Turning Tables

The Unwanted Partner

The next morning was eventful, but it didn't start out that way. I woke up in a good mood with little remembrance of the things that happened the day before. Unfortunately, it all came rushing back after I made my way downstairs. I was ready to leave, so I grabbed my backpack on my way down. Once I was there, however, I was greeted by a too cheerful mother whose first question of the morning turned my good mood into a bad one.

"You're going to see Jake again today, right?" Immediately, the events of the previous day came rushing back so suddenly. My happiness felt like it shattered into a million pieces as I realized what I have to do. I put on another one of those fake smiles.

"Yeah. There's something I need to tell him about one of our classmates." My mother looked confused, but she didn't ask any more questions. On the way to school, I tried to formulate how exactly I was going to tell Jacob. As we pulled up, I gave my mom a quick farewell before making my way out of the car and to my locker. I was just closing my locker when a familiar face popped into my line of view.

"Hey," Lily said with a smile.

"Hi."

"So, have you told him yet?" She smirked at me and raised her eyebrows. I shook my head at her.

"No, actually. I haven't even seen him today." We began walking down the hall.

"Well, now is as good a time as ever. There he is." She pointed to a group of guys cutting up as they made their way through the hall. I spotted Jake amongst them and caught his eye. He smiled, but he didn't come over to see me. I frowned. "What's that about?"

"I guess he remembers what made him want to ditch me in the first place." Lily gave me a questioning glance. In response, I gave her the "don't ask" face. She smiled at me before I had to stop at my English class. I was a little early, but I didn't care. I waved goodbye to her before I made my way to the same seat I had the day before. Soon enough, Jake ran into the room. He was earlier than he was the previous day. He walked to the back of the classroom and sat in what I assumed to be his usual seat.

Eventually, Mr. Moore started class, and I actually had to pay attention. He was assigning the partners for the summer reading projects, and I was listening intently for my name. As Mr. Moore called out partners, I was hoping and praying that one outcome did not come true. Of course, he went through everyone's name except for two people. One was me. I'll bet you can guess who the other was.

"Okay, ladies and gents, you can move and find your partner. Once you're seated, I will begin by explaining the guidelines for the projects." I was about to grab my bag when I heard a voice from beside me.

"Hey, partner," Jake said as he sat in the empty desk beside me. I put on an unamused expression before turning to him. He rolled his eyes as he got settled.

"Please tell me how I got you as a partner out of all the people in this class." He smirked.

"I guess it's just fate telling you to spend time with me." I could tell he knew something he wasn't letting on, but I didn't push him to tell me. Besides, I wasn't that interested. I listened as Mr. Moore began explaining the guidelines for the projects. It didn't seem that difficult, so I figured I could finish it on my own if Jacob didn't pull his weight. Mr. Moore gave us the last ten minutes of class to start working on the project, so I actually had to talk to him.

"Okay, so the project is due Monday. That means we can work on it on Saturday."

"Wait, I thought we were going to do something Saturday." I smiled.

"We are. We're working on the project." Jake deflated with his mouth hanging open.

"That is not fair."