âCourtney's P.O.Vâ
"Courtney!" I hear my name being called out and I turn my head in the direction of the voice. I see Emily running towards me and I swallow the lump forming in my throat, as I turn to walk in the other direction. "Courtney, wait!"
I blink away the tears and I quickly walk through the school gates. She catches up to me and forces me to stop walking, spinning me around so that I can face her. She has her eyebrows furrowed and I let a tear fall as she frowns at me.
"Oh, I am so sorry." She says, pulling me in for a tight hugâone in which I notice I really needed. I instantly wrap my own arms around her and I let the tears fall. "He's such a jerk, I wish he wasn't my brother."
"That's a bit rough, Em." I sniffle and she pulls away to examine my face.
"Me? Rough?" She questions and I nod my head, wiping at my eyes and groaning when I see the mascara rubbed off onto the back of my hand. "No, honey, he's the one who hurt you. I don't care if he's my brother, he hurt my best friend after I trusted him."
She pulls me back in for a hug and I close my eyes, needing the comfort. "I think I wouldn't have minded if he was someone else, but the fact that we were best friends before just makes it worse." I admit.
She pulls back again and I furrow my eyebrows when she scrunches up her face in annoyance. "Since when do you wear a full face of makeup?" She asks me and I look down at the ground, shamefully.
"Since today..."
"Seriously, Courtney?" She scoffs, digging into her bag and taking out a makeup wipe. "That's not how it works, sweetheart. I know he broke up with you yesterday, so you're doing this for him." She begins to wipe my face with it and I quickly pull away from her.
"This isn't for him." I object, finding the need to defend myself. The truth is, I simply feel like he doesn't like me because my looks don't match up to his likings. So naturally, I found the need to make myself look more presentable. I stayed up all night watching makeup tutorials and I spent two hours attempting it, succeeding on my twelfth try.
"Really? Then, why did you all of a sudden decide to plaster on makeup on your naturally beautiful face, huh?"
I don't meet her eye as I fix my attention on Alexander's bike parked outside. "I...I don't really know." I finally answer, letting out a defeated sigh.
"Yes you do, you know very damn well why." She scolds and I meet her gaze again.
"I just want to be pretty, I'm tired of getting judgmental looks everyday, Em. I'm just tired of not standing out, I'm always invisible to everyone, especially guys."
"Courtney, listen to me." She cups my cheek and makes me look at her. "You don't need any guy to be happy, if you're happy with yourself then no one else is important. And if you aren't happy with yourself, then do something that does, but never do anything to make anyone else happy. They aren't even worth all of your hard work, especially not stupid Julian."
I furrow my eyebrows at her and she offers me an encouraging smile.
"What happened to the Courtney who helped me get over Ricky? The one with the advice?" She asks me and I push my hair out of my face.
"Always remember the number one rule after a breakupâmake him regret his decision." I tell her with a smile and she jumps up and down in excitement, clapping her hands.
"That's the spirit!" She says enthusiastically and I laugh softly at her. "And also, don't punish every guy for someone else's mistake." She adds and I nod my head in agreement.
"Do you have your makeup with you?" I ask her and she narrows her eyes at me.
"Will it make you happy? Are you doing it to impress anyone?"
"Yes to the first one, and no to the second one. A guy has to like you for you and your flaws, not a mask." I say proudly and she digs into her bag, taking out her makeup pouch.
"Let's go to the restroom." She says and I nod my head at her. We make our way deeper into school and enter the girl's restroom. "I'm quite impressed, actually." She admits and I start by removing the smeared mascara off my cheeks.
"About what?" I question, removing the mascara under my eyes carefully, to prevent me from poking them.
"You put on your makeup better than I do, and I've been wearing it since I was fourteen." She laughs and I fan my face to help the moisture from the wipe go away before I apply some concealer under my eyes.
She watches me through the mirror as I continue to put on her makeup, and by the end she looks stunned. I add a few coats of mascara to my eyelashes and I smile in satisfaction, liking what I see in my reflection.
"Wow," Emily gapes at me, a wide smile gracing her lips. "You are definitely going to make Julian regret his decision." I frown at the mention of his name and she instantly shuts her mouth, her eyes widening. "Sorry."
I offer her a small smile and she returns it, before the bell for first period rings. "See you in third?" I ask.
"See you in third." She confirms, and we both exit the restroom to go our own separate ways towards class.
* * *
I make my way to my locker after second period and I put in my combination, opening and stuffing my books inside. I pull out my math textbook and notebook, before I spin around to start walking towards third period but I stop in my tracks as I see Julian.
