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Chapter 7

Jaden's POV

Lunch felt nothing like lunch.

I sat down at the table where Jenna usually sits, sliding into the seat across from Makayla. The lunch Jenna had packed for herself was sitting in her patterned lunchbox—way too neat, way too organized, and absolutely nothing like the greasy slice of pizza and chocolate milk I usually grab.

I pulled out the fruit salad and the tiny sandwich.
Just looking at it made me feel even more out of place in her body.

Makayla flipped her hair over her shoulder and smiled at me like everything was totally normal.
"Jenna, how's your day going so far?"

I forced a shrug. "Uh... good. Yeah. Fine."

"Good!" she said brightly. "So... I heard you were tutoring Jaden in the library?"

Every muscle in my—well, Jenna's—shoulders tensed. "Uh... yeah. Why?"

Makayla raised a brow. "I mean... didn't you two just break up? I thought you were done with him."

I swallowed, trying to act like I knew how Jenna talks.
"Well, um... Mrs. Eisenhower asked me to tutor him. For English. So... we just studied."

Makayla stared at me a little too long, like she knew something was off but didn't know what.
"...Okay then."

We ate the rest of lunch in a weird silence.

When the bell rang, I tossed the empty water bottle back in the lunchbox and headed to Jenna's next class: AP English.

The classroom was bright and organized, nothing like the chaos of my usual classes. Kids were already seated, notebooks out, highlighters everywhere. I had no idea where Jenna usually sits, so I just picked a random desk and hoped for the best.

Somehow... it was the right one.

The teacher dove straight into literary analysis—symbolism, themes, metaphor.
I tried to keep my eyes on the board, nodding like I understood any of it, but the longer the lesson went on the more lost I got.

Everything felt wrong.
The body I was in.
The voice I had.
The seat.
The whole day.

When the bell finally rang, I practically ran out.

Study hall was next—thank God.

The moment I sat down, I grabbed Jenna's phone and unblocked my number.
We were going to need to talk if we were going to get through this.

I was scrolling through her phone, trying not to get caught reading anything too personal, when a notification popped up:

Dad:
I know I said I'd be home next week, but I need to stay another week to clear things up.

My stomach dropped.
I didn't know how Jenna normally responds to things like that, so I typed the simplest thing possible:

*Okay.

Before I could even think more about it, I felt eyes on me.

Tyler.

He was sitting across the room, and the second we made eye contact, he stood up and walked straight toward me with that look he always gives—like he owns the entire hallway and everyone in it.

He stopped right beside my desk, leaning way too close.

"Hey, Jenna," he said, voice low. "I heard you were tutoring Jaden earlier."

I swallowed. "Well—I mean—I offered him—"

Before I could finish, he grabbed my arm.

Not hard enough to leave a mark, but hard enough to freeze me.