Clash Into Clasp

CHAPTER 1 - Belittled

"But I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." Matthew 5:44, KJV.

Alexis closed the devotional book she was reading, then sighed as she allowed her mind to recall how she first encountered the verse. 

***
Flashback: 

11 years ago, it was also Monday morning when she stepped into Fairview Academy. She was a tenth-grader transfer student and was excited to study in that Christian, private school. Her family had just accepted the Christian faith and the church had made a way for her to be sponsored at the school. So she's here, coming in, in the middle of the first semester. 

Curious glances met her as she followed the class adviser towards their classroom, making her nervous and tensed. Will the class going to accept her warmly? She can't stop her mind from wandering into the negative ground. When the teacher opened the door, she braced herself and hung her head low, avoiding the curious eyes that met her. 

"Good morning class! You have a new classmate," Mrs. Johnson announced warmly. 

"Honey, please introduce yourself," the teacher asked her after she beamed at her seated students.

Alexis forced herself to look up and took a glance at the unfamiliar faces in front of her. "Uhm, I am Alexis Carter. Lex for short."

Responding to her were some smiles which made her relax a bit. 

"Well, let's welcome her with our classroom clap. One, two, three, go!" Mrs. Johnson's voice was lively and a jovial clapping pattern followed what she said. The synchronized clap the smiles from the teacher and the faces of her new classmates gave warmth to her heart. 

"Okay. Lex, please take a sit in that empty chair in that corner," Mrs. Johnson pointed at the back and she responded with a nod. 

As she walked towards it, tight smiles still met her which she responded with her timid smile. After she sat down, it was then that she took a careful look at everyone inside. The classroom was full, with boys and girls almost in equal numbers. All were decently dressed, unlike in the public school where she came from. Her mind recorded the first difference she saw. 

Mrs. Johnson began talking upfront but she allowed her eyes to roam and study her new environment. Her seat in the back corner made it easy for her to do so. The light atmosphere made her worries dissipate and she began to relax. 

As she made a final look towards the corner across her seat, a pair of enigmatic dark brown eyes met hers. She was stunned and quickly looked away. Good-looking guys like him always gave her trouble. She wondered if it would also be the same in this school.

Days passed and everything went well. All of her classmates had already their circles and she was left on her own, but that was okay for her. It's much better than in her old school where she was treated as an annoying nerd. She preferred to be alone and here, she felt the freedom, peace, and happiness that she always desired when she was in public school. 

However, her glee ended and worries began when the owner of those dark brown eyes blocked her way one afternoon. His name was Blynn Carl Anderson, the first full name she had known in the school since it's the name frequently mentioned by everyone. He is a campus crush! 

She was intensely tensed when she tried to sidestep him but he won't let her go. He never spoke to her and she only caught a few enigmatic glances from him. She never imagined a time would come when he would corner her.

What does he want from her?

"Do you know who I am?" She was asked after she mustered her courage to look at him with a heavy frown.