My phone is dead when I wake up, so I have no idea what time it is – or what day it is – which totally stresses me out.

When I jump off the bed, I see my backpack and suitcase sitting next to the door. Mom must have put it in here last night. I grab my phone charger from my bag and plug it in. When it finally comes on, it tells me the time is 10am.

After unpacking the stuff in my suitcase, I decide to go for a shower since I'm still in the clothes from yesterday, and feel really gross. Grabbing some clean underwear and shorts and a t-shirt, I take them into the bathroom next to my room, along with my shower gels and shampoo. The shower is easy to work so luckily I don't have to go knocking on people's doors asking one of them to help me turn on a shower.

I turn off the shower when I'm done and pull the shower curtain back, then step out. There are towels folded neatly on top of a set of drawers, but before I get the chance to take one, the door swings open.

A tall boy with dark features like his Mom is stood in the doorway, his eyes bulging out when he sees me standing there, completely naked.

"What the fuck!" I scream and my hands scatter to grab a towel and cover myself with it. His jaw slacks, his lips parting, and he stands there frozen from the sight of me, then he eventually steps back and slams the door.

Well, I definitely can't stay here now.

As soon as i'm dressed and back to my room, I google 'what to do when the guy you need to live with sees you naked'. All that comes up is porn videos.

I put my wet hair up in a bun, and go downstairs. Some of the boys are in the living room and I walk fast through to the kitchen, hoping they didn't see me. One of the boys I don't know yet is sitting at the table eating cereal, Mom and Yasmin are talking while they chop vegetables, and the one who saw me naked is emptying the dish washer. Is it too late to slip out of here-

"Hey Amelia," Yasmin says. The boy spins around to me, nearly dropping a glass. Our eyes meet for a second, then he turns away. "Your Mom's teaching me how to make her special stir-fry," she smiles at Mom.

"How'd you sleep, A?" Mom asks.

"Good."

"There's cereal in that cupboard beside Alex," Yasmin nods towards the boy who saw me naked. That's Alex?

Oh sweet jesus.

"I'm good, thanks." I'd rather starve than get close to him. I'm pretty much dying from embarrassment just being in the same room as him.

"We haven't met yet," the boy at the table says. "I'm Carlos." I smile at him.

"You're quiet today," Mom says, calling me out. Thanks Mother.

Think of an excuse, Amelia. Think!

"I'm- uh, I um-" Everyone looks at me except Alex.

Good one, A. You totally got yourself out of that.

"I'm-gonna-go-get-some-of-my-stuff-from-Meredith," I say all in one breath and speed out the door. What is wrong with me?

Stupid Alex. Why did he just walk in anyway? He must have known someone was in there because the shower was on. I unlock Meredith and open the trunk.

"That was impressive back there."

I freeze, turning slowly. And there he is. Alex Fuentes in the flesh – and this time we're both wearing clothes.

"Don't you know how to knock? You obviously knew I was in there."

"Don't flatter yourself. I had no idea you were, and don't you know how to lock a door?"

I don't answer him, instead I pick up a box and walk back inside.

"Who's Meredith?" He says from behind me. When I look back, he's empty-handed, but still following me up the stairs.

"My car. You know you could at least help me carry boxes to make up for barging in on me while I was naked."

"I don't need to make up for anything. You're already staying at my house, isn't that enough?"

"So the least I can do for you letting me stay here is let you see me naked?"

"I didn't say that."

I put the box on the floor in my room then go back downstairs for another one. Alex doesn't follow me, but when I come back up I see him in Santiago and Val's room. By the time i'm back up with the fourth and last box, he walks out of their room at the exact time I walk past, and we crash into each other, resulting in me dropping the box and all of my stuff falling out.

"Watch where you're going," Is all Alex says before walking away. Eugh, what a jerk. I get on my hands and knees and start putting the stuff back in.

"Wowww," another guy says with light brown hair, blonde streaks running through it like Max's. "You're a real dickhead, Alex," he laughs.

"Fuck off," Alex mutters back and goes into his room.

The guy kneels beside me and helps me put stuff back into the box. "Excuse my brother. I'm Diego. You're Amelia."

I nod. "Thanks for helping me with this."

"No hay problema." He smiles. We stand back up and Diego picks the box up for me. "Speak any spanish?"

"No, but I kinda wish I did now."

"You'll probably pick some up by the time you're out of here."

"I'm not so sure about that."

He laughs and walks back to my room with me and sets the box inside. "Tell me if Alex is treating you like crap – I'll sort him out."

"Okay, thanks."

"No hay problema," he whispers before slipping out of my room with a smile.

+++

"Abigail will show you to your classes and make you feel welcome." The principal of my new school says, handing me a timetable and a copy to Abigail – a girl wearing braids and glasses. "Enjoy your day," he says. I smile back at him and Abigail and I walk out into the busy hallway.

"Okay, your first class is spanish," Abigail says while looking at my timetable. Yep, I managed to get myself into a spanish class. "It's this way." I follow her through the corridor and around bends. This school is massive.

A boy and girl are making out against the wall, and immediately I recognise the model looking boy as Valentino.

