"Never call a girl a bitch," I glared into his eyes as he opened them, piercing into me, the bright blue drink I had just poured over him still dripping from his dark hair. "Or she just might act like one." I gave him one last sarcastic smile before pushing by him and walking away, practically strutting. Well, this year will be fun... • • • • Crystal Summers; a self-proclaimed expert in all things sarcastic and the human embodiment of destructive decisions. Trying to get away from her troubled past, she moves with her mom to California to start a new life, and potentially not screw this one up. There, she quickly meets Scarlett and Savanah, her new-found partners in crime, and her life finally begins to feel normal again for the first time in years. But she just so happens to also collide with the school's sexy, notorious jackass, Ashton Monroe.. and his pack of asswipes. She loathes him, and the feeling is mutual. But as the poets say, the line separating love and hate is a very thin one. And often times, when two people hate each other, it can grow into much more. Hopeless devotion, if you will... • • • • !!!TRIGGER WARNING!!! • slight mention(s) of suicidal concepts • substance abuse, addiction, anxiety, PTSD • sexual assault, domestic abuse • strong language and mature scenes • • • •

There are three general truths every Acebridge inhabitant knows by heart. First, if you're on a hunt for the greatest latte in North Carolina, Beans & Bagels just off Main Street is the place to go. Second, the color that paints the exterior and interior walls of the ice cream parlor by the beach is a deeply horrifying shade of blue. And last, but not least, Ace Easters and Acebridge Westers do not - and should not - mix. After all, the generations-long rivalry between Acebridge's two high schools is the most prominent and soul fueling tradition of the quaint coastal town. In other words, Avery Waters should absolutely not go around kissing Ethan Taylor.