“Good,” she said. “Now can I tell you about how I’m going to make Mr. Halifax jealous tomorrow?”

Oh, I had a pretty good idea. I was 99 percent sure she was going to make out with Pavel right in front of Mr. Halifax. We were about to see if he was actually into Sophie or not.

Chapter 21 – Savage

Wednesday

The past week was a wash. I was just going to pretend that it hadn’t even happened. Today was my new fresh start. I was ungrounded and ready to slay my senior year.

Yes, my dad was a teacher here now. And no, I didn’t have the perfect pair of high heels to walk into school with this time. But I was still wearing contacts and had my new shorter uniform skirt. And I’d spent extra time on my makeup this morning. I knew I’d done a good job too. Because my dad had told me to scrub it off. And my mom had told me we needed to get going or we’d be late. I was always grateful for her playing interference.

Sophie hooked her arm through mine when I reached the front steps. “I see you’re not wearing Axel’s jacket today.”

“I didn’t think it would be a good idea to wear it while I’m on a date with Jacob.” And I certainly didn’t need Axel’s cologne wafting all around me while I was flirting with another guy. I wanted Axel out of my head. And not wearing his jacket was a part of that.

Sophie smiled. “I’m really proud of you, Scar. Here’s to new beginnings.”

“To new beginnings.” I smiled too. And then I took a deep breath. I really needed this fresh start. My life had been spiraling out of control recently, and it was time to set it back on track.

This time when we walked into school, Gigi wasn’t there to trip me. It truly did feel like the day I wished I’d had on the first day of school. This re-do was amazing.

Sophie and I stopped at our lockers to get our books for Mr. Halifax’s class.

Axel walked over and leaned against the locker next to mine. He smiled at me. In that way that seemed reserved just for me. “Hey.”

I tried not to let his smile make my heart race. “Hey.”

But then his smile dropped. He peered into my locker and then back at me. “Where’s my varsity jacket?”

“Oh, sorry. I’ll bring it tomorrow to give it back to you.”

“I didn’t ask for it back.”

“Yeah, but I was just borrowing it. And I know you need it for someone else.”

He lowered his eyebrows. “What are you talking about?”