For my last year in Denver, I had one goal in mind: Get out without a scratch.

In a more understandable setting, that roughly translated to staying away from trouble and going with the flow — the existing current.

But that's where Arden Walker comes in.

Arden wasn't a social butterfly. In fact, he was far from one. I remember him walking in on Junior year with thick black rimmed glasses, and everyone just suddenly labeled him as a nerd.

That automatically landed him at the lowest step of the ladder, that is, if he were even on it in the first place.

So imagine Arden Walker coming to school on the first day of senior year with a new sleek black car, looking like a new person who had never set foot in Denver before.

Hannah would definitely disapprove, because losers don't get to change their image, as how the saying goes.

Hannah was just beside me when Arden pulled over the curb that day, and to say that she was shocked would be an understatement. More so, she was annoyed. To her, this unacceptable act was basically a red light trying to steal her spotlight.

Would she let it slide? Of course not.

She began badmouthing Arden and how desperate the guy was to climb up the ranks.

Yes, that was what Hannah Morret had been concerned with and that was exactly what she had done first thing in the morning, on the first day of senior year.

And people bought her shit.

Stupid, right? I didn't understand it ether. Much less did I want to lose brain cells over trying to.

Besides, that was just a warmup.

And I didn't want to start counting because by the end of the week, I'd probably lose count already.