"Ms. Morgan?"

Lilly stared out the window, her chin propped in her hand, her thoughts spinning like the falls leaves just beyond the glass.

"Ms. Morgan?"

A finger prodded Lilly's arm and she looked over. The whole class was staring at her, smiles and laughter dotting their faces. Lilly glanced up at her teacher, to find the old white haired woman was looking at her from behind oval glasses.

"Did you ask me something?" Lilly asked.

A few students snickered. Her teacher smiled and nodded.

"Yes, do you know what the quote is from?" Mrs. Dalton asked.

Lilly read the quote on the board.

"It's Shakespeare. As You Like It. Act 2, scene 6. Fredrick says it to Rosalind," Lilly said, turning back towards the window.

Mrs. Dalton nodded.

"Exactly, now we will be studying this play this Fall and many others of Shakespeare's great works. So be prepared to read aloud."

The bell rang putting the classroom into motion. Lilly tucked her notebook into her backpack and joined the throng leaving the classroom.

"Ms. Morgan?" Mrs. Dalton called out.

Lilly turned back and faced the smiling teacher.

"I have a student that I'm sending you for tutoring. He's new, his name is Jayden Swayer. He'll meet you in the library at 3:30," Mrs. Dalton said.

"Okay, thanks," Lilly said.

She left the classroom and moved through the crowded and noisy hallways. She stopped at a long row of lockers and deftly spun in her combination. The metal door popped opened and she stared at the neat assembly of books inside.

Laughter burst from a group of students further down the hall. Lilly glanced over. Girls in cheerleading uniforms giggled and teasingly pushed the arms of the guys. A girl with honey blonde hair, that matched Lilly's, looked towards her.

In an instance the girl's cheery face turned mischievous. Playfully, the girl winked at Lilly, the tip of her tongue sticking out. Lilly rolled her eyes, but gave the girl a half smile. When the girl looked away, Lilly turned back to her locker. As the group dispersed, she pulled out a textbook and nudged the door shut.

"Hey Lils," a sweet voice said.

Lilly turned around and leaned against the locker.

"Hey Kacy," she said.

Kacy's bright blue eyes beamed with excitement.

"Brock is throwing a party this weekend, come?"

"Kacy, you already know the answer to that question. When do you plan on stop asking?"

Kacy shrugged, the gesture filled with a playful carelessness.

"When I eventually wear you down and you say yes." Kacy poked Lilly's arm. "Collin will be there. I can have Mark talk to him about you" she said, her voice wheedlingly.

"Thanks, but it's still a no."

Kacy throw up her hands.

"Gosh Lils!" Kacy said, her playfulness gone. "You're like an old person and you're not even 18 yet. It's been over a year."

Lilly looked down at the floor, scuffing the tile with the edge of her shoe.

"Yeah, I know," she said. She looked up at Kacy and shrugged, hugging her textbook. "It's just not the same. None of it is."

Kacy put a consoling hand on Lilly's shoulder.

"You're not the one who died, try to remember that before it's too late," she said.

Lilly's expression went closed off and she shrugged Kacy's hand off.

"Lils..."

"I'll see you around, Kacy. Enjoy the party," Lilly said.

She turned and walked away.

*************

Lilly kept up a steady beat with her pencil as she bounced it against her notebook. The tapping sound doubled the tick tick of the clock that hung on the library wall. Empty tables, chairs and bookshelf rows surrounded her, echoing the empty seat beside her. With an annoyed sigh, Lilly looked at the clock. The hands told her it was almost four and she should give up.

The pencil stilled and Lilly closed the notebook. As she was reaching for her backpack the library doors swung open. A tall, lean guy with messy black curls, handsome features and a mouth made for smirking, stepped in. He walked over to the table with one hand in his pocket, the other holding his leather jacket, a binder and notebook. He stopped and tossed the items on top. They landed with a loud bang, that rang out in the quietness. The guy spun the chair around and sat down, his arms on the back, his black eyes laughing at Lilly.

"So tutor, teach me something," Jayden said.

Without a word, Lilly packed up her backpack and stood. Jayden gave her a puzzled, slightly teasing look.

"I might be new to this whole thing, but doesn't studying go better when you are sitting?" he asked, his tone patronizing.

"I waited for half an hour. Next time it will be fifteen minutes. The time after that will be five. Try to remember that when you flunk your next exam."

Lilly rounded the table and walked to the library entrance. Jayden stood, his hands raised by his side.

"Aren't you suppose to be teaching me something?" he asked.

