ESME'S POV
FRIDAY 22nd SEPTEMBER 2017
"I'm so excited to have a new sister, I always wondered what it'd be like to have someone to like braid my hair and stuff," Rose chattered in the car on the way to school. When she met me she seemed more than happy for me to be living with her, she helped me unpack the rest of my things and then stayed with me for a while to watch a movie. She was a really sweet girl.
"She's not our sister, Rose," Kyle rolled his eyes. He was in a bad mood.
"She kind of is now," Rose defended. I smiled at her as Kyle scowled.
"We're here so stop talking now," Kyle huffed and jumped out of the parked car, marching off to his group of friends. I shot Rose an amused look and she stifled a laugh before getting out of the car as well.
"I'll see ya later, Es!" Rose waved to me and walked over to her friends. After I shut the door the lock sounded and I looked over to see Kyle had locked it from where he was stood.
After scanning the crowd I saw my Jenna and Wren stood next to the fountain chattering about something. I walked over and gave both of them a greeting hug. "Did I see you get out of Kyle Pierce's car?" Jenna gushed and I nodded sheepishly, I hadn't told them I lived with him and didn't plan to.
"He asked if I needed a ride," I said nonchalantly but Wren watched me with a confused expression, probably wondering why I didn't come in with Spencer who was already stood with his group of friends.
"Ugh I'd ride him too," Jenna almost drooled and I gasped, slapping her arm.
"Not like that!" I shouted with a horrified expression which got some heads turning.
"To change the subject completely, what are we doing tonight for best friend night?" Wren asked, understanding that I was uncomfortable with the conversation we were having. He was a really good friend.
"Fuck I forgot to tell you," Jenna said with a guilty expression on her face. "I can't do tonight, I didn't hand this project in for Mr Jenkins and he's made me do it over the weekend. Can you believe that? He wants me to do a two week project over one weekend?"
"Maybe if you handed it in when everyone else did then you wouldn't have this issue?" I said, stating the obvious.
"Ha-ha," Jenna rolled her eyes. "Anyways yeah so I'm swamped with work, I can't come."
Wren shrugged. "Essie and I can do something, anything specific you fancy?" He asked me and I thought about it.
"I'd love to go to that ice cream place we always used to go," I gushed remembering the delicious sundaes we would get. We went there pretty much every weekend when we were little but as we grew up we stopped going and we didn't really know why.
Wren smiled. "This is starting to sound like a date Miss Fields," he teased and I rolled my eyes but felt my cheeks heating up. "Well I am officially taking Esme on her first date, how exciting for you," he continued and that time I hid my face in my hands.
"Stop!" I whined and they both laughed at me. "I've got to get to Law, I'll see you both in English," I said and quickly rushed away to my first period.
I walked into Law and immediately saw Penny at the back of the class with her tongue down Kyle's throat, I forced myself to look away and I sat down at the front like I usually did. It was only a few moments before they stopped kissing and I was so thankful because the sloppy noises were making me gag.
"Hi weirdo," Penny yelled across the classroom but I completely ignored her. She did not like that. "Hel-lo?" She mocked, moving closer to my table to try and get a rise out of me.
"What, Penny?" I sighed and looked up at her.
"It speaks!" She declared and a few people in the room snickered. "I love your outfit today, did mommy pick it out?" She was being so obviously childish and I couldn't be bothered to listen so I just faced away from her.
"Penny come and sit down, stop being a bitch," Kyle said to his friend and I didn't bother to look back at him. She just rolled her eyes, realising she wasn't going to get anything out of me before she headed back to her chair.
The lesson thankfully went by pretty quickly and before I knew it the bell was ringing and I was packing my books away. "Off to English?" Kyle asked me as I stood up and threw my bag over my shoulder.
"Yes but shouldn't you walk with Miss Queen Bee? She might implode if you're any further than thirty centimetres from her," I snapped at him and he looked taken aback. "You see how she treats me Kyle and yet you still mess around with her, that's not what friends do."
"Jealous?" He snapped and I rolled my eyes.
"Hardly, you just claim to be this friend of mine and then you go ahead and sleep with the girl who's made my life a living hell," I shrugged. "Doesn't seem like something a friend would do, I definitely know Wren hasn't done that."
Without hearing his response I walked out of the room and weaved between people to get to English, I was right outside of the room when Kyle finally caught up to me. "Angel, stop! Hey stop," he approached me once I had gotten to my table with Wren and Jenna sat there. "I'm sorry, okay? I didn't think of it like that."
"You just don't think at all, Kyle," I replied shortly. "Just leave me alone, she's waiting for you," I nodded to Penny who was sat waiting at the back of the room for him. She always seemed to be around when we spoke.
"Fine, I will go and sit with her then. See you round, Esme," he spat and it stung to hear him use my real name when I was used to my angelic nickname so much.
I sat down and pulled my books out. "What was that about?" Wren asked.
"Don't want to talk about it," I said back quickly and they said nothing further about it.
. . .
Lunch rolled around soon after and I was sat with Wren and Jenna. "I really don't think you should be friends with Kyle Pierce," Wren said as he started to munch on his chips.
"I'm not really friends with him," I said with a shrug. Kyle always claimed that we were friends but then his actions said very different things.
"Good," Wren added.
"Why do you care who she's friends with, Wren?" Jenna suddenly said and we both looked up at her in shock. "She can be friends with whoever she wants to be, you're not her dad and you don't get to tell her who she can talk to."
"Huh? Esme's my best friend and she has a lot of issues. I don't want people using her," he spoke back to Jenna with a stern glare.
"Issues?" I asked, rather offended.
"Yeah but she can choose who she hangs out with right?" Jenna ignored me.
"Yes Jenna she can," he sighed and decided not to argue with her.
"Issues?" I repeated louder.
"It doesn't even matter because she said they're not friends so let's just drop it," Wren continued and then the table fell eerily silent.
"So where are we going later?" I decided to try and change the subject but it was too late, Wren stood up and slammed his chair back into the table.
"I'm going to study in the library, I'll text you later Es," he said with a clenched jaw and then picked up his back, darting from the lunch hall.
"What the hell was that about?" I asked in shock.
"It's so obvious, Es. He likes you," Jenna explained as if it was the most obvious thing.
"Yeah, he does like me. As a friend. We're nothing more than that," I said back.
"Think about it Es, he doesn't like that you're friends with his hot, mysterious guy who calls you Angel and drives you around," she shrugged. "He's jealous because this guy is perfect and he wants you to like him instead."
"But-"
"Just tell him, Es. Tell Wren you just think of him as a friend or you'll end up just fucking with his emotions," she told me and I nodded. I couldn't hurt Wren like that.