some girl''s boobs as he was screwing them in the janitor''s closet? "I''m aware." He said, watching me with his green eyes that I no longer found oh so attractive. "Next time I see you with a pencil, I''m ripping it out of your beefy hands!" I cried angrily, stomping my foot. "Aww, she''s cute. Can we keep her?" The guy to my left spoke. I realized that it was Liam. His features were quite simr to mine except he was as pale as a sheet. His golden blonde hair matched mine though, same with his blue eyes though they were a bit lighter than mine. "I''m not a possession." I nearly growled, glowering up at him. "Of course you''re not." The other boy to my right said, wrapping his arm around me. This boy was Chris. His hair was shaggy and tinum blonde, he reminded me of a surfer dude. His brown eyes reminded me too much of Macy for me to be interested though. The only boy who hadn''t said anything yet, was James. He was usually the quiet one of the group. He was still outgoing, just not as outgoing as the rest of the gang. Of course, they all yed on the football team and just to make everything even more clich¨¦, Jeremy is the quarterback. I grabbed one of Chris'' fingers and lifted it a little. "How much do you value your arm?" I questioned aloud. This question caused him to remove his arm faster than I could say ''move biotch''. Their attention was giving me a confidence boost and I was liking it. "Yeah, we can definitely keep her." James finally spoke from across the circ- square, I guess. "Well, I look forward to collecting that pencil, Jeremy." And with that, I turned on my heel and left, feeling like a goddess. I met Macy at my locker and spilled all the information before I even sat down. I had a ''sd sandwich'' for lunch again today. At least that''s what my dad called it. It was lettuce and mayonnaise on multi-grain bread. It''s an acquired taste, but you get used to it. We never had much money, but dad got demoted because when mother left he just couldn''t handle much. She left four months ago for another man. I didn''t have time to be sad about it because I had to she had the balls to leave. I think dad is getting better, but I''m not sure. He''s seeing a shrink, but I don''t know how much that''ll do for him. Macy and I fell naturally into a random conversation about how to eat pizza. Apparently she eats it from the crust to the tip and I almost pped her. Granted, I take the cheese off my pizza so if I pped her, she''d p me back. Chapter 3: 3: Milkshake and Fries Chapter 3: 3: Milkshake and Fries The ss I dreaded the most - social studies. School''s way to force you to learn about some ancient civilization from centuries ago that everyone secretly knows will have no relevance in the future. This text is ? N?velDrama/.Org. I hesitantly opened the door and it opened with a creak. I''ve never skipped ss before, but the idea had nted itself in my mind. I wandered into the ssroom and lost myself in thought. How does that milkshake and fry thing work? I mean, I understand the sweet and salty appeal, but it''s a milkshake. And a fry. I cannotprehend theplexity of the mixture. I took a seat in the back row and kept thinking. What if someone ate their pizza from the sides? There''s no safe ce to hold onto! Either the greasy cheese or the hard bottom. Sure, they could hold onto the crust, but then the other side would droop. The shrill of the bell pierced the air and students took their seats. Mme. Kingston started droning on about a topic that no one gave a hoot about and I looked around. Why wasn''t anyone else sitting in the back row? Suddenly, the door bursted open, revealing two boys. Chris and Liam. With a silent groan, I remembered that only they sat back here. I was too caught up in my head to remember. They strolled in and looked right at me before sharing a smirk. I shut my eyes and prayed, please don''t sit here, please God, I''m truly a nice person. I swear I''ll do well in school, never curse, never break thew... Of course they say beside me. I was sandwiched in between them actually. They were the multi-grain bread slices and I was the lettuce. You see, the rows were 5 X 6. Six seats going forwards, and five across. Of course, instead of sitting beside each other like they usually would, they decided to make me ufortable like this. Well, now I''m not going to do well in school, I will curse, and I will definitely break thew. Okay, maybe not thatst one, but I''ll follow through on the other two! "Hey, can I borrow a pencil?" Chris asked from beside me, smirking. I turned to face him and his mop of hair. "Can I borrow ab?" I asked as if he actually owned one. His eyes narrowed at me before he turned and pulled out his own mechanical pencil from his binder. Dude. "Do you have an extra pencil?" Liam asked from beside me, full on smiling. I almost shielded