A Piece of Heaven (Allendale Four 1)

“Clingy,” Hayden added, shoving more pizza in his mouth. “So freaking clingy.”

“We’re a tight group. Me, Hayden, Jackson, and Anderson. And our friendship has always come before any other kind of relationship. We support one another. We have fun together. It’s just who we are.”

My stomach twisted in apprehension, but I had to ask. “Where does that leave me? Why are you really here?”

“Because you need us and frankly, we need you.” He moved to the couch and sat next to me, taking my hand in his. His hand was warm and his skin tingled against mine. ?

?You don’t know our history, do you?”

I shook my head. “I moved here in the sixth grade. Everyone already called you The Allendale Four.”

Oliver looked at Hayden, who nodded his head, giving him the go-ahead. “Hayden, Jackson, and I were like everyone else in elementary school. Had a lot of friends. Played with the other kids. Everything was fine until Anderson’s family moved here in the second grade.”

“His family didn’t live here all along?” New kids were rare in Allendale. It was one of the reasons my arrival had been so rocky. Cliques and friend groups were set in pre-school.

“Nope. He showed up with that silly hair, sticking up in a million directions, and even then he was a handsome kid. But he was also shy and that translated into him seeming stuck up. He was scrawny and a few of the kids at school decided he was fair game.”

“They bullied him?” The thought made my heart hurt. Poor Anderson.

“Mercilessly. He was too smart, too wealthy. His parents are both doctors and lived in the biggest house in the district. And Mark Amerson and Spencer Harrison decided to make his life miserable.”

“Ugh, Mark. I hate that guy.” Spencer was just skeevy. “He tries to pretend like he’s nice but he’s awful.”

Hayden busted out laughing. “Right? What a dick.”

“Total dick,” I agreed. “So what happened to Anderson? Seems like he survived.”

“We didn’t like the dynamics on the playground and decided to stick up for Anderson. It wasn’t hard. After we scared the pants off of Mark and Spencer, we made a pact to always take care of one another and that’s how we became the Allendale Four.” He and Hayden reached out and performed a complicated handshake. It was totally bro-ish and adorable.

“That was really nice of you.”

Oliver’s fingers tighten in mine. “When we saw the whole school turn on you over the thing with Justin, we agreed to help you the way we helped Anderson.”

“That’s really sweet of you.” I wrinkled my nose. “But what about the fact Anderson isn’t into it—or anything to do with me?”

Hayden shook his head. “Anderson is an idiot. We love him, but he’s an idiot. He’s down with supporting you, Heaven. It’s just going to take him a little while to warm up. After being picked on, he doesn’t trust people easily.”

That made sense and explained a lot about how some days he was friendly in class but never let it go any further.

“Give him time,” Oliver said.

“We’ll find out who’s taking and posting the photos,” Hayden added. “Until then, stick close to us. Always.”

“And no more fake dates,” Oliver said. “There’s no way to know you’re safe. The owner of the Fakestagram account could be anyone at school. If you want to prove something to the school, go for it. Dress how you want. Slut shaming is wrong. But if you want to push it further or fool around with a guy? You use one of us. Got it?”

“Is that why Jackson asked me to the party this weekend?”

Hayden laughed and picked up another piece of pizza. “Jackson asked you to the party because he thinks you’re hot.”

My cheeks flamed, but in reality, I felt warm all over. I’d never had people before. Just Justin. But this? Oliver was telling me I finally had a group I belonged to—The Allendale Four.

Chapter 6

Knowing I had the support of the guys, I made a decision and refused to back down to whoever was bullying me. He or she apparently wanted to prove me a slut. Oliver was right. Slut shaming was wrong, so, fine. Whatever.

I dressed for the day: short, plaid skirt. Check. Tight, white blouse. Check. So what? I was channeling early ‘90s Britney Spears. No need to reinvent the wheel.

Jackson met me at my locker again before Chemistry. Apparently, this was going to be a thing. One of the guys would be around all the time. I didn’t hate it.