HAYDEN HAS ALWAYS BEEN A BRUTALLY HONEST PERSON.

A quality she had adapted over time living in South Los Angeles. She would like to think that it hadn't affected the friendships she's built over the years, but if she were being honest, Hayden knew she could come off as a bit of a bitch.

She knew that, even as she sat in front of Logan at her apartment, biting her tongue... until she just couldn't anymore. "That uniform is hideous."

Logan rolled her eyes, smoothing out the red button up shirt and black apron tied around her waist. "It's not about the uniform. All that matters is the money."

Hayden shrugged, "Yeah, but—" She looked her up and down, "It's so bad, though."

Logan waved her off, slinging her purse over her shoulder. "Whatever. I'm leaving. Please try not to trash my apartment while I'm gone. Love you."

"Uh-huh," She flipped through Logan's collection of DVD's boredly, not paying an ounce of attention to Logan's spiel. "Yeah, yeah. Love you, whatever."

The knock that came at the door not even five minutes after Logan had left made Hayden groan, forcing herself off the couch and over to the door.

"Logan, I'm not gonna trash your shit—"

She cut herself off at the sight of Robby at the door, hands in his pockets and an amused smile quirking at his lips. "Not Logan, sorry to disappoint." He sucked his teeth, blowing out some air.

Hayden chuckled in response, taking a small step. "Not disappointing at all. You score points just for not being Logan."

"How many do I score for having pizza and a movie ready at my place?" He tilted his head at her.

Hayden arched a brow at him. Ever since exchanging numbers, they had been texting for a couple of days, and while Hayden could confirm Robby most likely wasn't a serial killing psychopath, she wasn't completely ready to let her guard down.

"You know this isn't my place, right?" She avoided the question, something Robby was learning she was quite the master at.

He liked a challenge, though.

He nodded, "Is Logan your boyfriend or something?" His tone wasn't upset or annoyed, more intrigued. He was genuinely curious. And Hayden could tell, despite whatever answer she gave him, it wouldn't change anything.

"No," She finally answered, "Logan is my older sister, and the owner of this apartment."

Hayden could see the small breath of relief Robby released. She cracked the faintest of smiles.

"You score points for Logan being Logan." Robby joked, leaning against the doorframe.

"I score points for having a sister or not having a boyfriend?" She asked the question, almost as if it were a challenge. Testing to see if Robby would play it cool or be completely upfront about the true meaning behind his statement.

He smiled at her in deviance, not missing a beat. "Not having a boyfriend."

He shrugged unapologetically even as Hayden shook her head at him, feigning disapproval. Hayden had always liked boys who knew what they wanted. And she could respect the ones who actually went after what they wanted.

They stared at each other for a moment, trying to read the other's mind. Hayden slowly smiled, "I'm not going out with you."

The statement didn't waver nor deter Robby from grinning widely, twisting his ring around his finger. "It won't be a date. Just two people eating pizza, watching a movie, getting to know each other, enjoying each other's company. Not a date."

"Not far off from one."

"Exactly."

Hayden groaned quietly, her bottom lip poking out unbeknownst to her, which Robby had thought was the cutest thing ever, unable to hold in his laughter.

"Look, Hayden, if you agree to come watch this movie with me, I wholeheartedly promise I won't try anything funny. Okay?"

Hayden hesitated, and Robby held up his pinky. "I even pinky promise."

She chewed her bottom lip, staring at the upheld pinky and flickered her gaze up to his face. After a moment she let out a breath, locking her pinky with his. "Fine. You break this shit, I break you." She pointed at him, closing and locking the door behind her.

Robby held his hands up, "I wouldn't dare break a pinky promise."

—

The end credits began rolling, signaling the ending of the third movie they finished. In that time, they finished two whole pizzas and gotten into two arguments about which Scream movie is the best.

Hayden firmly believed nothing could ever top the first movie. Robby argued the fourth one easily topped the first.

They came to an agreement, though, that Hayden just had a crush on Skeet Ulrich and Robby on Emma Roberts.

"Can I ask you something?" Robby stared at the side of Hayden's head, who scrolled through the movies aimlessly.

