15| Mr. Judgemental Freak

After leaving Travis' car, Zoey made her way straight to the stairs of the playground where Althea and Olive were sitting alone, silently observing everything going around in the ground. A basketball tournament was nearing closer so both Ethan and Zachary were practicing in the school ground with the rest of the team while a group of cheerleaders were practicing their routine in a corner.

"Hi guys." Zoey said as she made her way to them.

Althea angled her long neck to look at her and as her eyes travelled down her body, the look of disapproval on her face grew stronger.

"Is there something wrong with my vision or are you seriously wearing a sweatshirt with Taylor Swift's face on it?" She asked, scrunching her nose in disgust.

"It's not mine. Long story." Zoey said because she was in no mood of explaining her why she was wearing Maya's clothes.

"That reminds me. Where in the world were you last night? We all were so worried for you." She asked and Zoey let out a sigh.

"Yeah, your Dad called each of us." Olive interjected.

"I was fine. I... I..." She knew telling them would cause unnecessary drama but it was better than them finding out through another source. "I was at Travis' house last night."

Hearing this, Althea and Olive both chocked on the air. Zoey felt unnerved under their gazes so she added, "I just went there to hide. Nothing else happened."

"That's a relief. But still, Walmart boy? Really? You could have come to any of us but you chose him?" The disappointment in Althea's voice heightened.

"I was angry at Dad and I didn't want him to find me, which would have been pretty easy for him if I had come to your houses." She explained but her answer sounded unsatisfactory to Althea.

"Well, what's done is done. Just don't go AWOL next time. We were so worried for you." Olive said before Althea could say anything.

They all then went silent as they observed the cheerleaders in their usual cheer costume, following the instructions of their captain Blaire Willow. She had been Althea's archnemesis since their first day in Majesty High when she 'tried' to bully Althea and then ended up suffering her wrath.

"God, if this Regina George wannabe ends up dating my brother, there will be a bloodbath in the school the size of Texas." She said as she noticed how Blaire kept trying to smile flirtatiously at Zachary. Blaire was the typical mean girl and coincidentally, she even looked like Regina George with her petite figure, straight blonde hair and sharp features.

"Don't worry. Zachary isn't interested in her." Zoey said while scrolling down her mobile screen. There were fifteen calls from her father and many from her friends.

"Of course, he isn't. We Harpers don't go for trash." Althea said and then stood up to make her way to her first class.

After she left, both Olive and Zoey exchanged a look over their shared misery and stood up to walk towards their first class.

Inside the class, they sat in their respective seats. From the corner of her eye, Zoey's eyes met Travis and the events of last night appeared in her memory. Althea was right; it didn't make any sense. Zoey had plenty of friends yet she chose to ask Travis for help. There was something about this guy that fascinated her in a way nobody has done before. She wasn't sure if she was developing a crush on him or she was just curious about him. Either way, he went out of his way to help him last night and she was grateful for that.

Someone cleared the throat beside her and she found Olive smirking sheepishly. "What?" Zoey asked, shrugging.

"Somebody has a crush." She whispered, leaning towards her.

"Fuck off. I do not have a crush on Travis Anderson." Zoey denied immediately.

"Really? Whatever floats your boat, sweetie." She winked and Zoey elbowed her angrily, earning a wince from her.

Once they silenced, Zoey angled her neck once again and this time, Travis lifted his head on time to stare at her. Smiling, Zoey waved her hand and in return, Travis just frowned, clearly not happy about her intrusion in his room last night.

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After their last lecture, Zoey left the class with Zachary who had to stay behind because of his tutoring session with Maya. It was surprising for Zoey because Zachary was never too conscious about his marks, unlike his twin but then he told her how needed to keep his score up if he wanted to continue playing.

Senator Daniel Harper had always been strict with him. He wanted him to follow his footsteps but Zachary had other plans in mind. Zoey couldn't figure out what was worse; having a father who expects you to be the best in everything or having a father who literally expects nothing from you and thinks you are just a disgrace.

