The Secrets of Clara Hayes

Polar Bears

Hi everyone! First Author's Note! Yay! So I've decided to dedicate this chapter to SarahBensonBooks, the very first vote and comment of this story! Comment and vote! Thanks!

- Emma

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"I'm gonna do it." Clara stated confidently, closing her locker with a hearty slam.

Sabrina gave her a quizzical look.

"You're gonna do what?" She asked, leaning back against the lockers beside Clara's.

Clara sucked in a breath of air and gave her friend a bright smile, saying,

"I'm going to talk to Kayden."

It had been about a week since Kayden first showed up in her Science class, and she told Sabrina about him and how he was constantly looking at her, when she was looking and when she wasn't. It was like he didn't care if she saw him staring. So Clara decided it was time to talk to her somewhat-admirer-but-not-really.

She had decided the night before, when she was trying to do a sketch of Benny curled up in a ball, but she couldn't concentrate because all that she could think of was Kayden's eyes staring at her, unblinking.

She had thought back to her little low-self-esteem moment and thought to herself, Well obviously there's something about me that Kayden finds attractive, or at least interesting. Or else, why would he be constantly staring at me, right?

Sabrina blinked.

"You're gonna talk to him? Like, converse words with him?" Clara gave her a weird look.

"Yeah." She dragged out the 'a', showing her slight confusion.

Her friend's eyes widened and she raised her arms to the sky and cried,

"Thank you, God, for answering my prayers! Clara Hayes is finally going to talk to a boy!" Clara, blushing furiously, tugged on Sabrina's arm and pulled her down the hallway.

"Stop it! You're making a scene! And it's really not that big of a deal." She said, making sure no one was staring at them.

Sabrina gave her a 'are you serious?' look and sarcastically said,

"Hi, I'm looking for my friend. Her name's Clara, and she has sworn off boys because she thinks they're repulsive, immature, apes-"

"I have not sworn off boys!" Clara exclaimed. "I just haven't set my standards yet."

Sabrina rolled her eyes and muttered,

"Yeah, that's it."

Carefully dodging a cluster of girls, Clara stated,

"Well, I'll have you know that in the third grade I held hands with John Kilst."

Sabrina snorted and said,

"Yeah, for the class play! That doesn't even come close to counting, Clar."

Clara tried to remember any other time she'd intimately talked to or touched a boy that was not related to her, but came up blank.

"Fine, so I haven't liked boys before," She admitted. "So what? I'm broadening my comfort zone."

Her friend gave a low whistle and said,

"Wow, this guy must be pretty special, huh?" Clara jabbed her elbow into Sabrina's side and continued on her way to Science.

Ignoring the sound of Sabrina laughing, she turned down into the Phys. Ed hallway, speed-walking her way through the hall in case she saw Cameron again, but luckily he wasn't in sight, most likely already in class.