Tutoring the Bad Boy [REWRITTEN]

10. car washes and malls

IT WAS FINALLY time for the dance team fundraiser. Though I wasn't sure why the instructors made it at 9 a.m. Who wakes up and goes outside to do stuff that early in the morning? Especially on a weekend? It was still cold, so I was forced to wear leggings and a hoodie. I mean, seriously— who wears leggings to a car wash?

Apparently a lot of people. I was a little relieved to see that there were only a few people matching so I didn't look like much of an outlier. Ayana stood out to me though, but maybe it was because she was the only person I knew here. Everyone surrounding me was beautiful, yet she outshone all of them. The bright smile that was on her face as she talked to her friends seemed to light up the entire area. I wasn't sure how she was able to be so cheerful, especially considering she had just woken up forty-five minutes ago and was running on four hours of sleep.

"I was just so excited for this," she explained to me why she didn't sleep as much last night. "We haven't been hanging out as much, so this is nice."

Guilt strung through my veins at her words. Then again, I don't think I was that important to her. She had tons of friends, and not only on the dance team. The girl radiated "talk to me" energy, and it truly did pay off. I wouldn't be surprised if she knew more people in our grade than I did. I was happy for her, I really was. But sometimes I felt the jealousy underneath the surface. I never let it out. It wasn't her fault for being so easy-going and approachable. It wasn't her fault that all of her friends ignored me unless she brought me up.

     As soon as the first car arrived, her grin widened as she urged me to start hosing the vehicle. It was always awkward when the black-haired girl started talking with other dance team members because I never knew how to join in. I wasn't the best at starting conversations with people I didn't know, and it made it even worse because nobody ever tried to talk to me. Then again, I didn't blame them. I didn't exactly scream out "I'm right here!" and it was blatant to anyone who bothered to notice.

     Half of the team was advertising the fundraiser with glittery signs and pom poms while the others were washing the car. I thought this was going to be a lot more fun. I guess it's hard to have fun when nobody bothers to talk to you. Vice versa.

     "Hey!" I greeted one of the dancers in a voice pitched higher than normal. I wanted to run into the nearest building and hide in the restroom until this shit was over, but I fought the urge to. I had to at least act confident in order for this to work.

     "Oh, hello," she greeted with a smile. Her brown hair and electric blue eyes immediately gave her away as Carter Adair. Perfect in every way except grades. They weren't completely horrendous, but they could definitely improve. Too bad her teacher didn't have the idea of tutoring, though to be completely honest, there was a very good chance that it would've gone horribly wrong.

     In some ways, I admired Carter. Not as the "you're my role model" type, but she did stand out. Her hair was in the style of a pixie cut and dyed black at the roots and platinum blonde everywhere else. It was such a bold move, but she pulled it off. It was so random too— the girl had shown up to school with eight inches cut off and dyed hair, looking absolutely stunning. I wish I was as confident as her. I wish I could just go to school with a new haircut and have the same smile and not have to worry about anyone hating it. Not that anyone would actually notice.

     "My name is Irene," I introduced myself politely while scrubbing the car with soap.

     "Oh, it's nice to meet you," she turned her head and smiled at me, "I'm Carter."

     Part of me expected her to know my name since I was around Ayana a lot, but I was left disappointed. It wasn't Ayana's fault or Carter's— it was my own. There are pros and cons to everything. For example, nobody cares about you if you're invisible. There's no one to ridicule you for doing something wrong, but there's also no one there to make sure you're okay. You were never anyone's top priority; maybe if you were lucky, you'd be fifth priority.