Chapter 1 - A Daring Deed

On a scale of one to ten, my life had always dangled between three and four, thanks to my very wretched humble background, until the day it hit zero. 

"I will give you the money on the condition that you send that text to Asher." Mia Harper began with a mischievous smile on her face.

"Asher?" I repeated.

"You heard me right." 

No way.

Asher Thorne was the hottest, attractive and most popular kid in school. Bad boy, star hockey player, arrogant and snobbish, were the perfect words to describe him with. His dad was the CEO of the Thorne Pavilion Hotels, littered across the country. So, just saying he was rich was a mere understatement. Not only that. Asher wasn't the kind of guy anyone could just walk up to. He hardly ever smiled and didn't talk to just 'anybody'.

"No big deal." Mia was saying. "Just hit the send button, and you get a whooping sum of five hundred bucks.“ She waved the money right in front of my eyes.

"Come on. Just do it." Her best friend and partner, Nicole, urged. "It's not like he's going to put a bullet to your head." 

I stared down at the ridiculous message typed on my screen. "Hi, Ash. It's Grace, the sophomore scholarship kid. I think you're cool. Can we hang out after school today?" 

I shook my head at the incredulity. "I'm sorry, but I can't do this. I've never said a word to him since I resumed here, and I doubt he even knows I exist. This would only..."

"Will you do it or not?" Mia demanded darkly. "It's just a simple joke. Besides, this is five hundred bucks. You get to pay for your cousin's stupid watch without any hassles and have all the balance to yourself."

At this point. I began to think she was the one who actually stole the watch. I inhaled deeply. While I was still trying to process my thoughts, Nicole put a hand around my shoulder to talk persuasion into my ears. But unfortunately, that was a wrong move, because my phone almost slipped from my hand and in a bid to catch it, my finger accidentally hit the send button.

Oh no.

I'm doomed now.

"Are you okay?" Nicole demanded, seeing my expression. She peeked at my phone screen, then squealed and hugged me tightly. "Yay! Good girl! She's done it, Mia!" 

Mia flashed me a big smile, squeezing the money into my numb hands. "Perfect. Let's go, Nicki."

I watched them stalk away, feeling bewildered. It can't be too late. I can still delete it, I thought, staring down at my screen. 

But it was too late. 

Asher had not only read it, but replied too. 

"Sure. Meet me at the practice field."

What?

I could bet my bottom dollar that this message only meant two things. Either he wanted to make fun of me or decided to play along for the fun of it.

I was just about to text back that it was all a joke when I felt a shadow loom behind me.

“What are you doing?”

I looked back sharply. It was my cousin, Regan. The reason I was getting into this mess.

Let me start from the beginning.

It all started after PE, when I lost a fancy wristwatch, belonging to my hottie cousin, Regan. Actually, it's not the regular fancy watch, but a special edition worth three hundred bucks.

"Listen, idiot, you had better find that watch before the end of the day. Else, get ready to hand me the cash equivalent!" 

"Look, Regan, I..."

"I would listen to nothing, till you have the watch or money in your hands. Period!" 

And with that, she stalked off.

I sighed, wishing I had not been next to her when she was about to use the bathroom, and needed a keeper for her precious watch. Where on earth was I supposed to get three hundred bucks from? Since I had about a hundred in my savings, I figured I would have to pay the rest in installments. I slapped the heel of my palm against my forehead wearily, finding my way out of the gym, only to hear a familiar voice behind me.

"Gracie?" 

I stopped short.

That was Mia Harper. The richest and most popular kid in tenth grade, who wouldn't stand breathing next to anyone below her social ranking, let alone hold a conversation. Scholarship students like me knew better than to mind their business and stay out of her way. 

"Gracie?" 

She called again. The fact that she called my name so sweetly said a lot. What did she want from me? Or did she have the watch? I turned around slowly.