"Umm, you can but I might not answer." She replied, slightly squinting her eyes at the TV.

"Why do you refuse to go out with me?"

Hayden paused, side-eyeing the boy before slowly setting the remote down. "It's really not you—"

"Oh, the 'it's not you, it's me' line." Robby scoffed, shaking his head.

"No, Robby. Seriously. It's not you." She sat straighter,  running a hand through her hair. "Look, my last relationship ended really fucking badly. And I know it might not seem like it, but it hurt me. More than anything. I just.. I need time before I start dating again, okay?"

Robby might not have liked what he was hearing, but he understood completely. He wanted a relationship with Hayden, but not if he had to force it. He decided, then and there, he'd wait for her. "Okay," he murmured, staring at the girl.

Hayden gave a small smile, nodding and leaning back into the couch again. "You got a question, so my turn." Robby gestured for her to continue, staring at the TV that Hayden scrolled through.

"Do you have any brothers and/or sisters?" She gestured to the apartment, a silent question to ask if they lived with him.

Robby shook his head, "Nah, I'm an only child. It's just me and my mom here."

"You don't know your dad?"

"No, I do. He's just not the best example of what a father should be. And I have no interest in being in his life when he's never bothered to be in mine."

Hayden nodded, staring at her lap. "Yeah, same here." She murmured, finding herself unexpectedly relating to Robby.

"Where's your dad?" Robby then asked, and he hoped he wasn't crossing any lines by asking a slightly invasive question.

Hayden didn't seem to mind though. "No idea," She sipped her soda, "He left after I was born. I never got the chance to meet him. He could be on the other side of the country and I'd never know." She snorted.

A beat of silence and Hayden could tell Robby was sympathizing for her. It was making her uncomfortable, so she smiled widely and quickly moved on

"Where's your mom now?" She looked around the room, noticing one thing. There were no family portraits. She looked back at Robby, who seemed uncomfortable at the new question. "New topic?" She asked.

"New topic." Robby quickly agreed, nodding his head.

"'Kay. What's your favorite book?" This topic seemed to excite Hayden, Robby could tell by the way her face lit up and turned her body towards him.

He laughed awkwardly, "I'm not much of a reader."

Hayden groaned, shaking her head. "Horrible, horrible way to live your life, Robby."

This earned a laugh from the boy, who nodded his head. "What's your favorite book? Maybe I'll pick it up one day."

Hayden held her chin up in the air, thinking for a moment before grinning. "Lord Of The Flies." She answered proudly.

"What's it about?" Robby watched the way Hayden's eyes lit up, listening to her rant on and on about something she was so clearly passionate about. He smiled, not daring to interrupt her.

"—And so they're stranded on an island and have to figure out whether morality and societal order is more important than survival and chaos." Hayden finished, looking at Robby who didn't seem to have a thought behind his gaze.

"I'll have to add it to my list of books I'll never read." He teased earning an eye roll from Hayden.

"You're missing out, dude." She leaned back into the couch, pressing play on The Strangers: Prey At Night.

—

"Yeah, but you can't quit."

Hayden walked in between Demetri and Miguel, having heard and been filled in on how Demetri got his ass handed to him by Miguel's sensei.

"I got yelled at, got my ass kicked, and then gave him my money. You know who lives like that? Hookers."

Hayden snorted, shaking her head.

"Yeah, but he's not that bad of a guy. You gotta give him a chance. You- you don't know him like I do." Miguel tried to reason with the boy.

Demetri scoffed, "That.. that's hooker talk. Besides, I don't need to learn karate when I have you two." He gestured over to where Kyler was rounding the corner, bruised eye still vibrant. His face dropped at the sight of Miguel, and when he trailed his gaze over to Hayden, he stumbled back.

Hayden arched her brow at him, waving him off in the opposite direction and he complied in a split second.

"See? No one's gonna mess with you guys."

Miguel glanced down at Hayden, who glanced back up at him. They shared a hint of a smile before walking to their next period.

