Switched Up

6: Good for you man.

As the days went by, there were certain moments when Sam would feel people staring with occasional whispering whenever she was with Jack and Oliver. She would peek around to see if there was a culprit, but could never find them. The second she turned her attention to the front she would start to feel the stares again. It made her nervous that someone was trying to see through the lie she was living.

One day as Sam was walking with Jack and Oliver down the hallway, she started to feel the uncomfortable sensation again. Oliver glanced over at Sam and saw her eyebrows squinting together while she looked around with a suspicious glare.

"What's up Sam? You look angry," he said.

She slowed her pace and motioned for both of them to lean in.

"Lately I've felt like people have been staring at me. It makes me really uncomfortable. Like, I don't wanna get caught this early on, y'know?"

Jack chuckled and he stopped walking. Sam and Oliver stopped as well and turned to face him.

"I know what that's about," he said.

"You do?!" said Sam.

"Yeah, what is it Jack?" added Oliver.

"It's got nothing to do with that," said Jack.

A wave of relief washed over Sam and she felt her whole body relax.

"But wait, what is it then?" she asked.

"I overheard some girls in the hallway the other day when I was dropping some stuff off for the Council, and they said something along the lines of, 'Look it's Jack from the Gem Trio.'"

"Gem what?" asked Oliver.

"Gem Trio. Once I heard them say it, I walked over to them and used my 'manly charms' to get it out of them," Sam and Oliver exchanged a glance that said, "Oh Jack."

Jack continued, "They told me that it was something the 1st year girls called us whenever we were together. Apparently, Oliver is the ruby, Sam is an emerald, and I'm a diamond. Therefore, the 'Gem Trio.'"

Sam and Oliver looked at Jack with blank stares while processing what he had said. After a few seconds, their motionless bodies melted into an eruption of laughter.

"That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard!" gasped Oliver between laughs.

"That's some shit out of a movie or something!" said Sam while wiping a tear rolling down her cheek.

"Hey, I'm not joking. That's really what they said," said Jack while holding up his hands as if to say, "Don't believe me, fine."

"It's just, it's so ridiculous! It doesn't seem real!" said Sam in the middle of a few leftover giggles.

"You're laughing now, but just wait until one of your little fans gets the guts to confess their love to you," joked Jack.

"Ha! Yeah right. There is no way that would happen!" said Sam while approaching her and Jack's classroom.

They walked in and waved bye to Oliver as he made his way over to his classroom. Sam walked over to her desk and said hi to Opal and Ricky between the middle of their conversation while taking off her bag. When she looked down at her desk, she saw that there was a pink envelope taped to the front. She pulled it off and flipped it over to the back. In big bubbly letters read "To Sam".

Sam felt her stomach drop. She turned to Jack with big, panicked eyes. When he finally looked over towards her after taking off his bag, he titled his head in confusion. Sam lifted up the letter a little bit and Jack's eyes went straight to it. He immediately realized what it was and turned away from Sam to hide his laughter.