Chapter One

"For the love of God! Stop screaming!" I groaned out loud with my eyes still shut. I stretched out my hand, trying to reach for my stupid phone to shut it off but it ended up falling on the ground with a loud thud.

"Perfect." I threw my sheets away from my body in anger and picked up my phone from the floor to see a small crack on the top left corner and the name of my best friend blinking on the screen.

"Lucy! It's Sunday!" I almost yelled at her as soon as I attended her call. I hate it when someone interrupts my sleep, especially on Sunday.

"Good morning to you too, sunshine!" She replied in a sarcastic tone and I rolled my eyes.

"You better have a good reason for calling me," I yawned, falling back on my bed, pushing away my chestnut brown hair from my face.

"School is starting tomorrow and we are officially seniors now. We need to go shopping, Ri."

"You mean, you need to go shopping," I replied lazily, trying to get under the covers.

"Riley Adams, you better get out of your bed. I'm going to be there in like 15 minutes and drag your lazy ass to the mall." She cut the call without waiting for my reply. I love that girl to bits but she drives me insane sometimes.

After a lot of struggle, I got out of my tiny bed and took a quick shower. I wore my ripped jeans and my favorite Gryffindor hoodie and threw up my hair in a bun before heading downstairs to see my dad reading a newspaper on the couch.

"Wow, you are up early. It is Sunday right?" he asked in a doubtful tone and adjusted his specs to check the day on the paper just to be sure.

"Lucy is making me go shopping with her again," I whined, grabbing a bowl from the kitchen and a box of cereal from the shelves.

"Oops! But that's great right? It is about time you bought some new clothes for yourself." He stated and reached out for his wallet to give me some money.

"I am not going to buy anything for myself, dad. And what is wrong with my clothes?" I pouted, looking down at my cute hoodie.

"It's cool, sweetheart but if at all you feel like buying new clothes, I want you to ask me for money. Please don't hesitate," he smiled at me warmly and I sighed, walking towards him with my bowl of cereal.

"I know, dad but I'm fine."

"Alright, then. I'm going to head out to the store to pick up a few things for dinner. Lock the door before you leave, okay." He kissed my forehead and got up to leave.

"Okay."

It was just me and my dad. My mom was not in the picture. She and my dad got divorced when I was five years old. She left him for another guy and we weren't in touch with her and neither did she try to stay in touch with us.

My dad was a carpenter. Even though he was paid decently, it was not enough so I took a part-time job at a library near my school. He tried so hard to talk me out of it as he didn't like me juggling between work and studies at the same time but obviously I won in the end. I could be stubborn as hell sometimes.

For now, we were able to pay the bills but I was worried about college. I was just an average student and getting a scholarship was totally out of the question. My thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Coming," I shouted, placing the half-eaten bowl of cereal on the coffee table in front of me and rushed to get the door. I came face to face with my best friend and only friend in the whole wide world.

Lucy Wilson!

She was the exact opposite of me. Beautiful. Smart. Rich. Literally, every guy in our school has a huge crush on her. Sometimes, I wonder why she was hanging out with a loser like me. She never showed off her wealth or acted like a bitch, unlike other rich girls. That's one of the reasons I liked her a lot. We have been friends since grade one.

"Shall we?" she chirped, enthusiastically, dangling her car keys in front of my face as I shut the door behind me.

"Yeah and give me one good reason why I should not kill you right now?"

"Because you love me, babe." She winked, getting inside her car and I climbed inside the front seat, buckling up my seatbelt.

"I hate you, Wilson. You owe me." I mumbled, sinking back in the seat, and soon we were on the road.

"Stop whining, Ri. It's going to be fun."

"Fun for you. Boring for me."

"Let's get you new clothes too. Something more hot and sexy. It's senior year, Ri and you are still a virgin." She whispered the last part, making me scowl.

"Do I look like I care?" I asked with a shrug but she paid me no mind.

"But I do care and as your best friend, it's my duty to make sure you get a boyfriend this year. You are so getting laid before we head off to college." She stated firmly.

Easy for her to say, she was dating Andrew Simmons from the swim team and he was the perfect guy. They have been dating for almost a year now.

"I have more important things on my plate, Lu," I spoke silently and she sighed heavily beside me.

"I told you that my parents are more than willing to pay for your college, babe and you can pay them back whenever you can." She pouted but I shook my head firmly.

"No way! I told you a million times, I'm not okay with it. I should just find a way to earn some extra bucks and save up for college," I explained, looking outside the window.

"It's really hard to convince your stubborn ass sometimes." She muttered under her breath but I was already lost in my thoughts.

"What about this one?" she asked, coming out of the dressing room in a purple skirt.

"Eww! No way." I grimaced and she gave me a dirty look.

We were at this for more than three hours and finally, she ended up buying the dress that she and I picked first.

"Who are you texting?" I asked as we kept walking towards McDonald's. I was starving.

"Andrew. He just got back from his vacation and I can't wait to see him." She sounded excited and I smiled at her. They both were so cute together.

The thought of having a boyfriend did excite me sometimes. I mean, I wasn't completely boring. I have been on a date or two but obviously, it didn't end well.

I wasn't the type that guys usually go for. I was this nerdy girl who wore hoodies and baggy clothes and honestly I was more comfortable being this way. I wanted a guy to like me for who I was and I didn't want to change myself just to get a boyfriend.

"Yo, Adams! Still can't afford to buy some decent clothes at the mall?" I heard a familiar yet irritating voice call out from behind me and turned around to see the most annoyingly perfect face that I absolutely loathed.

Tristan fucking Harris!

Captain of the football team. Popular. Handsome. Annoying. Cocky. Arrogant as hell.

I hated him to the core. It all started in seventh grade when he started picking up on me for no reason at all and it just kept getting worse from then. All these popular guys always need targets to show off their coolness in front of others and I guess I was Tristan's prey.

"Fuck off, Tristan. Leave her alone." Lucy spat at him but he just laughed along with his friends as they kept walking towards us.

"Always a pleasure, Adams. Can't wait to make fun of you at school tomorrow." He smirked and I flipped him off with my finger while he walked past me along with his stupid friends.

"God, I hate that stupid jerk face," I grumbled while Lucy placed an arm around my shoulders.

"Don't mind him, babe. Just one more year."

"Yeah, let's go home. I've completely lost my appetite." I sulked, pulling her towards the exit.