Everything According to Juliana

Prologue

Imagine yourself standing in an enclosed cage with large black bears staring at you as if you were the last piece of meat on Earth.

That sounds like a horrible nightmare, doesn't it?

Well, for fifteen year old Juliana Hartley, she would much rather be in an enclosed cage with large black bears than to be standing in front of her best friend, Alivia Smith, listening to her talk yet again about Parker Hughes.

There was something about Parker that made every girl in the entire school swoon. He had long, shaggy brown hair with deep, mesmerizing green eyes, an outgoing, confident yet not cocky personality, and impressive football skills. He made every girl's heart melt - including Juliana's.

She thought he was perfect... from head to toe flawless. He was the definition of that perfect guy in a cliché romance book or movie.

He was one out of five members of "The Wolf Pack" - a group that consisted of five junior jocks that lurked the school hallways and intimidated every underclassman in sight. The names of the members, not including Parker, were:

Jordan Evans - running back of the football team, already with a college scholarship under his belt.

Max Caldwell - wide receiver who fearlessly rose his motorcycle to school and wore too much leather.

Toby Crawford - cornerback who had a cuter smile than his personality and was awfully close friends with Queen Bee Brittany Rivera.

Jake Flemming - star quarterback who wore thick black glasses and had the best personality in the friend group.

Juliana Hartley's story began on what possibly may have been the worst day of her life, yet she had no idea there would be worse days shortly ahead of her.

"Hey!" Alivia greeted Juliana at her locker like she had been doing since the first day of school earlier that week. She had a huge smile on her face, all to make Juliana question why she was so happy on that stormy Monday morning.

"Hey," she smiled back, taking her heavy math book out of her book bag before placing it in her locker. She furrowed her eyebrows, sharing a glance with her. "And why are you in such a good mood?"

"You didn't hear?" She practically jumped, the smile on her face growing wider. "Parker Hughes and Brittany Rivera broke up this weekend!"

Juliana's jaw dropped in surprise, not believing the news she was just told. Brittany and Parker were in the relationship all the girls dreamed of someday being in. Juliana questioned why they ever thought to break up, considering they were one of the cutest and seemingly happiest couple at West Coral High School.

After a long pause of Juliana trying to process the news, she finally spoke. "Why did they break up? You need to tell me everything, Alivia!"

Alivia Smith always knew the gossip. She knew everything about everyone and was always getting the scoop on the latest drama. If Juliana ever wanted to find something out about someone, Alivia was her go-to girl.

"Okay, so this weekend at Toby Crawford's party, which I wasn't there, of course, because I'm not a junior and I'm not popular—"

"Beside the point, continue..."

"Right, right. Brittany Rivera was having sex with Jordan Evans, who in my opinion is so hot! Brittany told him that she broke up with Parker when she didn't! That's why he agreed to have sex with her. Parker flipped out after he literally saw Jordan inside of his girlfriend. He broke up with her at the scene. She was so mad that she chucked a glass bottle at his beautiful face, which he thankfully ducked. Poor Parker."

"Oh my god," Juliana choked out, hardly being able to speak. She wondered if the story was fabricated for drama or if that actually happened.

On the outside, she may have looked super surprised, but on the inside, she was jumping up and down with so much excitement. The Parker Hughes was single! To her, that sounded way too good to be true and had to be the best day of her entire life.

"So," Alivia smiled, fixing the bag on her left shoulder. "Now that I've informed you of all the necessary information needed, I want you to help me with a top secret plan."

Juliana giggled. "And what may that be?"

"I want you to help me get with Parker,"

Juliana's smile instantly dropped from her face. She felt her heart sink to the bottom of her stomach as she blinked at least a billion times, trying to prove that she was dreaming.

But it was clear this wasn't a dream. In fact, it was very very far off from being a dream. She was living a nightmare.

Juliana had no idea that Alivia was even crushing on Parker, yet at the same time, Alivia didn't know Juliana liked Parker as well.

As much as Juliana loved Alivia, as stated before, she was a gossiper. She tried not to say too much about herself in fear that others would find out. Telling your best friend everything didn't apply to having a best friend like Alivia, as she wanted to keep herself safe from any embellished rumors.

"Juliana, did you hear what I said?" Her best friend questioned, snapping her fingers in front of her face to try and get her attention. "I said I want you to help me get with Parker! You know I can't talk to him by myself. I can't even talk to unibrow Leo in our English class! You, on the other hand... I don't know! You're so outgoing and pretty, if you just help me... maybe, maybe, I'll at least have a shot?"

Juliana quickly nodded her head, not wanting her to think there was something wrong. "Yeah, okay. I'll help you."

She let out a squeal before throwing her arms around Juliana, pulling her into a tight, happy embrace. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! You're seriously the best best friend anyone could ever ask for." She was quick to end the hug. "Alright, we have to act fast though! Do you know how many girls are going to be all over him? I'll never stand a chance if we don't figure something out soon."

"Right," Juliana nodded, agreeing with her. She knew she was acting off and she hoped Alivia didn't notice.

"Okay, I have to get to class. I think I have a pop quiz today. I'll see you at lunch, Jul!"

Let's get this straight. Juliana's best friend, Alivia Smith, not only liked Parker Hughes, but wanted her to help them get together?

There was only one small little problem with that plan.

Juliana was in love with Parker Hughes.