I̶n̶f̶a̶t̶u̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n

Chapter 3

            My jaw felt as if it was on the floor and I had to tell myself to calm down. I sat straight in my chair and looked directly at the front of the room, avoiding eye contact with him. There was weak applause throughout the room and, as Mrs. Neal pointed out a seat for Vince to take, my insides twisted. My hands felt clammy and my mouth was very dry. The seat she'd pointed to was right beside mine. I tried regaining my composure but as soon as his body brushed past mine, I knew my efforts were futile. Once he had sat, I risked a glance over at him.

He was relaxed, legs sprawled out in front of him in a V. His faded red sweatshirt hung loosely around his body. His shoulders were broad and there was a small vein that ran down the side of his neck. He was fair-skinned with a few freckles dappled across the bridge of his nose and along his under-eyes. His hair was a mix of blonde and brown and it was cut short, but not too short. And his eyes... I blushed as I realized his eyes were looking into mine.

Flustered, I quickly looked to the front of the room where notes on conjunctions were written for us to copy. I pulled out my notebook and, in doing so, accidentally knocked one of my books onto the floor. When I leaned over to grab it, so did Vince. Our faces were inches apart and I could smell mint on his breath. I will win your heart.

I sat up, book in hand. This was going to be a long class.

When the bell finally rang, I gathered my stuff and entered the stream of students on their way out. When I reached the hallway, I saw something out of the corner of my eye that caught my attention. Someone was pushing their way through the crowd in my direction, knocking people aside on their way. I froze when I heard my name being called out from the mass. A hand clasped around my write. Turning around, I saw Vince.

"Chanse, I've been wanting to talk to you all morning." There was a look in his eyes I couldn't quite place, but I knew I didn't like it. I shifted uncomfortably.

"What do you want, Vince?" I asked.

"I had to see you."

"Well, you saw me, so now I need to get to class." I tried to walk away, but he tightened his grip.

"At least let me stick around. I'm new here, remember? Can't I just stick around so you can show me where my class is?I just need help navigating around. Please?"

I sighed and rolled my eyes. He let go of my wrist and I pulled it close to my body. "Fine, I'll take you to your next class, but I have to stop by my car first. I need to grab my things."

"Okay," he agreed, "then we'd better hurry."

I nodded and began pushing my way through the crowd again. It didn't take me long to get to my car and, as I collected my things, I was all too aware of Vince beside me. Turning, I saw Vince leaning against the side of the car, one of his feet propped against the back tire. His eyes were focused on the sky and I felt myself wondering about him but stopped myself. I was going to point him in the direction of his next class and that was it. After that, I wouldn't have anything else to do with him, I told myself.

I cleared my throat. "Ready?" I asked.

"Yep," he replied, a smile creeping onto his lips. "Let's go."

We jogged back to the entrance and my breathing was slightly escalated by the time we got there. I suddenly felt self-conscious about my appearance, thinking for sure that my face was red.

"So, what class do you have next?" I asked, tucking a piece of hair behind my hair.

"Biology with Mr. Rosamond, if I remember correctly,"

"That's actually my next class, so I guess this worked out well."

"Yeah, I guess it did."

"Well," I began, trying to walk ahead of him, "Mr. R hates it if we're late, so we'd better pick up the pace."

"Of course."

Most of the students were already inside their classrooms by now, so the hallways were basically empty, making it a lot easier to move around. Pausing at the door to regain my composure, I looked at Vince. His face was unreadable, but it wasn't cold like Evan's was most of the time. He wasn't trying to hide anything, he just didn't have anything to show. He winked at me, a gleam in his eye. Before either of us had a chance to say anything, I opened the door and walked inside.

Cutting it close yet again, the bell rang only a few steps across the floor. I slid into my seat and Vince sat in his which was, yet again, next to mine. Our eyes met and he gave me a small smile. A genuine smile. I offered one in return. He was looking at me. I was looking at him. This time, I didn't bother to look away.