"I'm still hurt, you know. You could have come to me last night and I would have helped in hiding you." Zachary said, tucking a loose lock of her brown hair behind her ears.

"I know Zach. But I didn't want to burden you." Zoey passed him a sweet smile.

"You can burden me at 3 in the night and I'd be there for you." Zachary said and Zoey smiled shyly.

She loved Zachary, she really did but unfortunately, she was never in love with him. Sometimes, she wished she could have fallen for him, how amazing it would have been! He was the perfect person to be around. Smart, handsome, talented, kind, classy; he really was the definition of perfect. They had even shared a kiss a few times but it always felt incomplete, to her at least. There was passion, there was lust, there was care for the other person, but still something was missing in those kisses and she couldn't figure out what.

"You are getting late for your tutoring session. Go." She said and pushed him towards the school's building.

"Let me accompany you to your car at least." He said and Zoey shook her head.

"I'll be fine. Go and study hard, pretty boy. Make us proud." She said and ruffled his golden brown hair.

"Pretty boy? Really?" He chuckled and then turned around to leave.

After he left, Zoey made her way to the parking lot and her eyebrows furrowed in confusion when she didn't find her driver there. She looked around for the grey Range Rover Velar which wasn't a car that could be easily missed yet she failed to find it.

"Everything alright?" She heard a familiar voice and turned her head to the source only to find Travis' head poking out of the driver seat of his car.

"My driver didn't come today." She said, still surprised that his Dad decided to do this. He knew whenever she leaves the house, she often returns next day straight from the school.

"I'll drop you." He offered and Zoey contemplated the option. She didn't want his father to know that it was Travis who helped her in hiding because Travis didn't need any extra drama in his life.

"Only if you stop the car far from the house." She said.

"Why? Don't want to be seen with the Walmart boy?" He raised his eyebrows and Zoey rolled her eyes. Leave it to Travis to twist her words in the most stupid way.

She walked to his car and then leaned against the hood of his car. "If I had such concerns, I wouldn't have come to your house last night."

"Maybe." He said. "So are you coming or not?"

"That's what she said." Zoey said under her breath and made her way to the passenger seat. "By the way, where are your friends?"

"Maya had tutoring session and Mario had Cello practice." He said and started the car.

To initiate a conversation, Zoey asked further. "So you once told me you have a job after school."

"Maya and I work in her Dad's superstore." He said and she nodded. She couldn't imagine going to work right after school because mostly, she was too tired to even move without taking a nap once she reached home. But she knew not everyone has the same privileges like her and that's a sad truth. She didn't want to ask any further about his job so she changed the topic of the conversation.

"My Dad is going to kill me. Literally." She said and put one leg on top of the other, leaning her head backwards.

"He should." He said and Zoey immediately sprang forwards in her seat.

"What the hell do you mean, Anderson?" She narrowed her eyes to slits.

"You just like to cause unnecessary trouble for your father." He said and Zoey's hands itched to choke him.

"My father isn't a saint." She snarled.

"And you are?" A corner of Travis' lips lifted into a smirk.

"Well... I..." She tried to find reasonable words to defend herself. "You know nothing about me."

"I think I do. You are a spoilt girl with Daddy issues who likes to rebel to gain her father's attention." He said and Zoey controlled the urge to wipe that annoying smirk off his face.

"And you are a judgmental freak who thinks everyone except him has it easy." She growled.

He shrugged in return, dismissing her anger clearly, infuriating her even more. "It was my fault that I came to you for help." She groaned.

"Twice." He muttered under his breath and Zoey clenched her teeth on hearing.

"Don't worry. I'll pay you back by helping you when you're stuck in a difficult position." She said.

"I won't need your help." He replied calmly.

"We will see." It was her who smirked this time.

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Sorry for not updating in almost a week.