Chapter 1
“Heather!”
“You’re going to be late for school,” my stepmom shouted and I made my way to the kitchen for breakfast.
“What are you wearing? That top makes you look fat.”
I rolled my eyes. Regina, my stepmom, was a retired supermodel. She and my dad met three years ago and were married three months later. Unlike many stepmoms, she wasn’t evil. She had her flaws, but she wasn’t evil.
“I am going to fetch you a little later today,” she added. “Me and the moms are having a little fundraising meeting.”
“Thrilling,” I said sarcastically, grabbing a piece of toast and heading out the door.
When I arrived at school, I went straight to the toilets. As I was washing my hands, I saw something scrawled on the wall:
‘Heather Samuels and Michael are fucking.’
I pulled a red pen from my bag and quickly scratched over the words until they were a messy blur of ink.
“You know that’s not gonna make them stop, right?”
I turned around. Bree,my best friend stood behind me, looking at me sadly.
“I don’t care. I will scratch out every piece of bullshit they write about me until they stop.”
“Haters don’t stop, honey. Just ignore them,” Bree said, leaning against the sinks. “Whoever wrote this must be some sick, lonely, unpopular bastard who wants to be you—or one of Michael’s hoes.”
“Okay. Maybe you’re right,” I said. We headed to class together. As we walked, a scared-looking new girl passed us in the hallway. Bree noticed and I let out a sigh.
“Mhh, fresh meat,” Bree whispered.
“Bree, leave that poor girl alone.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t bite... much.” A slick smile grew on her face as she made her way towards the girl. I wanted nothing to do with jeopardizing another person’s life, so I kept walking, heading toward the back of the school building.
I passed the old apple tree, jumping over the little sewage stream and wrestling with a thick bush to get to the other side.
Marcus was already there. His eyes were rolled back like a possessed person, his fingers gently holding a cigarette. He lay his head against a rock and released the smoke gently from his lips. I sat next to him. He lifted his head,noticing my presence and handed me a cigarette. I took a long drag and exhaled slowly.
“Is it true?” he asked.
I nodded.
“Why him, Heather?”
“I don’t know. And I don’t know how everyone knows about it.”
“I’m not judging, but Michael,Heather!′
“I know. That’s why we’re not serious.”
“So you’re fucking.”
“Eww. We’re just... participating in sexual activity.”
“Same thing,” Marcus muttered.
“Do you love him?”
“No,” I said, rolling my eyes. I mean..“I’m addicted to him, but I am not in love with him.”
“If a girl ever feels like that for me, I’ll be the happiest man alive.” I laughed
“Where’s Bree?” he asked.
“Harassing a new student.”
“Mhh, fresh meat. Let me go get a piece.”
He stood up, and I followed him back toward the main building.
My friends were the biggest heathens. They were that popular squad that made people suicidal. They lived for the “usual treats,” and they especially liked new students. A year ago, I would have joined them, but I was done ruining people’s lives. I had changed. I wanted nothing to do with bullying anymore; I regretted the pain I had caused others.
“Heather, are you okay?” Miss Kelly asked, noticing me clutching my stomach tight.
Before I could answer, the bell rang. I rushed to the toilets. It must have been that spicy chicken Regina cooked yesterday; I had been running to the bathroom all morning.
I made my way to the cafeteria. I could see people whispering, their eyes following me. I pretended not to notice and sat at our usual table.
“Where were you?” Bree asked.
“Nowhere.”
Next to her sat the new girl. I’m sure Bree saw the look on my face because she immediately started introducing her to me.
“Heather, this is Layla. Layla, this is Heather.”
I waved awkwardly. She gave me a small, shy smile. I took a moment to examine Layla. She looked shy and awkward, her hair pulled up into a messy bun. I couldn’t help but wonder what Bree was planning to do with her.
As if my day couldn’t get worse, Michael, Marcus, Shay, and John showed up.
Michael tried to sit next to me, but Bree blocked him.
“Michael, what are you doing?”
“Sitting down,” he said cheekily.
“No, I mean what are you doing sitting next to Heather? You really want to make everyone uncomfortable, don’t you?”
Michael rolled his eyes and sat next to Layla instead. I watched Layla, who couldn’t stop blushing with Michael so close to her. I didn’t blame her; I could barely contain myself when he was near me. When he talked to me, my heart pounded. When he kissed me, I got lost in the heat of it.
I remembered the first time he made love to me. We were at a beach party in Cape Town. Marcus’s parents were in Paris for the summer and had basically forgotten he existed, so we had his parents beach house to ourselves. I had lost Bree in the crowd and went to the kitchen to find a snack.
Michael was already there. He made me something to eat, and we spent hours talking about everything and nothing. It was the first time we had ever been alone. He was usually a lone wolf—only part of our group because he was Bree’s cousin.
Everything was fun until we got too cozy. He was so easy to talk to, and when he looked at me, his eyes were filled with such intensity that my stomach did flips. I have had a crush on him for a long time now but this was the first we had actually talked.
He leaned in, and I forgot to breathe. When our lips touched, I felt like I had caught a fever. His lips felt soft on mine, I put my arms over his neck and his lips quickened it’s pace.
Then his hand slowly moved under my shirt,cupping my breast and I let out a soft moan. He smiled against my mouth, his other hand moving to my waist, slowly unzipping my pants....
“Hey, earth to Heather!” Shay snapped her fingers, pulling me out of the memory.
“What are you dreaming about?”
“Michael’s dick,” John joked.
The table erupted in laughter, except for Bree, who looked annoyed. I looked at Michael; he had a smug look on his face. I couldn’t take it. I grabbed my tray and stormed off.
