Miss nobody strikes back

Project.

Chapter Thirty-Three

I walked into class, and there was Jenny, seated and waving at me. I smiled and made my way over to her. “How was your night?” she asked as I sat down beside her.

I nodded, trying to keep it casual. "Fine," I said, though I could feel the weight of Saturday night pressing down on me. I leaned in, my voice low. "Okay, now tell me everything. Leave out no details. What exactly did I do when I was drunk on Saturday?"

Jenny's eyes sparkled with curiosity as she tilted her head. "Well, I don’t know the full story," she said with a grin. “But I remember Dominic walking over to us, holding your hand. He said you were drunk and needed to go home. That’s about it.”

I sighed heavily, slumping back into my chair. "God, I woke up in his house," I muttered, running my hand over my face, trying to piece everything together.

Jenny's eyes widened in shock for a split second, but then a mischievous smirk replaced her expression. "Really? You woke up in Dominic’s house? Did you guys... make out or something?"

I shot her a look of pure disgust. "Ew, no! Why would we do that? I just had breakfast at his place, met his family, and that was it."

Jenny leaned back, crossing her arms with a knowing smile. "Uh-huh. You know, no one except Sarah and Kai has ever been to his house. Sounds like you two are getting pretty close."

"We're just—" I started to explain, but was cut off by the sound of Miss Gemma walking into the room.

“Alright, students, let’s get down to business,” Miss Gemma said as she made her way to the front of the classroom. Immediately, everyone sat up straighter and began pulling out their books, the chatter dying down.

“As part of today’s lesson, I’m assigning your first group project. But before you all get excited and start picking your best friends, I’m choosing the groups this time. It’s time for everyone to build connections and teamwork outside of your usual circles,” she explained.

A nervous flutter started in my chest. Group projects weren’t my favorite, especially if I wasn’t paired with someone I knew well. “After class, you can check the notice board to see who you’ll be working with. Make sure to get in touch with your partners to coordinate your schedules,” Miss Gemma finished.

As soon as class was over, Jenny and I made a beeline for the notice board. My heart pounded as we squeezed through the crowd of students all eagerly searching for their group assignments. When I finally spotted my name, my heart nearly stopped.

"Dominic," I whispered, my eyes widening in disbelief. "No way, it can’t be.”

Jenny peeked over my shoulder. “What? Why are you so shocked? He’s your tutor, remember? You should be used to him by now.”

“I know,” I said, biting my lip. “But we’ve been crossing paths so much lately, I’m not sure he’s going to like this.”

Jenny laughed softly. “Oh, trust me, I doubt he minds. You guys will probably do great together. You both like studying and working hard, so it’ll be amazing.”

I sighed, staring at the list again. "I hope you're right." Then I glanced at Jenny’s name and saw she had been paired with Kai. “Lucky you, you’ve got Kai.”

Jenny blushed slightly and shrugged. “Yeah, well, we work well together.”

I raised an eyebrow. “There’s definitely something going on between you two. Care to share?”

She rolled her eyes but smiled. “Ah, inquisitive, aren’t you? Honestly, there’s nothing much to tell. We just... get along.”

“Just that?” I asked, not fully convinced.

“Yep,” she replied, not giving me anything more.

Later, during lunch, Jenny and I grabbed our food and were about to sit at our usual spot when Kai called us over to join him and the rest of his group. I looked at Jenny, pleading with my eyes for her to refuse, but being Jenny, she just smiled and accepted the invitation.

“Oh my god,” I muttered under my breath. The thought of sitting at the popular table made me want to disappear. “Come on,” Jenny said, ushering me forward. With a deep sigh, I followed her.

We sat down at the table. “Hi, guys,” Jenny said brightly.

“Hey,” I muttered quietly, trying not to draw attention to myself.

As we ate, Jenny and Kai quickly fell into conversation, leaving me feeling a little out of place. I picked at my food, trying to stay focused on anything but the growing tension I felt sitting there. Then Jenny turned to me. "So, Hanna, have you told Dominic that you two were paired up for the project?"

I opened my mouth to respond, but before I could say anything, Dominic, who had been sitting across from me the whole time, spoke up. "I know."

I glanced at him, feeling slightly flustered. "Oh, um, okay. So, how are we going to—" I paused, feeling suddenly unsure of myself. Why was I so tongue-tied around him lately?

Dominic looked at me, his face calm and unreadable. "Give me your phone."

I blinked, taken aback. "Sorry, what?"

He raised an eyebrow, his tone neutral. "Your phone."

“Oh. Right.” I fumbled for my phone, quickly unlocking it and handing it over to him. He typed something in before handing it back.

“Call me when you’re ready,” he said, his tone still calm, but something in the way he said it made my heart race.

“I will,” I mumbled, feeling strangely off balance. I glanced over at Jenny and Kai, who were both watching us with amused expressions. They exchanged a look and shook their heads at our awkward behavior.

“Where do you want us to meet?” I asked Dominic, trying to keep my voice steady.

“Where do you want?” he responded, his tone still infuriatingly neutral.

Kai grinned and jumped in. “His house would be perfect. Jenny and I will be busy, so you guys can use the space to focus and, you know, keep each other company.”

I just nodded, too flustered to argue. The thought of spending more time at Dominic’s house made my stomach flip, though I wasn’t entirely sure why.

As we finished up lunch, I couldn’t shake the feeling that things were shifting between Dominic and me, and I wasn’t sure whether that was a good thing or something I should be worried about.