Artemisia High

4 | Hate to Love You

"Scar, guess what?" Scarlet's best friend since childhood, Émilie Monfort, asked.

"Let me guess...there's a sale going on? You met a cute boy? You didn't get any bad teachers?"

"No, silly. Cheerleading tryouts are this week!"

Scarlet rolled her eyes. She loved Émilie with all her heart, but sometimes it seemed like they were complete opposites.

"Have fun, I guess," Scarlet told her.

"I want you to try out with me."

Scarlet was taken aback. Émilie was her best friend; she knew Scarlet better than anyone else and should know how much Scarlet did not want to be a cheerleader.

"Did you hit your head or something, Émilie? The nurse's office is right over there." Scarlet pointed for emphasis.

Now Émilie was the one rolling her eyes.

"It would look good on college applications, especially since you haven't done any extracurriculars. Plus, it'll keep you in shape."

"No thanks. The farm covers both of those."

"If you want to sell tomatoes for the rest of your life, then sure. Please, Scarlet."

"Okay, fine. I'll try out, but that doesn't mean I'm joining the team."

"Merci, mon amie."

Scarlet rolled her eyes once again at her friend's antics, but she also smiled just a little. Émilie's persistence was one of her most admirable qualities.

Scarlet's smile quickly disappeared when she felt an arm wrap around her shoulder.

"Did I hear you say something about cheerleading?" Thorne said. "I'm sure you'd look great in a short skirt."

He winked at Émilie, but she just removed his arm from her shoulder and Scarlet did as well. They did so in sync.

"Aw, come on, it's only the first day," he said.

"Thorne—"

"Ah, ah, ah. Call me Carswell."

"Fine. Your Royal Pain—"

Émilie interrupted Scarlet before she could get herself into trouble.

"Am I the only one who's never seen that girl before? I thought I knew everyone."

Émilie pointed to a blonde head of hair buried deep within the cluster of students. It was hard to see who it was since she was so short, but Scarlet figured it out.

Before she could assure Émilie that she wasn't quite out of the loop, Thorne interjected like always.

"I don't know, but she's giving you a run for your money," he said while peering over people's heads to see her.

Émilie immediately elbowed Thorne in his side. He felt the pain they metaphorically felt from him all the time.

"I'm just kidding, babe! No need to get jealous."

Scarlet didn't say anything, just grumbled disapprovingly. Thorne knew to back off eventually, but this time, he did so earlier than usual. He was walking away from them before he had exhausted his annoyances. Usually, Scarlet would be glad to see him go, but knowing Thorne, she knew not to celebrate early.

"Come on," Scarlet told Émilie and dragged her along to follow Thorne. They had to push through a hoard of students, many of who were unhappy to be shoved. Scarlet hoped none of them were her enemies, but based on her temper, that was doubtful.

Thank the stars for Thorne's broad shoulders and tall stature or else the girls would've lost him. By the time they got to him, he had already cornered Cress and was busy flirting with her.

"Thorne, please stop corrupting Cress," Scarlet said.

"Nobody calls me Thorne," he told Cress.

"Everyone calls you Thorne," Émilie butt in.

Scarlet grabbed his arm and started pulling him away from the girl.

"Easy, girls, there's plenty of Carswell to go around."

Thorne looked back at Cress and winked.

As the three of them walked away, Émilie spoke up.

"Cress?" she questioned.

"She's new. She just moved here," Scarlet told her.

"And for the record, her name is Crescent Moon," Thorne added.

"Who names their kid Crescent Moon?" Émilie asked.

"The parents to a very lovely child," Thorne said in a slightly lower voice.

"Thorne, stop," Scarlet said.

"What?"

"You know exactly what."

"I'm just observing the new additions. Is that a crime?"

"No, but— just keep your hands away from her, okay? She's been through enough as it is, and you do not need to ruin this for her."

"Gosh, mother."

Scarlet nearly made a crude joke about Thorne's mom, but she held her tongue. As cocky as he may be, even he had some sensitivities, and his family was one of them. Coming from a broken home, Scarlet already knew how hurtful those "jokes" were.

"Well, if you two are cheerleading, I'm glad. Maybe you can introduce me to some friendly footballers. I need more friends."

"You have plenty of friends," Émilie said.

"Yeah, female ones. Every guy hates me."

"Don't say that."

"It's kinda true," Scarlet said. "Maybe if you didn't flirt with every female being..."

"Hey, you don't have any guy friends either," Thorne quipped in retaliation.

"Because guys are stupid."

"And because you can't control your temper."

"Shut up," Scarlet said and punched Thorne's shoulder. He winced and rubbed the spot soon to turn purple and black.

"You know you love me," he whispered in a sing-song voice.

It was meant as a joke, but it held some truth. Their love-hate relationship was rocky at best, but they found comfort in knowing how hard it was to please the world. Thorne couldn't please his parents, so he pleased girls. Scarlet couldn't please the patriarchy, so she pleased her impulses. Émilie was by their side, forced to take the brunt of both of their actions.

Of course, they'd never admit they were friends aloud...for both of their prides.