I sat at a different table in the library the next day, the one in the very far back in the corner behind a bookshelf. I did not want Quinn to find me. I wanted to be left alone.

But I wouldn't have been surprised if I heard him bounding through the library, calling out my name, which usually would be against the rules since it was a library, but he could do whatever he wanted since he was a Lost Boy. He could be as loud, as rude, and as messy as he wanted to be. He ruled this place.

He was the leader of the Lost Boys, but he was so laid-back. The previous head Lost Boy was a hardass until his girlfriend came into the picture. Then after that, he still had his moments, from what I heard.

But I wasn't going to waste my library time thinking about Quinn or any of the Lost Boys, past or present. And that included Luke.

It was practically a ritual of mine to go to the school library after school ended, and people knew that that was where I would be if they wanted to find me. I'd stay there until it closed at five. It gave me a few hours of freedom at home.

Sometimes I wondered if my mother even cared that I tried my hardest to not be home, and then then I was, I was usually in my room. She must have thought that I was going through a phase. If only she realized this "phase" had began as soon as she married Leo.

He hadn't always been nasty to me. When they were dating, he just ignored me, but once they were married and moved in, then his cruel behavior began and it'd been that way ever since.

I always thought the story of Cinderella was stupid. I thought the wicked stepmother and stepsisters were over-exaggerated. I didn't understand why someone would stay with someone who abused them. Now I realized how hard it was to leave when you had nowhere else to go. And I realized how wicked people could truly be.

I heard footsteps coming in my direction, and I was almost afraid to look up. I hoped more than anything that it would not be Quinn that stared back at me.

But when I looked up, I saw that it was my best friend Jake, and I let out a sigh of relief. Then I couldn't help but get a little annoyed because library time was my alone time.

"Hey, Ebby," Jake greeted, using that horrid nickname Quinn had given me.

"Please don't bug me," I groaned, sinking down into my seat. I hadn't meant to sound rude, but I really wanted to be alone since I had been bothered the day before. "I couldn't even enjoy myself yesterday because Quinn was bugging me the entire time."

Jake rose an eyebrow at me. "You're telling me you enjoy studying?"

"Yes," I answered, but then immediately followed with, "No."

Sometimes I did. Alright, most of the time I did. But only because it took me away from all of my problems and somehow didn't stress me out. It made me feel like I was actually smart. I enjoyed studying even more than reading a fiction novel, and I knew that that was the weirdest thing of all.

I just liked knowing things. I like going into a class and already knowing nearly everything. I liked knowing for a fact that I aced a test. It was something for me to focus on that weren't my feelings for Luke or my crappy life at home. And it made me feel good enough.

But people around here didn't enjoy studying, and if you were any different from them, you were a target for ridicule. Especially when a popular girl like Lindsey despises you. I didn't think even the Lost Boys' friendships could save me from being teased and branded as a nerd.

Then again, it probably was, if they decided to help me if that ever did happen. But if they didn't stick up for me, merely being their friend was not enough to save me from ridicule.

Jake placed his hands on the table I was sitting at, leaning against it. I was surprised his weight didn't push it away. He liked to work out and he had the body to prove it, and muscle did way more than fat.

"Let's go, we'll meet up with Skyler and hang out for a bit," Jake suggested, and even though I didn't want to stop studying, that did sound like fun. "The library's closing in fifteen minutes anyway, so you'd just have to leave and go home if you don't come along."

He did have a point. Jake knew everything about my wicked step family, and tried to help me out as much as he could. Spending some time with my two best friends would definitely be a nice breather.

"Sure," I accepted, closing my textbook and slipping it into my backpack. "Let's go."

Jake looked overjoyed that I agreed, most likely because I usually declined to study or hide from the world in my room. I loved hanging out with my friends, but sometimes being alone was nice, too.

I followed Jake out of the library, saying goodbye to the librarian on my way out. Everyone thought it was weird that I spoke to her all the time, but you get friendly with people you see a lot. I was most likely the only student who came into the library regularly, and definitely the only student who spoke to her without a reason to.

As we made our way out of the front of the school, I saw a familiar yellow backpack and suppressed a groan because I knew exactly who it was.

As long as we were quiet, she wouldn't even look back—

Jake slammed the door shut behind us and I wanted to hit him. Lindsey immediately turned around to see who had joined her outside, and her eyes narrowed when she saw me.

"I can't catch a break," I groaned, and Lindsey smiled wryly at me.

"Hi, Ebony," she greeted. "Why are you even here?"

