Chapter 1

I had many names on my sleeves, the number one being my real name; Aria Ashford Morley.

I personally volunteer myself for an award given to having the oddest name ever.

The second name I had was Weirdo.

Classic if I do say so myself.

Third, the Socially Inept Girl of this school.

Granted, I did myself no favours by constantly tripping over air and bumping into people which would ultimately result in them pushing me away from them and then bumping into someone else.

It was a never-ending cycle.

Until I would bump into a locker.

The lockers would never push me away but they did hurt my arm.

Which really sucked.

Today was no different.

Well it was because the sixtieth person I bumped into (okay maybe it was the fifth person) was Cole Brighton.

When I was walking to my third period, I spotted him in the rowdy crowd a few long strides down the corridor.

It wasn't hard to catch sight of Cole; he was tall, well built and had amazing wavy brown hair.

His friends were surrounding him, laughing and messing around, all of them consumed in each other.

I smiled warmly when Cole threw his head back and laughed at something his friend Kent said.

I was far too gone watching Cole that I didn't realise I had slammed into someone.

This boy looked at me for a split second before he shoved me away.

I scrunched my eyes at him, walking on but stupidly bumping into someone else.

"Watch where you're going Weirdo!" And then that cycle started until I bumped into Cole.

Cole caught me by the upper arm, catching me steadily.

I sighed at his profile, his mouth slightly ajar, his warm chocolate eyes looking down at my blue pair.

"You okay?" he whispered, his eyes searching my face.

I swallowed down and nodded up at him, finding it extremely hard to string two words together.

"I'm okay," I finally managed to whisper back.

His lips twitched, the ends of his eyes crunching.

I knew he was fighting a grin and then I boggled my eyes up at him, silently asking him what was funny.

"You are wearing my shirt," he said for explanation, his eyes lowering down to my front.

I glanced down as well and quickly looked back up at him.

"Shit." I mouthed, pulling myself away from him and crossing my arms around my torso in hopes of hiding his shirt.

It was the The Drifters one and it was out worn but it was still my favourite.

Cole smiled His Smile at me before lowering -again!

- his head closer to my ear.

"See you tonight Aria."

His lips brushed my ear faintly and I involuntary shivered.

But then he was pulled away by his coterie and then he was gone.

I watched his retreating form, my heart softening for the boyI loved.

I waited until my parents bedroom door was slammed shut, heard them murmuring on their beds and then waited until they both fell asleep.

I went back to my writing, my fingers holding the pen delicately as I scribbled odd notes in my grey book.

Everyone had something they became attached to and fortunately for me it was this grey book.

It was the Twitter to my Instagram essentially.

See, I knew all that jazz my fellow peers got up to.

But it was still hard to grasp the context of both those social media trends.

Thump.

That was the sound of my mother getting up after getting comfortable in bed for the past few minutes, for a toilet visit.

I heard her open her door and walk quietly to the bathroom.

It would usually take a few minutes for her to come out and by then I was packed up and ready to leave.

When my parents' bedroom door slammed shut again I knew none of them would come out until the following morning.

I threw my covers off my lower body, placed my pillows carefully on the bed at odd angles and threw the covers over it messily.

I stepped back and admired my handy work before I turned off my lights and walked to the window.

The distance between my window and his window wasn't much.

I had to just climb over the tree bark, hold onto my equilibrium and jump.

Usually I would deliver this manoeuvre gracefully.

Yet today was different and I stumbled slightly on my landing.

"Crap." I cursed, looking over my shoulder to see if anyone roaming the streets spotted me.

No one did.

I turned back around to the window and lifted my hand to knock on softly but it opened almost instantly.

Cole was frowning at me.

"That was really loud." He told me.

I shrugged at him sheepishly and pushed him aside to get in. "I was really stupid today!

I wore your shirt and I didn't even realise!" I exclaimed, throwing my hands up in frustration.

Cole stepped closer to me and put both his hands over my cheeks.

"No one realised it Aria." He assured me in a soft voice.

I sighed out, leaning into his touch slightly.

My eyes flew down to his front and I noted he was bare foot and bare chest.

That wasn't uncommon.

Cole pulled my face up so I was looking right into his eyes.

He lowered his head until his lips grazed mine softly.

An innocent kiss that meant nothing on his part.

"I missed you." That wasn't uncommon either yet I couldn't put a leash on the butterflies that flew in my stomach.

Little did he know I lived for his soft kisses.

This day could've gone worse' I had told myself, when I walked away from Cole.

And when you tell yourself that, you don't think, theoretically speaking, the day would get worse.

You'd expect the day to go by just like it already has as you collected your fair dose of humiliation by the minute.

But no, my day got worse even after Cole left me.

It got way worse than I anticipated.

It started when Cole managed to get alone time with me since all his friends were in class and he decided to go for a toilet break.

Little did I know he timed it so he could bump into me.

With Jaxon Vale,Coulda, blaring in my ears, and whilst walking towards the library, a hand had snacked around my waist, clutched on and pulled me straight into an empty computer room.

The door slammed shut behind me just as I was turned around and came face to face with Cole.

I grinned at him instantly, his whole self lightening up my face.

I pulled out my headphones and put a pause on my music.

"Hey." I gushed out.

Cole smiled at me softly, his soft chocolate eyes warming instantly.

"Got to tell you something."

I raised my eyebrows at him, catching my lower lip with my teeth.

Cole took a step back and planted himself on the desk behind him, intertwining his fingers together.

"I'm going out with my friends tonight."

I nodded my head slowly, itching him to go on.

So what if he was going out with his friends?

He eyed me carefully when he spoke the next words.

"I'll be home late..."

Ah.

Right.

"I'll just-"

Cole cut me short quickly.

"I'll text you when I get home and if you're still awake we can maybe?"

I felt like he was cutting short our year-long arrangement.

I smiled at him, even though my insides clenched.

"It's cool.

I'll probably be asleep by then." I said dismissingly, even throwing in a wave of my hand.

I wasn't planning on sleeping at all.

Cole pushed himself away from the table and started coming closer.

I backed away until I was pressed against the wall.

Cole smirked, running his fingertip down the length of my jaw.

It left a fire trail that reached me right to the end of my toes.

"See you tonight," he whispered, his voice filled with empty promises.

And then he was gone.

Last night

"Which side?" Cole asked with a glint in his eye.

I stared at him, pursing my lips.

"Left." I said carefully, putting my shoes off and tucking it under his bed.

Cole threw off his shirt, his perfect sculpted chest slapping me right in the face.

I turned my head around, fighting the furious blush that overpowered my face.

Instead, I focused solemnly on the poster on his wall.

It was of a black outline of a motorbike, his name scribbled on the bottom dutifully.

I always admired his secret drawing skills.

Besides the poster hung a long line of medals he won along his time in school.

He really was a talented person.

"Which type?"

I turned my head around to face him and saw he was tucked under his covers, on the right side.

I put off my socks and joined him slowly.

As soon as I slipped under, his hand snaked around my waist and he spooned me against his chest, his legs pressed tightly against the back of mine.

I tucked in my head under his chin, slowly interlacing our fingers.

"Please say type A," Cole muttered underneath his breath, his words grazing my ear.

I knew he was teasing.

Type A only happened once and that was on my birthday.

Never again would I let that happen because I came out the other end a total wreck.

I wasn't sure if Cole knew that but Type A was never going to happen.

"Type B." I whispered.

I felt him sigh but he clutched me tighter instead.

It was silent for a few seconds, both of us lost in our own thoughts.