Crazy In Love (Crushing Hard Series Book 1)

Dear Diary 24/01/2012

22:15 PM

Ah, what a day! I saw my beloved. My God, my memory hadn't done him justice. You know that feeling when you haven't seen your crush in ages, and your memories of them start to blur? Soon, you begin to think, "I must be over this person; his spell has completely worn off."

Then you see them, and it's like your memories were captured on a black-and-white TV, while he appears before you in stunning HD.

Let me start from the beginning:

This morning, I woke up, slipped into my uniform-a black skirt and a navy short-sleeved shirt-and felt invincible as I pinned on my Prefect badge. Caitlin and her mom picked us up at 07:10 AM. Caitlin was excitedly recounting her vacation in Spain (I couldn't exactly share that I spent most of my holiday completely wasted).

Caitlin wasn't conventionally beautiful; she had flushed skin, a wide smile, and curly brown hair. Her hearty laugh was infectious, making you want to laugh along with her. When we arrived at school, Caitlin looked at me and Mondli and said,

"This is our last first day of school."

I felt a wave of emotion wash over me, realizing that we would all be heading off to university-or wherever life would take us-next year. Caitlin kept repeating this fact to everyone we encountered, driving the knife deeper into my heart with each mention.

The other prefects were gathered outside on the benches, and we exchanged warm hugs as we greeted one another. Amy and I embraced for what felt like ten minutes until Dean intervened, pulling us apart with an exasperated sigh.

"Stop! You guys saw each other last week," he said, dragging me away. I couldn't help but pout in response.

"THANDI!" someone shouted, and before I knew it, I was knocked backward as tiny arms wrapped around me.

"Billie???" I exclaimed, hugging her back tightly. Billie and I had been inseparable since the first day of Grade 8. She is a short Indian girl with big hair and an even bigger intellect. We complemented each other perfectly: while I was crazy, wild, and unpredictable, she was calm and rational. More importantly, she always allowed me to shine.

Cassandra, Scott's girlfriend (ugh), peeked out from the Prefects room and called us all inside. Her eyes locked onto me, and she rushed over.

"Thandi!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around me. "So good to see you again! I heard you had a nice holiday." She linked her arm through mine. Cassandra was a petite thing, her hair a wild mass of brown curls-perhaps her only redeeming quality. Sigh. Okay, I'm being a bit harsh. She's pretty, if you're into that whole insect look.

"Yessssssss! But how was yours?" I asked brightly, putting on my best enthusiastic face.

"Oh, I went camping with Scottie's family. It was amazing-"

"So amazing!" I gushed, completely over the top. I deserved an Oscar for my performance.

"-and I spent Christmas and New Year's with his family, so it was really incredible-" She chattered on as she led me into the Prefects room. And then, everything shifted into technicolor. There he was: Scott James, sprawled on the couch, looking like a teenage James Dean.

My heart raced.

It was Scott, in the flesh.

He had a new haircut! Normally, his hair flopped over his eyes, but now it was styled neatly. Even sitting down, he exuded a tall, masculine presence-not overly muscular, just nice and lean, being the first team rugby captain and all. His jawline was sharp and angular, and he sported a hint of five o'clock shadow.