Burning Willow

I

-Edited-

A year ago :

I was never the sort of girl that was always happy and carefree. True to that old tumblr post, I was 'born annoyed'

And today was no exception.

I sat in the car, twiddling with my keys. "Shut up, shut up, shut up!" I hissed at the car radio.

"Calm down, are you PMSing again?" Maya asked.

Her long blonde hair seemed to glimmer in the sun, which only made me more upset.

"No."

Maya pursed her lips. "Then that must mean you had a fight with your mom this morning."

I shot her a glare. "First I can't find my hoodie. Then she tells me I can't wear it cuz it's like, a hundred degrees out. I mean, since when can she decide what I wear or not, she's not--"

"She's your mother." Maya sighed, veering off towards the school parking lot. "And it was just an argument. Take my advice and forget about it."

I flattened down a dress I found at the back of my closet this morning - God forbid the daughter of Estella Brien wear anything old - and got out of the car once Maya had parked. She, as always, had the elegant grace of a dancer.

"Ready?" She asked me.

I snorted. "No. But I'll try to get through the day. For you."

"Seriously, Kylie?" She laughed. "Didn't you do multiple photo shoots last month? And you're scared of school?"

"Don't remind me." I whined. "And it was two, not multiple. My mom emotionally black-mailed me."

I wasn't one of those people who secretly admired fame - I didnt. Clothes didn't appeal to me as much as they did to my mother. I mean, sure, there was the weekend dressing up and all the makeup, but for school?

The first bell rang.
Maya passed me a small smile and ruffled my hair. "Hope we have most of our classes together. I only got through Biology last year because of you."

I prended to flip my hair back. "Your welcome."

She chuckled. "Unfortunately, my locker number is the same as last year. Which means I better go. Catch you at lunch? Perhaps sooner?"

"You bet'cha."

"Oh and Kyles? Try not to bite anyone's head off today."

She was gone before I could pass on any negative comment.

Hoisting my book-bag on my shoulder, I made my way to the office to get my schedule.

A few students were already there, some familiar, others new.

I waved at Franny and Julia, just as they were leaving.

Walking up to Miss Reeve, I gave her my name and she smiled at me.

"How're your parents, Ms. Brien?"

"They're good, thanks." I replied.

My step-father Zachary Brien, was owners of multiple industries. To the city, he was a kind person, one who always donated large sums of money towards charity and was lucky enough to marry my mother.

My mother, well, she was a fashion designer. She could whip up a dress from a few stray feathers you picked off the street and present it at Paris Fashion Week.

Which is exactly what she did last year. Only the feathers were hand-crafted, and she did receive a bunch of reporters interviewing her for several magazines.

To me, well, she was just my mom. A person with no more patience than wrinkles on her face. None.

I checked my schedule, discovering that I had Maths after homeroom.

Hold on, Kylie. Just a year and you'll be out of here.

In my pocket, my phone buzzed. I took it out, my eyes lighting up at the text.

Sorry I missed you this morning. I was planning on this great big-brother-first-day-of-school speech, but eh, good luck! And remember to avoid the cafeteria food.

My brother Matt was adorable and a jerk at the same time. Adorable for caring, a jerk for leaving me in the first place. But I guess I couldn't blame him - he loved his fiancé. Enough to leave the city and lil' old me behind.

In fact, he wasn't even my real brother. He came into our lives when I was six, when my mother married Zachary.

I smiled as I walked down the hall, quickly typing in a quick response.

True. And for leaving, you totally owe me an entire McDonald's meal, the one from

But I never got to finish. All of a sudden, I collided hard into somebody, something hot pouring down my body and everything falling.

My mouth hung open in surprise.

"What the hell?" I screamed, looking up.

I had collided into a person - a guy that was taller than me with piercing eyes.

Holy shit.

"Sorry." He murmured in a deep voice. Dazed, I stared back at him.

Snap out of it.

My eyes fell on the discarded coffee cup before I realised why my hair and my clothes suddenly felt so wet. People were beginning to crowd around us.

"You dropped your stupid coffee on me!"

The guy took a step back and crossed his arms. He was tall, at least half a foot taller than me. Chains hung onto his jeans, dark glasses perched on his head.

"Watch where you're going next time, then." He hissed before walking away.

Okay, what the hell just happened?

×××

Hey guys! I'm currently editing this book, so some things might not make sense. Like, for example, in the unedited version, there was never coffee being thrown on her, and she never hated him the first time.
I'm just trying to make it realistic. I wrote this book like four years ago, and it's badly, badly written.
So I've decided to do some justice to it.
Anyways, happy reading :)