"That's Valentino," Abigail informs me, having no idea I live with him. "He's one of the spanish brothers here. There's nine of them."

"Nine? Really?"

"Yeah, and they're all like super hot," she giggles. "But everyone's kind of afraid of them – especially the one called Alex. He once made a guy so scared that he wet himself."

I'm not even surprised. Alex is a complete ass.

Abigail is waiting outside my class by lunch time, and she takes me to the cafeteria. We grab some food and I sit with Abigail and her three other friends. Two are boys that both wear braces, and the other is a girl with her hair pulled back into a ponytail, and acne covers her skin. The boys ask me lots of questions but are very shy, compared to the flamboyant boys I live with. Speaking of who, Val is throwing sweet corn in the air and catching them in his mouth, while Max cheers him on. Its an upgrade from peas, I guess.

"He is so hot," Abigail's friend, Emma, says.

"So tell me, where are the mean basic bitches in this school?" I look around the cafeteria.

"Over there. Chelsea is the worst, but everyone loves her because she's fake nice to people she wants as her friends." Abigail says.

"But she's hot," one of the boys say.

"Of course the boys think that. Even the Fuentes brothers seem to fall for her fakeness."

"There's Alex!" Emma squeals. Surely enough, Alex is walking into the cafeteria. I don't know why everyone freaks out over them as if they are celebrities or something – especially Alex; he's horrible.

While walking past the table we are sitting at, he meets my eye and I feel embarrassed all over again. I can't believe he saw me naked. He looks away at the last second before arriving at the table Val, Max, Santiago and Yasmin are at.

"Omigod! Omigod!" Emma says in a very high tone. "He was looking over here! Did you see that?"

"Not to freak you guys out," the other guy says. "But they're all looking now."

Emma makes strangled noises and I look over at them. Alex must have informed them of my whereabouts, or maybe he told them he saw me naked. Aaaaand now i'm paranoid.

"Nice friends," Alex says sarcastically in my ear while I walk out of the cafeteria.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Whatever you think it means."

I am about to ask Abigail what my next class is, but when I look around the mess of students; I can't find her. Great.

"Alex!" I call after him as he walks away. "Wait," I shout again when he doesn't stop. I catch up to him and pull my timetable from my pocket, unfolding it and looking for my next class. "Can you show me where math with Mr. Aarons is?"

He sighs. "That's my class."

"Oh. Fun." He doesn't say anything else, and I follow him to the class. When we walk in, Alex goes to the back and sits beside a hot guy, and I go to the teacher.

"Ah, you're the new girl," Mr. Aarons looks up from his desk. "You're very pretty aren't you?" That's a little strange.

"Uhh, where should I sit?"

"Just take a seat at the front there." He points at an empty seat next to a red haired boy.

"Oh lucky me," the red head says when I sit down. "Getting to sit beside the hot new girl."

"So that's what they're calling me?" I raise an eyebrow and pull out my notepad.

"Well, that and new girl with the peachy ass. You know, people will say 'have you seen the new girl?' 'the one with the peachy ass?'

I laugh, a little creeped out that people have been looking at my butt. "Nice to know."

"You got a number?"

"Not for guys who are only looking for a hookup to show off to their friends," I smile innocently and his smirk drops.

"Fair enough. Won't stop me from trying though."

"I wouldn't expect it to." I know how these guys work.

"Okay everyone we have a new student in our class," Mr. Aarons starts and I face-palm. Why do teachers need to do this? "Make sure to make her feel welcome, but not too welcome, boys," he warns and my eyebrows shoot up.

"I think Mr. Aarons has a crush on you," red-head whispers.

"How was your first day?" Santiago asks when we get into his car. He drove me to school today because I don't know the way on my own yet.

"Interesting," I reply, putting my seat belt on.

"Fall in love yet?"

"Definitely not."

"Bueno."

"What about you? Got a girlfriend?" He shakes his head. "You're not even crushing on anyone?"

"No," he hesitates before answering. Oh, Santiago. I'll be keeping an eye on what girls you're talking to.

"Hola, bitches," Yasmin shouts when she gets into the backseat with Val.

"Hi, Amelia," Val giggles like a girl.

I burst out laughing. "Hey Val." Santiago pulls out of the parking lot and drives back to their house while Val tells me that he told the soccer team who were talking about wanting to bang me, that I have an STD.

I spend the rest of the day in Yasmin's room and we watch The 100 together. I help my mom and her make dinner for everyone, then we eat, except Alex and Ray aren't there. I still haven't met Ray, and no one seems to know where Alex or him are. Yasmin tells me that it's normal for Ray to never be home, but Alex has only started doing it and she assumes he's at a girls house. She leaves three plates of food in the fridge for the two guys and her mom to have when they get home. Their mom never seems to be here, as if she lives at work. I can tell it bothers her that her Mom is never around and now her Dad is in jail, but she just smiles and says she's used to it.

For some reason I can't sleep that night, and the numbers on my phone read 3:16am when I hear Alex come home.

+++

teaser: alex has already had enough of amelia

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