"He's such an asshole," Bea grumbled as she watched the scene that was taking place down the hall.

"A hot asshole," Jade laughed in response, shaking her head as she took her books out of her locker.

I just watched.

Bea rolled her eyes, "Yes, he's hot but that doesn't give him the right to kill anyone who isn't on the same level as him."

Jade quirked an eyebrow as she shut her locker, "Zac Miller is the guy who can do anything he pleases. The world runs the way people like him want it to run."

Bea scoffed loudly, "People like you are the ones allowing people like him to do so."

Jade laughed, shaking her head as she found amusement in Bea's annoyance. "I don't see you stopping him, Bea."

Bea opened her mouth to argue but then shut it, seeing that Jade was right.

"Earth to Jas," Jade waved a hand in front of my face, pulling me back into the conversation.

I looked at her blankly, "Huh?"

"Let's go, we have class."

The three of us started walking down the hall when Bea turned to look at me, "Come on, Jas, break the argument. What do you think?"

"What do I think of what?" I mumbled, staring at my feet as I walked.

Bea rolled her eyes, "Zac Miller."

I looked at her and couldn't help but laugh which caused Jade to also laugh. "Zac Miller? Why?"

2

Bea gave me a dull look, "Because I saw you watching him beat up the kid," she told me and she wasn't wrong. I couldn't take my eyes away from the scene that was taking place minutes ago on the other end of the hall from us.

I shrugged my shoulders softly, "I don't have an opinion on him."

Jade shook her head, "Everyone has something to say about Zac Miller. Do you think he's hot?"

I rolled my eyes, giving Jade a look of disbelief. "I would be blind if I thought he wasn't."

It wasn't a lie. Zac was a very attractive guy which anyone could see from miles away. He looked like a model which was one of the reasons he stood so high on the social ladder.

Bea rolled her eyes at my answer. "Do you like him?"

I scrunched up my noes, "A guy like him? I don't think it's possible to like him. He's a... bad guy."

"Because he smokes and drinks?" Jade rolled her eyes in disagreement. "So what? Let him live his life. Half the kids in high school do drugs now."

"No," I retorted. "Not just because he smokes and drinks. Did you see the way he just beat up that kid? He thinks he's above everyone else and doesn't care about anyone but himself."

"Thank you," Bea exhaled, grinning. She wasn't very fond of him.

"Whatever," Jade mumbled as the three of us walked into class and took our seats.

Jade, Bea and I had been best friends since we were 10 years old. We were the trio that nobody could tear apart.

Bea was very sassy and sometimes aggressive. She wasn't afraid to say what was on her mind and took no shit from anyone. She always had the best intentions and did the right things, however sometimes her anger would get too carried away.

3

Jade on the other hand was very soft and girly but not in an annoying way. She was kind and looked at the bright side of things in every situation. She always tried to make sure everyone was happy.

I was... the neutral one who stood on the sidelines. I was a pretty quiet person unless I was with people I was comfortable with. I didn't necessarily like having a lot of attention on me but a lot of people did know me.

This was the type of school where everyone knew everyone.

"How'd you finish the pop quiz so quick?" Bea looked at me with wide eyes, seeing the page turned upside down on my desk.

I shrugged, "It was easy."

Bea rolled her eyes, quietly groaning. "Yeah for the smartest person in the world it's easy, also known as you, you are the smartest person in the world, my friend."

"Maybe the smartest person in the room," Jade added, her eyes on her quiz as she finished writing.

I laughed softly, shaking my head at my friends.

"Ms.Jennings," the teacher called out when everyone had started placing their things away at the end of the class.

All eyes were brought to me as the teacher had called on me. I looked up and gave him a questioning look. "Please stay a moment after class so I can have a word with you." I gave him a confused look, not knowing what that was about, but nodded my head.

"What's that about?" Bea asked as she stood up and walked over to stand in front of my desk.

I shrugged, giving her the same confused look she held on her face. "No idea, it's not like I did anything wrong." I wasn't exactly the type of person who got in trouble.

Jade laughed as she came over as well, "He's probably going to ask you how you managed to get a hundred and ten percent on the quiz."

4

I rolled my eyes, ignoring their comments and stood up, making my way to the front of the class while everyone started leaving the room.

"I'll see you guys later," I mumbled as they said goodbye to me and left the room.

Once the classroom had emptied, the teacher turned to me.

"I actually wanted to talk to you to ask if you would be interested in tutoring."

I blinked, "Tutoring?"

He nodded his head, "Yes. You're the brightest in the class and I have a student who is failing. Without this credit, he won't be able to stay on the soccer team."

I nodded slowly. Okay... so he wanted me to tutor someone on the soccer team.

That didn't sound so bad considering I knew most of the guys on the team.

"Of course you wouldn't be doing it for free," he added. "You'll receive extra circular points. It'll be a good addition to your resume and report card which I know is important for you."

I cleared my throat, "Yeah, of course. I wouldn't mind."

He gave me a small smile, "Great. I'll let him know to contact you."

I nodded and mumbled a goodbye to the teacher as I left the classroom.

"Hey, babe." I looked over to see Evan catching up to me, walking beside me.

"Hey," I exhaled, feeling a sense of happiness as I saw my boyfriend.

He leaned down and pecked my cheek, "There's a party tonight. Do you think you're coming?"

I scoffed, almost laughing. "You know I don't go to parties, Ev. And on a Monday night."

Evan laughed as he swung an arm around my shoulders, "God, you're precious."

His comment made my cheeks heat up as a blush crept up on them. We had been dating for almost three months now and somehow he still made me feel shy and fuzzy.

5

"You should come though," he said when we stopped in front of my next class. "You'll probably have to show up to pick up a drunk Bea anyways."

I sighed, "You're probably right about that. I'll think about it."

He gave me a small smile before he leaned down to softly kiss my lips. He pulled away, smiling again, "I'll see you at lunch?"

I nodded, returning the smile as I watched him walk off.

-

I was walking to my car at the end of the day when a voice stopped me. "Jasmine Jennings,"

I stopped walking and turned to see the familiar face of Zac Miller. He was leaning against his car, arms crossed over his chest as he looked at me with a small smirk.

I narrowed my eyes, unsure as to why the hell he was talking to me. We had never once talked before, little less even make eye contact.

I cleared my throat, putting on a straight face to show him I was not phased. "Can I help you?"

He shrugged as he pushed himself off the car. "I heard you could."

I gave him an utterly lost look, having no idea what he was talking about. "I'm sorry?"

"No need to be sorry, Bloom." My eyebrows furrowed at the nickname. Why is he calling me Bloom?

I shook my head and decided I was going to ignore him because nothing good was going to come out of me talking to Zac Miller.

"Hold up, now." He quickly spoke, amusement lacing his tone. He fell in step with me and started walking beside me, seeing as I wasn't stopping.

"What do you want?" I sighed.

"Bloom," he said, but I didn't stop.

6

"Bloom," he said again, this time more firmly. I could now hear the impatience and annoyance in his tone which instantly worried me, so I stopped and turned to face him.

"Miller," I sighed. "What can I possibly do to assist you?"

A small grin grew on his face when he saw the agitation hiding behind my eyes. "That's just it. You're my new tutor, Bloom."

What the hell?