The Survivor (Book #2)

Chapter 4

School was getting easier to manage, while also growing slightly more complicated. Although I had a group of friends to sit with and knew where my classes were, the workload was piling up and I could've help but feel like I was slipping, especially as my classes grew harder. I tended to pick up subjects easily, but it also helped to have three tutors at home who had taken the classes already. The only subject I continued to struggle with, despite Brooklyn's best efforts to teach it, was Trigonometry.

JJ and I walked to our lunch spot as she tried to calm me down.

"It's not that bad, M." she said, her forehead creased with worry as she looked at my vacant expression.

"It's Trig! And the test is worth 30% of our grade." I whined.

"But you've done all the homework!" she defended me, loyally.

"Do you know what percentage the homework was worth??" I questioned anxiously as we reached our normal lunch table.

"No, I don't. But I don't think you do either because we both suck at math." She said dryly, a smile threatening her concerned expression. You'd think it would help to have a friend in the class, but I was pretty sure it was hurting my grade. We told each other stories during class and drew pictures on scrap paper that we pushed back and forth as our teacher droned on.

I shoved her playfully and she pretended to topple over onto our friend, Cassie.

"Hey! Watch it!" Cassie said, bumping JJ with her hip so she would move over. JJ pointed accusingly at me, making us all laugh. I sat on the bench across from them, next to our other friend Lucy and pulled my lunch bag out with a sigh.

"I'll survive math, I suppose."

"Of course you will," Lucy replied from beside me. "I can always help you study if you need it." Despite being a grade younger than all of us, Lucy was undoubtedly brilliant and often helped us with our classes. She had dark brown hair, nearly a shade of black, that was cut neatly at her shoulders and helped accentuate her big brown eyes. She spent a lot of time making her hair look perfect in the morning and today it was loosely curled, and the back was pulled up with a scrunchie. She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear and I smiled at her.

I grabbed her arm and pretended to be desperate.

"Would you really?" I begged.

"Duh," Cassie replied for her. "Lucy can't stand the thought that someone is in pain and she can't help. Silly empath."

Cassie smirked at her and I remarked, as always, on their differences. Where Lucy had short dark hair and dark eyes, Cassie had blonde hair that nearly touched the part of the bench where she was sitting and light grayish-blue eyes. She was also notoriously confident, brash, and talkative. She had a soft side to her, too, but she tended to only let us three see it.

Lucy shrugged with a demure smile and I leaned over to push my shoulder against hers lightly.

"In other news..." Cassie began with a malicious grin. "When are you getting a boyfriend Maya?"

I choked on my burrito and then swallowed.

"My brothers told me I can't date until I'm 100." I said, only half-joking. It wasn't like I hadn't noticed any boys here... I just wasn't sure what the protocol for that was when I lived in a house of male giants.

"Well, I think it's time. I want to stop having to reject all the boys who ask me for your number!" she said, shaking her head as she took a bite of pizza from her lunch tray.

"No one does that." I muttered, looking down.

Now, JJ and Lucy gave each other a look.

"Do they?" I asked JJ, knowing she'd answer honestly. She didn't answer but smiled at Lucy and Cassie like they were keeping a secret for my benefit.

"Well, I'm too busy for boys! I much prefer spending time with my girls." I announced haughtily, unbothered. Lucy smiled at me before looking above me with surprise and then dropping her face to the table. A shadow covered us from the sun, and I heard him before I saw him.

"Too busy for all of them?" A deep voice said from behind me.

"Speak of the devil..." Cassie said, cocking her head to the side and appraising Asher Kelly. He looked the same as always with a tight button-up and perfectly arranged brown hair. His gray eyes caught mine like a steel trap.

"More like a hot-as-hell angel," JJ whispered back.

"Hi, Asher," I said, giving a partial smile to my nemesis-turned-friend. The last time I had seen him was at a party only weeks ago, when I had promised we could try being friends. It didn't seem like a hard task, but every time I saw him felt like a chance to banter and do some mental sparring. Did I have to be nice now?

"Maya. Are you busy this weekend?" He said, tipping his head towards me as if a cowboy hat was placed atop it.

"Hello to you too Asher," Cassie said with her usual amount of sass.

"Cassie, JJ, Lucy." He said, turning to each of my friends with a half-smile that pulled his cheek up.

"You know each other?" I asked, looking around at everyone.

"We've all grown up together," Cassie said before anyone else could.

"Same elementary school," JJ explained, keeping her eyes on me and not the attractive guy an arms distance away.

"Oh. Cute." I said, facing my shade once more.

"You didn't answer my question," Asher said, penetrating me with his gaze.

"I have a math test that I have to study for," I said sheepishly. He nodded, unperturbed. He lifted his hand to his chin and let his thumb rub his jawline as he thought.

"And the rest of the weekend? More studying?" he asked, mouth flexing into a little smirk.

"Probably." I said, smirking back.

"Are you that bad at Trigonometry?" he teased. How did he know what math class I was taking?

I leaned forward onto my elbows and glared at him.

"At least I'm in Trigonometry." I replied, realizing suddenly that I knew what math class he was taking.

"ROTC takes the place of math. I quit last semester, but I already got the credit." He answered, and suddenly his tight face and militaristic posture and attitude made sense. I wondered why he quit something he seemed so... made for. Maybe his family convinced him to quit... or a friend? A girlfriend?

"Should I call you Private Kelly?" I asked innocently, giving him a fake salute.

"Try Sergeant." He said, smile opening to reveal his shining white teeth. I gave my friends a look that they returned subtly.

"They don't teach trigonometry in the military, Sergeant?" I said sweetly.

"They don't, but I know a lot about the real world. For instance, no teenager can spend all week and weekend studying for a single test." He said, almost patronizingly.

He ignited a fire in me that couldn't be stopped. I had to answer every comment he made just as flippantly, just as cleverly. Lucy interrupted us before we could start really fighting.

"You stopped by just to ask Maya about her study habits?" Lucy asked protectively, putting an arm around my shoulder. I leaned against her with a smile.

"No," he admitted, finally breaking character with me. I bit my lip and tried to conceal my smile. "I came by to tell you that my best friend is having a party next weekend. You're all invited."

JJ cheered and high-fived Cassie and they both turned to me.

"Can you put down the textbook long enough to make it?" Asher asked me, as the breeze waved by and a lock of his hair that hadn't been gelled into place brushed down his forehead. I considered his question. Lucy and JJ watched me expectantly too. While Cassie definitely had late night adventures, I don't think my other two friends often got up to anything crazy. Their faces seemed almost ready to fall, so I decided to surprise them.

"We'll be there," I said with a nod. I wasn't entirely sure that Charlotte would let me go, or Dominic for that matter. But I figured life is short. Even if I had to sneak out of the house, well... it wouldn't be the first time.

My first high school party without the boys. What could go wrong?