my eyes from his bright teeth, honestly. "No, Jeremy has it." I huffed, facing the front. They left me alone for the rest of ss and I was very thankful. Myst ss of the day was P.E. I wanted to die to say the least. I was not an athletic person. In fact, if there was a contest for least coordinated, I''d win. I changed into some track pants and a pink tank top that outlined my curves more than I''d want it to. I tied my blonde hair into a high ponytail before exiting the change room. I wished Macy and I had P.E together. Unfortunately, she''s in some sort of AP P.E ss, whatever that is. Unlike me, Macy was extremely good at sports. I entered the gym and sighed as I noticed all four of the boys in the corner of the gym. I crossed my arms and walked over to the bleachers, taking a seat. asionally, one of them would look over at me and I started to feel a little self-conscious. Was my tank top too tight? Were my C-cups a little too as ugly as I thought they were? My shoes were sketchers, but hey, it''s all I could afford. I saw Tiffany making her way over to the boys in her spandex shorts and... Bra? There is no way that could be considered a shirt. She started talking them up while twirling her vibrant red hair around her finger. She grabbed Jeremy''s bicep and obviouslyplimented him on them as she squeezed them. I would''ve cringed if her attempts weren''t sessful. The boys were all eyeing her boobs with gratefulness and lust. Wow, I bet for thanksgiving their prayers are like this: ''Dear Lord, I am thankful for all thedies around the world with butt''s like Nicki Minaj''s and boobs like Tiffany Manchester''s.'' I was to lost in my thoughts to notice a presence beside me. "Casey, right?" They asked me. I shook my head to bring myself back to reality. "Yeah." I said, looking up at the boy. "Oh, hey James." I''m not going to lie, being around the boys does make me a tad nervous, but I try to cover it up as best I can. "Mind if I sit?" He spoke, his voice deep like the ocean. "Yes- wait no, sorry, that question always confuses me." I admitted sheepishly. He just grinned at me. "So does that mean I can sit down or no?" "Oh, sorry, of course you can sit." I blushed profusely and looked away shyly. He sat down and looked at me. I started to feel awkward so I decided to start a conversation. "I thought you''d be enjoying Tiffany''spany over there." I stated with a smallugh, watching her cross her arms over her chest to push up her already gigantic boobs. "Oh, right. I have this rule: If her butt is bigger than mine, I''m not interested." He told me, causing me to Once I could breathe, I said, "And you''d rather sit with me?" "Well, yeah, I mean we''ve never really spoken before, but you seem pretty cool." He replied. I looked into his brown orbs, searching for a sign of deceitful intentions, but I found none. "Why is your hair pink?" I blurted all of a sudden. It was an honest question though. Why die your hair pink when your jet ck hair made girls dive at your feet? "It''s kind of personal." He answered, rubbing his hand on the back of his neck. "Oh, sorry. It''s okay if you don''t want to tell me." I said, trying to console him. I saw that Liam would asionally look over at us and I suddenly felt cynical of James being here. "No, it''s fine." James stated before taking a calming breath. "My mother died of breast cancer three weeks ago." I gasped and looked at him, really looked at him. He did in fact look like something traumatic had happened recently. Losing your mother would definitely count as just that. His appearance was quite disheveled, though most people - including me, would just think that he was going for the ''I don''t care'' look. His clothes were fine, but his pastel pink hair looked like he''d just woken up and left it that way. He had a bit of ck stubble growing along his face and his eyes... Well, even though he did a good job of hiding it, he was mourning for her. The sadness in his eyes made me want to hug him, but I hardly know so that would be kind of weird I guess. Instead of showing him the sympathy that most people probably showed him, I gave him understanding. His face was a mask of confusion, but he didn''t have time to ask why I understood because Mme. Drinnan blew the whistle, signaling the start of ss. Chapter 4: 4: No Logic Chapter 4: 4: No Logic The teacher decided that we''d y dodgeball and I suppose that''s better than an actual sport. Liam and James were on my team, but Chris and Jeremy were on the other team. Unfortunately, the two of them had decided to team up on me because they''re jerks who have nothing better to do with their lives. Yes, I''m very salty. I ducked as a ball went whizzing over my head. One by one, our team started to go down until there was only Liam, James, and me. Someone called my name and I looked over in that