Lena Matthews

"I think you sound just like Taylor Swift," I lied patronizingly. "Can you sing it again?" Finn looked at me with pure murder in his eyes as Aurelie prepared to sing another verse.

"You're on the phone-" Before Aurelie could sing another excruciatingly off-key pitch, Finn tickled her sides, causing her to giggle uncontrollably.

"Cheap shot, Matthews," I said, shaking my head. "I meant Asher." I corrected myself quickly. I was definitely off my game today. I hated fighting with my family more than anything, and arguing with Dad had left me exhausted.

"Can you guys walk faster?" Aurelie asked impatiently, tugging on my sleeve.

"This is as fast as you're gonna get," I replied. Aurelie continued to pull me forward, and I nearly tripped into the reflection pool by the Academy.

"Do you think you can handle that one by yourself?" Finn asked me as I caught my balance.

"I've got it," I promised. "Have fun with your fangirls," I added playfully. Finn refused to acknowledge my comment, but as he walked away, I could spot at least five thirsty pairs of eyes gravitating towards him.

I dropped Aurelie off at Mrs. Delaney's. Unsure of where to go next, I settled on making my way to the auditorium. I didn't consider Jane-Anne and I friends yet, but I still felt like there was something I could learn about her.

Now, if only I could find the auditorium. It was to the left of the trophy case - right? No, it was the next left. No. The right. I glanced around for a map or something. I considered finding Mrs. Delaney and asking for directions again, but I wasn't even sure how to get back to her classroom. I was hopelessly lost. Out of options, I opened the door nearest to me and resolved to ask whoever was there for directions to my first class.

Behind the door was what I assumed to be the music room. Colored panels lined the walls, capturing my attention. Empty risers took up a decent amount of the space, and a grand piano was placed in the center. The walls were lined with several guitars, along with a gargantuan screen and projector.

"Can I help you?" someone asked.

"I-" My breath stopped for a moment and I started coughing dramatically. I cleared my throat, embarrassed. "I'm just lost," I explained. "Do I know you? You look familiar."

Something about the boy who was sitting on the piano bench with a guitar on his lap really did look familiar to me, in a strange way. I felt like I'd seen that crooked smile before.

"You're Ivy, right? The new girl?" The boy asked as he set down his guitar. His hazel eyes met mine for a split second, and I was struck by their off-putting familiarity. I could place his curly brown hair somewhere in my memory, but I couldn't figure out why. It was really starting to annoy me.

"I am," I answered. "And who are you, the boy who dodges simple questions?" I added, crossing my arms.

The boy laughed to himself before making eye contact with me. It felt like he was holding me in place. I felt frozen for a moment, and I hated it. Or at least, I wanted to hate it.

"I'm Jacob. Jacob Wilde," said Jacob. "It's nice to meet you, Ivy."

"Hilarious," I answered immediately. "Seriously, what's your name?" Jacob Wilde was a name that I knew, but that's because it was the name of an actor from a show that I had watched years ago.

"I'm being serious," said Jacob. "Did you watch Spellbound? "

It took all of my strength to keep my jaw from hitting the floor. "Yeah that explains it," I said, trying my best to sound nonchalant about it. I wasn't about to reveal that I had binge-watched his show just a couple weeks ago. "So, what brings you to Atalka?" Now that I knew who he was, it was almost surreal that I was standing in the same room as Spencer Grey from Spellbound.

Jacob shrugged. "I wanted to finish high school before going back to the industry."

"You want to go back? Is there a show you want to be in?" My nonchalance quickly fell away, replaced by unadulterated excitement.

"Um, they're planning on making me release some music," Jacob explained.

"I didn't even know you sang," I admitted.

"Well, they didn't let me sing on the show since Katherine was supposed to get that record deal," Jacob explained.

I remembered when everyone thought that Katherine Knight was going to be the next big thing. Apparently, the girl was unstable. She got dropped from her deal almost immediately, but has since become pretty prevalent online. I've found myself watching her videos from time to time. Still, Katherine's biggest claim to fame would always be her role as Skylar Centric.

"I didn't know that," I said. "Katherine sounds like a diva."

"She is." Jacob agreed. "Don't tell her I said that though. She loves excuses to make fake stories about anyone from the show."

"Uhm hm," I said, nodding along. I wasn't sure how to process the fact that Jacob Wilde was talking to me casually. Honestly, I would have a better idea of how to handle this if he turned out to be a werewolf or something. "So, do you always hide in empty music rooms of overly prestigious high schools?" I asked.

"No," Jacob answered. "Sometimes I walk girls to their first class."

"Me?" I asked when Jacob didn't say anything else. "Um, I have American Lit." I could feel myself shake. I was decidedly less nervous when I had rescued Carter from drowning.

