UNDERDOG

CHAPTER 1

He was hardly paying any attention at all to her. I knew she was telling this story purely with the purpose of impressing him – hell, everyone else probably knew that too, even him. Yet still, he stabbed at his lunch and spoke with his usual carefree attitude to a guy next to him about the upcoming football game. Well, it was almost carefree. I'd been watching him long enough to know now that when that twinkle in his eyes was missing from his smile, the person in front of him wasn't the only thing on his mind –

"Rosie?"

I snapped out of it to see Poppy staring at me. Even a few of her friends had turned to glance at me, waiting for something. Quickly, I scanned through the story that had been lingering at the back of my mind whilst it had been narrated. Something about shopping…

"Oh, yeah, Poppy was unstoppable when she raced that girl for the shoes," I agreed with as much enthusiasm as I could muster. The girls smiled distractedly, and their attention returned to Poppy as she finished the story. Crisis averted. I returned to hiding behind my hair, and forked some more salad into my mouth whilst at the same time stealing the odd glance towards the other end of the table.

During my contribution, Poppy had taken the opportunity to glance over in Luca's direction. Sure enough, now that she knew he wasn't listening, she was telling the story with much less energy, and it quickly drew to a stop.

Lunch continued in that way until the warning bell rang for us to return to class. At that point, Poppy stood up first, consequently drawing the attention of the entire table. She said she liked to do that most lunch times so that when she left, people could talk about her. Automatically, to accompany her out, I rose to my feet, too. As usual, no eyes moved to me.

Poppy raised a hand to her pursed, glossy lips. "Oh, we forgot about the party plans! We were going to decide who was throwing one this weekend." She spun to face me, her blue eyes lit up as brightly as a lighthouse. "Ro, you wouldn't mind having it, would you?"

And, obviously, everyone chose now to turn on me, their gazes drilling into my peripheral vision as I kept my eyes firmly on Poppy's. She had that excited puppy look on that she had used countless times on her peers, and everyone, not mentioning Poppy, knew it was impossible to reject that face. Not only that, but Poppy had presented me with the question in front of the whole table, which I could tell by that perfectly plucked, raised blonde eyebrow that she knew I'd be smothered under the pressure for a few painful seconds before my mouth blurted out the obvious answer –

"Sure."

She clapped her hands together in delight, and took my hand to drag me off as everyone bid her goodbye, their gazes undoubtedly lingering either lustfully or jealously on the back of her skirt as we left. If I hadn't been next to her, my gaze would have been the latter, loathsome as I am to admit.

As we headed to our next class, Poppy chatted to me about outfits for the party, and seeing the twinkle that still lingered in her eyes, I threw myself into the conversation with just as much eagerness.

I haven't exactly painted Poppy in a good light. To say that she's manipulative makes it seem like she's a bad person, like she clawed and fought her way to the top of the social ladder, pushing others out of the way as she did it. I've made it look like I do nothing but trail after her, a shadow personified, with no identity but 'Poppy's best friend'.

Well, the latter part may be true; I doubted half the people at the lunch table even knew my name. But I didn't hang out with Poppy because of her popularity; I hung out with her because I liked her. Of course, at times her materialism and superficial values made me want to tear my hair out (and hers at the same time), but unlike a lot of her friends, I saw beneath the surface of lip gloss, expensive clothes and confidence. Under her façade, she was an innocent, kind (if not slightly calculating) girl, who I'd known before she'd ascended to the top of the school, and who I had no intention of running away from because she had found herself at high school before I had.

I knew some people in school wondered why Poppy didn't just drop the plain, timid girl who followed her around like a lost puppy – I could see the judgement in their eyes, and I knew Poppy could, too. But the fact that she ignored it, and made a true effort to continue to include me, made me appreciate her friendship even more.

We walked into the classroom where students were just beginning to settle down and take their places, and Poppy and I took our usual seats at the back of the room. A friend of Luca's, Drew, promptly began chatting Poppy up as she sat down, and Poppy friendlily dismissed it just as she did every lesson we had with Drew, once again unable to deter his efforts.

But, for once, his discussion topic of choice wasn't how great Poppy's body was – it was a little more interesting. "Hey, you know that new girl that's supposed to be coming in? Apparently she's smoking."

"Really?" Poppy replied absently, doodling hearts on her paper in purple pen. "Well, she's in this class – I guess we're about to find out."

And as if on cue, the teacher entered with a redhead walking in after her. Before I saw her face, I felt Poppy tense.

"Alright everyone, settle down please," Miss Avery ordered, and conversations died to hushed whispers. "We have a new student in today – Amber Redwood – so please make her feel welcome. Amber, you can go take the seat over there, next to Drew."