direction. It was Chris who was smirking as he pointed to the right. I looked over and surely there was a ball hurtling towards my face. I didn''t react fast enough to duck, but I covered my face instead. No logic, I know. When nothing hit me, I removed my hands and looked down at a smiling Liam. He had the ball in his hands and he wasying on the ground. Wow, epic movie scene right there. Since he''d caught the ball, that meant Jeremy had to go out. Yeah, he was not happy about that at all. He red at me -not Liam- and walked off to the side. They still had about half their team left and they were all throwing balls like madmen. I''ve never performed so much physical activity in my life. I''d thanked Liam as he got up. He imed he''d have a bruise on his hip, but it''d be identical to the one he got when he fell from heaven. Cheesy, I know. I''d rolled my eyes and kept ying, hence my current position. I was standing against the wall, dodging balls because Chris and I were the only ones left on each team. All the balls were on his side so I really had no choice. I had somehow sessfully dodged his throws so far, and he only had one more. He stepped forward and hurled the ball at my stomach. For some reason, my feet were glued in ce and I started panicking. What if I can''t have children because I get hit so hard! Okay, not possible, but you never know. I clutched my stomach and closed my eyes just as the ball came in contact with it and the gym went dead silent. I slowly opened my eyes and found the ball tucked safely underneath my arms against my stomach. I pulled it out from between my arms and held it in my hand and eyed it curiously. "Good game." A velvety voice said from directly in front of me. I would''ve jumped back, but I was against the wall already. I looked up and came face to face with a smiling Chris. "Thanks, you too!" I said happily. I couldn''t believe that I''d won, let alone caught the ball. I heard some hooted and hollering to my right. I looked over just in time to see James and Liam at my sides. Before I could so much as speak, they put their hands under my butt - which didn''t go unnoticed by me, and lifted me up. Instinctively, I put my arms across their shoulders for support. I was more than a little skeptical about all of this. I mean, I''ve spoken to these guys once and it was at lunch today. Plus, half of it was indirect. Either way, I didn''t mind being carried like royalty to the girl''s change room. What I did mind, was the res that I was receiving from Tiffany. They put me down and I turned to face them. "That waspletely unnecessary, but thanks anyway." "Trust me, it was our pleasure," Liam said with a smirk. James pped him on the back of the head and Liam let out an ''Oof''. "Hey, what was that for?" James just shook his head and walked away. Liam shrugged before throwing a flirty wink my way. Okay, so that just happened. What''s next, flying pigs and aliens? I changed back into my clothes, but as soon as I left the change room, Tiffany was surely waiting for me. "What do you think you''re doing?" She snapped, scaring me half to death. I eyed her fearfully. "E-Exiting the change room." I stuttered nervously. I don''t know what it is about her, but she''s just so intimidating. Maybe it''s her heels, her make up, maybe even her good looks. Either way, I was scared crapless. "Y-You know what I m-meant." She mocked me, ring daggers my way. "N-No, I really d-don''t." I tried to keep the stutter out of my voice, but it was no use. I was trembling and I was literally quaking in the boots that I was wearing. "Stop trying to steal my poprity." Tiffany used angrily, flipping her red hair over her shoulder with one of her manicured hands. I think she saw the confusion on my face because she exined. "Whatever you just did, don''t do it again, capiche?" Belongs to (N)?vel/Drama.Org. "Uh, sure," I replied confusedly. " "Good." She said with a stic smile as she turned around and strutted away, shaking her butt more than necessary for my innocent eyes. What a day. ------------------ "Mace, you''reing over, I have so much to tell you, it''s not even funny." I said, getting on our bus. "Um, how about we go to my ce?" She suggested, eyeing my warily. "Oh, right, sure." I replied with a small smile. I''d almost forgot that my dad was basically mentally unstable. For a moment, I forgot that my mother had left us for a younger man. ''More money, bigger house, bigger package'', is what she''d said when she left. Macy wasn''t afraid of my dad per say, she just wasn''t asfortable as she used to be. "So are you gonna tell me what happened, or what?" Macy asked teasingly, taking a seat beside me. We lived fairly close together so we could take the same bus, it was nice. "You bet your butt I am." I said with a grin. I turned to face her and began telling her the