It was Monday morning and I was running late for school, again. I had woken early but had showered too long and taken too much time considering what outfit to wear. Especially since I ended up in my usual plain black hipster pants and white tank top after all the problems deciding. I put on light make up, slipped on my blue denim jacket and grabbed my backpack. Mum was downstairs cooking breakfast for my step-dad, Carl, before she went off to work. I grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl and started searching for a hair tie while I ate.

"Don't tell me your running late again, Nicole," my Mother said, turning away from eggs frying in the pan to frown at in my direction before going back to it so she didn't burn her beloved husband's breakfast.

"No, Mum. I'm not running late.I'm just using my time wisely," I said, smiling at her turned back. "It's okay, Adam is giving me a ride away. So we'll be there on time."

Finally I found a hair tie sitting in the middle of the kitchen table and was able to tie back my shoulder length dark brown hair into a messy bunch but there was nothing I could do about the small pieces that framed my face when I only had seven minutes to get to Adam's house so that I didn't miss my ride. I pecked my Mother on the cheek and rushed out of the front door and across the yard to my neighbour's house. Adam has been my neighbour since I was six years old and I'm now turning seventeen. He's a year older than me but we've been the best of friends since I pulled a prank on his older brother when I had only just turned seven. Adam is the kind of guy that girls can be comfortable around and don't have to worry about him making any un-wanted moves. He has brown hair with natural blonde highlights, has a killer body (not that I've noticed) and makes all of my friends jealous of me since I get to hang out with him all the time. His brother, Michael or Mike, is nineteen and is practically identical to his brother but has blonde hair with brown highlights. Otherwise they're both quite nice looking. Michael goes to the gym more and works more so he's a lot more buff, you could say than Adam. Normally Adam would be waiting outside for me by his car but today he isn't there. Frowning, I let myself in through the front door without even knocking. We're past all the knocking and waiting crap. There's no sign of Adam in the hallway as if he had been running late so I ventured further into the house and wondered what on earth could be keeping him. That's when I heard giggling coming from the lounge room and it was no way that a guy could have giggled like that. Silently I walked over to the lounge doors and slid them open. On the couch, arms entwined around one another, was Adam and Selena (the new girl at school).

"Having fun?" I snapped as they looked up. "Didn't mean to intrude."

I slammed shut the white, wooden sliding doors and rushed out of the house to the outside world. Why was it bothering me so much? I couldn't help wondering as I headed down his driveway in the direction of school. I'd have to run if I wanted to be there even close to on time. But I didn't feel like rushing to school and decided to suffer the consequences that went along with walking. I was about half way there when a car stopped beside me.

"Need a ride?" a male voice that sounded awfully familiar asked.

"Go away, Jake," I said and continued walking. "I'm fine. I have two legs and I intend to keep on using them."

Jake is the high school stud that all the girls wanted and once they'd had had him wished that he would fall of the face of the planet. I'd had him and had hated every minute of him. So far I'm the only girl in his history that didn't give out before we broke up so he still hasn't given up on me. I think it's his goal to do every hot looking girl at school before he graduates. He's eighteen and about to go to a college across the county that his rich father organized for him. I can't wait till he's gone.

"You know you want to. Come on, Nicole. You're going to be late and I know for a fact you hate being late," he said, smiling smugly at his own comment.

"Today though and considering you're the one offering the ride I'll just take the consequences. Good bye, Jake."

He called me some horrid name that I didn't hear and then sped off in the general direction of school. I shook my head and took a deep breath. If it wasn't for the fact that I needed the good grades to go on to college I wouldn't be bothering with school so much but I'd already been late too many times and the principal wasn't exactly in a good mood on a Monday so I started to run. I made it to school just before the first bell rang which gave me two minutes to get books from my locker, take my permission slip to leave early to the office and get to home room. All of which were in different places in the school. I glanced down at my watch and ran to the office first, slipping my permission slip into the box so fast that I'm sure the lady behind the desk didn't even see me. Home room next. Locker last before class.