Heartbreaker (Mileven AU)

first conversation

Jane was distracted all night, wondering what she was going to do. Her father sent her strange looks as she pushed around her dinner absentmindedly, a small frown on her face as she tried to come up with some kind of plan. She could not fail this challenge, that was for certain. After all of the things said about her, she wanted to prove them all wrong, especially how they said that nobody would ever love her. 

She chewed on her bottom lip, smiling when her father asked what was wrong. "Nothing, Dad. I'm okay, really."

He watched her carefully. "Kid, you seem anxious. Something going on?"

Jane tried to stop her eyes from widening. Her father always seemed to know when she was lying and he could tell from a single look on her face that she looked guilty about something she had done. When she was little she would get into trouble but her father would immediately know, always telling her to come clean about what she had done. 

"No" she mumbled, "...just nervous for a test, that's all."

Miraculously, he seemed to believe her as he ruffled her hair, telling her that he was always there if she needed help. Jane let out a sigh of relief, letting her mind wander back to wondering how the hell she was going to go about this. 

It was clear that Mike Wheeler was not your average boy. He didn't waste his time worrying about girls and would never be seen at parties, always with his head buried in a book or playing nerdy video games. Jane knew that she wouldn't be able to just walk up to him and ask to be his girlfriend, she had to be more stealthy than that. If she walked up and kissed him, she would worry that he would have a heart attack or faint from panic, not used to having so much attention from girls with his freckles and dorky sweaters. She needed to take her time and befriend the dork, something which already had her dreading the next day at school. 

A real conversation would be a good starting point. 

Jane tapped her foot anxiously throughout class, panicking inwardly at what she was going to do to grab Mike's attention. When she remembered the pencil clasped in between her fingers, her eyes lit up and she turned to him at the end of class, tapping his shoulder gently. 

Mike spun around, his eyebrows furrowed but his dark orbs wide with confusion as he scanned her, almost thinking that she was going to yell at him. 

Her voice came out softer than he imagined. "Thank you for the pencil."

He stood there awkwardly for a few moments, his mouth parted as if he didn't know what to say. His friends nudged him with strange expressions, motioning to the door where they were probably going to their lunch period. Mike nodded, motioning for them to leave and turned back to Jane with guarded eyes, his words coming out in stutters. 

"Y-You're w-welcome."

Jane tried again, "You're Mike, right?"

Mike gulped slowly, thinking that she was going to start accusing him of something. He knew exactly who Jane was, the girl that everyone stayed away from because she was cruel. He tended to avoid conflict, not caring enough about rumors to continue spreading them, he just tried to stay out of everyone's way unlike his friends. "Yeah...and you're Jane."

"That's me" Jane played with her bag nervously. 

Mike frowned. "Why are you talking to me? You never talk to me."

She gritted her teeth slightly but plastered on another smile. "I-I just wanted to say thank you for always giving me a pencil. I came to give it back."

Mike stumbled over his words. "B-But...I-you..you never give it back. You always leave it on the table for me to take at the end of the d-day..."

She tried not to roll her eyes and shrugged. "Well...I thought it was about time I said thank you properly, you know?"