Ch 3: Unexpected Interruptions

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When I stepped into the classroom with Lucy, I could feel the energy buzzing around me. A couple of students laughed in the back, while others whispered notes to one another.

“Sit here!” she told me, gesturing to the desk next to her with an exuberance that put me a little at ease. I followed her lead and took my seat, trying to appear casual, even if my fingers fidgeted with the hem of my red top.

The bell rang, a resounding echo throughout the room, signaling the official start of the school year. Our teacher, an older woman with a tight bun and stern glasses perched on her nose, began to outline the syllabus. I settled into the rhythm of her voice, hands folded neatly on my desk, already lost in the noise of names and literature references.

And that’s when the door swung open.

An unmistakable sound of footsteps stormed across the floor, and in strolled a boy. His tousled dark hair looked like it might tumble right off his head, and those striking green eyes of his scanned the room as if daring anyone to say a word. The class fell silent, waiting for the inevitable.

I could feel Lucy’s groan beside me; it was the kind of groan you would have expected from an exasperated mother, not from a seventeen-year-old girl. “Ugh, Lucas, not again!” she whispered, barely containing her humor.

"You know him?" I whispered to her.

Lucy nodded "Yeah, he is my twin brother"

The teacher's brow furrowed, discontent rolling off her in waves. “Mr. Andrews,” she said, her voice layered with authority, “you are late.”

Lucas shrugged, a cheeky smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Pretty sure that’s your opinion, Ms. Hale,” he replied, striding to the back of the classroom as if he owned the place. The class snickered, including me though I was more surprised than amused.

I leaned closer to Lucy, curiosity bubbling. “Is he always like this?”

She rolled her eyes but couldn’t suppress a smile. “Only when he wants to gain attention,” she whispered back, a conspiratorial glint in her eye.

Just as Lucas settled into his seat across from mine his leather jacket creaking in protest his gaze flickered to my direction. For a brief moment, he seemed to realize I was there as if something ignited behind those playful green eyes. He leaned forward, elbows resting on his desk, with an air of confidence that made my stomach flip.

“Well, well, what do we have here?” he drawled, directing attention my way. “Have you just stepped out of an ad for ‘Perfect New Girl’? Because I’ve got to say, you bring a lot of color to this dull classroom.”

My cheeks flushed, heat rising, but I maintained my composure. I didn’t have time for boyish charm wrapped in faux-compliments, especially not from someone so cocky.

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