Double Jinx (Wattys2017)

Chapter 6

Arriving at school the next morning was like nothing of the previous day. There was still a lot of panic and anxiety and fear, but not because of the students or what they would think. Now all my emotions were directed towards one boy who was currently leaning against my locker.

He looked so good. While I was referring mostly to his looks, I also meant his overall physique. He didn't appear to be starving and his arms were cleansed from any bruises or cuts. That must mean his parents were treating him better. Or maybe he didn't live with his parents at all. Maybe he was put into foster care? Technically he was eighteen so he probably lived on his own but I still worried.

There were so many questions I had for him yet it felt like we had no time to talk. School would be starting soon and we didn't share a class until the end of the day. How could I possibly focus on any of my school work when Ace was haunting every thought that passed through my brain?

Almost as if he sensed me, his gaze snapped upwards and met mine. A smile appeared, accompanied by that dimple. His smile was good. Even as kids, when the bruises and cuts seemed to be a part of his daily wardrobe, he always wore a smile with it. He never let the hardships of his life ruin him. That was what appealed to me more than anything, it was the one aspect of Ace that I found most attractive. His ability to smile through even the worst of times.

Whoa Genevieve, hold on girl. The aspect you find most attractive? I couldn't be thinking like that, I couldn't let Lady's words influence me. Ace was taken, by a fellow student of mine that I'd have to see on a daily basis. Holly was a part of Ace's world now, I couldn't hog him to myself nor allow myself to believe that he was mine to begin with.

Ace wasn't mine. That fact had to be perfectly clear in order for this to work.

When I neared my locker Ace pushed away from it and stood tall, his figure nearly towering over me, "Good morning, Bunny."

My cheeks heated. Was it wrong to enjoy his pet name for me? It made me feel ... special.

"Good morning." I replied, turning my attention to the locker so I wouldn't lose myself in his gaze. Rule number one: don't look him directly in the eye. He'll be able to sense my weakness more than anything.

"Creston kind of filled me in on everything that happened yesterday." Ace informed, now leaning against the locker beside mine. He crossed his arms over his chest, openly staring at me without remorse, "I also pieced together that he was the one who knocked you down at the market. I swear, if I had known I would have beaten him for good measure."

Unable to dodge his attention any longer, I closed my locker. He was smiling at me, so joyously. The sight of him grinning turned up the corners of my lips as well. His smile was contagious, it always had been.

"It was an accident." I explained quietly, holding my bag tightly to my chest. One passing by might think I look tense and uncomfortable when in actuality, the exact opposite was true. I felt entirely at ease, as if my every fear and concern had simply melted away by the sun outside. For the first time in a very, very long time, I felt a weight lift from my shoulders. A weight that has been crushing me into the ground since I was eight.

Ace stepped towards me, his body now unnecessarily close to my own though I couldn't find the words to tell him otherwise. His finger drifted upwards to my cheek, his thumb just barely brushing against it, "I couldn't fall asleep last night. All I kept thinking about was yesterday. And you."

On the contrary, I slept like a baby, my dreams filled with a man looking awfully similar to Ace ... there's no point in lying to myself. It was definitely Ace. Of course, I only saw that as my body expressing feelings of excitement at seeing him again. Nothing else, no underlying emotion that may or may not exist.