Heart Me

Chapter 4

Nate's POV

A fine Monday was ruined the moment I saw Kayla walk into the cafeteria, Mia trailing right behind her. They headed straight for the table where Blondie and I were seated, having lunch. Seeing Mia here made me realize how serious she had been about the transfer.

"Hey guys, this is Mia," Kayla introduced her. "Mia, this is Nate and Grace."

"Yeah, I know Nate," Mia smiled.

"Oh, wonderful," Kayla smiled back.

"Ummmh, were you in the same school or something?" Blondie asked boldly.

"It's more than that. Is there a problem with that?" Mia looked at Blondie keenly.

"Not at all," Blondie grinned. Out of the blue, Lilibeth appeared in front of our table. Kayla walked away immediately Lilibeth showed up. There was definitely something going on between Lilibeth and Kayla.

"Hey, Nate. I haven't seen you since Friday night. Where have you been all weekend?" Lilibeth asked as she sat next to me. I saw Blondie roll her eyes and then leave. Why was everyone leaving me with these two creeps? I rubbed my forehead, trying to figure out a way to escape.

"Was there an occasion I missed over the weekend?" I grinned at her.

"No," Lilibeth giggled as she placed her hands on my shoulders. Mia angrily stormed out of the cafeteria. Girls' drama! "Actually, I want to invite you to come check out the art club after classes. Maybe you might be interested."

"No," I removed her hands from my shoulders. "I'm not a fan of arts. I can't even draw my biology diagrams. I have to go right now. I've just remembered I have an assignment I haven't done." I got up and walked out of the cafeteria. Girls! For the rest of the day, I kept on ignoring Lilibeth as she kept on pushing herself on me. Kayla, the only person I wanted to see, avoided me the rest of the day.

Kayla's POV

I slammed my locker shut after putting my books inside, excited about meeting my cousin Tara. She had just graduated from Astra High the previous year. I turned around from my locker to see Nate standing there.

"Hey," I greeted him, trying to sound casual despite ignoring him all week.

"Hello. You... You look great," he mumbled.

"Great? I'm just in my school uniform. As usual," I choked out the words, feeling awkward.

"I mean, you always look great and..."

"We'll talk some other time, Nate. Right now, I'm in a hurry to meet someone," I sighed, walking past him and running to the parking lot where I knew Tara would already be. I found her out of her car, holding her eight-month-old baby boy. I gently hugged her and her baby.

"I missed you so much," I purred as I pulled away. "Can I hold him?" I was already taking the baby from her. She gently handed him to me.

"Wow, Kayla, you look fat. Looks like your second year of senior high school is wonderful," Tara said playfully.

"I'm not fat," I rolled my eyes as I held the baby closer to my chest. "I just added weight." Tara laughed as she went to her trunk to get her suitcases. We then walked to her mom's house. Tara was our principal's last-born daughter. She had two big brothers whom I hardly interacted with. During her last year of high school, she got pregnant, and the amazing baby boy I held in my arms was born.

I rarely went to my aunt's house. I tried my best to set up boundaries between us to avoid issues with the school's administration. Most students thought it was fun having the principal as my aunt. Sometimes I even wished it wasn't so.