| W H E N  C A N D A C E  M E T  J U D E |
• • •
| Jude |

     Jude was having a terrible morning. Her head was pounding unapologetically due to the amount of alcohol she'd consumed the night before. Which had been over her usual limit of two cups and then water to wash it all down and hydrate. She rolled out of bed that morning with her bed-head sticking out in all sorts of directions and her outfit from the night before strewn all over the ground.

Then it sunk in—she started at a new school that very morning. The preppy school.

Before Wendy had left for her first day of work as a retail saleswoman, she warned Jude that she had to be awake bright and early, ready to take on the day. Jude had laughed in her face, which resulted in her aunt tossing a stray shoe at the young girl's chest.

Jude's school uniform was folded and sat gently atop of her wooden desk. Wendy had ordered it from the school's online manufacturer days ago, but it had only arrived the day before. It looked completely different from anything Jude had ever worn before.

And if it were up to her, she'd have gone in a different direction rather than waltzing down the hallways in a plaid skirt, knee-high socks, and a cashmere sweater. To say that the outfit had been expensive was an understatement. The young brunette and her aunt could only afford to buy one, meaning she'd be wearing the exact same outfit every single day.

Jude showered, dressed herself in the outfit, then took a second to pick and prod at herself in the mirror. She'd hated how unflattering she felt in the preppy outfit. It didn't look like her at all.

There was about forty-five minutes left before school even began, when the young girl set about toward the school. It was a long walk. An unbelievably long walk, but after a few moments, she decided it was worth it.

Connecticut carried a certain feeling that Jude wasn't always fond of. But she'd be lying if she said that she hated the landscaping. The trees were as green as ever, and the sky was a pale blue with very few hints of clouds which allowed the sun to blaze down at her.

Sure, she was sweating bullets underneath her white-collared shirt and thick sweater, but it was worth it. The walk was worth it. The walk also gave her a lot of time to think. Especially about the night before.

Jude had pushed the thoughts and memories of the night prior down since the moment she woke up. But she couldn't help it—every time she pushed, they just bulldozed their way back into her head. And there was nothing more frustrating than an intrusive thought she just couldn't shake.

But that girl—oh, that girl—she had been beyond Jude's words and descriptions. Candace had been her name and Jude could not get enough of her. The memory of her long dark hair cascading down her gentle shoulders. The dress—that damn dress—she wore, which hugged her ample, yet shapely figure.

The way her hands felt when she gripped onto Jude's shoulders, dark eyes searching hers for approval—approval Jude had given her by gracing the others full lips.

Jude hadn't even noticed that she spent the entire walk daydreaming about her make-out session with the girl from yesterday, chills running down her lithe waist. She held onto the straps of her backpack tightly, shuffling in her rugged sneakers.

She looked down at her feet, which had been dressed with an old pair of shoes Jude was given on her sixteenth birthday, and hoped that they didn't have a dress code for shoes, too.

     Her lengthy legs made their way up the steps leading toward the school. The words Carlton Preparatory had been written in large words above the double front doors. Jude tried her best not to gulp audibly at the sight of them. Not many things made the young brunette nervous. But starting at new schools always did.

     She pushed open the doors, inhaling stiffly as the cold wind blew in her face. The air conditioning in the building was generous and allowed her to recover from the sun that had been previously beaming on her.

     Eyes followed her every step as she stomped down the marbled flooring of the hallway. Jude plastered on her best poker face, and tried to act as though their whispers had no affect.

     "Is she new?"

     "My gosh, she's tall."

     "She's really pretty . . . but she'd be prettier if she didn't wear all of those rings—and those shoes, are they a hand-me-down or something?" Jude couldn't help but begin to feel slightly self conscious. She was never one for physical insecurities, especially ones as little as the shoes she wore on her feet. But after hearing her peers' words, she couldn't help herself.

     After glancing down at the tousled paper she held between two fingers, she groaned when realizing that her locker was right next to the girls who had previously been talking about her.

     Jude shook her nerves, running an anxious hand through her full head of dark hair. The two girls, whose outfits resembled each other's and they shared the same head of almost-platinum blonde hair, seemed annoyed by her sudden presence.

     They distanced themselves, watching Jude with suspicion as she entered the combo for her locker, before pulling it open. She slid her backpack inside of it, shutting it moments after. It was then that Jude realized the two girls were still eyeing her as if she had done something wrong.

     So, she pushed her pride aside, stepping in front of one of the two. "I'm Jude—Jude Garner," she extended her hand. The one that ironically, had a thick silver ring on every finger, along with a tiny tattoo on her middle finger that said always and forever, a saying she and father always recited to one another. "It's nice to meet you."

     The girl was dumbfounded, seeming shocked that Jude even had the guts to greet her face-to-face. "I-I'm Janelle," she spoke sullenly, her friend giving her a look that said what the hell? "It's nice to meet y-you."

Their hands collided then, while the girl standing off to the side scoffed in annoyance. But Janelle seemed as though she couldn't move. Her thumb grazed one of Jude's many rings as she legs seemed to become a little wobbly. Jude ran her hand through her hair once more, watching as Janelle followed her movements closely.

Then, she understood why the short, red-headed girl was so stuck. "I'll see you around," she spoke softly, bringing her hand back into her own grasp. "Janelle."

