Will Always Be by Kels Barnholdt

Chapter One

    “Did you know,” Melissa Berkley says loudly, “that the average teenager has sex by the time they’re sixteen?” And it could be my imagination but I swear she turns and looks at me as she says it.
    Abby Morgan, her best friend and partner and in crime, looks at her for a second, then follows Melissa’s eyes and smirks at me.
    “Sixteen?” Abby asks innocently. “I thought it was fifteen.”
    I roll my eyes and try to concentrate on the homework from last night that’s lying on the desk in front of me. I’m in sixth period English waiting for class to start, and Abby and Melissa are trying to embarrass me, which they’ve made a habit of lately.
    “Maybe you’re right,” Melissa says, even louder than before.
    A quick glance around the room lets me know that almost the entire class is now listening to her. “I wouldn’t worry about it, Ashley,” she says to me. “I mean, not everyone has sex appeal.” She twists around in her seat and her and Abby start laughing.
    My English teacher, Mrs. Green, takes this opportunity to come in and start the class, which is actually a blessing because I would much rather listen to Mrs. Green’s lecture than anything Melissa Berkley has to say.
    My history with Melissa is kind of complicated, to say the least. I’ve known her since we were kids. Or maybe I should say, I’ve known who she was since we were kids.
    Some things you should know about Melissa Berkley: 1) She’s probably the most popular girl in the junior class. And it’s not because she’s nice, either. I mean, I guess she’s nice to the crowd that she hangs out with, but if you don’t roll with the most popular kids in school, trust me when I tell you, she won’t bother with you.
    2) She has to be the center of attention. Seriously, if a topic of conversation is not focused directly on her, she somehow finds a way to turn it back around so that it is. Even in class. If Mrs. Green is talking about a play or something, Melissa will raise her hand and say things like, “I know all about that. It’s just like that one time that (fill in the blank here with one of her numerous self centered stories.)”
    3) She owns half of our town. Well, actually her parents own half of our town, but she acts like she does. When I say they own half of the town, I mean they literally own half of the land in our small town. Her dad owns three restaurants, the movie theater, tons of houses that he fixes up, rents out or sells, and various other little stores and shops.
    4) She wants my boyfriend, Austin Givens, and me to break up more than anything else in the world. She even has a list of the reasons why we should break up. I know this because she keeps the list in the front of her daily planner and gladly shows anyone who wants to see it.
    5) She hates me. I know this because she takes pleasure in coming up with new ways to get under my skin on a daily basis.
    The weird thing about Melissa and me is that our contact was non-existent until a few months ago. She didn’t even know I existed. She could have cared less about my life. But that all changed last summer.
    My family and I went on a vacation to Florida for a few weeks last summer, and one of my Mom’s good friends from her book club was there with her family. Enter Austin Givens. I knew who Austin was, but we definitely weren’t friends. He hung out with people like Melissa and Abby. And me? Well, I didn’t.
    At first it was kind of awkward. But before I knew it Austin and I were actually becoming friends. We did everything together. And then it started to become more than that for me, but I was terrified to tell him.
    After vacation I didn’t hear from him for the rest of the summer. And then on the first day of school he completely ignored me. I was really upset. Melissa and I ended up getting into this altercation in gym class over it (which landed me in these stupid anger management classes that were the most boring thing on earth. Um,