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Arch rears his head back, as if he’s startled by what I said and this…pleases me.
I hate that I’ve stooped to his level but he gave me no choice. And now he’s smiling at me like we’re best friends and this conversation we’re having is completely normal when it so isn’t.
“Hey, we don’t need to keep up this war between us.” He shifts out of my way, keeping pace as I head for the double doors that lead into the admin building. “Let’s present a united front to Matthews. What do you think?”
I come to a halt directly in front of the doors, whirling around to face him. “I think you should take that united front and—shove it up your ass.”
He laughs as I push my way through the double doors, but I keep my back to him and my head held high.
I rarely curse. I don’t say rude things to people and I’m not confrontational. Truthfully, I’m shocked I came up with all of that but wow.
It definitely felt…
Good.
FIVE
DAISY
No matterhow hard I try, I can’t get over what Arch said to me. How he’s intent on remaining ranked number one in our class, and how he doesn’t consider me competition. It irked me, how dismissive he was. He didn’t take me seriously, not that I expected him to, but I figured he would at least be...I don’t know. Polite?
The fact that he practically laughed in my face is what goaded me into action.
After our run-in, I poured over the class schedule, looking for those classes that weighed even heavier than usual, that would give me more points toward my GPA. By Tuesday morning, I was in my guidance counselor’s office, going over everything with Mrs. Peebles and explaining to her my intention without ever mentioning Arch Lancaster’s name once.
I’d like to forget all about him, though I know that’s impossible. He’s the only reason I’m doing this. Pushing myself harder, determined to prove to him that I’m a viable threat. That I actually am competition.
“Are you sure you want to take advanced physics?” Mrs. Peebles peers over her readers, her gaze meeting mine. “That’s a tough course.”
“Are you saying you don’t think I’m capable?” I sound a little more hostile than I mean to and I soften my words with a faint smile. “I’m just striving to be my very best for my senior year.”
“I know, Daisy. But you’ve been on a pretty intense track since your freshman year. I thought you structured it that way to ease up a little now, so you can relax during your last year in high school,” Mrs. Peebles reminds me.
“I’ve changed my mind.” I sit up straighter, determination filling me. “I want to do this.”
“And advanced statistics?” Her eyebrows shoot almost comically high. “Adding those two classes equals what I would consider a very tough school year.”
“I can do it,” I say with all the confidence I don’t necessarily feel. I am really faking it this morning. “I want to do it.”
Mrs. Peebles watches me for a moment, her gaze softening just before she pushes her glasses up the slope of her nose. “Be honest with me, Daisy. Are you trying to outdo a certain someone in your class?”
My cheeks go hot at her question. She knows I’ve struggled to outdo Arch Lancaster since midway through our sophomore year. I was the one originally on top—until he took over the number one spot. “I want to beat him.”
“His schedule is just as intense as this.”
I feel like she just gave me enemy information and I lean closer to her desk, eager for more. “Is he taking the same classes?”
“Not quite.” She smiles, clasping her hands together and resting them on top of her desk. “I think this will work for you, Daisy. I just want to make sure this is what you actually want to do.”
“I do.”
“And what does your father say about this change?”
I didn’t even mention it to Dad yet. He’d probably try and convince me not to do it, knowing him. He encourages me to be an overachiever but he’s also a big believer in remembering our limits. I think my mother’s untimely death made him cautious about a few things, including being a workaholic. He thinks I have that issue. Schoolwork consumes me all the time and he doesn’t love it.
If I told him I wanted to make my schedule even harder, he probably wouldn’t approve. That’s why I haven’t said anything to him.
“He thinks it’s a good idea,” I lie smoothly, surprised at myself.