With one hand on the door, Lilly turned around.

"I am," she said. "I'm teaching you that manners matter. See you tomorrow Jayden."

Lilly pushed through the door as Jayden told her it was 'Jay.' The hallways were eerily silent as Lilly walked through the school. The sound of her footsteps bounced off the tile floor. Cool fall air encased her as she walked out. The parking lot was dotted with last of the teachers' cars. Lilly descended the stairs and headed for the sidewalk. Minutes later the roaring of a motorcycle engine filled the air.

Lilly looked back as the bike and rider raced towards her. The engine died to a low purr as the rider stopped a few feet ahead of Lilly. He took off his helmet and smiled back at her.

"Need a ride?" Jayden asked.

Lilly stared at the motorcycle for a long second, a chill running down her spin. She then looked up at Jayden. He leaned against the front of the bike, watching her.

"No," Lilly said.

Jayden's smile widened and he held out the helmet.

"This is my way of saying I'm sorry for not being on time," he said.

"Apology accepted, but I don't want a ride," Lilly said.

Jayden cocked his head, his smile turning mocking.

"Look," he said, "we both know you are eventually going to take the ride. Let's just skip the part where you play hard to get and I'll take you home."

Lilly gave him an even look.

"No, thanks."

She turned away and continued walking. Jayden watched her for a second then drove after her.

"You're really not going to accept the ride?" he asked, surprised and half amused.

"Not going to accept the ride," Lilly said.

Jayden smirked.

"You'll come around," he said. "They always do."

He slipped on his helmet and drove off, Lilly watching him leave.

************

Lilly climbed the steps to her house and paused, her hand on the door knob. From inside she heard the low murmur of voices. Slowly, she opened the door and moved inside. She looked down when she bumped the edge of a suitcase with her foot. Her head jerked up and looked towards the small hallway and the closed door at the end. The voices grew in volume, one feminine tone rising to meet a deep masculine one.

Stepping over the depressing looking piece of luggage, Lilly moved up the stars. She stepped into her room and closed the door, leaning against the wood. Disjointed words moved through the house to reach her. With a worn out sigh, Lilly tossed her backpack onto her bed and flopped down after it. For a long while she stared up at the ceiling, making shapes out of the crossing lines.

As the voices argued on beneath her, Lilly pulled out her phone. She flipped through the voicemail messages until she came to the last one. She hit play and brought the phone to her ear. A warm deep laugh rang through the speaker.

"Hey Lils! It's Tim, your amazing brother!" the guy said. "Look I'm running late from practice. Coach wanted to talk to me. Mom's not answering my call so tell her to chill and I'll be home soon. I have to stop by the garage. My bike's engine is making a squeaking sound. Alright? Thanks Lils."

Lilly laid there for a long moment, the phone stuck to her ear, her brother's laugh dancing through the quiet room. After a long moment, she pushed herself up and pocketed her phone. The voices stormed on, their muffled words sounding like the rolling of distant thunder.

Grabbing her jacket and purse, Lilly left her room. She was at the bottom of the stairs when the door opened and her parents walked out.

"Derek, we need to talk about this," her mother said.

"Teresa, you don't..."

The words died in her father's throat when he noticed Lilly standing there, staring at them with blank look.

"Hi honey," her mother said, with forced cheerfulness. "When did you get home?"

"I think it was somewhere between 'I can't do this' and 'you can't leave again'."

Her parents shifted uncomfortably.

"We were just working through something, kiddo," he father said.

Lilly nodded her head, giving them a look that told them she wasn't fooled. Without a word, she turned away and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" her mother asked.

Lilly paused and spoke to the door.

"To talk to Tim," Lilly said. She turned her head half way to them. "He might just be a stone in the ground now but at least with him it's quiet."

With that she opened the door and walked out.

***************

Why hello there!

Brief synopsis, Lilly lost her brother a over a year ago in a motorcycle accident. After losing him she also lost friends when they moved on and she couldn't. Her family is slowly cracking and to top it off she has to tutor an arrogant heart breaker. Struggling to find peace, just making it through each day, she will find that there's more to living than just going through the motions.

I got this idea, because I wanted to see if I could create a character that resisted the bad boy, but for legit reasons other than she's playing hard to get or thinks she's better than him. Lilly doesn't just not care for bad boy's, she thinks what they do is stupid. She's seen her brother die because of his arrogance and so when Jayden walks into her life she's not impressed.

What do you think? Curious to find out more? Would you turn the figurative page?

Vote, comment, follow! Tell me your thoughts dear one!