Jealousy Best Served Devious (Clash Of Cliches Book 1)

Chapter 1- Fools in Love

Chapter One

Fools in Love

According to my horoscope, which I read every morning before I get out of bed on my laptop, it was supposed to be a good day. In fact, it was supposed to be a perfect day, leading me to believe (falsely) that something useful would happen. Maybe I would win a million dollars, or a trip to Hawaii, or it would be the day Ryder finally confesses his love for me. You know. Something nice.

Somebody up there didn't get the memo. Below is my horoscope, faithfully copied word for word.

Horoscope for Leo, 17th April

It is a terrific day for you. You will feel secure, safe and centered, which allows you to achieve anything you want in your life. Wonderful things are in store for you today, Leo! It is the perfect day to love and laugh.

Great, right? Obviously, the astrologer who predicted that was having an off day because there was nothing that went right for me at all!

I got out of the wrong side of the bed (literally. As in I actually got out of the wrong side of my bed and smacked my head against the wall). The waffle machine- the cornerstone of my existence, the reason I function at all in the mornings- was broken. You see, yesterday my little sister Arielle, who will never make it as a chef (hell, she couldn't even make it in preschool and got suspended for constantly talking to her 'invisible' friend, Bob) saw fit to make mud pies in it. Yes, you read correctly, mud pies. In my precious waffle maker. Boggles the mind, no? If it had been an abnormal day (in other words, if I had woken up on time) I would have stopped at IHOP to fill up on some Belgian Waffles rather than go to school in a bad mood that was sure to last all day. But I was running late (thank you possessed alarm clock) so I had to make do with a piece of dry toast and an apple juice box stolen from the fridge while Arielle wasn't looking because even though she's only four, she gets surprisingly anal about these things.

Still, I had a couple of things to be thankful for, such as Dad giving me a ride to school, the zit on my chin clearing up and a Science homework assignment to work on with Ryder.

Mmmm, Ryder.

I wish I could tell you that thinking of him made me block out Dad's road rage, but I would be lying. Nothing can block out Dad's chronic road rage. He cussed, ranted and raved all the way to my school and he flipped off the cheerleading coach when she cut him off. With a role model like that, I'm glad I didn't turn out messed up.

Seeing Ryder, my cosmic soul mate, with his arms around another girl's shoulder as I walked into the school entrance did nothing to alleviate my bad mood. No! How can this be? I froze, feeling my mouth drop open but powerless to stop it, staring as he ran his hands through mystery girl's blonde hair and whispered in her ear.

Who the hell is this hussy, rubbing up on my man?

Taking a deep breath, I shook myself from head to toe and told myself to relax.

You're gonna have him all to yourself later on, I consoled myself, and headed to class, aided on my way by a bunch of football players who pushed me out of their path.

But alas, it was not to be.

Directly after lunch, he came up to me as I was waiting for Shelly and Janessa by the canteen entrance, running a hand over his glossy hair and smiling at me. My heart actually stopped and for a second, I thought I was dead. That dreamy smile...

It took me a second to realize he was talking.

"Hey, Makayla."

Even the way he said my name was dreamy.