"Well then, Ivy," said Jacob, standing. "Shall we?" When Jacob was right next to me, I couldn't get the butterflies in my stomach to calm down. He smelled like cinnamon and pine. Comfort and adventure all at the same time.

"Sure," I said. In my mind, I cringed at my own voice. Did I always sound like that? Jacob opened the door for me and led me to the hallway, where we were intercepted by three sharks.

"Ivy! I was looking for you!" Jane-Anne's voice sounded overenthusiastic and artificially sweet. On either side, she was flanked by Taylor and Kiara, as usual. Taylor seemed a bit more at ease today, but still glowered at everything.

"Hi!" said Kiara cheerfully. She was still wearing her fedora, which I guessed was her signature.

Taylor shot her a glance and Kiara quieted down.

"Oh my goodness, I didn't realize you were here, Jacob!" said Jane-Anne. She laughed hollowly and tried to casually brush his shoulder. Suddenly, everything made a lot more sense. Kiara whispered something to Jane-Anne, and she pulled away. "I see you met Ivy. We have the same first class." Jane-Anne took my hand, pulling me towards her. "I've got it from here."

"Nice to see you, Jacob!" Kiara interjected.

"Oh, but I-" Jacob didn't get to finish his sentences before the three girls swept me away. Before I knew it, I was outside, blinking in the daylight.

"Are you guys kidding me right now?" I asked, irritated. "Jane-Anne, we don't have the same first class, and I think you know that."

"Well, I-" Taylor nudged Jane-Anne purposefully. "I called dibs. No one gets near him before I get a chance." Jane-Anne finished.

"I'm not sure if you know this, but you can't call dibs on a person. This isn't a Disney Channel Movie." I retorted, rubbing my wrists. Jane-Anne's sudden transformation from energetic and awkward to a shallow stereotype was giving me whiplash.

"You watch Disney Channel?" Taylor asked judgmentally.

"What's wrong with that?" Kiara asked innocently.

"Nothing," said Taylor, abruptly changing her opinion. "Disney Channel's great."

"Just stay away until she asks him out, okay?" Kiara requested. "Jane-Anne's gone through a lot this year."

"I'm the one who moved to a new state," I scoffed. I turned to Jane-Anne, angry at her new persona. "You haven't even left this bubble. You don't know anything." They were harsh words, but I couldn't help it. Jane-Anne needed to be knocked down a peg.

Jane-Anne let out a small mixture of a gasp and a squeak before storming off. Kiara ran after her, ready to comfort her.

"Is she always that much of a drama queen?" I asked Taylor.

"For the record," said Taylor. "Jane-Anne has been through a lot. She accidentally outed one of her friends to the school and he got super upset. It made her lose two of her best friends."

"That sounds like it was her fault," I commented.

"Also, she was attacked in her own home." Taylor finished. I pursed my lips, regretting my earlier comment. I hadn't expected that to escalate so dramatically.

"Attacked?" I asked.

"Yeah," said Taylor as if it wasn't a big deal. "I thought you knew. The attackers used to live in your house."

"Oh."

"Between the two of us, Jane-Anne isn't the kind of person you want to be around," said Taylor. "It's some variation of drama every single day."

"So why are you and Kiara friends with her?" I asked.

"She doesn't have anyone else."

"Ivy!" Rowan enthusiastically waved me down so I could sit with her and Carter. Unable to reject the offer, I set my tray down at their table and sat down. I had gotten a hamburger and salad for lunch, mostly since I noticed it was the standard. Rowan's plate, on the other hand, was piled with pretty much everything that had been offered. Carter wasn't eating anything at all, and instead had a copy of a book set down in front of him where a tray should be. The cover faced the table, so I couldn't figure out the title. Not that it mattered. I'm not too much of a reader anyway.

"Hi guys." I greeted. I still wasn't sure how Carter felt about me since the drowning incident, but he was smiling right along with Rowan.

"So," said Carter mischievously. "How was your morning?"

"Fine," I answered.

"Are you sure about that?" Rowan asked.

I sighed. "Why do I feel like I'm being interrogated?"

"Did you or did you not make out with Liam Day in the auditorium this morning?" Carter asked, getting straight to the point. He and Rowan looked at me expectantly.

"You've got to be kidding," I muttered. "No, I definitely didn't. But I did run into Jacob Wilde. Speaking of which, why did no one tell me that he goes here? That seems like some pretty important information."

"Well, to say that he 'goes here' is stretching it a bit," Rowan explained. "His mom is his agent, and she's a control freak. He has all private classes, most of them for music. If you catch so much as a glance of him in the halls, consider yourself lucky."