deeds of the day. Chapter 5: 5: Pancakes at 4:30 AM Chapter 5: 5: Pancakes at 4:30 AM "Hey, dad?" I said from the other side of Macy''s phone. "Who is this?" He asked drunkenly. "This is Casey, your daughter." I reminded him. He seemed to be thinking it over, so I continued, "I was wondering if I could stay at Macy''s tonight." "How can you be there if you''re right here?" He asked through the phone. I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion as Macy watched my curiously. "I''m not there, dad. I don''t know who that is, but it''s not me." I informed him worriedly. "Oh." Was all he said. "I''ll be right over." I told him, hanging up. "Sorry Mace, I gotta go." "It''s okay, I get it." I really doubted that she did, I mean, how could she? Her parents were still married, she was an only child, she lived in a nice suburban home, her life was honestly nothing like mine. Even if I was more than a little jealous, I tried as best I could to make sure that it didn''t interfere with our friendship. I hurried out of the house, saying goodbye to Macy''s parents as I left. I may not be athletic, but the one thing I can do is run. I was a track starst year and the practice I get is running home to my dad. I ran a kilometre and a half - the distance between Macy''s and my house. I barely noticed the heavy snowfall because I was so This text is ? N?velDrama/.Org. determined to reach the house quickly. When I arrived, I unlocked the door to find my father sitting at the dinner table with the life-sized doll that he had bought for me six years ago. "Dad, that''s not me." I told him, taking the doll to my room. His eyes were bloodshot from the alcohol that he''d been drinking, I could smell it on him. His breath reeked of the distinct smell of vodka. "C''mon, let''s get you to bed." I said, helping him up. Dad was an emotional drunk as I had learned, so he just walked with me. He was too sad to put up a fight. He really loved my mother, as we all did. I decided that I''d go to bed too. I found a bottle of Jack beside his bed so I took it and hid it in my room so that he couldn''t find it. It was eight o''clock and I was really tired. It''s been a long day and all I needed was a night of sleep. ----------------- "Sis?" I called out. "Sis!" I walked around in the darkness of which was my home, trying to find her. Suddenly, she appeared in a beam of light, cutting through the darkness. "Valerie!" I cried, running towards her. I enveloped her in a hug, but as soon as I touched her she disappeared. Tears rolled down my cheeks as I cried. "Cass?" Someone called from behind me. Their voice was high-pitched and squeaky. I turned around and found Valerie right behind me. "Oh, Val." I cried, not touching her for fear that she''d disappear. "Why did you let them take me?" She asked, ck tears rolling down her cheeks. "I couldn''t do anything, they took you from me, there was no-" she cut me off. "You promised that we''d always be together." She used. I cried harder and while her tears were ck, mine were white. When they hit the floor, the darkness disappeared. Val and I stood in our childhood home, the one that we were raised in together. Mom and dad were kissing in the kitchen, cooking together. Val and I were ying with dolls in the living room. My tears were gone and I smiled as we yed. Suddenly, the roof of our house was ripped off and a giant Dave stood over us. Heughed evilly as he reached in the house and took mom from the kitchen, she didn''t even struggle. Dad fell to the floor, crying. Then, Dave reached back in and grabbed Valerie. "Val!" I shouted, trying to grab her arms. She cried out for me as her hands slipped from my grasp. Dave turned with an evil smirk on his face and ran away. All I heard was a faint, "You promised!" From the lips of my sister. I fell to the floor and cried out in agony, tears spilling from my eyes. I woke up with a start, real, salt water tears falling from my eyes. I quickly sniffled, using the tissues beside my bed to wipe my eyes and blow my nose. I refuse to cry over spilled milk. These past four months have been painful, especially because I couldn''t visit my sister since they moved to the next province over. They''d moved from our town of Lbe to a big city over in British Columbia. I looked at my rusty rm clock and sighed as it read 3:57am. There was no point trying to get anymore sleep so I got out of bed and started making breakfast. I knew dad was knockout from his hangover so even though I tried to be quiet, there was really no point. I made pancakes and put some extras on a te for dad when he woke up. I covered it with a pot lid so that they''d stay somewhat warm and ate my pancakes at 4:30am. Once I was finished, I got dressed and decided to go for a run - the one thing that really calmed me down. The one reliable in my life that would