How to Date Someone You Hate

Chapter 14: Allison (3rd POV)

"It was a brisk autumn day, and Allison had just moved into the town. 

She had just started the 7th grade at a new school, and she hated it.

All the girls were mean to her because her hair was short and red, and the boys ignored her because she was weird.

Allison didn't dress normal, or wear makeup, and she read books. People would call her a pick-me for being different.

But she liked wearing long skirts, she hated the feeling of stuff on her face, she loved reading books. She didn't do it for the sole purpose of being different.

And yet no one believed her. 

So, Allison would spend her weekends sitting on her porch reading. She had no friends to text or visit, and her friends from her old school had ghosted her.

She was alone.

But that day changed everything.

She was on her porch reading like normal, when all of a sudden two kids around her age came over on their bikes. She recognized the girl from her history class, and the boy was in most of her classes. 

He was pretty popular, but the girl wasn't. And yet, the two hung out every day, practically attached at the hip.

Allison would be lying if she said she didn't find the boy attractive.

But she ignored it. But all of a sudden, she heard a crash. She looked over to where the sound came from and noticed legs sticking out of a bush. The girl was laughing and took a photo.

Allison got annoyed that she didn't help and went over to the scene.

"You ok?" Allison asked, worried.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." The boy grunted.

Allison nodded as the girl stared at her. 

"Hi, I'm Allison." She smiled at the girl. "Mavis." The girl smiled back, but it seemed forced.

"What am I, chopped liver?" The boy stood up, brushing himself off.

"Hey, you're in my class, right?" Allison asked. "Yeah, I'm Warren. Allison, right?" He flashed a smirky grin and Allison felt her heart flutter. "Y-yes." She squeaked. Warren looked at her in amusement as Mavis rolled her eyes. 

Allison felt annoyed at that girl already. But she ignored the feeling "What are you two doing here?" She asked.

"We're on our way to the path behind the neighborhood. There's a lake there." Warren responded, looking at Mavis expectedly. Mavis paused and just scoffed. "Do you want to join us?" She flashed an obviously fake smile.

Allison would have loved to go and spend time with Warren, but that girl was a total obstacle. "That's ok, I'm reading anyway." Allison could see Mavis's eyes light up a bit, but Warrens smile faded. "Alright, suit yourself." He shrugged.

He and Mavis got back on the bikes and rode off into the distance.

Allison felt a pang in her chest, wishing she took the offer.

...

A few days after their encounter, Warren started talking to Allison at school. Once he did, slowly and surely, they ended up forming a big connection. Allison was now popular with tons of friends, but she noticed that Mavis was still hanging around.

One day, near the end of the school year, Allison decided to confess to Warren. He told her he'd think about it, and a few days later he accepted. 

After that, she seemed to notice Mavis wasn't around anymore. Allison wasn't upset about it, in fact, she was happy. Besides, she noticed her spending more time with one of the girls from a shared art class, and some boy with glasses who was girl crazy. So, she figured she was fine.

When bringing up Mavis to Warren, he always dodged the question, even though she knew they still spent every weekend together.

She ignored it though. 

Warren and Allison dated for years, happy and content. Simple and nice. But soon Allison got bored of the simple couple life. The honeymoon phase was over, and when Warren joined the wrestling team, he was too busy to hang out with her.

So, Allison started seeing other guys, and sometimes girls too. In the 10th grade, she started seeing this sweet, kind guy who was anything but simple. The honeymoon phase was never over. Warren never knew until pretty much a whole year later, until one of her friends posted a photo with evidence of their relationship. But Allison had grown popular over the years, and she was an expert with words and able to convince people about anything.

She once convinced her whole friend group that she was a descendant of Scottish royalty, and they all ate that up. So convincing everyone that Warren was the one that cheated was a piece of cake. And the unintentional whistleblower? She told her hardcore catholic parents that she had sex with her secret atheist boyfriend (which was true), and she was now in the process of being admitted to a catholic boarding school. 

Now to today. Allison was invited to a party at her friend's house, ready to live her new life. But of course, Warren had to be there. Allison decided to ignore him most of the time, but the expecting stares were exhilarating. She knew she had to put on a show. But she had to play the victim, of course. Good thing Mavis was just around the corner.