—

Hayden didn't understand why she felt a sense of excitement for chemistry class. Despite chemistry being one of her better subjects, she realized no one has ever been excited to sit in a classroom and dissect dead animals.

Maybe it's because it was her last class of the day, or maybe it was because she'd get to spend half the period messing around with Miguel.

She tried to not dwell on that thought, pushing it deep down as she entered the class, trailing her gaze from the floor up to the girl walking in front of her.

She furrowed her brows when she spotted a lollipop stuck to the girl's sweater, tapping her shoulder. "Hey, you have.." She reached out and peeled the candy off, "..this stuck to your sweater."

Sam furrowed her brows at the candy, feeling her cheeks heat up in embarrassment when snickers and whispers scattered around the room, looking around and back to Hayden. She narrowed her eyes, taking the lollipop. "Did you stick that to my back?" She asked loudly, her nostrils flaring. "Thanks for the blow pop. Really never gets old."

Hayden's brows shot up at the accusation, feeling her defense mechanisms begin to kick in. She didn't take lightly to false accusations, and the way Sam was drawing attention to her made it ten times worse. "I didn't stick shit to your back. I'm the one who took it off of you, dude."

Sam scoffed, crossing her arms. "Yeah, right. You think it's funny or something?"

"Do you see me laughing?" Hayden shot back, clenching her fists at her side.

"Do we have a problem here, ladies?" The teacher walked in, seeing how visually upset the two girls were.

Hayden arched a brow at Sam, as if to put the ball in her court. If she decided there was a problem, Hayden would sure as hell make it one.

Sam clenched her jaw, shaking her head. "No, Mr. Palmer, there's not."

"Good. Get to your seats, ladies."

Hayden gripped the straps to her backpack tightly, sitting in her designated seat in between Demetri and Miguel who she was now aware watched the entire scene.

"You okay?" Miguel whispered, rubbing his thumb over the top of Hayden's clenched fist, hoping to soothe some of her frustration away. 

She sucked in a breath, holding it for a second before letting it go and relaxing her muscles. "I'm good," She nodded, sending the boy a tight-lipped smile.

"Good," he nodded, patting her hand.

"Hey, everybody. Who let the pigs out?" A beat of silence. "I did, because I ordered the fetal pigs."

Some scattered laughter went around the room.

"But seriously, get in your groups."

Hayden took the worksheets out of backpack, placing their group's packet in front of them. "Okay, so, we finished part A and B, we just need part C and D and we'll be done with the examination guys."

Demetri overlooked their work, flipping through the packet. "Cool, we can divide—"

"Who wants to take Samantha in? This little piggy needs a group."

Hayden looked up, letting out an audible scoff when she saw who needed a group. People seemed to hear her scoff and thought it was funny, earning some laughs from around the room.

"As fucking if." She muttered under her breath, turning her attention back to the packet in front of her.

"Don't all volunteer at once."

Hayden looked over at Miguel, and she could tell by his face—

"Miguel, please don't—"

"We'll take her." He raised his hand, and Hayden dropped her head onto the desk groaning.

Sam walked over, placing her bag next to Miguel. "Thank you," She just about gushed in Hayden's eyes, "I'm gonna go grab a chair."

"Take your time." Hayden smiled sarcastically at the girl, dropping it just as quick as it came and aggressively answering one of the questions on the packet.

"Can I punch you now or later?" She directed her question to Miguel without looking up from her paper.

"I'm sorry, I just felt bad— I word vomited." Miguel held his hands up in surrender, sending the girl a cheeky smile. "Forgive me?"

Hayden gave the boy a hard stare before she gave in groaning. "You owe me your pudding cups for the rest of the year."

—

Miguel moved a few of the organ's to the side so that Hayden could note some of the anatomy they spotted on their packet.

She tried to not let Sam's presence bother her, but she could see her staring at Miguel through her peripheral vision and it was starting to really piss her off.

"What were you thinking for sex?" Sam spoke up, and even though this was a group project, Hayden notice Sam's question (like all her other questions thus far) was pointed to Miguel.

"Uh.. uh, I mean— I've, I've—" Miguel fumbled with his words, blinking rapidly as he tried to come up with an answer to her question.