"I doubt you will ever find that watch. But I could help you with the money." She offered with a friendly smile. She collected my phone and typed the text herself.

What I couldn’t process right now was why she insisted on me texting him. Were they scheming something?

Presently, Regan tried to peek at my phone but I turned off the screen immediately. She rolled her eyes with a scoff. I shoved my hand smartly into my skirt pocket before she could catch a glimpse of the dollar bills. 

"I wonder what you are up to. But I don't care. Follow me to the practice field. We can ask Mia if she came across the watch by chance." She said, "She and Nicoli were among the girls hanging around when I gave it to you."

Sometimes, we pronounced Nicole that way for the fun of it.

"There will be no need. I already asked her. She didn’t see it,” I said quickly.

"How would you know? Mia has eagle eyes. She might have seen who picked it up. All she needs is a little prodding and begging. Come on." She moved on, expecting me to follow. 

No way I would follow her there, right now. I knew her excuse to ask Mia was a lame attempt to see Asher. Every girl made up dumb reasons to hang around the field after school, just to watch him play or maybe get a chance to talk to him. Asher was her biggest crush, just like the other girls. Except me, of course. I saw nothing special about him.

"Will you run ahead then? I think I need to use the restroom." I told her. 

"Same here. I need to freshen my makeup too." she replied, already turning around.

I slumped my shoulders in defeat. You've tried, girl. Just accept your fate.

Ten minutes later, we were ready to go. Regan had made me repack her hair even though it didn't need fixing. Her lips were glossier, her short skirt a few inches higher, and to crown it all, she had undone a few buttons down her blouse for some cleavage sake.

Lord have mercy on Asher. 

I didn't give any hoot about my appearance. My messy bun was just perfect as far as I was concerned and my lips were just fine too. 

"What about Lisa?" I asked. Lisa was her best friend and companion. 

"Forget about her." She hissed. "She thinks she can fool me. She lied about having a stomach ache, just to visit the medical center, because Asher was there for a minor injury." 

Oops. And she was mad at her for that?

"She knows I have a crush on him. She has a boyfriend already. I don't understand why she keeps forcing herself on him and still claims to be my friend." She snorted. "The only reason I'm heading to the field now is because of my watch, thanks to you. I could have been on my way home."

I made a silent scoff. Because of the watch indeed. 

The moment we stepped into the field, I decided to keep things simple, avoid looking at the boys and focus on my feet or my phone. After all, he must have even forgotten a nobody like me ever texted.”

I sighted Mia sitting with Nicole at a far corner of the field, chattering among themselves and watching the boys. Going to meet them would require me and Regan to walk through the field, under the full glare of everyone. Regan's perfect plan to get noticed. She even walked differently now, like a wobbly programmed doll, feeling like a runway model.

I toyed with the idea of pretending to be busy with my phone, but the thought of tripping blindly on the grass or over a player, haunted me. So I focused on my shoes instead.

When we were a few strides away from Mia, I heaved a huge sigh of relief. But I guess I heaved too soon. 

"Grace Williams!" 

Rather than stopping dead in my tracks, I pretended not to hear and quickened my steps, my pulse racing. For a guy whom I thought had no idea I existed, I wondered how he knew my full name.

To make matters worse, Asher jogged up to me, panting. He grabbed by free hand, since the other clutched my miserly school bag. 

"Grace." He looked straight into my eyes. "Come on. You saw my text, didn't you?" 

He pulled me along before I could protest. My heart pounded hard. His hands felt strong, and a bit clammy. Even though he was sweating, I could still catch a hint of his expensive cologne. This was the closest I had ever been to him. I had always watched him from afar like some untouchable TV celebrity. 

When I looked back at Regan, all I saw was pure hate and fury. Like she was going to rip me apart and explode. Standing behind her were Mia and Nicole with dirty smiles on their faces. 

What the hell...

What could those girls have up their sleeves? And what was Asher up to? He couldn't possibly be playing nice for no reason.