Chapter One

NATASHA'S POV

My first day of school in Delengade should have been enough to warn me that it was a brutal place to be in but I didn't listen.

I was so sure I could cope, that I could do it, especially after I met him. Peter Bryce Melton.

The richest kid in Upper Class Delengade. Peter had been abroad all his life with his grandmother, and he finally returned to Delengade for college.

Weird, right? Why would I want to return here when I was in Europe? I assumed he just missed having someone to bully.

I thought he was like all the rest of them. But he was different.

The first time we met, was when our gazes met across the hallway from each other and from then on, our relationship blossomed.

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I was trying to figure out the assignment Mr Melton, Peter's uncle, gave in class when my phone rang.

The caller ID read Peter, I smiled and answered the call.

“Hey, watermelon.” He teased me. I rolled my eyes and snorted.

“You know, that's really just an insult in disguise, right? It's not a nickname if I really look like a watermelon.” I said, pouting a little.

He burst into laughter and I swore I could see him rolling his eyes, smiling with his eyes in that way of his.

“I call you watermelon because you cry way too much. Watermelons produce a lot of water too, at the time, I thought it was the perfect nickname, it did make you laugh.” He said in an amused voice.

I laughed, as my mind drifted back to two months ago. Patty's death.

Thinking about her still made my heart ache, it still hurt but thanks to Peter, I was getting better.

I had sunk into depression, to make it worse, I thought I could talk to someone about it.

I talked to Professor Cain and he broke me, he turned on me, and made me get suspended.

It was then I found out he was Sasha's uncle and Sasha was a friend of Meredith.

Sasha and Meredith made my life a living hell after I came back from suspension.

I was depressed, grieving…even my family could do little to make me feel better, on top of all that, I was bullied and I was heartbroken.

My crush, Professor Cain shattered my heart, and even Layla distanced herself away from me, only concerned with staying out of trouble.

Sure, she showed care and sympathy at home but it wasn't the same and I couldn't blame her either, I would probably do the same in her shoes.

It was Peter who was there with me, everywhere. Although, he was away for a while after Patty's death.

During that time was when I got bullied severally but they stopped once he came back and started protecting me.

Eventually, they all stopped not wanting to get on Peter's bad side.

“That's a really mean thing to say.” I whined.

He chuckled and a shiver went down my spine. These days, the sound of his laughter seemed to hit differently.

I thought about his smile, how his lips stretched fully when he smiled or how his eyes tend to smile with him.

I was noticing every little thing about him these days and I didn't want to admit the obvious thing to myself yet.

Peter might protect me and help me out with other things, like how he got me a new phone or drove me home from school everyday.

And sometimes he came to pick me up since Layla and I weren't on the best of terms.

Well, she had been seeing me a lot less for a while now.

Yeah, I was mad at her for sticking to Sasha and her minions but I didn't hold it against her.

She was only doing everything to find out what happened to her parents.

So, we hadn't been spending much time together and sometimes she forgot to come pick me up.

Which was fine, Peter was always there. He's always been here for a while.

And my stupid heart was starting to flutter again. I reminded myself severally of the heartbreak from professor Cain.

That relationship had been doomed from the start but I would have preferred if he didn't turn out to be an asshole.

Any relationship with Peter wouldn't be any better, if anything, it had less chance of ever being successful.

“So, what are you doing?” He asked.

I shrugged as I looked around at the books scattered all over my bed.

I let out a frustrated sigh.

“Your uncle's a slave driver, Peter. His assignments are brutal!” I groaned.

Peter laughed into the receiver. The sound of his loud, rich laughter filled my ears and danced through my body.

I felt heat and moisture gather in between my legs and I covered my mouth with a hand to stop the shocked gasp.

Did the sound of Peter's laughter just make me wet?

Ugh, get your head out of the gutter, Peter. Like Peter would ever sleep with someone like you.

“Yeah, you're just lazy, Nat. Say you need help and I'll come right over.” He said softly.

I held my breath. Come over? We just saw each other not long ago.

He drove me back home.

But to be honest? I was getting to that point where I missed him when he wasn't with me.

And I found myself wishing I could slow down time when we were together, so yeah, I was totally okay with him coming over.

I didn't mind staring at his gorgeous face for the next hour or two while I pretended to be working on my assignment.

“Yeah, I need help. You can come over if you want, I'm not going to beg you. You won't get any food either.” I teased.

He laughed again, “I'll see you soon, watermelon.” He said and then he hung up.

I smiled and hugged my phone to my chest and giggled.

I hurriedly climbed out of my bed to look at myself in the mirror. Ugh, I reached for my comb and dragged it through my hair, I had to look presentable.

It was enough that I was ugly. The least I could was not look like a damn orphan or street kid too.

I debated applying perfume and finally did, and then I sat back, fiddling with my ear, my heart thumping like a five year old.

Eventually, after what felt like forever, I heard the doorbell and I ran out of my room, to the door.

Thankfully, no one was home yet, or the awkward run from my room to the door would have had an audience, a laughing one.

I hesitated a few seconds before I opened the door, nervous and giddy.

The sight of him standing on the porch in a shirt and pants that hung low slapped me hard across the face.

Like, literally knocking air out of my lungs. He was so gorgeous. That level of cuteness should be banned somehow.

His hands swept over me from head to toe, and I turned red.

“Hey,” I said, hoping my voice didn't come as squeaky and that he didn't see the red staining my cheeks.

He smiled, a slow smile that made my stomach drop.

“Are you wearing perfume, watermelon?”