AURORA It was the first Monday of the new school year, and the third period was about to start after lunch when I caught up with Kiran in our chemistry class. I was almost late for our first class this morning after getting distracted by my music and I didn't get the chance to talk to him then. "Hey," I grinned at him. "Hey," he said coolly. "So, I thought about what you said and I want to hang out tonight." Kiran looked confused for a moment and looked off into the distance as if he were trying to remember, "Did I ask you out?" I chuckled, "No, not like that. It's a clear day out, not a single cloud in the sky. I want to show you how I have fun." Curious, Kiran lifted a brow at me and analyzed my features before agreeing, "Okay." My last period of the day is as an office aid, and I usually spend that time catching up on homework, but today I decided to do a little digging while the principal was in the bathroom and fin

KIRAN A week passed after the party and it was now Friday in Mr. Hammond's chemistry class when Aurora mentioned to me, “The girls in our class haven’t stopped talking about you ever since the party. You seem to be quite popular with the ladies at this school.” I smirked and teased her, “Jealous, are we?” She smiled at me, “No. I’m just saying I’m glad you made some friends, and it also shows that you should listen to me more because I was right.” I only hummed in response, so she asked, “How’s it going with Courtney?” She ignored eye contact as she asked and I narrowed my eyes at her. “Fine. We texted over the weekend and she’s been joining me for lunch. Why?” “Just curious is all,” she smiled and met my eyes for half a second. A few heartbeats later and she mentioned again, “She’s telli

AURORA Dani, Jen, and I were all getting ready at my house for homecoming. It’s Saturday, and the girls came over early so we could come up with a “plan of action” on how to get ready – it was Jen’s idea. First came hair, then we would do each other’s makeup, then dress and heels. We found a deep purple dress for Dani to wear that stopped at her knees, the same length as Jen’s white bandage dress. Mine was gold sequins and floor-length – probably more appropriate for prom instead of homecoming, but I was so excited about the dress that I would have worn it to school if it had followed the dress code. The thought made me smile as Dani pinned my hair in place. Dani was in charge of hair, then Jen did makeup, and thanks to my lack of artistic talent, I was in charge of zippers and helping the girls into their heels. “Sing us a tune while we get ready, A,” Jen said with a smile. Apparently, I’m also in charge of entertainment. They know I never miss an op

AURORA I was getting some air outside and calming myself before going back in and finishing my conversation with Gabe. I held back the tears when I thought about what he said, but he isn’t being fair saying that I can’t be friends with any guys. Feeling steady finally, I turned to head back in when I saw Kiran leaving the gym. He stopped when he saw me a few feet from the door outside, “Hey,” he said with a faint grin. “Hey,” I grinned back. “You look amazing,” he said and motioned towards me. I looked down at myself and smiled, “Thank you… I needed that,” I tried to chuckle and averted my gaze from him when I saw the curiosity there. I didn’t want him to see that I was going through something right now. He didn’t move or say anything more, so I looked at him and asked simply, “Where’s Courtney?” He gave

AURORA He was being so kind to me, even giving up his bed for me, or to let me into his home and let me cry on him no questions asked. I don’t know many people with whom I could really do that anymore. I questioned all of my relationships after tonight. I lost three people after what happened tonight, the closest people to me, too. My boyfriend is a cheater, and my best friends are secret-hiding backstabbers. I have never been so upset and disappointed in myself before. Wait… why am I upset with myself? I didn’t do anything wrong here, I was entirely in the dark about all of this. I noticed the looks they gave each other, sure, but the topic was never really brought up and I just thought of them as harmless looks of admiration. I never would have guessed that things would transpire the way they did. Stupid girl, Aurora. Kiran is right, and you need to stop being so nice and forgiving. These people betrayed me, they&r