At that point, my eyes moved to her face, and I understood why Poppy was bristling like a hissing cat. She was gorgeous. Her hair was a warm red that reminded me of autumn leaves, and fell down the sides of her face like a fiery waterfall. The face that it framed was porcelain, like a doll, and even from here I could see her perfectly curved features, with a smile saved for Drew that reached her stormy grey eyes she took her seat next to him. And just like that, Drew's attention was diverted as he began his attempt to woo the new high school beauty.

I risked a glance over at Poppy. Her eyes stayed neutral, but her jaw was clenched and her drawing had stopped. By Amber's easy walk, natural charisma and what we could both hear was a tinkling voice, Poppy knew her position in high school was about to become jeopardised. And she didn't like that, not one bit.

The lesson continued with an uneasy air settled upon me and Poppy as we both stole glances over at the new girl. Drew got reprimanded even more than usual for talking in class, purely because he couldn't keep silent around Amber. As the minutes passed Poppy seemed to grow more and more apprehensive, clicking her pen continuously and grinding her teeth together.

While I was looking over at Amber, whose full lips were pursed around her pen, her eyes met my own and she gave me the pearliest grin I'd ever seen. I quickly let my eyes fall back to my own desk, my own uneasiness rising.

That gaze had been shameless, curious, probing. This girl wasn't afraid of anything, and I knew at that instant that this bold beauty would bring nothing but trouble to our status quo.

As expected, Poppy went batshit crazy.

"I mean, who the fuck does she think she is, just walking into our school and being so… so…" Poppy's words trailed off.

"Pretty?" I offered, and Poppy turned to settle her glare on me.

"Attention-seeking," she finished bitterly as she paced across the pink carpet of her room. "I mean, she was practically asking for Drew to shag her against the lockers right then and there!"

I chose my words carefully, feeling like I was making my way through a minefield. "We don't really know what she's like yet," I reassured her gently. "Maybe you two could be friends."

Poppy huffed out a breath and collapsed on the queen sized bed next to me. "I guess you're right." Explosion avoided. "But I don't like the look of things. What if Luca likes her? I mean, we made it our mission to get Luca interested in me this year – what if she just takes all that away?" She looked up at me for support, her face full of raw desperation for comfort.

I paused, considering what to say to bring back the confident Poppy that I knew and loved. Whenever she felt that her social position was in danger, she would turn into this sulking, agitated mess that I had to sort out one way or another. A lot of the times, ice cream was involved. Maybe I'd have to turn to that this time.

It was still difficult to process that a girl like Poppy would turn to a girl like me for advice. I was hardly at the pinnacle of popularity, but sometimes it felt like Poppy had no one else to turn to. Sure, she had countless friends, but how many would she be happy to strip herself down to this helpless form for?

"Look, P," I began honestly, "if Luca doesn't like a girl like you, then there's no way in hell he'll go for Amber. As long as you keep fighting for him, then there's no way he'll refuse." I stopped, and got up from the bed, walking over to her wardrobe. "But tomorrow, you might want to pull out the big guns, just to let this girl know what her place is." With a flourish, I whipped Poppy's killer outfit from her wardrobe: a low cut, frilly white top that hid just enough to be decent but showed just enough for any guy to feel like he was wearing pants a size too small; some denim shorts that I knew hugged Poppy's legs in a way that made them look a thousand miles long; and a pair of white ballet shoes that added just a touch of innocence that completed the outfit.

Poppy grinned mischievously and took the outfit from me, holding it up against her body and examining herself in the wall-length mirror. "I suppose that's not such a good idea," she replied, fixing her hair with her other hand.

I walked up beside Poppy so that our reflections stood next to each other. Perhaps it was just plain stubbornness that Luca still hadn't crumbled under Poppy's ambition to be with him – I mean, how was he able to resist her lean figure, her luscious blonde locks, her mysteriously playful sea blue eyes? No matter how I looked – brunette, wavy hair cascading down my back; dark, almond eyes usually hidden under thick lashes; slim, tan body – it would never compare to the picture perfect cover girl checking her makeup next to me.

Everybody wants to be like Poppy. My stomach twisted with jealousy as the thought reared itself in my mind yet again.

Just as I was shrinking away from the mirror, a knock sounded on the door. Before Poppy answered, a head of messy brown hair poked around the door. "Dinner's being made for us now. The chef wants to know if you're staying, Rosanna." As soon as Poppy confirmed that I was, he was gone again in a flash, with no further comment.

