Elle and the Exchange Student

Chapter 6

Dae-Jung's Point of View:

"So what do you have next, Elle?" the blondie asked, trying to include Elle in the conversation.

"French" she responded with her typical shy smile.

As if I had no control over my body, I stormed out of the cafeteria. Once I returned to my senses, I found myself aimlessly walking to the back of the school building. Turning around to ensure I was alone, I needed a moment to collect my thoughts.

I needed to shake off the weight of the overwhelming thoughts. My trembling fingers reached for a cigarette, drawing it out slowly. An evil smile crept onto my lips. If only my father could see me now, he'd give me the lecture of my lifetime. My maman, on the other hand, would kill me.

As the match flared to life, I took a deep inhale, feeling the smoke filling my lungs. Each exhale brought a momentary release, as I tried to clear my mind.

Elle Edwards

Jesus Chirst

Never in my life have I been influenced by a woman. Frankly, she is giving me a constant migraine. There's no doubt in my mind that I'm giving her a hard time too. Through my occasional jerkish actions towards her, I am only seeking a reaction.

She fascinates me. The way Elle reacted to my rudeness is something I've never seen before, which obviously makes it even more appealing. It seems as if she didn't get angry at me for acting like a jerk, but rather intimidated or upset even. I couldn't quite wrap my head around it.

Carefully disposing the stub, making sure to leave no evidence, I made my way to where my next class would be.

French with Elle. Perfect.

My parents are kind of a wild mix. My maman being half French, half British and my father Korean, I guess you could call me a tribrid.

A few minutes before class starts, I walk into the room and spot Elle at the back, an empty desk beside her. As I take my seat, she seems oblivious to my presence, allowing me a moment to observe her

She's got this shoulder-length chocolate brown hair and even though only seen them from distance, I know her eyes match the warm colour of her hair. She wears a simple set of jeans and a comfy oversized sweater. She's low-key, but you can't help but notice her when she's around.

"Nice for you to finally attend this class, Mr. Park" our teacher, whose name I don't even care to know, states.

So maybe, I've been skipping all my French classes this week simply because I wasn't in the mood. Being fluent in French, attendance wasn't necessary, but that was my little secret.

Elle seems utterly shocked when she realises we'll be sharing this class together. While pretending to pay attention to our teacher, I can sense Elle's eyes on me. Recognizing the opportunity, I must seize it.

"Like what you're seeing?" I whispered with a small mischievous smirk. Once again, she doesn't respond the way I had expected. Instead of blushing or glaring at me, her eyes widen and she turns raising her hand.

"Yes, Miss Edwards?"

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but suddenly I'm not feeling so well" Elle said sounding so vulnerable. What is happening?

"Oh, are you not properly healed yet from your illness" Miss French teacher asked concerned.

I was told, that the reason behind Elle's absence all week, was the flu. Personally, I didn't believe it.

"I am not sure...Please, will I be excused?" her voice was trembling, something was clearly wrong.

"Oui bien sûr, but you must go straight to the school nurse. Who would like help Miss Edwards to get to the school nurse's office?"

"Non, merci. I can get..."

"Je vais y aller avec elle" My traitor of a mouth spoke in French before I registered it myself. There goes the plan of hiding my fluency in French.

"NO! I mean, I'll be just fine..." standing up with her backpack in her hands, she moves in a hurry losing her balance. Before I have the chance to reach out to help her, she steadies herself.

"C'est très gentil de votre part, merci Monsieur Park" Miss French teacher gave me a knowing look and I just keep smirking. I'm eager to discover more about Elle, that being the reason I volunteered to help her.

I get up, holding my hand out her to take but she ignores me, adding an angry "Don't touch me".

Exiting the classroom, we are luckily met with an empty hallway. Elle looking paler than ever, leans her body against the wall. She doesn't look so well, making me wonder if she really is sick? Anyhow, we need to get to the nurse's office as soon as possible.

"Come on" once again, reaching my hand out. Honestly, I don't think we are going to make it in time before she either faints or vomits.

"Do not dare to touch me!" Now this is the response I've been waiting for, if she wasn't in such a vulnerable state, I would be openly enjoying her sudden feistiness.

"So you are capable of defending yourself, after all" Shit. I just can't help myself.

"Fuck off"

Oh well, I deserved that. I should not have said that.

She turned to face me, standing dangerously close to me. I need to bend down a bit to see her face, since she is not looking to my eyes and I am slightly taller than her. I only got a short glance of her brown eyes, yet long enough to see the horror in them. Just then her legs betrayed her and in a matter of seconds my arms found their way around her body, protecting her from the fall.

Trying to be as gentle as I can, I put her down on the ground. Out of nowhere, I remembered she didn't even touch her lunch today, I reasoned it might be the cause of her dizziness. Squatting down, I searched my backpack to find her a chocolate bar I knew I had.

"You skipped lunch" I stated, still searching. Where is the fucking chocolate bar? "Here, eat this" and shoved the chocolate bar into her hands.

She looks at me like I've grown two heads. What did I do wrong now? For the love of God, I'm actually quite genuinely trying to help her. I can see her suffering to stay awake.

"Please, Elle. You need to eat" I begged, yet she stayed still. Even though her eyes are locked with mine, she's completely spaced out, probably not even seeing me anymore. Hoping to get her attention, I place my hand on her knee. In a matter of seconds her body gives in and darkness takes over.

I lifted Elle's small, unconscious form and carried her to the school nurse. After gently placing her on the bed, I explained the situation to the nurse, who thanked me and suggested I return to class. I just couldn't bring myself to do that. So I stayed.

Fifteen minutes later, I forced myself to leave.

In the hallway, I run into Fannie and Delilah. I was debating whether or not to tell them. Deciding I should occasionally try to be a nice guy, I tell them about the events that took place not too long ago, but with a little twist.

"She what?!" Delilah nearly shouted, getting a little attention from the surrounding students.

"Yeah, just found her lying on the floor blacked out. I thought, maybe she should get checked out, so few other guys helped me and we got her there. I just got back.." Never got to finish, since both girls were already running to go see their friend.

Fannie stopped for a second and mouthed a big, fat "Thank you!" Feeling their gratitude, I couldn't help but wonder, why they seem to be so worried about her constantly.