Settle Down // Irwin

5

"So you definitely aren't coming tonight?" Jade asks, just clarifying.

"Luke would skin me." Michael laughs a bit too loudly, causing others in the class to stare and Jade's face goes a bit red.

So now that Jade knows that Michael woman's coming after school she won't be expecting Ashton then. He may have shown some commitment last night but she knows Ashton Irwin and his little group of jocks. He is more concerned about his reputation with his friends than his actual education. As long as he can play football and be popular nothing will really bother him.

"Fine but I can't explain-" Jade begins to tell Michael but he interrupts her by mumbling 'shit' whilst looking at the door.

Jade turns herself so she can say what exactly at the door has negatively effected Michael's mood.

A girl with long blonde hair and pale skin is standing at the door. She is probably just a bit shorter than Jade and is extremely pretty and looking at her, Jade notices she looks a little bit like a china doll. One of the really sweet ones who look so naturally pretty and cute. Even though she does seem to be pushing her chest out a little bit. Jade has never seen her before and she comes from a small town where everyone knows everyone. She must be new, but Michael seems to know her.

Jade sees the new girl's eyes lock with Michael. She smirks at him and Jade turns to see Michael reaction. He doesn't have one. He is all of a sudden very interested in his work.

It isn't long before the new blonde girl is sitting in one of the two vacant chairs at Michael and Jade's table. She smiles at Jade. It's nice and friendly, not normally what Jade expects from a girl who looks like her.

"What are you doing here?" Michael hisses at her, when she begins to get out her book and notepad.

"I'm in this class." The new girl tells him. She talks to him with such a friendly and almost natural way. It's like they've known each other for years.

"How?" Michael seems totally surprised by her answer. It seems a bit silly. Why else would she be here?

"Because I'm actually good at math." Her eyes glance down at Michael work. Most of it had been scored out or proven wrong by Jade. "Unlike you." She scoffs at Michael's work before looking over to Jade.

Michael just sits back in his chair, huffing out. He is obviously displeased about loosing the new girl, who he seems to know's, attention.

"I'm Charlie." She smiles to Jade who smirks back.

"I'm Jade." Her voice is quieter than Charlie's was in her introduction.

Charlie seemed nice but she didn't want to attract to much attention to herself because Jade didn't know her that well. But Charlie obviously wanted to know Jade. She asked Jade about her classes and was impressed by how smart she is. Charlie then went on to ask if Jade was in any school clubs but Jade said she wasn't and learned that Charlie is a cheerleader and was captain at her last school so was looking forward to joining this squad and how only a few days settled in the town our school captain came looking for her.

Charlie being a cheerleader meant that pretty soon she would forget Jade ever existed. But that was okay. Jade really didn't mind as that's what she would prefer.

~~~

Jade had to grab a few things from we locker and swap a few books about before going to meet Calum in the library for lunch.

Michael didn't say a word after Charlie sat down with him and Jade. He just say and sulked, not even attempting any work. There was something going on between the two of them but it was none of Jade's business so she tried not to notice. But it was hard not to see Michael's obvious glares at Charlie.

Jade stepped away from her locker and closed it. She turned away and stepped away from her locker only to bash into something.

"Sorry." Jade mumbles not really looking up to who she stepped into.

"It's fine." Jade recognized who it is immediately.

She looks up to see Ashton standing there. His blonde hair is straight, like always, and his bag is slung over both shoulders. It's something Jade noticed yesterday when he walked away from her to his car. It isn't really that big a deal but she just noticed how Luke, Michael and the other jocks wear their bags over the one shoulder.

But something else stands out about Ashton today to Jade. He has a huge purple and blue mark on his cheek. It's almost a perfect circle and if it was a centimetre up it would be a black eye.

"Oh." Jade says with out meaning to. She didn't really want to be awkward and words around him like last time but the bruise on Ashton's cheek is making it hard not to. She automatically wants to ask him about it.

"You okay?" He asks her.

Are you? She wants to ask him but refrains as it would probably just get even more awkward and more weird. So Jade just nods instead.

"Okay, good." Ashton says. Jade thinks this means the conversation is over but when Ashton doesn't seem to move she guesses not.

"I guess I'll see you after school, then." Jade says but then mentally slaps herself, remembering that Ashton probably won't be there because of football and Luke.

"Yeah, definitely." He smiles at her and Jade's mouth parts slightly with surprise that Ashton is in fact going to another tutoring session.

"Oh good. Did you have a look at the-" Jade begins but Ashton stops her by quickly saying.

"Can we talk later." Ashton is looking past Jade and at something behind her.

"Oh... sure." Jade tucks some hair behind her ear, she feels stupid and bad about her and Ashton's conversation now.

"Okay, bye." Ashton says and before Jade can say goodbye back he is gone.

Jade turns to watch what made him leave so quickly and understands. Luke and Michael are walking down the hall towards the cafeteria and maybe if Ashton hadn't left so early they might have spotted Jade and Ashton together.

It makes sense why Ashton doesn't want Michael or Luke to see him with Jade. It probably wouldn't be great for Ashton to be seen talking to the best friend of te guy the three of them are quite happy to beat up. She wonders what Calum might think of her tutoring Ashton and also talking to him quite normally. So maybe, for that reason, she shouldn't tell Calum about Ashton.

Jade finds it so hard to lie to Calum though. She will crack eventually. It's only tutoring. It's not like she is going to become his friend or anything. She's only trying to help him pass math and that's it.