Zoë

Amber giggled as Zoë climbed into the driver's seat of her slug bug. "Sorry that took so long. He's a difficult person."

"How'd it feel?" Amber asked excitedly. Her voice rose with her excitement and her hands started to shake ever so slightly. Amber had a habit of getting way to excited when it came to a boy, her favorite being when one of the girls yelled at the jerk of a boy who had ruined their life. "Did you slap him? Please tell me you slapped him!"

Zoë put the car into drive and started out of the almost empty parking lot. "Yeah, I slapped him."

"YES!" Amber pumped her fists and laughed. "That idiot deserved it! No one can go around and pretend my bestie for the restie is his girlfriend. I've already claimed you."

"Have I ever told you you've got some serious issues?"

"Yes, several times actually."

"Good. I don't have to inform you again."

Zoë shot her best friend a small smile. Ever since the two girls had met so many years ago, they had become the sisters neither of them had. Amber had two older brothers and a step-brother who was their age, while Zoë was an only child which she was eternally grateful for. They found refuge in each other and together, they were unstoppable.

They had been out at recess during the fall of their fifth grade. Zoë had been standing awkwardly by the tube slide while kids all around her played. They didn't pay attention to the "new girl" because they weren't obligated too. They went on with their petty little lives because a new girl didn't affect them. They had their friends and stuck with them.

Zoë's friends were back in Florida, where she belonged. She belonged in the Floridan sun with people arguing over whether the Dolphins, Jaguars, or Bucs were the better team. Plus, their oranges were better. She didn't belong in California.

She sighed and walked across the front of the tube slide, tears threatening to spill over. She'd had had a terrible first day and that's when it happened.

A girl slid down the slide and rammed right into Zoë, sending her to the ground. The moment she hit the ground, she blinked from the shock. Nothing hurt except maybe her pride. That never fully recovered though.

When Zoë looked up, a girl with two pigtails braids and a black and red flannel tied around her waist stared down at her. "Are you okay?" She smiled, revealing a gap where her front tooth should be.

Zoë nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."

The girl helped her up. "I'm Amber but you can call me Ambi."

"What type of name is Ambi?" Zoë laughed.

Amber pushed her playfully. "It's mine dummy. What's yours?"

"Zoë."

"That's dumb too."

"Okay, you wanna know who's really hot?" Amber fangirled as Zoë turned onto her street. Amber lived on the street where all the popular kids did and every house looked the same. The only thing that showed where the Nielsen's lived were the unhealthy amount of garden gnomes Mrs. Nielsen had bought a couple of months ago. She was 100% convinced there were cameras to watch her kids cause Mrs. Nielsen was overprotective like that.

"If you say Carden, I might just shove you out of this car," Zoë teased. She was kidding...mostly.

Amber rolled her eyes and propped her chin in her hand. "Cameron Smith."

"You mean my 'boyfriends' best friend." She faked a frown when Amber smiled widely. "Oh honey, are you okay? Are you sick? Do you need me to turn this car right around and take you to the hospital?"

She swatted Zoë. "You may hate Carden, believe me I do to, but his best friend is hot. Like he could compete to be hotter than Carden that's how good looking he is."

"So he's a real hottie?"

She giggled hysterically. "Yep."

Zoë pulled into the Nielsen's driveway and Amber opened her door. "Thanks for the ride Z. Love you!"

"Love you more."

Amber offered Zoë a quick smile before rushing out of the car to where her step brother, Derek from the football team, was playing basketball. She went to get the ball from him when he full on tackled her and thus began a wrestling match on the front yard.

Zoë rolled her eyes. The blessing of being an only child.

*****

Zoë slammed the front door shut so hard the door nearly fell off of its frame but she could care less. Her day had been literal heck and now that she was away from him, she could finally relax.

"Hey sweetie," Mom said cheerfully as Zoë walked into the kitchen and threw her backpack onto the floor. "Is...is something wrong? Something go down at school?"

She stalked to the fridge and grabbed a vanilla yogurt cup. "Oh yeah. Something huge went down that makes me want to wring Carden Ash's scrawny neck with my bare hands."

Mom blinked. "Well, that's a little violent."

"Don't patronize me right now."

"Okay." She sat down in one of the island chairs and stared at her daughter intently. "Do you want to tell me about it? I'm listening."

Zoë licked the spoon as she thought. "So apparently, Carden told a clingy ex, actually I don't know if she's his ex, that he has a girlfriend to get her off his back. And he told her it's me," she raised her spoon and did the classic Rumpilstilskin hand gesture from Once Upon a Time, "yippee. So now the entire school thinks I'm dating Carden because he lied about us being a thing or whatever."

She looked at her mom and expected her to grab her purse from the counter and yell, "I'm gonna go give this kid a piece of my mind!" and storm out the door so she certainly didn't expect Mom to say, "What's so wrong with that?"

"Mom!"

Mom stood up from her seat and moved to pull back Zoë's hair from her face. "Maybe this is a good thing. Besides, you could be a little more social."

Zoë scowled and slumped against the counter, head on her folded arms. "Boys are idiots."

"Oh I get that."

The words hung in the air like icicles on a cold winter day in January. They hung there, threatening to break and fall, ready to change their lives with one simple crack.

Zoë raised her head slowly and chose her next words cautiously. "How are things with...Dad?" Those words were foreign and tasted like poison to her on her tongue. She never intended to use it again.

Mom's sigh took the cheerful light out of her eyes. "Honestly, I don't know. He's moved on, Zo. He's got a new apartment, a new girlfriend who he...loves, and he's finding happiness." All of Mom's energy seemed to leave her body. "But I'll be okay. I can't move forward if I stay in the past."

A smile fought onto Zoë's lips as she gently took Mom's hand. "I'm so proud of you."