Hayden hung her head, shaking it slightly. "It's a female. If it were a male, this," she pointed at the tract of the pig, "would be near here. So, female." She concluded, jotting it down on the packet.

Miguel spoke as if he hadn't had a sip of water in his lifetime, "Yeah, um, I concur." He managed out.

"Real smooth, dude." She leaned over to mutter in his ear, patting his shoulder. He sent her a small glare before looking back at Sam with a smile.

Hayden ignored the tight feeling she got in her chest every time Miguel smiled at Sam. She was starting to really dislike chemistry class now.

"Thanks for, um, helping me out, by the way." Sam started, gaining Miguel's and Hayden's attention.

"Oh, yeah. I mean, I'm sure you would've found another group." Miguel nodded, turning his attention back to the dead pig.

"And you couldn't let her find the other group?" Hayden gritted under her teeth, gripping her pencil tightly. Demetri noticed this, prying the pencil out of her hands and writing the answers out on the paper for her.

"I can see the steam coming out of your ears," Demetri muttered to her while writing down something, and Hayden rolled her eyes in response.

"I meant with the fight." Sam spoke up again.

Hayden arched a brow, because she had thought that Miguel fought Kyler in defense of her. Not Sam. She looked at Demetri for an explanation, who then wrote on the corner of their packet: Sam's ex-boyfriend Kyler told everyone she gave him a blowjob in the movie theatre.

Hayden trailed her gaze up to Demetri's sympathetic gaze, feeling her throat begin to sting. She quickly swallowed it down, focusing back on the papers in front of her. It didn't bother her, she told herself.

Miguel wasn't her friend, so she didn't expect him to defend her anyway. There was no reason to feel disappointed (even if she definitely did). She was more than capable of fighting her own battles, anyway.

"Oh. Yeah, someone had to take care of those assholes." Miguel shrugged, smiling at the girl.

"But nobody else did." Sam pointed out, letting a moment of silence wash over them before speaking up again. "It was a pretty nice roundhouse."

"Thanks. I'm taking these super awesome karate lessons—"

"But you telegraphed the sweep." She tilted her head at him. Hayden glanced at her, arching a brow. She wasn't an expert fighter or anything, but she felt like she had some knowledge on fighting, seeing as it's literally the reason she got expelled from her last school.

"When you lift up your foot like that, it shifts the weight to your back leg. More windup, less power." Sam spoke as though she knew a thing or two about karate, but Hayden couldn't help but scoff.

"Something stuck in your throat?" The smug smile on Sam's face made Hayden want to leap across the desk and rip her hair from her scalp. Instead, she sucked in a sharp breath and let it out.

"Just the bullshit you're on about." She clipped cooly, sending the smug smirk right back at her.

"Oh, yeah? Like what?" Sam arched a brow at her, the question being a challenge that Hayden wouldn't back down from.

"Like the fact that the way Miguel lifted his leg was perfectly fine, the only thing I would change, if anything, was his balance. I think his pivot would've been cleaner had his balance been better, bettering the momentum behind the kick. But his technique otherwise was fine."

Sam shook her head, "My dad's a two time All-Valley champion, I think I'd know what I'm talking about."

"Yeah, dude, your dad never lets us forget it. I haven't missed the hundreds of billboards up about kicking the competition." She scoffed, standing up.

"Hayden, stop. Where are you—" Miguel's brows furrowed in concern, watching her shove her things in her backpack.

"I, suddenly, don't feel well." She cut him off coldly, slinging her bag over her shoulder, "You'll put my name on the packet?" She aimed her question towards Demetri, who nodded immediately. "Make sure princess over there doesn't fucking erase it." She muttered under her breath, and Demetri put his thumb up.

"Hayden, don't go, c'mon." Miguel stood up but Hayden was already halfway out the door before he could start. All she knew was that if she'd stayed in Sam's vicinity, she would've been sent to boarding school sooner than she expected.

authors note.
I love jealousy bc I am a super jealous person irl too and it rlly is like the funnest thing to write how different people act where their jealous — I personally give silent treatment when I'm jealous LMAO