Thanks to @LoganEPoole for the cover -->

27 Days before Valentine’s Day

BEEP! BEEP!

Ugh. What was that irritating loud noise? I pulled the bed covers over my head, hoping that it would block out the noise.

BEEP BEE-

Argh! I threw my arm out, grabbed the alarm clock and chucked it somewhere on the floor. It landed with a crash and a loud thud. My eyes shot open –the sudden exposure to light made me wince and blink repeatedly- I realised that my Mum was probably awake and she would be wondering what the thud was and she’d find out that I threw my alarm on the floor. That won’t be good.

I dragged myself out of bed and took a hot shower before doing my usual routine of ‘wear whatever I see first’ and then brushing my hair and quickly putting on a light layer of make-up before heading downstairs to eat breakfast.

I was already in a bad mood when I woke up because I was tired and didn’t get enough sleep because I’ve become paranoid that Dylan will somehow make me fail Art. And if I fail Art, I’ll never get into Art school, I’ll never get the job I want, I won’t be happy.

Today hasn’t started out well. I’m tired and cranky. I broke my alarm clock –now I have to get a new one. I was in the shower longer than I thought and hadn’t realised because my clock was broken so now I’m running late. To make it worse, I have an algebra test first thing today. I have no clue why teachers decide to give tests on Fridays. Why can’t they give them out on Mondays so it matches the whole ‘I hate today’ theme?

        I rushed into the kitchen, “Morning Mum.” I said walking past her and reaching into the fridge for a glass of orange juice.

        “Morning, hun.” She replies, not looking up from the newspaper. ‘Breakfast is on the table.’ She says. As usual, I silently add.

         “Morning, Dylan,” I greeted and sat down.

        “Good morning, Avery!” he responded, while I dug into my toast, fried eggs and bacon. I was trying to eat as quickly as I could without chocking because I didn’t have any time to waste. I might miss the bus if I don’t hurry up.

Wait. Hold up. Dylan?! I froze, my mouth still full of food. Dylan grinned widely, his blue eyes shining. I must be dreaming. I blinked once, twice, as if trying to get something out of my eyes. He was still there. I shook my head and pinched my arm, hard. I winced from the pain.

        “You’re not dreaming.” He says.

        I suddenly choked on my food and I quickly gulped down the entire glass of orange juice. He chuckled, “W-what are you doing here?” I ask, still trying to recover from my choking accident.

Dylan was about to answer my question when my Mum interjected, the newspaper still in her hand. She leaned on the door frame “Dylan is driving you to school from now on. You go to the same school, have almost the same classes and this way, we’ll reduce carbon emissions.” She shot me a look, warning me not to argue with her.

I always knew my Mum was one of those people who tried everything to help the planet from recycling bottles and plastic to biking to work instead of taking her car but I doubt me getting on the bus will instantly kill the planet. It still travels the same distance when I get on it and when I don’t because it goes on the exact same route everyday!

Besides, I think I’d rather get hit by the bus than to ride in the same car as Dylan. I don’t want that thing breathing the same air as me. A house is confined enough; I don’t want to be stuck in a smaller space, like a car.

        “What she said,” he smirks at me and winks.

            ***

I shut the car door, slung my back on my shoulder and started walking away. I was trying to gain as much distance from Dylan as I possibly could.

        “Avery! Wait up!” he yelled after me, I didn’t bother to look back. Instead, I tightened my grip on my bag and increased my pace.

        “Avery!” Dylan calls out; he started jogging towards me as I broke into a sprint.

Soon enough, I made it through the front entrance of the school and blended in the crowd. I met Emma at our usual meeting place. I stood next to her and opened my locker before shoving my textbooks inside.

        “You’ll never guess what happened last night and this morning.” I said with a tinge of annoyance in my voice.

        “Oooh, you sound annoyed. Tell me!” She chimed excitedly.

I closed my locker door and turned to face my best friend. “Well, I think my Mum has lost her sanity and she invited –“ I was about to finish my sentence when I  saw it running towards us.

        “Well...” Emma had an expectant look on her face still waiting for the rest.

        “Dylan.” I said bitterly as he stood in front of us, flashing his signature grin.

He was out of breath and his hair flopped over his forehead. “You forgot your phone in the car.” He held it out to me and I grabbed it, muttering a thank you under my breath.