"Thank you." The words were barely a whisper but they were still there and that was enough.

The doorbell rang suddenly, making both of the girls jump. Mom cleared her throat. "You expecting anyone?"

"No. You?"

"Nope."

Zoë moved quietly towards the door and raised herself to her tiptoes to see through the glass near the top of the door. When her gaze looked through the glass, she met young brown one's that sparkled mischievously.

"Seriously?!" She threw the door open to see Carden with a smirk. "What are you doing at my house? The more important question, how do you know where my house is?"

"I've got my ways," was all Carden responded with before walking inside the house like it were his own. "Nice place, by the way."

Zoë's jaw dropped. First off, how dare he just come to her house and walk in like he owns the place. And second off, this was her safe haven and she came here to escape him so it'd be amazing if he'd just walk out.

"How about no," Carden said as he picked up a juicy red apple and took a huge bite from it.

"Huh?"

"You said all of that," he waved a hand in a circle at her, "out loud so I'm not going to leave quite yet, sweetheart. We have some things to discuss about today and how absolutely terrible your performance was. I mean the whole slapping your boyfriend thing," he clicked his tongue, "that's a big no no."

"You slapped him?!" Mom exclaimed with surprise lacing her tone as Zoë said angrily, "Carden, what the heck are you doing in my house?"

He leaned against the back of their leather couch. "Didn't I just say, love? You need to really amp up the acting job. No wonder you're not in theater."

Her hands formed into fists and if this guy didn't get out of her house in the next ten seconds, she was gonna start swinging. "I'm not gonna play as your girlfriend. I thought it was just talk."

"Didn't I say you had to act earlier?" Carden shot back defensively. "You promised me and you're going to do it, got it? Now, listen up. I need you to wear something actually attractive tomorrow-"

"Great, now he's changing my entire style."

Mom snorted at her sarcastic comment.

"Shh! As I was saying, wear something good tomorrow. Preferably heels so you seem taller next to me cause you're short, no offense. I'm nearly 6'3 and you're 5'7. The height difference isn't gonna work." He started to pace around the living room. "Makeup is a yes cause the bags under your eyes are a no. Makes you look like a vampire."

"HEY!"

He smiled at her and his expression suddenly went all serious. "Have you ever considered a spray tan?"

"A what?!"

"A spray tan." He annunciated each syllable to her like she was a four year old. "It's wear you go to a tanning salon and-"

"I know what a spray tan is, idiot." She glared at him with one of her signature Death Glares as Andrew liked to call it. "And I'm not getting one."

Carden's nose scrunched in disgust. "Oh come on! You look like you haven't been out in the sun for years."

"Excuse me?! I lived in Florida so I'm really tan so drop it buddy before I throw you out my bedroom window into the thorn bushes below." She even held out her arms to prove her point. "No. Spray. Tans."

"Zo-"

She held out her pointer finger and wagged it. "No pet names."

His smirk widened. "Alright, Miss Dedicated."

Her teeth clenched in anger. Two could play at this game. "Shut up, Captain Flirt."

Carden raised an eyebrow and leaned against the counter. "Well then, I see she's got a temper. It's actually kinda attractive if I do say so myself."

Zoë crossed her arms. "You didn't get that hint when I slapped you across the face? Just saying but the hand shaped bruise forming looks actually pretty good on you. Distracts from the other features. Specially the eyes."

He fake gasped. "My eyes are the best part of my face! Girls always get lost in the shimmering beauty of them."

"More like lose their expensive Gucci boots in them. Your eyes look like mud, just so you know." She smirked as his snarky composure wilted just a bit. "Did I hurt your ego? Would you like me to kiss it better?"

"Sure, love." And just like that his ego was inflated again. "I'd like it on the lips please."

She shoved him hard as he leaned forward for a kiss. "Get out of my house."

"Make me."

Zoë groaned and grabbed him by the sleeve, dragging him towards the wooden front door. Either he was going along with her or he was super weak but soon, he was outside the door which she slammed in his face.

"Don't forget, Miss Dedicated!" Carden hollered. "I expect you to be a Broadway actor tomorrow!"

She slapped the door and a loud yelp burst out as the door moved forward just a bit and hit Carden. And thankfully, he ran away and was off her property.

"What?" Zoë groaned when she saw her mother's expression as she turned around.

"Did he call you 'sweetheart' and 'love'?" Mom asked with one of those fangirling smirks. Ones that said you aren't getting out of this conversation.

She shrugged. "So what if he did. It's just who he is."

"Then why are you blushing?" Zoë squeaked and hid behind her curtain of hair. "You look like a ripe tomato."

"No I don't!" But sure enough when she looked into the mirror, her entire face was lit up and practically glowing with embarrassment. "Okay, so what if my face is flushed? It doesn't mean I like him."

"Mhm." Mom's eye's sparkled. "I'm pretty sure you do!"

She faked a loud retching sound. "I don't like Carden. I hate his guts. Actually, I hate him so much I want to get a metal chair and beat him with it and then dance next to him while he's bleeding out."

"Mental note," Mom whispered loud enough for Zoë to hear, "Zo gets violent when she likes someone. Better warn her future husband."

Zoë stared at her mother. Maybe she could find a chair and use it on her...

"Now," she clapped her hands excitedly and smiled, "let's go decide on an outfit for tomorrow!"

Zoë scrunched her nose. "Are you seriously taking his advice? I'm not going to do something just because Captain Idiot-"

"Flirt."

She rolled her eyes. "Fine, Flirt says so."

Mom shrugged. "Eh. Besides, this gives me a reason to actually give you fashion advice for once in your entire life!" She rushed towards the stairs. "C'mon!"

"Another reason to hate Carden Ash. He caused an unnecessary makeover."