forever be there. Of course, I always had Macy, but if for some reason she ever left, I''d always be able to run. I went outside I started at a slow pace, thinking about random things as I usually do. Therefore, my mind naturally drifted to the topic of ballerina''s. How could they achieve the level of ''point''? I mean, bncing on your toes for minutes? There''s no way that''s healthy. Your toes would be all messed up because of the point, for starters. Secondly, it would be uber painful. Lastly, why would you do that to yourself? I was so lost in my thoughts that I hadn''t noticed the snowkes falling on my head, nor the near winter breeze nipping at my nose. I sped up my pace as I switched subjects. The boys. Why are they talking to me? I am incredibly cynical about the entire thing. If I wasn''t, well, me, I''d think it was normal, but I am me, so yeah. They just all of a sudden started talking to me yesterday and it''s bothering the crap out of me. I''m not unique, I''m not special, and I''m definitely not overly pretty. So what''s the appeal? They should just keep hanging out with Tiffany and leave me alone, I think it would be better for everyone that way. At this point, I was full on sprinting. I quickly stopped running when I realized that I was in fact, lost. The building around me weren''t in any way familiar and I was too lost in my thoughts to have paid attention to the route that I''d used. Well, this is going to be a great week. Chapter 6: 6: Teletubbies Chapter 6: 6: Teletubbies Thank god I brought my winter jacket. It''s November 12th and I am freezing my butt off in Canada. I know running around in the middle of the snow was a dumb idea, but I really needed to get away and run. My jeans were surprisingly warm and I hadn''t noticed how cold it was until I had stopped. I''ve been sitting on this curb and since I left my crappy flip phone at home, I really wasn''t in the position to do anything useful. I got up and started to walk in the direction I thought I came from. The sun was dumbest person alive, I know, but soon I''ll be the dumbest person of the dead. Honk. I jumped and turned around. In a cute little Nissan was James, grinning at me. I didn''t care whether he was honking at me to ask if I needed a ride, I just ran onto the road and opened the passenger door. The hat that I''d grabbed was sitting loosely on my head and it had conveniently started snowing. "S-Sorry about y-your s-seats." I stuttered due to the cold. I was absolutely frozen. I turned up the heat without asking and slowly my shivers subsided. "What are you doing out here at six in the morning?" He asked me, turning down the radio. I guess it wasn''t two hours, only one. "Running," I confessed sheepishly. He looked at me disbelievingly. "It wasn''t as cold yesterday when I ran home." I defended. "What are you doing over here at six in the morning?" I questioned as he drove off. "Well, I was going home." He told me. I looked at him confusedly, wondering where he could''vee from at such an hour. "Party." He said, reading my mind. Now it was his turn to look sheepish. "Okay, well, where is here, exactly?" "Riverbend." "The rich kid neighbourhood?" I verified, wondering how I could''ve possibly made my way all the way over here. Jamesughed but nodded. "Can you drop me off at Macy''s?" "Sure." He replied, steering in the direction of her house. The rest of the ride was silent until we arrived. "Uh, thank you so much, but how do you know where Macy lives? I don''t remember giving you directions..." I trailed off skeptically. "Well-uh..." He seemed lost for words. "We hooked up once." He finally said. My jaw went ck and I gaped at him. "Oh, well then. I will see you at school. Again, thank you very much." And with that, I sped out of the car and knocked on Macy''s door. After about a minute, Macy''s mother opened the door. "Hi Jennifer, thank you," I said without asking toe in. She looked shocked to see me, but the bags under her eyes told me that I''d woken her up. I took off my shoes in a hurry and ran to Macy''s room. Opened the door, I jumped on top of her to wake her up. She sleeps like a rock, so I think that it was pretty effective to jump on her because she woke up almost instantly. She gasped for air and then opened her mouth to scream. I quickly covered her mouth and said, "It''s Casey, chill." Hello. It''s me. "What are you doing here so early in the morning?" She groaned, her voice hoarse from sleep. Sleep that I didn''t get, I thought bitterly. "You slept with James?" I asked her, getting straight to the point. Her brown eyes nearly bugged out of her head and I''m surprised they didn''t fall out. "Who told you!" She demanded, sitting up as I got off of her. I was quite hurt that she didn''t tell me, but I guess I could understand why she didn''t. "James," I told her