The red-headed girl didn't have much time to respond, met with the back of Jude's head as she made the rest of her way to class. The tall brunettes sneakers made a squeaky sort of sound when she turned down a vacant hallway, where her first class would be held.

     She held the map that would lead into the classroom, tightly between two ringed fingers, taking a deep breath when coming face-to-face sign the right door. The number written on the glass read 275 and she pushed it open.

     An older woman sitting behind a hefty, aging looking desk smiled at politely, earning a smile back. She stood from her seat, smoothing out her skirt in the process. Her hand reached out to motion toward an empty desk in the back of the classroom, where Jude would make her way toward.

     But before she could sit, the older looking woman cleared her throat, resulting in silence throughout the full classroom. "Everyone, we have someone new joining us this year at Carlton—Jude, how about you introduce yourself?"

     Jude wanted so badly to decline, but the look on the woman's face showed that she wasn't particularly asking. "Um, yeah—I'm Jude, but you could call me J or JJ," she shifted her eyesight to the teacher who nodded briefly, signaling her to continue. "I'm from Boston, but I just moved here from New Haven. U-Um, I don't really know what else to say."

     The teacher chuckled lightly, returning back to her desk. "That's fine for now, Jude. There will be team building exercises and an introduction form that we'll all do as a class in a few minutes." Jude internally groaned. Great.

     Once that class had ended and Jude had successfully made her way through the rest of her morning courses—it was finally time for lunch. She wasn't exactly sure where the large lunchroom was, so she merely followed a large crowed of students who wore similar colors to her.

     Thankfully, they led her into the full lunchroom, where she had absolutely no idea where she would sit. This was an issue she ran into wherever she and Wendy moved. Jude had trouble bonding and spending time with people she was uncomfortable around—and this resulted in her usually sitting alone at lunch.

     Or outside, or in the library, or not eating at all. She still hadn't made up her mind yet where she would sitting when she spotted a familiar face at a buzzing table. It was one of the blonde girls from the party before, Claire Jude remembers her name being.

     And if Claire was there, then that meant that Candace couldn't be very far. She was proven correct when her eyes meshed with a pair of shocked brown ones.

     Jude didn't know what to do. Was she supposed to walk over and say something? Would she address the heavy make-out session the two girls had? How could she not? That kiss was unlike any other one Jude had ever had. There was no way she could act like it just never happened.

     But before she had an opportunity to make a decision, Claire hand was waving her over excitedly, a perky smile on her thin lips. Jude spent the next few seconds walking over, her lengthy legs taking no time at all.

     When she approached the table, Candace didn't make eye contact, her head bowed down and her curly head of hair doing an excellent job at covering her attractive features. Jude stood there awkwardly as Claire stood right in front of her.

     "Holy shit, I can't believe you're here," she screeched, her hand reaching out for Jude's and engulfing it between her two slightly smaller ones. "Guys, can you believe it?"

     Candace still look up, still pushing around her plain salad with a plastic fork. Claire pulled Jude's arm and sat her down at an empty chair just beside her own. "Yeah, I kinda can't believe you're here either." Jude spoke truthfully.

     "Well, to be fair we've always been here," Claire laughed, "but what the hell, you didn't even tell us you'd be coming here."

     Another voice piped into the conversation from the other side of Claire's chair. "We didn't tell her where we went, C."

     "Oh, that's right, huh? Anyways, this is great because now you can hang out with us again. Last night was so much fun—especially for that one over there . . . " Her thin finger pointed toward Candace who still wasn't making any eye contact. "That make-out session looked pretty heavy, if you ask me."

     Sloane's head suddenly appeared from beside Claire, cold blue eyes never leaving her mentally deranged friends. Jude already felt exhausted. "Well, good thing nobody asked you." She spat, causing Claire to roll her eyes. "Come with me, I need something to eat and Kendall isn't here today."

     Without another word, the two of them stood and began walking in sync with one another over to the salad bar. Jude's eyebrow raised when she spotted Sloane latch onto Claire's manicured fingers, her own intertwining between them. The two held onto each other as they impatiently waited to be serviced.

Jude finally looked over at Candace, her cheeks twinging a pinkish color. The girl from last night seemed even prettier under the fluorescent lights in the cafeteria.

"Look, I know this is really awkward and all so we can just act like last night didn't happen, if you want," Jude spoke kindly, watching the distress practically fall from Candace's shoulders. "I'm not gonna show up at your place with a Uhaul and matching Christmas sweaters."

The curly-haired girl laughed audibly, eyes connecting with the tall girls in front of her. Her teeth pulled at her bottom lip, trying to contain a contagious smile. Jude grinned right back. She couldn't get enough of the girl in front of her.

How could someone be so pretty?

"I-I don't necessarily want to forget it," she said quietly, careful not to let Whitney overhear. "It's just that what happened last night was really out of character for me . . . and I wouldn't want you thinking that it's gonna happen again. Especially since I hardly know you."

Jude wasn't surprised to hear those words, but she couldn't deny she was a little disappointed. Of course, her first day at the new prissy school and she was already finding herself interested in someone either in the closet or straight.

She let out a light chuckle, earning a raised brow from the dark-haired beauty before her. "Of course, Candace," she spoke teasingly, eyes never leaving Candace's. Just before Sloane and Claire made their way back over to the table, she leaned in and whispered, "I wouldn't expect anything else."