She went from a polite greeting and right to demanding things from me, as if I was somehow trespassing at my own school. I wasn't surprised, since she was always like this, especially when Quinn wasn't around.

"I always stay after school," I informed her, even though I didn't have to answer to her and she had no right to know about what I did anymore. "It's not like I'm purposely trying to get on your nerves."

She nodded, but I could tell she didn't believe that. "Sure seems like it."

She sure thought I had no time on my hands, didn't she?

Well, I did spend all my free time studying, which was an awful lot, so maybe I didn't.

"Let me guess," she began with a smirk, and I didn't think I wanted her to continue. "You were in the library, studying again."

She was right. And it wasn't like I was ashamed of it. I could have been doing a lot things that were worse with my time, like taking drugs or sleeping around. I think I'd stick to studying.

"You're such a nerd," she continued, and I wondered why I didn't just walk away from her. I didn't need to hear her harassing remarks, as much as they didn't really bother me. She was honestly just trying too hard.

She tried to be nice to me in front of Quinn. Keyword: tried. If anything, she was only civil, and even that was difficult for her. But when he wasn't around, she didn't hold anything back, and she was perfectly fine with showing me how much she hated me. Sometimes it made me forget that we used to be friends.

"You have no right to judge me," I glared, not in the mood to be ridiculed by her. "You're just a stalker that has an obsessive crush on Quinn."

This seemed to enrage Lindsey for a moment, but she soon calmed herself down and forced a smile. "What about your little crush on Luke?" she asked, and I knew I wasn't going to like where this was going. "Does he still have no idea, or is he ignoring you just to spare your pathetic feelings?"

This was what got to me, and it seemed to be the only thing that could. I had liked Luke for so long and so much; everyone knew because I didn't exactly have any shame and I didn't mind making it obvious. So there was a really big chance that Luke was just pretending not to notice because he was trying to be nice to me. And that was even worse than not realizing that I liked him.

Jake could see how hurt this made me, and he placed a hand on my shoulder. I shrugged him off, not wanting to be touched.

Lindsey laughed, noticing that she had gotten the reaction she'd wanted. "Did I hit a raw nerve?"

"Lindsey, you don't need to be such a raging bitch all the time," Jake spat at her for me, and I made a mental note to thank him later.

"Oh, please," she scoffed with a roll of her eyes. "How about you take your nice guy routine and shove it? Ebony isn't interested."

"That has nothing to do with you," he scowled. "You're just jealous because of how much attention Quinn gives Ebony."

"Are you sure that you're not the one jealous about how much attention Quinn gives Ebony?"

"You should really not talk about things you know nothing about!"

"I'm telling you, she's not interested." Lindsey placed her hands on her hips and she radiated the feeling of superiority. She truly thought she was better than us, for whatever reason. "It's all about Luke with her."

Jake wasn't backing down. "So why are you so jealous about her and Quinn?"

This seemed to throw her off guard. "I... I never said I was!"

"Alright, I think I can talk for myself," I cut in, tired of the fighting. "And honestly, this argument is pretty pointless, so I don't see why we're even having it."

"What I think is pointless is your feelings for Luke," Lindsey continued, and my usual expressionless face stayed the same just like she stayed a bitch. "He'll never like you. He could never like a girl like you."

I tried really hard to not care about what she'd just said. Usually nothing Lindsey would say got to me, but when it came to Luke, it was just... different. Because with him, everything was unknown. I had no idea if what she was saying was actually true or not. And it was the one thing she made fun of me for that I actually cared about.

"How would you know?" I snapped, biting down on the inside of my cheek when I heard how defensive I had sounded. But what was the point of trying to hide how bothered I was? She already knew she was getting to me. "You're not Luke. You don't know what kind of girl he likes."

"I am dating his best friend," she reminded me, as if that somehow meant that she knew everything about her significant other's best friends.

"You're not dating Quinn, Lindsey," I had to point out, and I saw her eye twitch. "Hooking up is not the same thing as dating."

Clearly, now I had struck a raw nerve. She wanted to date Quinn more than anything, she always had, and yet he just wasn't interested in anything serious. They'd kiss and hug and do who knows what else, but they weren't official, no matter how much Lindsey was pining after it. I'd always find it kind of amusing, and though sometimes I felt bad for feeling that way, it was times like this that made me not regret it at all.

"What, do you think he'd date you if he had the shot?" Lindsey scoffed, and I could tell she was running out of insults. "Like he'd even want to!"

"Well, it's not like he wants to date you, so..." was all I said to this, and Lindsey was clearly getting more and more bothered by the second. If she knew what was good for her, she'd stop with this subject.

