I walk into my first period class and immediately spot the boy from yesterday. I hurry up and sit down next to him before anyone else can. Even if they did, I'd find a way to talk to him before this period ended. He doesn't even acknowledge me.
"Hey," I say.
He nods slightly and says, "Hey."
"I need to talk to you."
"Yeah? What about?" he asks.
"I need to know what you meant yesterday. About the hunters," I keep my voice low and my gaze straight ahead.
"Look, this isn't the time or place to discuss this," he snaps.
"Sorry, it's just, I tried to ask my father but he blew me off."
When he speaks again, his voice his calmer. "Meet me after school by the front doors."
"Okay, yeah. Sure," I say. I focus on the lesson from then on... Sort of. I'm nervous about what he has to say, but I need to know. An hour later, the bell rings and everybody's on their way out of the classroom.
I catch the boy's arm before he disappears in the hallway and say, "Hey, you never told me your name."
He extends his hand and grins, "John."
I smile and shake his hand, "I'm Anna."
"I know," he says, right before he leaves the room with his books in his hands. Wait... What? How would he know my name? Surely I didn't tell him yesterday and I doubt anyone else did...
. . .
It's lunch time and I look for Jessica in the cafeteria. I notice her waving at me from a table in the cornor and I rush over to sit next to her.
"Hey Jess," I say, smiling.
"Anna! How are you?" she asks.
"I'm great, pretty tired. How about you?"
"I'm good," she says, but she's not paying attention to me. She's staring at Zach, who's making his way toward us.
"You know, you make it pretty obvious how much you like him," I say. She snaps out of her trance, looks down and I can see that she's blushing. I laugh.
"Hey guys," Zach says, as he sits down next to us. "What's so funny, Anna?"
"Oh, nothing," I say. "Girl stuff. You wouldn't be interested."
He makes a weird face and says, "You're right. I wouldn't be."
Jessica and I both laugh. They continue with their conversation but I can't pay attention. I keep glancing around the cafeteria to see if I spot John anywhere, but I don't. I wonder why I never see him around the other students. He doesn't ever talk to anyone except for me while in class. I'm surprised he hasn't made many friends. I mean, he's got the looks and the charm. He could easily fit in with a lot of the cliques at this school. Maybe he doesn't want that, maybe he's like me and he'd rather remain unnoticed... For the most part.
"Hello," I hear them say in unison, snapping me out of my thoughts. "Earth to Anna."
"Oh, sorry guys," I say and giggle.
"Okay," Jessica says loudly. "Who's the lucky guy?"
"What are you talking about?" I ask.
"You never just zone out on us like that, so tell us who you're thinking about," Zach says.
They're both so sure about what they're saying so I don't bother arguing with them. It wouldn't matter anyways. Once they set their minds on something about me, they never stop until they get every detail. Thank God they hadn't pulled my biggest secret out of me... "Have you guys met the new kid?" I ask them.
"Uh, Anna sweetie, there are no new kids," Jessica says and laughs. "Other than the niners."
Zach joins in with her laughter and I'm the only one with a serious face. "Guys, he's in my first period class and he wasn't before. That makes him new."
"What's his name?" Zach asks me.
"His name's John. Are you guys sure you haven't met him?" I ask, confused.
"Well, there are probably like ten John's in this school," Jessica informs me. "Describe him."
"Yeah, what does your man look like?" Zach teases.
"He's not my man," I tell them.
"Okay," he grins. "What does your future man look like?"
I sigh and say, "He's got dirty blonde hair that's wavy and goes into his eyes which are green. He's pretty tall too."
"That describes most of the guys here, Anna," Jessica says.
"Okay," I say. "He was probably sitting in the back of your classroom, reading or writing, avoiding people..."
"Sounds like your kind of guy," Zach says.
I scowl at them. "Fine, I guess I was wrong. Forget I asked."
When I look at the clock, I realize the entire lunch period had gone by and the whole time I could only think of one thing: John.
"We should head to class now, the bell's about to ring," Zach says.
"Oh. Right. Yeah, let's go," I reply.
We make our way up to class together. I try to remain engaged in conversation with them but my mind wonders. Most of the time, I just smile and nod.