"I'm guessing that seeing him was a bit of a shock," said Carter.

"Shock?" I asked. "I think I forgot how to breathe. I was trying to get directions, not run into my childhood crush!"

"Crush?" Rowan asked. "Hate to break it to you, but you definitely have some competition."

"Jane-Anne?" I asked. "Trust me, I figured that out. When I tried to talk to Jacob this morning, she practically dragged me away." I paused. "Do you think Jane-Anne started a rumor about me?"

"My money's on the fedora," said Rowan, rolling her eyes. "I swear, ever since those two leeches moved here, Jane-Anne hasn't been the same."

All of us stared at Jane-Anne in the center of the cafeteria, where she was talking to none other than my brother. I saw Finn turn in my direction, frowning, as Jane-Anne continued to talk. Kiara and Taylor remained planted by her side, encouraging Jane-Anne to keep talking. I noticed that Jane-Anne looked hesitant, but she was succumbing to the pressure of her friends.

"Why is she talking to him?" I asked. I had no idea what Jane-Anne was saying to Finn, but it couldn't be good.

"Wait, isn't that the boy that you said was cu-"

"Rowan!" Carter interjected.

"Anyway," Rowan pivoted quickly, "That rumor will be forgotten by tomorrow, I promise." Rowan yawned. "See, it's boring already!"

"What time did you get Charlie to fall asleep?" Carter asked Rowan.

"Three or four. I'm not sure, the hours started to blend together," said Rowan. "He's five years old and still can't get his head wrapped around the concept of a bedtime."

"Charlie is Rowan's younger brother, and her responsibility," Carter explained, noticing that I looked a bit lost. "He keeps her up all the time."

"Oh," I said. "You know, when I had trouble falling asleep, Asher and I would go on walks together. It would tire me out and I would fall asleep as soon as we got back."

"That's actually a good idea," said Rowan. "I'll give that a try."

"Don't look now, but she's walking towards us." Carter warned. Sure enough, Jane-Anne was headed for our table, Kiara and Taylor attached at her hips. Rowan and I sat a bit straighter and tried our best to look intimidating when she arrived, but it seemed like Carter couldn't care less.

"Carter, I just wanted to tell you that-"

"Whatever you have to say, Jane-Anne Pearce, I don't care. You've done enough. Just go." Carter said the last line with such confidence that Jane-Anne actually turned to leave, but Taylor stopped her.

Jane-Anne turned to me. "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for the misunderstanding this morning." She said politely. "And Carter, I talked to Asher and-"

"Jane-Anne, I'm going to try and say this nicely," said Carter. "Whatever you're about to say, I really don't need to hear it."

Jane-Anne glanced behind her, ready to leave, but I noticed that Taylor never let go of her arm. "Kiara told me that you thought Asher was cute, so I asked him if he woul-"

"You did what?" Carter asked, mortified.

"I was just-"

"Okay, let's forget about nice," said Carter. Rowan and I inched away from him nervously. "You never think things through. If you had thought for yourself for two seconds, you would have realized that talking to Asher was a terrible idea. You made a mistake last year, so deal with it. I think you've ruined my life enough." Jane-Anne looked like she wanted to apologize, but Carter continued, indifferent.

"There is nothing you can do for me to even think about talking to you again, so the best thing you can do is turn around with your new little bodyguards and leave us alone." He concluded.

"I'm sorry," said Jane-Anne pathetically.

"And I don't care," Carter responded automatically. Jane-Anne sighed in defeat and retreated with Kiara and Taylor close behind.

"Wow," said Rowan, watching her go. "You have got to teach me how to talk like that."

Rowan and Carter kept talking, but I couldn't help looking at Jane-Anne again. Her demeanor was no longer wounded, but overly enthusiastic. She had bounced back into a happy mood in mere seconds. It was impressive, yet chilling.

It didn't take me long to connect that Jane-Anne had outed Carter to everyone, subsequently cutting herself off from him and Rowan. And now, in an odd turn of events, I was taking her place.

Jane-Anne's eyes met mine for a moment, and her bubbly mask melted away. She looked so sullen that a small wave of pity washed over me. As our eyes met, I could tell that her hurt was genuine. Jane-Anne gave me a tiny smile of acknowledgment before mouthing the words, I know you're Lena.

A/N: We now interrupt your regularly scheduled supernatural killings for petty high school drama. I'll be honest. I love Jane-Anne, but she can be hard to figure out.  Anyway, remember that time when I said I hoped that we wouldn't get any covid cases at my school? We almost hit 2,000, and there's a football game today. Vote to wish me luck!

QOTD: Do you have a favorite character so far?