Reckless Allure

Chapter One: It's not that deep, boys. I've seen a penis before.

"Yo, Addy!"

I spin around to be engulfed in the arms of Leo, who ruffles my hair affectionately.

"Jesus, Leo," I laugh, elbowing him lightly in the side, "You scared the shit out of me."

"Hey, you can't blame me for that!" he says, leaving his arm draped around my shoulders. "You're in a world of your own today."

I roll my eyes, "not at all."

"Oh, come on, Adelaide," he flashes his cheeky grin at me, "You can tell me anything."

I cringe inwardly at the use of my full name, and he laughs harder at my expense.

"Just because you're my best friend, doesn't mean I have to tell you everything," I tease with a smirk.

"But you will," he says, "and I'm walking with you until you do."

"Fine by me," I shrug.

I peer into each room we pass, ignoring the longing stares of the other people in the hallway with my one mission in mind.

"Okay, Ads, I'm serious now," Leo stops suddenly after a few minutes, grasping my arm and dragging me into him. "What the hell is going on? You're looking around like a paranoid stoner," he gestures at the red-eyed group lounging around on the stairs with the signature twinkle in his eye. "Is that it, are you part of that group now? Have you finally decided you're better than us?"

"Yes," I wink, turning to walk away.

"Ad-"

Before he can say another word, I yank his arm and pull us into an empty supply closet. The automatic light flickers on to reveal chipping paint and cobwebby ceilings, and I realize that this must be the one room in Silvercrest Academy that isn't polished to pretentious perfection.

"I'm looking for Ace," I tell him.

"Big deal, you're looking for your boyfriend," he shrugs.

"Well..." I trail off, hoping he'll catch on.

The blank canvas of his features tells me otherwise. I exhale slowly, rolling my eyes up to the ceiling and biting my lip. After several moments, his eyes widen and his jaw drops.

"You decided to do it?!"

"Yes, but you can't tell anyone," I clasp his wrist. "Seriously, you can't say a word. I need to talk to him before the rumor mill gets going."

"Wow," he mutters.

His lack of a playful retort reminds me of what a huge thing I'm doing here. It's the right thing to do, though, both for myself and Alexander.

"I mean, are you sure? You've been with the guy for two years," Leo reminds me, breaking out into a grin, "I mean, you're half the reason the whole school calls him Ace. He aces everything, including the girlfriend department."

"You flatter me," I roll my eyes, and I can't help but smile. But, the smile quickly fades, "He was called Ace for a long time before he and I became a thing. Please, don't make me feel worse about this than I already do."

"Aw, I'm only kidding around, Ads. Seriously, I'm sorry. You'll let me know how it goes?" he squeezes my shoulder, and I let out a fragile exhale.

"I will," I nod, "I'll catch you in a bit"

We're about to leave the grimy supply closet, but Leo stops suddenly again, causing me to collide with his back.

"You know, the last time I was in here I was with my ex," he laughs, "And we definitely weren't talking about breaking up."