"Your outfit is ugly," Lindsey insulted, her last ditch attempt at trying to hurt my feelings.

I blinked at her flatly. It didn't bother me when Lacey said it, and it didn't bother me when she said it either.

"I can see why you and Lacey are such good friends now," I informed her, and even though this was coming as an insult, it was still the truth. "You're so much alike."

Lindsey didn't seem to know if she should have taken this as an insult or not, even though I clearly meant it as an insult, but she knew that if she took it that way, then she would be insulting one of her close friends. Pretty much, there was no way she could win in this situation, and I knew she hated that more than anything.

She stomped her foot." Just stay away from Quinn!"

"You should be saying that to him, not me!" I shouted back at her, tired of this constant bickering. "In case you haven't noticed, he's the one who seeks me out. Not the other way around!"

Lindsey seemed as fed up with this conversation as I was, and I was glad that she was finally realizing what a waste of time this was. Even though dealing with her meant less time spent at home, that didn't mean I enjoyed talking with her about unimportant things.

She simply huffed and turned away, her brown hair almost whipping me in the face in the process. I bit my tongue, fighting the urge to yell something mean after her. I didn't want to continue the argument.

"That girl is so insanely jealous of you," Jake sighed once she was out of hearing range. "Always has been."

I shook my head. "It's not like that makes losing her as my best friend any better."

"You shouldn't feel bad about losing her as a friend, Eb," he told me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders. "It's like she just can't handle how much attention Quinn gives you all the time."

I rolled my eyes. "It's not like it even means anything to him, so what does she care?"

"You don't know that," he sang. "Quinn could harbor some real feelings for you."

I shot him a flat look. "Do you really believe that?"

Quinn had been messing with me for years. He was a major flirt and always had been, but I had seemed to be the only one who could see right through him. The only one who knew now to fall for his games.

"No, I see how he flirts with almost every girl he comes into contact with," he answered, and I let out a sigh of relief. If Jake didn't believe it, then there was no way it was true. "I don't know why Lindsey views you as such a big target."

"Maybe because I'm friends with all of them. That seems to be why Lacey hates me so much."

"Lacey's jealous of you for a hell of a lot more than just your friendship with the Lost Boys."

Maybe he was right. But honestly, I didn't care. Lacey was my stepsister, but that didn't mean I had to care about what she thought of me. We weren't related by blood, and if my mom ever divorced Leo like I hoped she did, I'd never have to deal with either him nor his daughter ever again.

"Maybe she thinks Keegan has the hots for you too," Jake continued, and I couldn't tell if he was joking or not. "Since he seems to be her favorite of all four of them."

"Keegan's just as obnoxious toward me as he is toward everyone else," I reminded him, making a face. "So I highly doubt he has any serious feelings for me."

"Does someone sound sad about that?"

"Definitely not," I excused quickly, since it was the truth and I did not want him thinking I liked someone I didn't. "You know I like Luke."

Jake's smile disappeared. "And you know I wish you didn't."

I should had known mentioning Jake was a bad idea. Ever since we'd met him, for some reason, Jake just didn't like Luke, being the complete opposite of me, who had liked him immediately.

Even though he was the nicest of the four Lost Boys, he was the one that Jake disliked. I was almost positive it was because his sister had been played by Luke's cousin, and he was afraid that they would be alike in that aspect, since they were so similar to each other in other ways, apparently, and Jake was probably worried that Luke would end up hurting me.

Jake had always been protective of me, and it was the same way for Skyler. It was nice to have someone who cared about us so much, but it was also annoying when he got overly protective about boys.

"You can't help who you like," I shrugged, as if that made everything better.

Jake looked away from me. "I know," he muttered under his breath, and I wasn't so sure I was supposed to hear him.

"Alright, let's go before I change my mind," I sighed, grabbing onto his arm and leading him away from the school. "I'm pretty hungry. Where do you want to meet up with Skyler?"

"Wherever you want is fine by me," he answered, and I knew that it was true.

"Great!" I grinned, and Jake seemed relieve to see me smiling. "Burgers it is then!"

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I got a new phone and I'm so happy omg

Also it's been two months but like... I did say this story was going to be on the back burner while I focus on my other two. This story's more just fun little thing I'm doing on the side.

But it's only been a couple of days since my last upload for another story... So that's good, right? Summer gives me the time I need to update.

I need to stop updating in the middle of the night.

But I know I won't so

o shit

waddup

please don't unfollow me