The Nerd and The Jock - LT Fanfic

5: When Bae Is Bae

5: When Bae Is Bae

Tomorrow came quickly. School started off as usual, with Mom dropping me off and my friends and I walking to class together and Blaze and his friends arriving late. I watched, once again, as he and his friends were the center of attention as they walked onto campus. Me and Shay gushed over Blaze the way kids did over Halloween candy. Candice resembled the heart eyes emoji as she looked at Beast. "Cathan is real, I know it," she said dreamily, shamelessly. Candice's ship name with Nathan was cute, but kind of silly. She was starting to sound fangirlish when it came him.

Classes passed, for the most part, in a blur. Fourth period Advanced English was anticipated with nervousness because of a certain someone. As I walked into room 201, I sort of expected Nicolas to be in his seat next to mine. He wasn't there, though, because his seat was empty and only a handful of students were in the classroom. I tried not to feel disappointed; Blaze was probably just hanging out and chatting in the hallways.

Ms. Sanders looked up from her computer when I walked in.
"Morning," I told her, trying to be amiable. But Ms. Sanders just turned her steely, I-don't-take-bullcrap eyes to me, so I hurriedly slid into my seat to avoid her gaze.

The classroom gradually filled with students. I waited. Then he...walked inside. He was undeniably gorgeous this Tuesday morning. He wore a black and blue flannel with dark jeans and some Nikes; his hair, which was in all its natural glory the day before, was now tamed into individual twists that framed his golden face. The twists fit him the way my mom fit inside her truck: perfectly, as if the invention of twists were made solely for Nicolas' wear just like Mom was made to wheel around in our Ford. Blaze was talking with this girl, but the closer they came to the seats the less animated their conversation became. Finally he sat down, and the girl left, and instead of putting it down he kept his backpack strapped on his shoulders. Briefly he looked over, caught my gaze and smiled.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey," I replied.

My heart beat fast. I was so giddy that he said hello to me.

The last kid shuffled inside and the room door closed with a resounding finality. Ms. Sanders promptly rose from her seat as soon as the period began, walking over to the front of the class. I recognized the brown clipboard in her hands. "Say 'here' if you're present. If I pronounce your name wrong, correct me." Without further ado, she said, "Maddison Jacobs?"

"Here," someone said.

"Keith Wise?"

"Here."

As I waited for my name to be called, I coyly looked over at Nicolas. I was surprised to see him already facing me, his Nikes and his upper body faced toward me. The socially handicap part of me made an appearance and I blurted out, "Why are you looking at me?"

"I'm not looking out you," he said, all surprised and innocent, "I'm looking at that poster behind your head."

Poster? My eyes followed to where he pointed at. Yep, there was a poster there, advertising college and healthy choices and everything. Nice. Not awkward at all, Mara. "Oh." I said.

"Don't worry. I was looking to talk to you at first. Somehow I got distracted."

My heart raced again. "Really? I mean, what'd you want to talk about?"

"I don't know. Something." Nicolas smiled and I swear, the world just got less awful because of that. "Since you sit next to me, I mind as well make convo with you."

Before I could answer, Ms. Sanders called for me and I said, "Present."

"So what are you into?" Blaze got my attention again. "You into Sci-Fi and the galaxy and all that?"

"What makes you think that, out of all things?" I wondered, smirking.

"I don't chill with a lot of smart kids, but it seems like most of you like those types of things. Plus you look like a Sci-Fi geek."

"Ehh, sciencey stuff isn't my thing."

"Do you like Math?"

"Not really, no."

"Why not?"

"Me and equations don't get along."

"So instead, you're an English nerd?"

What was up with Blaze and his questions? His interest was...surprising. Not that I minded much; if this gorgeous guy wanted to talk to me, who was I to turn him down? "Exactly. I love reading especially."

Ms. Sanders called Nicolas' name this time, and he answered. I took this opportunity to be the interviewer. "Do you like any of those things?" I said.

"Not really," he said.

"Then what do you like?"

But Ms. Sanders suddenly tapped at a bell on her desk, that did this thing where it made your ears tingle because how pitchy it sounded. "All conversations are to be stopped now," she commanded, into the air of the already-quiet room. While she was taking attendance, other kids, not just Blaze and I, started talking. But everyone had their eyes on her now. Nobody, and I mean nobody, seemed to want to be in trouble with her. "Today," she said, "we're going to go over the literature for the year. Be prepared. College-level classes do not entertain infantile, baby literature; if you want Dr. Suess or Mary Pope Osbourne, I'm afraid you're in the wrong class."

Ms. Sanders allowed that to sink within each of us, almost as if she was expecting someone to burst out on the spot because she disowned Dr. Suess. Then, pleased that nobody said anything, she continued.

When she turned her back to scrawl the literature we'd be reading on the whiteboard, I felt Blaze nudge me. I looked over at him. "I like reading too," his deep voice whispered in my ear, "so I guess this is going to be an easy class for you and me."

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Short chapter, sorry. Bare with me. I typed this up via phone because I'm having computer problems.