truthfully. "Since when do you talk to James?" She narrowed her eyes, dodging the subject. Her brown hair was all over the ce and I struggled to hold in myughter. "Since he picked me up off the streets this morning. I would''ve called, but I don''t have a phone." I told her. She tilted her head skeptically before shaking it. "Now exin." "Exin what?" She asked innocently as if she didn''t know what I was talking about. "Oh pish, you know what I''m talking about," I said, calling her out on her bluff. She sighed and cast her nce downwards. "It was two months ago and Tiffany was making fun of me for being a virgin. I know I shouldn''t have let her push my buttons and I know it''s not something to be ashamed about either, but it was just the way she said it. I decided I wanted to lose my virginity and James was just there. He was in my CALM and I figured that he''d be experienced enough to make it enjoyable, and pretty enough to make it hot." She confessed, still looking down. "Macy, don''t be embarrassed, it''s okay. I think I understand. Was it at least good?" I asked her curiously. She looked up at me and her eyes practically lit up. "Oh! I''ve been dying to tell you!" She gushed, holding my hands and making direct eye contact with me. When her excited brown eyes met my blue ones, I knew she regretted nothing. "It was amazing! Sure, it was quite painful at first because James has got a nicely sized package-" TMI Macy, TMI, "-butContent is property of N?velDrama.Org. after a while, it didn''t hurt anymore. I swear, it was the night of my life. Although the next morning the space between my legs was a little sore, it was totally worth it." "Wow, good for you Macy!" I congratted. "And you''re not like attached to him or anything?" "Nope. At least I don''t think so, why would I be?" She looked at my confused. The sun shined through her window and blinded me for a moment. For a second I started trying to grab the sun and Macy just started tough. "Um, because he was your first? Like, did it mean anything to you?" I questioned,ying down on her bed. Sheid down beside me and stared up at the ceiling. "Meh, not really." She said with a shrug. "Oh, it''s seven, I gotta get ready for school. You can watch TV or something." She got up and went to her bathroom while I turned on the TV in her room. The channel that it was on yed as the Teletubbies theme song yed. One question that I''d have to ask Macy was: Why the hell was she watching Teletubbies? I guess I''ll ask her after I finish watching this week''s episode! Chapter 7: 7: Not Too Much Fun Chapter 7: 7: Not Too Much Fun Macy''s mom dropped us off at school, but not without some not so subtle questioning looks through the rearview mirror. "Have fun girls, but not too much fun!" Jennifer shouted out of her car. Macy cringed at her mother''s deliberate attempt to embarrass her. Liam and Chris were waiting along the side of the school for me. "Caseyyyyy!" They both cried, getting my attention. "I''ll meet you in ss?" I suggested to Macy, tightening my hand around my backpack strap. "Go get ''em, tiger." She teased, skipping into school. I approached the boys and looked at them curiously. "Wassup?" "We were wondering if you wanted to hang out," Liam asked me, looking away from me almost shyly. "Um, sure? When and where?" I questioned, crossing my armsfortably over my chest. "Really, you just had to do that?" Chris asked, looking away from me just like Liam had. "Do wha-" I looked down and immediately put my arms down, oops. "Sorry, you were saying?" "The shack, after school?" Chris suggested, shrugging as he said it. "Yeah, sure. Can I bring Macy?" "Your friend? Sure." Liam answered me, before turning around and leaving. Oki-doki then. Chris just shrugged and followed Liam to wherever he was headed. I walked into the school and put my stuff in my locker, chatting aimlessly with Macy. Suddenly, Macy''s eyes darted to something behind me and I turned around confusedly. My blue eyes met someone''s broad chest and I looked up quickly. "Here," Jeremy said curtly, sticking out his hand, holding a pencil between his fingers. "Oh, thanks," I replied sheepishly, smiling a bit. I took the pencil from his hand and he turned around swiftly, his head bobbing above the rest of the students. "OMG!" Macy eximed excitedly, bouncing on the balks of her feet as she spun me around. "Dear God, did you just say that out loud? I thought we were over the text lingo phase." I stated as I opened my locker, acting calm though I felt the same way Macy did. I didn''t know why, sure he was the quarterback of the football team, the hottest guy in school, and a total ignorant jerk, but that didn''t mean I was attracted to him... Right? The bell rang and I waved at Macy as I headed to Social Studies, the ss I had with Chris and Liam. I took the same seat as I had