Hard Boy ✔️

62

- Bad Ones; Tate McRae -
- making the bed; Olivia Rodrigo -
- Devil Doesn't Bargain; Alec Benjamin -

Aurora Holland

The talk with Carter opened my mind a little bit more. I don't feel the butterflies, I don't shy away when I see him - not even when he's with Ashley like before. She still does everything she can in her power to bully and harass me, but that's only when Carter isn't around.

When Carter's around, she acts like she's a completely different person. She's kissy, touchy, nice, and I've even seen her smile at people she never acknowledged when I first moved here. She's flipped a switch, and although I want to have hope that she's slowly becoming a better person - I know she's not with the way she treats me when we're by ourselves.

Despite having slowly stopped feeling what I previously felt for Carter, it's a little bit disappointing to notice I'm not feeling anything for Logan still. I know it's wrong to continue seeing him despite knowing my feelings for him, but I can't help it.

He's quite literally the golden boy. The perfect person, the one that everyone else would want to see. He's who I should be falling for, wanting to spend every second with. And although I've been spending as much time as I can with him in hopes that my feelings will change, they don't.

That thought alone is depressing.

Responding to a text Paige sent, I sighed as I continued my stretches. My body was in lots of pain from the extra practice to catch up with what was going on in both cheerleading and dance, but with Alexa's help, I think I finally got everything down.

"You good?" Alexa asked, laying flat on her back. I watched as she stretched her back, the sound of popping echoing through the dance studio.

"Just a little overwhelmed I guess," I said.

"Nervous for tonight? You're matching with Logan, yeah?" She asked, turning to her side.

"Yeah. Raven and Beastboy." I told her, pressing the bottoms of my feet together to stretch my hips out a bit.

"That'll be cute," She said with a nod, "I'm basic. I'm being Silvermist from the Tinkerbell universe."

"That's cool," I said.

"I heard you and Paige made up or whatever," She said as she sat up, stretching an arm over her chest.

"I guess so," I mumbled. "It was more of Logan begging me to talk to her and then her begging me to forgive her. And I have no reason to be mad anymore, plus we're family, so."

"She did a lot to you though, yeah?" She asked.

"Yeah. But she's my cousin." I shrugged.

"Family doesn't matter. It's how they treat you, not whether they're blood or not." She advised, checking her phone. "It's already getting late, we should probably get heading."

"Sounds good," I said as I stood from my spot. I grabbed my belongings, following Alexa out of the dance studio and toward her car.

Her car was nice and still smelt new besides the fact that she said it was gifted to her last year. She's taken really good care of it, it's surprising how old it is.

But then again, when you take good care of things they last longer... Or whatever that quote is.

The drive home was silent, the two of us having talked a lot during dance practice. My body ached, and if I'm being honest I didn't really want to attend the bash. But at the same time, my family will be going to Paige's house, save for Jason who's going to a friend's house. The last thing I wanted was to spend Halloween night alone in my bedroom.