The rest of the week goes by as normal, and once again it's Thursday. I'm sitting in my psychology class tapping my pen against my thigh. I had a tough time picking out what to observe about Trevor. One, because I observed everything, and two, because I didn't want him to know that I'd observed everything about him.
Would he be freaked out to know that I watched his jaw flex, his back stiffen, his shoulders tense, his fingers curl around the edge of his desk, and his eyes harden with hidden emotions? He's completely easy to read, and yet, such a mystery.
"Alright, once you and your partner have both arrived, you may present your observations to one another," Ms. Garrison announces.
We still have five minutes left before class officially starts, but most everyone is already here. Everyone except my partner that is. I tap my pen on the edge of my desk until I notice a couple glances from the girl beside me.
There are only fifteen minutes remaining when Trevor finally graces us with his presence. I had worked myself up in his absence, rehearsing exactly what I was going to say to him for making me wait so long, but the moment my eyes meet his all my frustration evaporates. Most of the rest of the class has already finished, and since Ms. Garrison gave us permission to leave once we were done, I was one of the few remaining students left.
"Hey," I greet him as he takes his seat next to me.
He slides his bag to the floor and then turns his entire body to face me. "Well?" he says. "You're up first."
Straight to the point. When will I have the right to strangle him?
"Okay. I noticed your, um... eyes." Why now did I choose eyes? This suddenly feels way too intimate, and I feel stupid.
He lifts his eyebrow, but I don't give him a chance to comment.
"They sort of appear vacant," I continue. "Like you're blocking the world from seeing how you're feeling. This usually means you're feeling defensive or withdrawn or guarded, or you're just really ticked. If you combine that with the fact that your jaw is clenched, your hand is fisted and you look like you want to rip my eyes out, then I'd say you're feeling not all that thrilled about being my partner."
Well, that was the world's easiest assignment.
"Good observation," he says, without sounding the least bit impressed. "You pucker your lips," he tells me, and I nearly die thinking about the fact that he had to have been observing my lips at some point. Oh Gosh! Why? Should this be making me feel all warm and desirable? "Which indicates desire or uncertainty."
Really? Did he think I was showing signs of desire for him? Did I appear flirtatious? How embarrassing.
"I'd go with uncertainty," I tell him as my face warms.
"Right," he responds, but I don't think he believes me. He glances around the room and notices that most everyone is gone. "I guess we're done then."
He starts to get up, but my voice stops him. "Oh, we have another assignment to do, but it requires out of class time together." I tell him this as I hand him a sheet of paper that Ms. Garrison handed out at the beginning of the class.
"Great," he deadpans. "What's your number then?"
He hands me his phone, and I type in my information. I hit send to call myself, so that I have his number now too, and hand the phone back. I should feel more excited about this moment, but I'm feeling extremely low instead.
Before I officially met Trevor I could always pretend that maybe his lack of interest in me was not personal and that once he met me he could actually like me. That somehow my charm would help erase the damage I'd done to his sister. I was very wrong. If anything, he hated me even more.
"I'll text you later," he says as he gets up and leaves the room.
I don't hear from Trevor until 4 days later. It's mid-Monday morning, and I'm in my dorm room working on some stupid statistics problem when my phone dings. I grab it from beside me on the bed and look at the screen.
"Tmrw. Matthews Hall. Rm 246. 2:00."
No 'please' or 'are you available'. He's just straight and to the point and apparently, expects me to drop my plans and obey. Fortunately for me, I don't have any plans or classes on Tuesdays, so it happens to be fine. I text back a simple one-word response and then do everything in my power to forget his face for the rest of the day.
It's time to put my plan into action. I grab up my phone again while I search my bag for the piece of paper with Lindsey's number on it. Things are about to get a lot more interesting.
---
Sorry for the short chapter. The good news is... the story is already completed, so at least you don't have to wait for an update. whoo hoo! :D
Enjoy!! :)
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Porcelain Skin (NOW ON AMAZON KU)
Teen Fiction"When I tell you that he hates me, you'll probably assume it's because he's a jerk...but you'd be wrong. He's not a jerk. I am." --- Several years ago tragedy struck Emma's home, leaving her broken... like a cup with cracks spiraling and sli...
