Tempting Trouble

Chapter 1

Claire

"Look Claire,Fresh meat." My best friend, Jupiter, squealed excitedly, nudging me to tear my attention away from my phone. Jupiter loved nothing more than the first day of school, simply because it usually meant we'd get new students who had transferred from Claremont High to our tiny private school, Brixton Campus.

Public school transfers fascinated Jupiter but I couldn't see their appeal really. Most were like outlaws, coming into our school without any care for the strict structure we'd been forced to follow since day one of year 7. They were disruptive and rude in class, often stealing the focus and making it harder for those of us who actually care about our education.

Our Principal, Mrs Baxtor, liked to individually introduce the new offerings at morning assembly. I guess she might have thought it would help the wayward kids settle into their new environment if we knew their names or maybe it was just about showing the newcomers what was expected of them, when they'd look out into the audience and the Brixton student code of conduct is on full display, knee length skirts and shorts, black, polished shoes, neatly pressed shirts, no make up and definitely no facial piercings, the only flare of individuality Brixton would tolerate was coloured hair.

This was the last year I'd ever have to go through this and I couldn't imagine year 12 would have any new transfers because who changes schools in their last year? I scanned the new faces and was pleased to find I was right, they all looked to be in the lower grades, which meant they wouldn't be my problem this year but that joy was quickly shattered when my eyes landed on the boy sitting at the end, he has dirty blonde hair which he kept trying to sweep out of his eyes and scuffed shoes that had most likely never been near boot polish in the entire time he'd owned them. I knew who he was straight away, what I couldn't figure out is why he was at Brixton when I know for a fact that he was in year 12 at Claremont last year.

"Oh, he's so hot." Jupiter purrs beside me when she catches sight of who I'm locked upon.

"His looks are about all he has going for him Jup." I tell her. "Don't be sucked in by his pretty boy face, that creature is the living embodiment of a walking piece of shit."

"You know him?" She turns to me, eyes wide, to Jupiter, knowing one of the newcomers was everything.

"That's Andy Stephenson." His name bitter on my tongue. "His parents are friends with my parents so we kinda grew up together."

Being just over a year apart made Andy and I almost inseparable as kids but once he hit high school everything changed, suddenly I wasn't cool enough to hang out with anymore, well not compared to the new friends he made at Claremont and over the years I watched the sweet, caring boy disappear, leaving a rude, arrogant , cruel monster to take over. I gave up trying to be civil with him a long time ago, now when our families catch up I'm grateful I have his amazing sisters to hang out with while he sits, alone, brooding and making snarky remarks towards his dad.

"I think I vaguely remember him from your 16th birthday party, he asked me I'd grant him the gift of my virginity in exchange for bragging rights, like he was God's gift." She chuckles to herself.

"Yep, that's Andy alright, he's disgusting and you should hear the way he talks to his dad, he's so rude and disrespectful." Andy's dad Lucas is so nice and patient, he's a youth councillor at Claremont High, helping teenagers who are struggling work through their issues to achieve positive outcomes and yet his own son is just an arsehole who needs to be taken down a peg or two. "If I was that disrespectful to my dad then I wouldn't live to see Sunday."

As parents go, my younger brother, Heath and I pretty much hit the jackpot. We can talk about almost everything with them without judgement or fear that we'd get into trouble, unlike Jupiter who gets grounded for talking about subjects her mum considers taboo.