Stuck Like Glue

Chapter 7

Aatikah's POV

Yesterday was one of the weirdest days of my school life, if not one of the worst, yet my sisters see it as an excuse for laughing at me! I mean, who wants to be paired up with such a perfectionist like Kaitlyn-Marie Greens? Seriously, she really seems to like being disliked by people. If so, I really think she should do projects on her own.

"I know what you're thinking, sis," says Aaylah all of a sudden, scaring me a little bit. "You're still thinking of not being paired with your Dax..." While saying so, she's mocking me, faking kisses and throwing me sweet-looking glances that - let me tell me - are just irritating me more than ever.

"Stop it!" I end up reprimanding her indeed, but she ignores me and, whilst leaving, she still keeps sending me fake kisses. I hate her when she acts in such a childish way to the point that I even think she, as well as my other younger sisters, has never grown up.

"Aatikah, please come here!" Perfect. Mom has just called me. What does she want from me? It's Saturday, though I don't really want to do anything other than trying to call Dax Whitaker and finally ask him out properly. Well, I've been crushing on him since eighth grade, when he just moved here from Washington, yet neither of us has still made the first move. Not that I'm shy, but I'm not that confident when it comes to guys. Especially considering that Kayla is constantly flirting with him - hey, but isn't she involved in a liaison with Nikko? If so, she should shame on herself: flirting with two guys at the same time is gross as well as highly disrespectful.

As soon as I reach Mom, I can't even get some time to defend myself from any absurd accusations because she talks first. "Aatikah, darling, I heard about the new teacher matter and the project."

"Who told you?" I ask, looking very suspicious. I know Kayla must have told her; indeed, that's the answer.

She also adds, "Also, she said she's very happy with her partner. What about you, though?"

How can I tell her I'm dissatisfied with my partner for the project without sounding rude? I know, it's anything but possibile, since I really hate her, though what can I do?

I try to just frown and shrug at the same time, but Mom doesn't really believe I couldn't give a fuck about the matter. Also, I'm not exactly lying, which makes her clearly understand that I'm not in a comfortable situation. "Come on, Aatikah. Tell me the truth. Is your partner unlikeable?"

I can't help nodding. After all, who am I to refrain from admitting I do think Kaitlyn-Marie Greens has a bitchy behavior and always wants to have the last word, other than be right. Everyone else, compared to her, looks like an imperfect midge, which I don't want to look at all.

"Let's just say she's not exactly who I wanted to be paired with," I say, trying to tell the truth but to be also polite at the same time. Okay, it's not working, because she's frowing in a suspicious manner. "Okay, Mom, you caught me. I hate her. I don't like her Miss Know-It-All attitude. I don't like when she backtalks shit about me with her stupid friends. I don't like anything about her. She's just as plain as fuck, that's it."

"Are you really sure you know her that well?" she suggests. "After all, you may get to know her better during the development of your project, do you agree?"

I nod, but I'm not very convinced by her words. "But what if she ends up being a true bitch? I mean, I can't waste a whole semester because of her shenanigans."

"You won't know if she throws daily tantrums if you don't know her. That's final." While saying this, she has a stern expression, which means that I'm forced to deal with this matter all alone. Also, I'm sure that, if I fail, she'll only blame me for that because she's so fucking used to her A's that she won't even accept a B.

If only I could ask Mr Porter to change partner... it would just be perfect. Though, I know it won't happen, so I'll just accept I have to work with that snake.

***

Meeya and April, clearly shocked because of the pairings, but in a good way, can't help being sorry for me. In other words, they do care about me being the only responsible for an eventual failure for Kaitlyn Greens, yet they can't help laughing. "At least, you've been lucky, Meeya," comments April. "Not like Aatikah."

"You could've avoided remarking that, you know," I point out, irritated at my friend's response. However, what I gain back is just laughter. I really hope for her own good it's just her usual ironic approach, otherwise her attitude is proving to be utterly offensive.

"Shouldn't we be working for this project, though?" points out Meeya, as well. "I should be at Daryl's in ten minutes, so I'm afraid I have to go. See you soon."

"See you." As soon as Meeya leaves, April and I can't help staring at each other. We both have to deal with unorthodox pairings, as well as annoying families who don't support us enough. But who cares? What matters is that everything is on point, because, after all, failing isn't part of our plan.

When April leaves, too, I feel lonely. The only thing I can expect is a call from Kaitlyn, but, hey, she doesn't even have my phone number! That's much better. We could work our parts on our own and then mix them in some way, pretending to have worked together. No, no, that wouldn't work. Mr Porter would get to know and fail us on the spot. Plus, this is Kayla's method and I'm not keen on doing like her.

I restart walking to reach home, when a call stops me. I don't care at first who is, but then the person insists, which prompts me to stop. The person in question is a blonde-haired girl, with plain looks, an unpleasant grin and a frown that makes me want to punch her face. In other words, I've just crossed paths with none other than Kaitlyn-Marie Greens.

Damn. I'm screwed.