Poppy rolled her eyes and turned back to the mirror, but my eyes lingered on the shut door for a little longer, feeling the mix of confusion and offense creep through me again. Thomas, Poppy's step-brother, had taken a disliking to me as soon as I'd stepped through his front door, and I hadn't a clue why. He wasn't as popular as Poppy, but he wasn't exactly unsociable – around other people, at least. Although I'd known him since Poppy's mom had remarried into this family two years ago, he was still short with me, treating me like a stranger even though I practically lived in his home.

"So," Poppy said as she sauntered back to face me, "what are you thinking of wearing at your party? I mean, it's your house – you'll have to be the belle of the ball. Not that it'll be difficult," she added with a wink.

I smiled at the compliment and let my imagination go wild with hers. "Well, you know that dress I told you about the other day? The red one? I'm thinking of wearing that and maybe curling my hair up into a bun?" I twirled my hair around a finger as I concentrated. "Oh, and those nude shoes I bought with you to wear with it."

She nodded, also in full concentration mode. "And you should wear this in your hair…" she added as she ran over to her desk, rifling through her drawers until she pulled out a beige rose hair clip. Poppy held it up against my hair and nodded again, more vigorously this time. "Yes, that'll look hot."

I took the rose gratefully, suddenly feeling excited about Friday now that I knew I stood a chance of looking like less than a troll next to Poppy.

I had hosted parties before, but people hardly remembered me as the host, and most of the time, I tended to stay sober so hardly emerged from my shell. But maybe this time was different. Was there a chance I could upstage the girl who belonged in the limelight?

Well, even Poppy herself hadn't expected things to advance in the very bad direction quite this quickly.

Because as Poppy was making her grand entrance to the lunch table in her jaw-dropping outfit, attention had been focused elsewhere. Whereabouts, you may ask, could possibly steal the attention of such a dazzling outfit? Why, only the one person who had been capable of doing so thus far.

Drew sat at his usual spot, but unlike usual, there was a certain redhead sitting beside him who was being enthusiastically introduced to every member of the table by Drew, who looked like a cat that had dragged in a mouse and was waiting for praise from its owners. Amber's smile looked genuine and unwavering as she met each girl and guy, until her eyes moved to Poppy, who still had her head high as she took her seat. "Wow," she said with awe, "that shirt is gorgeous!" And with that she flashed another of those dazzling, full-toothed smiles.

Poppy, however, appeared slightly taken aback by the flattery, obviously expecting Amber to bare her teeth and hiss, just like Poppy had looked so prepared to do. But, as was her nature, she recovered quickly and gave a toss of her hair, throwing a smile in Amber's direction. "Thanks." She gave Amber a full once over, raising an eyebrow to show her subtle distaste. Usually, that look made any girl cower away with embarrassment and fear, but Amber looked unaffected. "And you are?" Not like we had been talking about you all last night or anything. Feigning ignorance seemed to be her method this time.

"Oh, I'm Amber. It's nice to meet you. You're Poppy, right?"

Poppy raised her chin, obviously satisfied with her reputation beating her to her own introduction. "The one and only."

"Well, actually, I met this other girl called Poppy in my Chemistry class." That made Poppy's smile twitch. "But anyways, you're Rosie, right?"

I froze. The question, not only being directed at me, meant that she was already aware of who I was. How was that possible? I hardly had a reputation to match Poppy's, and no one on this table was about to bring me up in a conversation with Amber.

Her eyes were still on me, waiting expectantly for a response. "Uh," I stammered out eloquently, "yeah."

Amber's bright smile had appeared again as if I hadn't just completely humiliated myself. "Awesome. I only knew because I saw you in Math yesterday, and asked Drew who you were because I thought you were so pretty!"

That made the whole table go silent. I did my best not to gape at Amber like a fish, feeling my stomach sink as everyone, everyone, looked at me. Even Luca, God help me. Out of the corner of my eye, Poppy was even more stunned than I was.

"Um, thanks," I managed to get out eventually. "That's really, uh, sweet of you."

And with that, lunch began to slowly but surely settle back into routine. People fired countless questions at Amber, learning that she'd moved over from another school after her parents split, and that she had two cats, and even that her favourite colour was green. Much to my disappointment but hardly to my surprise, even Luca was watching her as she spoke.

Meanwhile, Poppy was sending glares like drills into Drew's head. Drew's mind cogs seemed to be turning painfully as he looked with confusion back at Poppy, wondering what he had done wrong until I thought I could see smoke coming out of his ears from the effort it took him. Eventually Poppy gave up and turned to me, the look in her eyes changing. I knew exactly what it said.

This girl is trouble.

A/N: Much more to come (I hope), please let me know what you think!