I shivered when I woke up as the cold air greeted me. I glanced out of my window and saw heavy rain falling. And something was in a puddle of water in our driveway. I squinted. Ah, my dad’s daily newspaper. Why he still spent money on a newspaper was beyond me, but he had always been a fan of actual printed news.

He usually grabbed it in the morning on his way out—or in—the door. But it must have come late today because there it sat.

I cringed as I posted the photo. It was true that I didn’t love cheerleading but I was hoping to get cheer captain this year. A leadership role like that on the squad would look great for colleges—and would help solidify my spot at my current school. I was the best on the team. I fully expected to get it.

I stared at Sienna wondering how she was going to respond. I knew I shouldn’t but I fucking loved riling her up. With her wild, fiery red hair, she looked so pretty when she was angry.

I watched the fire come alive in her eyes just before she replied.

I got a text invite to a party at Jack’s shortly after I was done making dinner. I jumped on it. After the unknown texts, I really didn’t want to be alone.

I threw on some eyeliner and a sparkly silver dress. Dressing to stand out was another trick of mine for the illusion. When people saw you had that much confidence, they were less likely to question you. They were less likely to be brave enough to.

Bonus content for Studying You short dark romance story

I sighed as I pressed post. 

It was hard work maintaining my social image during the school year. I didn’t have to pretend as much in the summer. In the summer, I could make excuses that I was traveling instead of constantly coming up with lies.