He has his arm resting against the lockers and he's having a conversation with a pretty blonde. I feel my chest tighten at the sight and I blink away the tears that brim my eyes. Don't give him the satisfaction of your tears.
I slam my locker shutâto catch his attentionâand he stops talking as he looks up at me. I take in a deep breath as I stand up straight, and I simply look ahead of me as I walk past him.
"Isn't that your girlfriend?" I hear her ask and I bite down on my lip. "You guys are so cute together." She adds and I speed up my pace, not wanting to be there any longer or else I'll break down again.
"We broke up." I hear him say and she takes in a sharp breath, but I don't hear anything else as I walk into class and I sit down beside Emily.
"Hey, girl." She greets with a smile, but it quickly falls to a frown as she takes in my expression. "What's wrong?"
I shake my head to dismiss the subject and she takes the message. The tardy bell rings and the teacher begins the lesson by instructing us to copy down what he has on the board to our notebooks.
I open my notebook to a fresh page and I do as told, needing a distraction from Julian.
* * *
I fix a lose strand of hair behind my ear as I take in a shaky breath and I send him a small smile as he meets my gaze. He stops his conversation with Damian and begins to walk towards me.
I quickly fix up my hair and he furrows his eyebrows in confusion as he finally stands in front of me. "Hey, Courtney, what's up?" He asks and I twist my foot on the ground.
"Hey, Alex." I reply lamely, mentally face palming myself when he chuckles.
"What's with the products hiding your face?" He questions and I arch a brow at him. He reaches up to wipe something from my cheek and I feel my face heat up. "You don't need the makeup, Courtney."
"I think it makes me look pretty." I admit and he frowns at me.
"Beauty comes from within."
"I know," I sigh. "But I like it."
He simply keeps frowning at me and I offer a smile before I wave goodbye at him and make my way towards where Emily is sitting. "See you later." He tells me and I continue to walk.
"What was that?" She asks me as she takes a bite from her burger and I shrug. "Come on, spill."
"I'm so confused, Em." I finally admit, letting out a frustrated sigh, and I pull at my hair in annoyance. "I'm upset about what happened with Julian, but then Alex comes into the picture and something inside me brightens up. I don't know what I feel anymore."
She stays silent and I look up to see her full-on grinning like a maniac. "Oh my god!" She squeals and I slap a hand over her mouth, shushing her. "Sorry," she mumbles, and I pull back my hand. "You're not upset because you like my brother, you're just upset about the friendship you two lost."
I scrunch up my face in confusion and she continues. "Try and tell me the reason you decided to change your wardrobe and put on makeup wasn't because Alex came into your life." She challenges and I stay silent, giving her my answer. "How long have you known him?"
"I have him for a class, and last semester we were assigned as partners for a project." I reply and her grin widens. "Em, I don't like him."
"Sure you don't." She winks. "Denial isn't healthy for you, and if the difficulty is still there because of your parent's marriage, then you are just dumb. He's a total hottie and he is actually looking over right now..." Her eyes are trained on something behind me and I hold back the urge to turn around.
"I just don't think he feels the same way." I sigh, looking down at the table.
"I would like to make a bet about that right now actually; twenty bucks, he likes you." She smacks her hand down on the table to mark her point and I look over my shoulder.
She's right, he's ignoring the conversation between the rest of the guys and is looking over at us. He gives a small wave and I smile, returning it.
"Be honest with me, can you?" Emily catches my attention again and I turn to look at her, gesturing for her to continue. "Did you really love my brother? I don't think so, because you wouldn't gain feelings for another guy if you did."
I cock my head to the side as I get into deep thought and she waits patiently for my answer. "I do, but it's the type of love I have towards youâfriendly."
"Makes perfect sense."
"I guess so." I whisper, looking over my shoulder and watching Alex laugh at something Damian said. A wide grin finds itself onto my face and I sigh as I finally admit my feelings to myself.
I like Alexander Mendoza, and I can only hope he likes me back.
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Whoop whoop! Two updates in one day! I deserve a cookie, a Nutella jar, chips, and lots of love. Come on everyone, love me. I'm sorry if some of you think this is moving too fast, but I think this is good. But I'm usually the outcast so all of you probably think otherwise. Oopsies. Well, I hope you still enjoyed, and this chapter is dedicated to all you who support my decision for the change of plot. And the other ship name is too long so, #Courtlex wooh! I love you! Byeee!
â¤ï¸Much Love with Hugs & Kissesâ¤ï¸
Kimmy Hers ð