yesterday because somehow all the seats were already filled, aside from the back row of course. Again, Chris and Liam sat beside me, squishing me in the middle. "Hey, sweet cheeks," Chris spoke first, throwing a dashing smile my way. "Hey, buttercup," Liam said soon after, I simply rolled my eyes though I was on fire. "Wow, you both leave me breathless with your terms of endearment." I retorted, pretending to examine my poorly maintained nails. They both exchanged confused looks before resting their interested gazes on me. "I like writing." Was my exnation as I shrugged. Suddenly I squinted at both of them. "Why are you guys talking to me all of a sudden?" They looked at each other almost worriedly and I became more and more suspicious. "Hey, you know I''m right here, right?" They said nothing, instead, they stayed quiet, leaving me to myself for the rest of the period. Again. Once the bell rang, I wandered over to French ss, another bane of my existence. I took my usual seat and found Carter sitting in his spot beside me. I sighed a breath of relief. "I like your new sses," Imented, taking out my pencil. Carter was a cute kid, adorable if you will. His brown hair was all over the ce and his ck skin tone made his blue eyes pop, he even had some little freckles on his nose. Adorable. "Thanks." I faintly heard him mumble. My mind was already drifting to another ce, one of the memes and cringy vines. Mme. Breault had already started teaching by the time I came back to reality. "Move." Someone barked near me, I looked up to see who it was. Jeremy was demanding Carter to move and I frowned. "B-But-" He stuttered. "What are you? Retarded? Move." Woah, that''s so not okay. Who the heckes into ss,te mind you, and demands for someone to move? There''s a seat at the front of the ss, sit there. "Leave him alone, jerk." I didn''t know that the voice was mine until all eyes were on me. Jeremy had anger pooling in those green orbs of his and I was starting to get nervous. There was no taking back what I''d said. "Make me." "What are you, five?" This time I literally pped my hands over my mouth in shock. It seemed that even Jeremy was astonished. Either because someone was standing up to him, or it was me, the quiet good girl. "I-It''s fine Casey, I''ll move." Carter stuttered, getting up from his seat with his binders. As he stood up, All content is property ? N?velDrama.Org. Jeremy shoved him, making him fall to the floor, his belongings going flying. Okay, I was livid. Though I was angry, I stood up calmly and walked around the aisle to Carter. I bent down beside where Jeremy was sitting to help Carter pick up his things. Once they were all packed up, I realized that Carter would have to sit in front of the ss, the ce he hated. He needed the middle where he could see and not be the center of attention. "Carter, you can have my seat." "No, it''s o-" "Please." I continued, knowing that he really didn''t want to sit in the front. Even if he''d have to sit near Jeremy, it was better than the front. "Okay, thank you." Carter smiled a little bit, his stark white teeth a huge contrast to his dark skin tone. I grabbed my things and ignored Jeremy''s angry gaze as I took my seat at the front. I hated the front too, but I figured I could handle it better than Carter could. I had forgotten that there was a whole ss of people watching, their thoughts made me flush. Soon enough, after the initial shock went away, Mme. Breault started teaching again and I swear that I could feel the heat of his gaze on the back of my head. Chapter 8: 8: Dying Goats Chapter 8: 8: Dying Goats "What a prick!" I eximed angrily as Macy and I found a seat in the cafeteria. "He knows other people exist, right? He''s not the only one here. Ugh, he''s so aggravating! And I don''t even talk to him very often!" "Woah there, tiger." Macyughed, "Retract the ws." I red over at Macy as we sat at an empty table near the corner of the cafeteria. "Macy, you have no idea how rude he is! If he wasn''t so good looking, he''s the scum of the-" "I''ve never heard you so mad before." Liam snickered as he sat beside me. Chris took his seat on the other side, filling the four sides of the table. "The first time you spoke to me was just the other day, of course you haven''t." I snapped, taking an angry bite out of my Nute sandwich. Liam life''s his hands in mock surrender. "Sorry," I grumbled, food still in my mouth. "It''s all good, boo," Chris said, wrapping his arm around my shoulders and pulling me to him. My eyebrows creased in confusion as I looked at Macy as if to say, excuse me? She just shrugged with a huge smile on her face. Chris'' shaggy hair was all over me and I was getting ufortable. "Okay, that''s enough love," I announced, awkwardly shaking him off me. Liam looked over at Chris with a cocky smirk and I squinted with