And Then It All Changed

Chapter 1: Brainy

Standing with his back to his locker, Nathan  looked like a Calvin Klein model. He was wearing the school uniform but had somehow made it look glamorous. The uniform coat fit him perfectly and outlined his muscles. Standing 6 feet tall, with his arms crossed, he looked pretty intimidating, the thoughtful expression on his face only adding to the aura of silent mystery that seemed to surround him. He had a strong jaw, striking cheekbones and a sharp nose that was manly and petite at the same time. He had light brown hair that seemed to have a life of its own and it seemed that it didn’t like being controlled. The most striking part of his face were his eyes, they were pale green and always seemed to sparkle with good humor but right now, they seemed to be searching for something, or someone in the corridor.

I was forced to looked away from his perfect features when I heard the sound of lockers shutting and saw everyone moving to their classes already. My best friend Liza had her locker quite far away from mine so she always went directly to class after getting her books and I would go to my locker but wouldn’t go to class till I had my fill of looking at him, because he was in a different section and I didn’t see him all day, ok! Let me live! It seemed, I moved when Nathan moved and nobody knew when Nathan would move. Sometimes he went away as soon as he got his books, sometimes he waited for the bell to ring, but he was never late, but it seemed like today would be different. Even when only a few people were left in the corridor, he didn’t move, but now he seemed more restless. I kept trying to act like I was looking for something in my locker but I was getting late, and anxious. I knew I should go, but I was also curious. What was he waiting for?

Just as I had decided to go to my class and convinced myself that Nathan Campbell wasn’t worth getting late for, another girl entered the school building. She looked like she had been running. It was raining outside and her hair was soaked in water, she fumbled around with her books to her locker opposite mine. She turned around and it didn't take long for me to recognise her, it was Melissa Brown. She was the high school queen who everyone loved and admired. Good at sports, great at studies, amazing at public speaking, talented at art, there was nothing Melissa couldn't do. And the worst part, you couldn't even hate her because she was the nicest person in school.

I turned to look towards Nathan again and saw him staring at Melissa as if she was the fairy Queen or something. Great! Of course he liked Melissa. The school's most famous and loved guy, and the school's most admired and adored girl, they were meant to be. I turned back and slammed my locker door shut, maybe a bit too strongly, and went to my class. Finding out about Nathan’s little crush on Melissa wasn't something I wanted to happen. I had my doubts but it would've been better if I could have continued living in denial.

Reaching class only 3 minutes late, I was safe because the professor hadn't come yet. I went and sat on my seat, alone, and put my head on my desk, staring off into space towards the windows. The light from the windows was blocked when someone came in front of it and stood staring at me. Of course, Adam. he couldn't leave a person alone, especially if they were moping around.

“'sup brainy!”, Adam pushed himself onto my seat, completely blocking the light so I couldn't see his annoying face, the only part of him I could really make out were his annoyingly perfect blonde hair “heard you broke your heart this morning”  I introduce to you, Adam Reynolds, Nathan's best friend, part-time school's lover boy and full-time idiot. Instead of Nathan or Liza, it had to be Adam that I shared classes with. And he had to be the one who noticed that I liked Nathan too, even before I told Liza, this guy was onto me. It took all my power to promise him to shut up about it and not tell Nathan. And now, it seemed, he had also found out what I saw this morning, as in, legit 10 mins back. How does he get news so fast!

“Go away 'drew. And stop calling me brainy, I just failed in two of our exams this time and have never been known to study for the last 5 years, so stop it.” I whined with my head still on the desk.

“Well, I'll stop calling you brainy when you stop calling me 'drew or Andrew or whatever, you know my name is Adam and that's it”

“I've told you before and I'll say it again, Adam doesn't suit you. You look more like an Andrew and that's what I'm gonna call you.”

“Then I don't care whether you're an actual nerd or not, I'll still call you brainy since 'it suits you more'”

“Alright then! Adam.” I said while squinting my eyes and trying to look as threatening as possible, “tell me, why is it, that you never told me that Nathan liked Melissa”

Adam's brown eyes widened and he stopped smiling. He cleared his throat nervously before speaking, “I was joking about the heartbreak thing, I didn't know something had actually happened”

So it was true! Tears stung my eyes as I realised that my crush of 3 years had gone to waste and I hadn't even properly talked to him ever, as friends or anything for that matter. “It's true then?” I asked Adam

“Yeah. He's like her for the past two years, I don't know why he never talked to her. Everyone knew they would have been great together, and Melissa seemed to like him back too.” He said, looking at me with pity. Wow! Adam Reynolds sympathizing with someone! That's a first.

“Why didn't you tell me?” I asked

“Because you never asked"

“Are you actually kidding me right now?!” I screeched and sat up really fast, Adam jumped back a little, surprised at my unexpected reaction

“ No no! I mean! He! He told me not to tell anyone! I'm his best friend you know, I can't tell his secrets to anyone. Just like I never told him yours, I never told you his. You know I couldn't have done that! Would you do that to Liza!?” He blabbered, trying to speak as fast as he could before I kicked him. It made sense though, it wasn't his fault. I sighed and put my head back on the desk “go away 'drew. I'll talk later”. He stared at me for a few more minutes, then nodded and walked away.

A/ N : I would like to mention here that this story is completely born from my imagination and has nothing to do with anyone I know in real life which means I may also be wrong about some things and will be glad to accept help. Be nice about it though 😅. Also, I realise, I might be dealing with a sensitive topic and hope I do not. offend anyone