"I cannot believe you broke up with him." My best friend Lacey scoffs and leans against her locker.

"Believe it, because I did." I say.

Lacey and I were standing in the hallway awaiting the bell to ring signalling us to get to our next class. The conversation of my most recent break up got brought up when my ex boyfriend appeared in the hall with his friends. Johnny Sanders was his name and popularity was his game. He was the type of guy you either loved, hated or worshiped. Guys wanted to be him or despised him, there was no in between. Girls wanted to date him, that was it, every girl in the school drooled over him. I mean I couldn't talk, five months ago I was in their position.

My and Johnny's relationship started out with some flirting and random conversations. Anything he said to you sounded like he meant it. He knew exactly what to say to have you eating out of the palm of his hand. I'm sure if he ever went into a bank, he could talk everyone in there into giving him all of the money. The cops would not be called. That's how smooth Johnny can be. We started out somewhere between friends and dating. Whatever it was, it caught the attention of our peers, who quickly became invested in the two of us. Like every other school, there was an "it couple" and everyone was determined and convinced that it was Johnny and I. A cheerleader and a football player, how cliche.

When we got pushed into dating -well I got pushed- Johnny was more than happy to claim me as his girlfriend. He was the type of guy to do everything and anything it took to stay the golden boy of the school. Dating that type of guy meant your entire relationship was in the public eye of the school. It actually felt like we were two celebrities, it was ridiculous. Kids who I didn't even know came up to me and wanted to be my friend, girls gave me the stink eye. I suddenly became an object for guys to leer at. Funny how everything changed once I started dating Johnny. I was popular before we started dating but after was a whole other level of popularity.

Now that I had ended our relationship, I was known as the girl who dumped the hottest guy in school. Two weeks ago I made the decision to end things with Johnny. He along with the entire school didn't take it well. They were shocked to say the least. If anything, they thought Johnny would have been the one to dump me not the other way around. Everyone wanted an explanation as to why I did it, but honestly, I wasn't even sure why. I had a few theories but nothing concrete. I just know that I didn't want to be "Johnny's girl" anymore. I just wanted to me.

I just wanted to be Taylor Croft.

"Johnny Sanders isn't a guy you just break up with." Lacey speaks after a few minutes.

"I am fully aware." I nod. "I didn't want to be with him any longer, so I ended it." I shrug a shoulder.

"Everyone and their mother wants to be with Johnny, Tay." Lacey rolls her green eyes. "Can't you get back together with him?" Lacey asks.

My head snaps towards her, "No I will not get back together with him." I say harshly.

"Fine. But if the whole school forms an angry mob and comes after you, I won't be able to protect you." Lacey warns.

"Oh well." I shrug it off.

The bell we have be waiting patently for makes its shrill sound throughout the halls, telling us that it is time to head to class.

"C'mon, we gotta get to History class." Lacey says and drags me along with her in the direction of the classroom.

Mr.Walls, our history teacher, speaks in monotone. He was currently talking about the assassination of Lincoln and has already lost a few students to the Sandman. I was quickly about to join them. His voice could put you to sleep faster than Ed Sheeran singing a lullaby. I would seriously give my kidney up to have Ed Sheeran come into my room and sing me to sleep, how awesome would that be?

Trying to keep myself awake, I glanced around the room seeing most of my classmates in dreamland. Funny how our parents pay thousands of dollars a year to send us to this school when all we are doing is sleeping. The one thing that prep schools and public schools have in common is that the teachers are super boring. Mr.Walls kept talking away as he walked around the room. Did he not care that half of us were snoozing? Actually, he was probably use to the fact that students slept in his class.

An hour later that damn bell rang again, only this time it signaled the end of a class. I joined my classmates and gathered my stuff to get the hell out of that boring room.
"Man, every time I'm in that class I always fall asleep. When I don't get enough sleep the night before I can always count on Mr.Walls to put me to sleep." Lacey yawns.

I chuckle at her, "I know. I practically saw the drool drip down your chin."

Lacey's eyes widen when she gasp and she quickly raises a hand to her chin to wipe off any excess drool. "Am I good?" She asks quietly, turning her head away from the students roaming the halls.

I squint my eyes to her chin, "Yep, all good."

