I huff. “I just met that guy and he doesn’t even know my name. He called me Cole.”
“Whatever you say.” Liam wiggles his eyebrows. “Your face is so red. I know you like him.”
I roll my eyes. “He’s gorgeous, yes. But I don’t know the guy. Honestly, I don’t think I could go for a guy who can’t even remember my name.”
“I’m sure he’ll have plenty of time to learn your name tonight.” He nods toward the stand. “Now go sit down and watch me play some ball.”
I lift a hand, giving him a mock salute.
Sometimes Liam is bossy, but I still love him. He’s just looking out for me.
I make my way to the stands, taking a seat by a girl in the back. It’s the only place that isn’t super packed.
The girl I sit next to doesn’t look like everybody else here—she’s not so prim and proper. For one, her hair is bright red. Not like a natural color of red, but fire truck red. The kind of hair color that you know takes a lot of maintenance to keep it that color. She’s trying very hard not to be like everybody else, but even I recognize the name brand on her jeans.
The girl looks at me as I sit down, and I am struck by the light blue color of her eyes. They’re so light.
She nods at me. “Hey, new girl.”
“Hey.” I smile to be polite. “I’m Cove Lawson.”
“Cove?” She raises an eyebrow.
I nod. “My brother calls me Coco.”
She grins, her blue eyes lighting up. “I like that. I’m going to call you Coco. I’m Harper Greenwood.” She narrows her eyes. “Call me Harper or Harp, but do not call me ‘red’ or we will not be friends.”
“Okay.” I assume there is a story behind her insistence of me not calling her red. “I guess as long as you don’t call me ‘brownie’ then we’re good.”
She chuckles. “I’m going to like you, Coco. Don’t screw it up because I don’t like that many people.”
I swallow hard. “I’ll try not to.”
“So, what’s your story? Where are you from? Why are you here?”
“Boy, you just jump right into the deep stuff, don’t you?”
She shrugs. “There are no secrets at West Raven Academy—our school is much too small for that. I’d rather hear it from you than somebody else.”
I take a deep breath, wondering where to start. “My story isn’t that interesting. My parents hate me, and they wanted me out of their hair, so here I am.” I try not to sound bitter, though I’m sure it’s clear on my face. “I’m from New York, the Upper East Side. And that’s pretty much it.”
She snorts. “Same as everybody here. Why do you think we’re at this fancy boarding school? Because mommy and daddy don’t love us.”
She says it so casually, but I can see the pain in her eyes.
Being unwanted sucks. I know better than anybody.
Harper turns her head forward, watching the game. I do the same, sensing she’s done talking about personal things.
I like Harper and her fire hair—this is just the beginning of a beautiful friendship. I can feel it.
I met your twin.
Liam comes to get me from my dorm room later that night. Somehow, with Liam’s help, I manage to crawl out of the window. It’s after curfew and I’m hoping we won’t get caught. The last thing I need is to get expelled from this school before class even begins.
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” I whisper to Liam as he leads me away from the girls’ dormitory.
He smirks, looking over his shoulder at me. “Where’s your sense of adventure, Coco?”
I sigh, knowing this is all I’ll get out of him.
Liam is always carefree and lighthearted. I envy that about him. I know it’s partly because his dad and my mom love him—he’s the favorite. Even though he does stick up for me, he doesn’t understand how hard it is for me. Not really. If he gets kicked out of school here, our parents won’t say a word. They’ll just enroll him somewhere else. If I get kicked out… I cringe, wondering what would happen. I don’t think I want to know.
Still, I follow Liam down a well worn pathway that leads to the lake. I want to be normal and I want to be liked.
“I can’t believe you already have a boyfriend,” Liam teases, as we walk into the clearing by the lake. There are a ton of people already hanging out.
Some people are sitting on the dock, their feet dangling over the water. Some are sitting on logs and some are standing around. I notice a guy has a girl pressed into a tree while they make out. My face grows warm as I turn away, not wanting to see that.
“I don’t have a boyfriend.” I cross my arms over my chest. “And don’t think I didn’t see that cheerleader hanging onto you after the football game earlier.”
He shrugs, looking sheepishly toward me. “What can I say? I’m a real ladies’ man.”
I roll my eyes.
Oh, good grief.
“I love you, Number Four, but you’re a real pain in the butt.”
He pats my shoulder, already looking toward a group of blonde girls who are chattering in a circle. “Have fun, Coco. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
There is nothing he wouldn’t do.
He saunters off toward the group of girls. As soon as he walks between two of the girls, they all start giggling. One of them twirls blonde hair around her finger and she leans into him.
Gross.
Liam really doesn’t have standards.
Well, no. That’s not true. He is a little picky, but only when it comes to vanity. He doesn’t care if the girl is shallow.
I sigh, turning to walk off somewhere. Where, I’m not sure, I just know I don’t want to watch my brother flirt with a posse of giggling teenaged girls.
I see a spot by the lake where there aren’t a lot of people hanging out, so I head that way. As much as I want to be a people person, I’m just not. I wish I were as cool as Liam, able to make a conversation with any stranger.
While I’m making my way to the lake, I can’t help but notice that Preston, the cute boy who invited me, isn’t here yet. It doesn’t surprise me that he would blow me off, but I am annoyed. Maybe I shouldn’t be annoyed. It’s not like I’m looking for a boyfriend.
I sit down on the ground by the shore, pulling my knees up to my chest. I hug them against me, resting my cheek on the top of my knee.
A rustling in the grass beside me captures my attention. I lift my head to look over at who is making the noise. As I look over, a guy sits down beside me. Not Preston, I quickly realize. But if Preston is hot, this guy is molten lava.
I have no idea what my expression looks like as I look at him, but I imagine my jaw is hanging open. If I tried to talk, I’m pretty sure I’d just end up stammering. Never in my life have I seen such a good looking guy, at least not in person. Boys this pretty are meant to be on the big screen so they can be fawned over by all women kind, only to be snatched up by women equally as beautiful, rich, and famous.
The boy has dirty blond hair. It’s shorter on the sides and slightly longer on the top. He has long, dark lashes that frame his light green eyes. I could stare into them all day, just trying to memorize the patterns.