Author's Note: So I posted this a little over a year ago, and I just found it again. I had deleted it because I felt like there was a lack of interest - both on my part and with you readers. However, I love this storyline. So, I think I'm going to start it up again. :)
His heart is racing, as it always is when this time comes. He tunes out the cheering of the crowd until it's just a dull hum in his ears. Leaning forward, he adjusts his goggles perfectly and envisions winning in his head. His fingers are placed gently on the end of the board, his pulse beating in a quick pattern.
Bang! The gun sounds and he pushes himself into the clear blue pool, splitting the water as he dives.
Ice Queen? Sure. Bitch? Why not. But, victim? No way in hell.
She used to be nice. She used to have friends. Now, her heart was guarded with ice. She didn't care if others hated her because of her rage. That's why she didn't tell anybody. She would take all the trash talk, all the whispers and rumors, as long as she didn't have anybody's pity. Acting out was her way of rising above, because she couldn't just be another victim. She wouldn't be.
The ball seems to quiver under his fingertips. He hasn't played since freshman year, when they played together, before everything changed. The orange ball seems to be taunting him to relive his memories.
It's not like he could've controlled what happened. He hadn't made the swim team, so his best friend stopped spending time with him to hang out with his 'cooler' friends. Sometimes when they pass each other in the hall, he swears that his childhood best friend is going to say something, but the words never come. In a beat, the ball is thrown against the backboard, missing the hoop, and then, bouncing slowly down the gym floor.
Was it because she was new? Was it because she didn't fit in? Did she do something wrong? The questions flood her mind every morning when she wakes from the recurring nightmare. Had she egged him on? Was her skirt too short, her shirt too tight? Would she ever find out why?
Could she tell someone? Were there others? No, there couldn't be. She embedded it into her mind that she was sentenced to suffering alone. And she hates every minute of it.
He's still shocked at his level of popularity. Despite the fact that his sister is hated, people still love him. Not as much as they adore his best friend, but close enough. The ladies love him, the teachers are lenient on his grades, even his parents don't mind when he breaks curfew.
But, the night his sister came home in tears still bothers him from time to time. He loves his life, but he tells himself he would trade it all for the truth. But, if the truth arrived, would he really take it?
She knows the whole story about her boyfriend's ex-best friend. He dropped him like that. And she was left to pick up the pieces.
Then why is it that if his ex-best friend hates him so much, he's always staring at her? His coy smiles when her boyfriend isn't looking, the small winks, the piercing eyes. What does he want with her?
He suspects something, but doesn't say a word. He's on the sidelines, supposed to be the cool guy, best friends with the other two most popular boys in school. He's supposed to be laidback, carefree, completely rid of drama.
But, something doesn't sit right with him. Where does his friend disappear to at all those parties? What's he doing? Does he even want to know?
She's tiny, quiet, sweet. She wants to make everybody happy, always putting other's needs before her own. But, this is what got her into trouble in the first place. It was so close, too close. How had she been able to escape his grip, his words that were meant to lure her right in?
However, she doesn't think she's the first.
Author's Note: There are eight main characters for this, as you can tell. Can you guys guess who's who? Any guesses as to what the big secret is, or what the plot will be about? What do you think? Let me know, chickadees!