"Shew, thanks."

Lacey and I make another pit stop at our lockers to exchange books for our next classes. We hear whoops in the distance and I know immediately that Johnny has walked into the hallway. I roll my eyes at the immaturity.

"Are you going to the game tonight?" Lacey questions.

"I don't want to." I groan.

"Wow, look at you. First you dump the hottest guy in school and now you are rebelling going to the game." Lacey teases.

It was mid September and football season was well underway. Being a cheerleader meant we had to attend both home and away games. This one was an away game. I wasn't looking forward to it at all. As I mentioned earlier, Johnny played football -defensive player- actually and he was the only reason I didn't want to attend tonight's game.

Dating a football player, I got a behind the scenes look of a sport that I didn't quite understand. I didn't date Johnny because of his football stats. I dated him because he was hot. He was the guy every girl dreamed about and at one point so did I. But being with a guy mainly for his looks got old pretty fast. Call me a superficial bitch or whatever, but I dated him solely on his looks. I wasn't a fan of the attention that came along with it. Johnny was the guy who got everyone's attention the second he walked into the room. All eyes on him, all the time. That also got old pretty quick. I was never one to like having the attention on me, it made me uncomfortable.

"You know that you have to go to that game. If you don't Heather will raise ten kinds of hell on not only you but the rest of us as well." Lacey informs.

Heather was our cheer captain and a Grade A bitch. She was feared by everyone on the cheer squad. Our coach didn't even get in her way. Whatever Heather said, happened. Whatever Heather wanted, she got. Needless to say when she found out that I dumped Johnny she was pissed as fuck. She claimed that she was the one who got us together in the first place, but in reality, it was peer pressure. When she found out about it she made me run laps until I vomited, it wasn't fun. And two weeks later I was technically still in the doghouse. So I unfortunately had no choice but to make an appearance at the game tonight.

"I know and I guess I have to be there." I sigh in defeat. I most definitely did not want myself or the rest of the squad to face Heather's wrath.

"You do." Lacey agrees. The stupid bell rings once again. "I'll meet you at the buses after school, yeah?"

"Unfortunately." I mutter.

Lacey sends me a smile before prancing off to her next class. Thank God I don't have class with her anymore today. Lacey Lodge is of course my best friend but she gives tough love a whole new meaning. When I told her about the break up she was mad, but not mad enough to kill me. She did yell at me. She is also still trying to figure out why I did what I did. She was a determined person at times. But I loved her in spite and because of her qualities.

- - - - - -

The football game like the others went by agonizingly slow. It was torture. I did my duty as cheerleader; I cheered on our football team. Cheering on our team wasn't hard to do. The Kennedy High Cheetahs were without a doubt an amazing team. Plus the home team was just plain awful. So this was an easy win for us. Throughout the game Johnny would send me a wink, or blow me a kiss, or send me one of those smiles that once made my heart beat way too fast and my knees weak, now i felt nothing. When I didn't react to his gestures the anger on his face was evident. My gut told me that he and I would be having another talk at some point. I was dreading that.

At only seventeen years old I had done what my entire school called "stupid" or "wreck-less". Now I was going to have to pay the price.

We arrived back to school at around midnight. Us girls and the football players rode on two separate buses, that is one of the perks of going to a school that has more money than they knew what to do with. All of us girls piled off of the bus and started heading in the direction of either their car or to a car waiting to pick them up. Lacey and I made our way to the senior parking lot where our cars were. I noticed that the boys bus was also in the parking lot. I noticed a figure standing next to my car and I immediately knew that it was Johnny. Of course he would wait for me. Apparently whatever conversation he wanted to have couldn't wait till tomorrow morning.

Lacey noticed him too, "I'll talk to you later." she said. "Night, Tay." She bid then went to her car. I stayed rooted to my spot until she left.

I took a deep breath and slowly walked towards my car. Johnny was leaning against the driver side door with his arms crossed over his chest. He must have changed out of his uniform when they arrived back to school because he was in a white t-shirt and a pair of dark blue sweat pants. I on the other hand was still in my cheer uniform and it was starting to get uncomfortable, I don't know why they make us wear these things all day on game day. Once I got to my car I dropped my cheer bag onto the ground with a thud, fully well knowing that whatever I said would go through one ear and out the other. Johnny was very stubborn and hard headed.