suspicion. "So," Liam began, turning towards me, "What''s got your panties all in a twist?" "I''m pretty sure only Jeremy could get anyone this riled up." Chrisughed, hitting the table as he chuckled. "I mean, you''re not wrong." I sighed, eating more of my sandwich. The Nute was already making me feel better and I was starting to get giddy again. "But hey, life is good because I''ve got-" My eyes widened and my mouth moved, but no noise came out as Liam grabbed the sandwich out of my hand and stuffed it in his mouth with one bite. "I-you-I-Nute?" I stuttered out, flexing my fingers and holding the air as if it would reappear there. I looked over at Liam with the saddest eyes I could muster, pouting a little bit. "Aw, you''re so adorable," Chris said, smiling. "Don''t look at me like that, it''s so sad." Liam frowned, wiping my Nute from the corners of his mouth. "You ate my Nute!" I eximed somewhat angrily. "How will I live?" Liam suddenly said, "I have an Idea!" And left, leaving Chris, Macy, and I at the table. "He ate my Nute..." Macy reached out and held my hand, while Chris just looked around awkwardly before leaving. "Stupid Nute stealing turd looking piece of crap," I muttered dropping my head to the table. The bell rang and I sighed, hungry and disappointed. Ew Math. I grabbed my binders from my locker and headed to my AP math ss. I took a seat roughly in the middle of ss and waited for the teacher to arrive. Oddly enough, Jeremy came strolling into the ss. I frowned and started to draw in my book. "What the fuck is that? A dying goat?" Jeremy asked, taking a seat beside me. I red over at him, okay so art isn''t my fort¨¦. "You''re a dying goat." I retorted, erasing my drawing. "Wow, good one Einstein." Jeremy chuckled, leaning back in his seat. "Why are you in here?" I asked him, turning to face him. "I don''t know. I''d like to think we all have a purpose-" "In math AP." I rified, cutting him off abruptly. "Well, I''m enrolled in this ss." "No, you''re not." "Just because I don''t show up very often doesn''t mean I''m not in this ss," Jeremy said, crossing his arms. I squinted at him skeptically. "What? I can''t be good looking and smart?" "You can be, you just can''t be good looking, smart, and nice," I smirked just as the teacher walked in. "Not all of us can be as perfect as you, Casey." I heard Jeremy mutter somewhat angrily. What''s the supposed to mean? "Does that mean you think I''m pretty?" I cooed quietly, a teasing smirk on my face. Jeremy red at me out of the corner of his eye. Since when do I tease guys? Since when do I tease guys like Jeremy? The lesson was pretty chill, just textbook work, and Jeremy left me alone for the rest of the ss. ----- "I scream for ice cream!" I eximed excitedly as Liam, Chris, Macy, and I walked into the shack. "It''s on me because I ate your sandwich." Liam smiled sheepishly, pulling out his wallet. I didn''t oppose because I was broke and I was still slightly agitated about my poor Nute sandwich. I pouted at the thought of my sandwich, but when I saw the Nute voured ice cream, I all but squealed. "Keep your dog on a leash." Someone behind usmented. We all turned around, to find Jeremy standing there coolly. "Aw c''mon man, she''s adorable," Liam said, smiling at me. "Yeah whatever, fuck her then," Jeremymented crudely. "Excuse me?" I asked him disbelievingly. Was he for real? Did he seriously just say that. Somewhere off to the side, I heard Macy telling Chris and Liam to back up. "You heard me." Jeremy dered, crossing his arms over his chest. "What is your deal?" I demanded, jabbing a finger in his broad chest. He unfolded his arms and took a step towards me, trying to look intimidating. Well too bad, Jeremy, I''m too angry to be intimidated. On top of my dadst night, my Nute sandwich, and now this? No way. "You''re my deal." Jeremy snapped. "You''re always bothering me." All content is property ? N?velDrama.Org. "The first time I''d ever spoken to you, was yesterday, what do you mean!" I eximed angrily my hands balling into fists. "Most bothersome two days of my life." He stated, ring down at me. I took a deep breath and calmed myself down. "You know what? You''re not even worth it. Screw the Nute ice cream, I''d give up a lifetime of Nute to never see you again." I sneered, walking around him and out the door. Okay, maybe I overreacted, but everything piling up is just too much right now. I walked around the building and sat in the alley, putting my head in my hands. I wasn''t sad because if Jeremy, no, he was like a fly that was just annoying. It''s just that my father''s condition has been getting worse and worse and I don''t want to rant to anyone because deep, deep down, I know no one really cares. So, for the first time in a long time, I cried. The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!