Not His Girl

So That Explains A Lot...

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Excuse the mistakes

Picture of Lillian (Daveigh Chase) on the side. I wanted to post it with the last chapter but I forgot.-->

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It was times like this that I hated being short.

I was standing in the reference section of the library, which had particularly high shelves, and I was trying to figure out how to get the encyclopedia I needed. It was pretty much a chemistry bible, and I knew for a fact it contained the article I needed for an A on my science project. However, it was on the top shelf, and without a stool, there was no way I could get it.

I looked around, searching for the library assistant to maybe help me. He may be old, and incredibly creepy, but he was tall. I could put up with his beady eyes for the thirty seconds it would take for him to reach up and grab the book. However, he was nowhere to be seen.

So, I resumed jumping up and down in a pathetic attempt to get the book. I’d managed to get the binding of the encyclopedia so that is it was sticking out somewhat, but I had yet to knock it down into my arms. I know; this might seem like a waste of time. However, I’ve perfected this method due to being shy and short.

“Here, let me get that for you.”

I froze, my cheeks burning in embarrassment, and I turned around to see an incredibly tall and friendly looking girl standing behind me. “You need that book, right?” she asked, grinning sweetly at me.

“Yeah,” I replied slowly, and the girl nodded and walked over to the shelf. As she reached up, I realized that she looked familiar. It took me a brief moment to recognize her as Aimee, the star of the women’s soccer team. She’d been hanging out a lot in Duke’s ever present following of girls, which I thought was a shame because she seemed so independent.

I’d never talked to her personally, and it was kind of weird that she would come all the way to the reference section of the library. Pretty much no one came over to the reference section because it was in the far back corner of the library, and it had a weird smell and was always freezing. Basically, if one could avoid this general vicinity, they would.

“Here you go, Harper,” Aimee said, as she grabbed the book and turned to face me.

That’s when I noticed that despite her wide grin, her eyes were sending a different message. They were narrowed, and somewhat crazed. Suddenly, I felt very uncomfortable, and I took the book from her hand slowly, as if any sudden movement would result in my immediate death.

“Thanks,” I said quietly, and I pointed out of the aisle, “I’m just gonna go check this out, so—”

“Harper.”

Aimee’s arm locked around my wrist, and she yanked me back roughly. Then, the next thing I knew, she had me pressed against a book shelf with both her hands on my shoulders, holding me there. She was a mere two or three inches away from my face, and her mouth was twisted in a dark scowl.

Was this actually happening?

“Keep your distance from Duke,” Aimee hissed.

“That’s impossible,” I replied, and then my eyes went wide as I surprised both Aimee and myself with my comeback. A couple days ago, I would’ve just nodded silently.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Aimee demanded angrily.

“I live with him,” I stated, more confidently than before, “Staying away from Duke isn’t exactly easy when he lives in the room next to mine.”