Johnny heard my bag drop to the ground because he turned his gaze away from the lot to me. His grey eyes softened. I took this time to examine his features. Johnny stood at six foot three and was well built, with being on defense he had to be on the muscular side. His light blonde hair was sticking up in different directions, a combination of wearing his helmet and running his fingers through it.

"Taylor, we need to talk." It sounded more like a demand rather than a suggestion.

I crossed my arms over my chest and exhaled, "I don't think we do."

"We should get back together." He says and ignores what I said.

I snort, "That is not happening."

"Yes it is. Whatever I did to you, I'm sorry." His apology sounded fake.

"Johnny, you didn't do anything. I just don't want to be your girlfriend anymore." I stated.

Johnny apparently didn't like that because as soon as those words left my mouth and hit his ears, he had me pushed up against my car. I gasped at the roughness, it hurt. I tried to push him off but my five foot three frame was no match for his. The guy was all muscle. Johnny gripped my wrists to keep me still. "Now, listen here. Get whatever is in your pretty little head out. You and I need to get back together, people wants us back together. We need to be the it couple again." He said. His voice laced with determination.

"No. I am not getting back together with you, I don't care what everyone else wants." I say firmly.

A growl escapes from Johnny and his grip on my wrists tightens, and I fail to hold back a wince and a whimper. I look Johnny in his grey eyes that are a little red and his pupils are dilated, and when his breath fans over my face I smelled the alcohol. I narrow my eyes at him, "You've been drinking."

Johnny smirks, "I call it celebrating a win."

There are several types of drunks. The ones who cry, the ones who think they are high and mighty. Some get really happy or really pissed. Johnny normally falls under the sloppy drunk category. But right here in this moment I would label him as the angry/desperate drunk. And it is scary. "Johnny, let me go, please." I beg.

"No. Not until you tell me we are getting back together." He says stubbornly. He was determined to get me back. And for what? So our peers would have something to talk about again? No way in hell was I letting that happen again. It sucked the first time around and I am sure it would suck the next time. I wasn't getting back together with him just to please every one. I wasn't going to put myself in that situation again.

"I am not getting back together with you, get that through that thick skull of yours!" I said harshly. "Now let me go!"

"Say you will be my girlfriend again and I will." He bargains.

I was getting sick of this. I also felt helpless. I was too terrified to actually do anything to get myself out of this situation. I thought about just giving in to his request. But that would just make me weak and Johnny would get his way, as usual. I didn't want to make myself miserable by being his girlfriend again.

I took a deep breath, "Johnny, I am begging you to let me go. I refuse to be your girlfriend again. Just let me go."

Johnny still refused to accept my request. His grip, if possible,tightened and his body was pressed up against mine it was honestly starting to hurt. "You are hurting me." I cried out.

"Tell me what I want to hear and I will let go." He hissed.

"NO!" I screamed loudly. "Let me go NOW!"

Johnny was about to say something when someone came running toward us and pushed him off of me, "She said no!" That someone yelled. Instead of the stranger running away he got on top of Johnny and started punching him in the face and stomach. It was all happening in slow motion. My heart was beating rapidly and once again I had no clue what to do. I had never been in the situation where I would need to stop a fight. Plus this stranger looked pretty buff so I would obviously fail at trying to stop the fight. But I had to stop this, so I yelled, 'STOP!" several times until the stranger stopped.

Johnny got up and coughed while clutching his stomach, "You bastard!" he gritted out.

"Get out of here you piece of shit!" The stranger spat.

Johnny gave me one last look before leaving, "This isn't over." He warned the left the parking lot.

My breathing was fast and my heart was still beating at a rapid pace but they both stopped when the stranger who just saved my life came into the light.

Nick Ross, the schools mysterious bad boy stood no less than five feet away from me. His chest was rising and falling as his breathing went back to normal. His hazel eyes held no emotion and his fists were clenched at his sides. I was about to give him my thanks when he suddenly dashed away into the darkness. The guy who avoided every one at school as much as possible just came out of the shadows and saved my life.

Son of a bitch.