The bell rings, jarring me from my daydreaming and forcing me into the present. Dempsey and Gemma are gone. Mr. Park remains near the lockers, intense blue eyes searing into me. His nearly black hair with a few rogue strands of gray is styled in a casual way despite his professional, bespoke three-piece charcoal suit. Dark scruff lines his sharp jawline and his dark brows dip. Like he’s angry to see me.

My heart stutters to a stop and bile creeps up my throat. I do everything in my power to be a good girl and stay off everyone’s radar. The thought of being on Mr. Park’s radar sends terrifying chills down my spine. Shuddering, I hug my arms to my chest and hurry into the classroom.

With my head down, I make my way to my seat. I drop my bag onto the floor and sit down, hoping to disappear completely.

“Psst. Willa.”

So much for disappearing.

I gnaw on my bottom lip, pretending I don’t hear Levi call for me. A wadded piece of paper bounces off my head and scuttles across the floor. Unable to ignore him, I look over my shoulder to find Levi grinning evilly at me.

As if having to live with the monster wasn’t enough, I’ve been forced to share my statistics class with him.

He’s the absolute worst.

“What?” I ask, frowning.

One of his friends barks out a laugh. “Dude, your sister doesn’t like you.”

I’m not his sister.

I’m his stepsister.

Other than sharing a house with him, we may as well be strangers.

“She likes me,” Levi argues. “She just got her period, though, which is making her kind of bitchy. Didn’t you, Willa? Bloody panties all over the bathroom floor—”

Even though it’s stupid and he’s made it up, it doesn’t stop him and several friends to roar in laughter. At my expense. I cringe, quickly turning to avoid his mean teasing. This time, I’m desperate to see Mr. Park. Not because I want to relive the embarrassment of yesterday, but because he is one of the few people who can shut my stepbrother up.

“Mr. Paulson,” Mr. Park snaps, slamming the classroom door shut behind him. “I suggest you spend less time clowning around and more time studying. Fs on exams mean you won’t pass my class. Do you really want to spend the summer retaking this statistics class?”

Levi mutters something, but it can’t be heard past the raucous laughter of our classmates. Mr. Park walks over to his desk, opens a drawer, and tosses the tests on his desk.

“Nearly half of you will be going into winter break with failing grades in my class.” He points at one of Levi’s friends, Nick, and then thumps the pile of tests. “Pass these out, Mr. Henson. Your F is on top.”