four

"So we're just going to wait here for him to come?" she sighed. "Outside the lunch room door? Like idiots?"

"Not like idiots," I corrected, I straightened my bag's strap on my shoulder. "Just like people who have business to do."

"With what? The door?" she returned.

You remember how I said that she wouldn't lose her cool in a burning building? I take that back. Thanks to my influence, she'd pour kerosene in her clothes just to get done with it.

"Cranky, just relax," I pulled my hair up in a ponytail. "He's going to come."

True to my words, the door pushed open and there emerged a six foot tall Hunter McCarthy.

His friend must have been cracking some seriously funny jokes, cause he was laughing real hard.

Without looking, he walked by us.

"You're just going to drool here or go after him?" Tanya muttered, annoyed.

Getting my sense back, I half jogged behind him.

"Excuse me?" I called out. He didn't turn back. He was preoccupied with the joke his friend was sharing. Could it really be that funny?

"Hunter?" I called out again. He turned a deaf ear. Still laughing with his friend.

"Hunter McCarthy!" I yelled. That made him turn back. And a couple other students.

They stared inquisitively, but went on their way after they noticed that it was the Ice Girl's yell they had heard.

Told you, being a social monster had its perks.

"I was just talking about you," his friend mused. So they were laughing at me. I dismissed that thought.

Turning to Hunter, I cleared my throat. "Can I talk to you? Alone?"

I prayed to God that he couldn't see my legs shaking. I never thought I'd be this nervous when I had come up with this crazy idea.

He flashed his perfect smile, which I suspected was practiced. No smile could be that perfect. "Trevor, you go ahead. I'll catch up later."

"If you go missing, I'll let the officials know," he joked, snickering to himself as he went on his way.

"So what is it that you want to talk to me about?" he smirked, his head tilting in amusement.

"I'm Ivy Hastings," I breathed out all the nervousness I felt.

"And I give a f*ck because?" He arched up an eyebrow.

Up close, Hunter McCarthy was like the sun. Cause he couldn't get any hotter. If he did, the world would die. Or stop existing. Whichever suits the world's boot.

"I need your help," I shut my eyes and prayed that he would help.

"Haven't got any left," he smirked with those perfect lips of his. "Sorry. All out of help. Can't give it to you."

He made help sound like a commodity.

"Please," I urged. "I need your help."

"Why would I bother myself to help Miss Blizzard?" he crossed his arms and leant against the wall.

This was the first time anyone had used that nickname to my face. And well, it sort of made me feel a teeny weeny bit bad.

"'Cause I need your help?" I tried.

He gave a sarcastic laugh. "You say 'help' a lot. Get to the point or I'm leaving." He turned to leave.

"Wait," I stopped him. My fingers holding his arms. Firm and strong arms. Stop. Concentrate. "Can't you think of me as a person in need and help out?"

He furrowed his eyebrows. Tentatively, he asked, "What kind of help?"

"I-" I began but was cut off by the warning bell that class was about to start.

"Look, meet me in the park after school," he sighed, I could sense the grudging edge to it. "I'll hear you out before I agree or disagree to your weird request, Blizzard."

"Okay," I grinned.

"No promises," he lifted his arm from my grasp. Shaking his head like just made the biggest mistake of his life, he went off on his way.

Tanya came up behind me. "How'd it go?"

"Well, he wants to hear me out," I explained, adjusting my backpack. Still grinning like I won a lottery. "After school."

"That's a start." She sounded relieved that Hunter had half accepted to help me out. I could only hope for the best. "Now, let's go for class."

Classes whizzed by as usual. A couple of homework and notes passing, and we were done for the day. I could hardly contain the excitement I felt.

"I'm off for violin classes. Hope it works out," Tanya waved goodbye, driving away on her new car.

I hope it does too. I had dropped her to the parking lot, now I was on my way to the park, which meant crossing the dreaded hallway.

"Could you believe the way she was lying her ass off?" An all too familiar voice snarled. Nikki.

I stopped right on my track and hid near the girl's washroom. I saw the back of her head poking out from her locker. She couldn't see me. Yet.

"Nikki," Selene tried to comfort her, leaning against the closed locker next to Nikki's. "No one's going to go with her. I mean it."

I heard a scoff. "She needs a lesson, Selene. To think that she could lie to us?"

She angrily shoved her books into the rack.

"What if she isn't lying?" Chanel's small bird like voice asked softly. She was standing behind Nikki and Selene. Of all the three, Chanel was the only one I could tolerate.

It was a whole other thing that she dated the guy I was madly in crush with, ironically.

"If she isn't," Nikki snickered, shutting her locker, "we'll make her phantom boyfriend dump her."

They did have a clue that I was lying out of my teeth. But it wasn't like I'd go in gleefully and tell them 'hey you know what? I was lying. Let's be friends.'

Like that would ever happen.

Ever since high school started, Nikki had been hell bent on creating a hell for me. As if high school wasn't hell enough.

They began walking. Uh oh. They would see me.

I tried to push my way inside the washroom but it was locked. Seriously? Today's the day the janitor decides to lock the washrooms early?

I pushed all my weight on the door and wrestled with the latch. What was I thinking- that the door would magically open?

Yeah. Right.

The door swished open. And I fell expecting to meet the hard tiled floor and possibly break my shoulder, but the surface was relatively soft and fleshy.

"What," a voice began, startling me but my perked up senses made me get up and lock the door from the inside, "the fuck?"