“Alright class, all of you are required to write a 1000-word review on the book ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee as you all have read it last year.” Groans erupted as Mr Smith said the sentence. Obviously. A 1000-word essay?! God, I swear teachers are mental.
“Now, now there. Good news is, you get to do it with a partner and you are only supposed to hand it in four weeks time,” Mr Smith reassured us. Scratch that. Well, at least the job’s easier now. Partner. Who was going to be my partner? As if on cue, I turned my head just as Aiden’s eyes met mine. We had always been partners when it came to projects. He gave me a signal which alluded whether I wanted to be his partner. As I was about to mouth the obvious reply, Hayden patted from behind. He touched me. Wow, I was seriously turning sappy. I need to watch that. My eyes left Aiden’s as they focused on Hayden.
“So, you want to be partners?” Hayden enquired me as he gave me one of his many cute smiles. Crap. If I said ‘no’ to him, that would hurt his feelings but I couldn’t say ‘yes’ either because someone sitting behind me was waiting for the same answer. Oh holy shit. What was I going to say? I needed to answer him as he was staring at me, looking confused. Shit, shit, shit. Uh! Aiden. Hayden. Aiden. Hayden. Oh great, now the fact that their names rhyme was creeping me out and giving me a bad headache.
“Mia? Is it a yes or a no?” Hayden asked me, clearly getting impatient.
“Yes...” I couldn’t believe my ears when the words came out. Oh freaking hell.
“Great,” Hayden sounded upbeat. I gave him a wry smile.
“Alright class, once you’ve gotten a partner, please come up and write your names down,” Mr Smith announced to us.
As Hayden and I stood up, I could already see Aiden walking up towards me. Here is it.
“Hey partner, let’s go,” Aiden winked at me, giving me his happy smile. Shit, he thinks I’m his partner.
“Partner? Mia’s my partner,” Hayden’s sudden reply jolted me. Oh no. I didn’t want to know what was going to happen next.
“Hayden, is it? No, you got it wrong. Mia’s my partner,” Aiden retorted. Testosterone was obviously present in between them. I needed to clear this up, whether I’d like it or not. They both looked at me, waiting for me to say something. Here goes nothing.
“Um, Aiden, you’re... you’re not my partner. Hayden is...” I wanted to get away from them. I just didn’t dare to look at him.
“What?” Aiden’s voice was full of shock. Oh god, please save me.
“Heard that? You’re not her partner. Now build a bridge and get over it,” Hayden interjected in a mocking tone. Ego was obviously present in him.
“Sorry Aiden...” I mumbled as I dared myself to look up at him. His eyes blazed at Hayden’s, however when they shifted to mine, they soften a bit, as if he was just a small boy, so vulnerable. His eyes spoke something different, something I had never seen before and I didn’t like the feeling of it. They didn’t leave me once when he got back into his seat. The more I looked into those eyes, the more they stabbed my heart, leaving it with a stinging feeling.
I wanted to just run away.
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