Chapter 1

i understand if u rip on this, it was written years ago and not my best work.. sorry. u can read my other ones

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When my childhood friend broke up with his girlfriend of two years, I didn't feel bad for him. The only thing I could think was, well, finally.

"Hey, don't be like that. She was a real bitchy one anyways," I offered as I watched him crumble in front of me in the library on campus.

It wasn't because he was a jerk or anything. He was probably the best boyfriend anyone could've had. He knew how to treat a girl right and really loved the stupid one he had.

"I never saw it coming, Jasper," Hayden, my childhood friend told me as he brought his head into his hands. "How could she suddenly lose interest in me after all of this time?"

I could've told him it wouldn't last. Anyone could have for that matter. Paisley was known to have various short-term relationships in the past. It took everyone by surprise when her relationship with Hayden even lasted two years. He was just too blindly in love to realize. It was like she plagued his sense of reality.

"It'll be alright. It's probably for the better," I told him.

"And how would you suppose that?" Hayden asked me, raising his head so his brown eyes bore into mine. His blond hair was somewhat ruffled, but to me, he still looked handsome.

"Now you've got more time to hang out with me," I said and smirked at him.

"If you're trying to cheer me up, you're greatly failing at it," he spoke.

"How so? What's so bad about my flattering presence?" I asked him.

"Everything," he answered. "You're a guy."

His response came as a surprise to me. I couldn't fathom why he was suddenly using my sex as an excuse not to hang out. We were childhood friends, after all.

"Would you rather I'd be a girl?" I inquired, quite sarcastically.

"I'd rather it not be you," he replied, pointedly.

His words hurt me more than he'd ever know and I didn't dare to tell him because he'd never believe me. I valued each moment I could grasp with the guy and of course, it pained me to know he didn't reciprocate these foolish feelings of mine.

"Low blow," I told him and pushed back in my chair, raising my arms up behind my head.

I'm not sure when these tiresome feelings of mine erupted for Hayden. In my eyes, though, it was inevitable. I mean, we were always together, since we were young. It was bound to happen.

When I'd first realized my feelings for him, we were both juniors in high school. Though, I know now that I'd been in love with him for much longer. It was because I was in denial for so long. How could I like guys? But that wasn't right. I didn't like guys per say.

I just liked Hayden. And it's become exhausting. Especially, those two years when Paisley was the only one in his eyes. I knew the whole thing would only bring pain, but there was no helping my brainless self.

"I should get going," I said and stood up from my chair across from Hayden. I reached over and patted his shoulder lightly, telling him, "I'm always here for you, Hayden." He looked up at me, a soft grin appearing on his face.

"Since we were kids," Hayden replied. "I've known that since we were kids."

"You'd better," I joked and grabbed my backpack. "I'm going to class now."

"Okay," he answered. "Sorry for sounding so harsh earlier. I'm just in a wicked mood."

I forced out a laugh to mask the pain he had caused me to feel. "It's not anything I'm not used to."

And with that, I turned on my heel and left my broken-hearted childhood friend to weep alone in the library while I unwillingly headed to class.

When Hayden first told me that he'd gotten himself a girlfriend, I didn't even feel happy for him. Rather, this emotion arose only after he'd told me they'd broken up. But there's my screwed up mentality for you.

~•~

The walk to my mathematics class was burdensome to say the least. The brisk air was nothing to take lightly as I bundled myself heavily.

I removed my thick jacket and hung it on the back of the seat that I desired to sit in. The professor was yet to arrive so I leaned forward, placing my head on my desk, relieved to have a little shut eye.

Emphasis on the "little".

Seconds after my eyes closed, I felt my jacket from behind my back being pulled, forcing me to sit up. I squinted at the figure in front of me who so rudely interrupted my brief rest.

"What the hell?" I breathed, snatching my jacket from the guy's hand.

"I should be asking you that," the guy said, glaring down at me with unique, light green eyes. He had short, dark hair and a spiraling, black tattoo that ran down his right arm. I couldn't see what was on his other arm as his jacket hung loosely off of it. A diamond earring fashioned on one of his ears caught my eye.

"Again, what the hell?" I asked as he leaned down, placing an elbow on my desk while comfortably resting his chin in his hand and intensely glaring into my eyes.

"Your ignorant ass is in my fucking seat," the guy spat.

"Oh," I said and raised an eyebrow. His close proximity failed to intimidate me as I spoke back to the brave fellow. "This is your seat. How impolite of me to take your seat when we haven't been assigned any since middle school."

This just made the guy smirk largely at me, daring me to speak further. And that's exactly what my ill-tempered self did.

"I see you're still stuck in middle school, aren't you?" I asked.

The room went silent. Apparently, nobody had ever rebelled against this guy.

"Or," the guy said. "I have poor eyesight. If you haven't noticed, you're in the perfect seat. Not too close to the front of the room, but not too far to see the board."

"Okay? Get here earlier next time. My ignorant ass isn't moving," I told him. "The seat behind me is fine, just sit there."

He removed his elbow from my desk, eyeing me in disgust. He stalked past my desk, lightly brushing against my backpack. I found it odd, but decided not to dote.

The class dragged on, with my seat getting occasional kicks from behind. It irritated me and I knew the guy behind me was just doing it out of spite. I hadn't intentionally meant to take his fucking seat but I was increasingly becoming glad I had.

He was a royal pain in my ass. An immature bastard.

The professor dismissed us after the lecture concluded and I gathered my things as I left the class. I dragged my feet through the long hallway of the mathematics and science building, accidentally bumping into someone as my head was casted downwards. The girl quickly apologized as I did and I felt something fall to the floor.

I must've dropped something from the impact. But as I turned around to grab what I had dropped, my eyes widened.

I never had the item in the first place so it was impossible that I had dropped it. But there was no mistaking that the object fell from my backpack when it wasn't on the ground a second ago.

A pack of cigarettes. I scrambled to pick it up, nervously glancing around to make sure nobody noticed.

This campus was known to be a prestigious one, with only highly intellectual students attending. We couldn't risk tarnishing that reputation and so, smoking and drinking were banned on campus. Though, I was still unsure how I even got into this university, but I had to. Because Hayden did.

I shoved the pack into my jacket pocket as quickly as I could and again, darted my eyes around in a frenzy to make sure nobody saw. I couldn't risk being put on probation, or worse, being kicked out.

But how did they get into my backpack in the first place?

Just as I thought this, I spotted the unmistakable smirk of a particular light green-eyed, dark-haired guy, whose earring caught my eye for the second time today.

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