        “I tried to give it to you but you ran off. You’re a fast runner. You should be on the track team.” He says.

Emma had an expression on her face; a mixture of, confusion, amusement and curiosity. I watched as she crossed her arms across her chest, one finger pointing at Dylan as she wiggled her eyebrows at me.

        “I am on the track team.” I answered, but I wasn’t looking at him. I was glaring at Emma who was still pointing at Dylan and making faces at me.

        “Oh.” He noticed me looking at Emma and he turned to look at her. She was still pointing and as soon as she noticed Dylan had turned to face her , she stopped  and tried to ‘casually’ scratch her arm.

My right hand slapped against my forehead at my best friend’s idiocy. She smiled sheepishly as the bell rang and Dylan walked the opposite way without another word.

        We made our way down to algebra, I elbowed Emma making her stumble in surprise.

        “Ow! Don’t abuse me just because you’re now spending ‘special time’ with Dylan.” She said teasingly, chuckling slightly.

        “Shut up. I’m not having ‘special time’ with Dylan. It’s more like my Mum has gone mad and I’m now being tortured.” I sighed. “Out of all the people I could’ve been paired up with. I got stuck with him.”

Life is cruel.

        “Stop complaining. Girls would kill to be in your position. He’s...he’s...muy caliente.” She beamed.

        “Em. I don’t take Spanish. I don’t know what that means.”

        She rolled her blue eyes at me, “That’s a lie. But, if you say so.” And with that, she strolled into class and sat at  her desk.

Of course, I knew what it meant. I took Spanish for two years.

Very hot –that’s what it means.

I took a deep breath as I dragged myself into my seat. The test paper was already waiting for me on my desk.

The soft tik tok of the clock was all I could hear through the silence of the classroom for the full hour.

            ***

        “So why is Dylan driving you to school now?” Emma asked, munching on her lunch.

        “My Mum and his Mum are friends. They think it’ll ‘help’ the planet if I don’t get the bus because it will cut down on pollution or something like that.”

        “Hey, Emmie!” Aaron sat down next to my blonde haired best friend. I raised an eyebrow at her. Emmie? He gave her a nickname? Seriously? Emma only shrugged.

        “’Sup, partner,” seconds later, Dylan had appeared next to me.

        “Ugh.”I whined. "You've got to be kidding me."

 He tried to steal one of my fries but I slapped his hand away and gave him a look. Dylan raised his hands up in defeat, amusement playing in his eyes. I threw a fry at him.

        “Avery! Not another food fight.” Emma warned.

Aaron and Dylan shot us confused looks and Emma explained to them what happened the last time we threw a French fry. They both laughed loudly, the sound sending vibrations through me.

        “I see we got some troublemakers here, Dylan.” Aaron joked, sending a mischievous smile towards him.

        “Yeah, I doubt they cause as much trouble as we do though. They are, after all, girls.” He chuckled.

        Emma objected, “hey! Just because we’re girls doesn’t mean you’re better than us.” She stuck her tongue out at them.

        “Em’s right. We could cause more trouble than you two and get away with it because, after all,” I paused, batting my eyelashes. “We’re girls.” I felt a grin spread across my face.

        Both boys looked at one another and gave us a lopsided smile. “I bet your pranks are no good though.” Aaron teases.

        I scoffed, “You wish pretty boy.”

        “How about we make this a little more interesting,” Dylan adds. Where is he going with this? We all gave him puzzled looks and he smirked.

        “How about, we have a prank war.” Aaron offered, shrugging.

        “Sounds fun.” Emma replied.

         “Wait, what does the winner get?” I asked. There has to be a prize at the end. Maybe if we win –let me rephrase- When we win, then Aaron and Dylan could do something completely embarrassing.

        We were quiet for a moment before Dylan broke the silence. “If you win –which you won’t,” he started, both Emma and I gave him a look. “We’ll, I don’t know, you come up with something. But...if we win -which we will do- You two,” he pointed at both of us. “Will go on a date with us.”

Is he being serious right now? Emma looked at me and I nodded. It’s not like we’re going to lose.

        Emma gave them a cocky smile, “If we win, you’re going to wear hula skirts from the costume room and start dancing in the middle of the cafeteria. In front of everyone.” She challenged.

        Dylan flashed a lopsided smile. “You’re on.” He winked.

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{Unedited}

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