Turning pages ~ Charlie Jones (stereo kicks)

Chapter 13

Charlie's P.O.V

My eyes didn't leave the quiet, reading girl next to me when the bell rang for class. It was a free period, meaning that we didn't have to go anywhere. I noticed something move in the corner of my eyes and saw Cole standing up. "I've got to get to class Anna, see you later." He said, sending her a soft smile, which she returned; along with a small wave.

"Um, bye Charlie..." Cole muttered, I sent him a peace sign as he walked off. When I turned back to look at Annabelle, I noticed she was looking at me with an amused expression on her innocent face.

"
What?" I asked, raising my eyebrows at her. Instead of answering, she just smiled and shook her head in amusement. Confused, I pulled my phone out of my pocket and unlocked it by sliding my thumb across the screen. I saw that Casey had sent me a text, asking me for my whereabouts.

From: Casey -_-
Oi, jones where you at? You just left.

I glanced at Annabelle, who was engrossed in her book before typing in my reply.

To: Casey -_-
I'm with Annabelle. Before you say anything, we're not doing anything dirty -_-

I clicked send and slid my phone back in my pocket. Annabelle was still reading, a small smile evident on her face as she took in the words on the pages. As I watched her, I found the corners of my own lips twitching upwards into a smile. She looked so peaceful and happy when she was reading. Almost as if the book was taking her out of reality and into some amazing dreamworld that she enjoyed more than real life.

"Annabelle?" I whispered. Annabelle's head shot up and she let out a gasp, obviously I had made her jump. I chuckled slightly when she turned to look at me, a shocked expression on her face. "Sorry," I apologized before carrying on. "I just want to know, you're okay with doing this Romeo and Juliet project with me, right?"

Annabelle's face faltered for a minute before she nodded. She slipped her bookmark into the place she'd stopped reading at before turning to look at me properly. "Yeah. I mean, I do want to get a good grade by the end of this year. This costs of forty-five percent of our grade. I can't fail this. Not if I want to get into Yale." Annabelle explained, looking me sharply in the eye. I think when she said that, it was the sternest she'd ever spoken, and even then her voice sounded as calm as a butterfly on a summer's day.

"I suppose so." I mumbled, running my tongue across my lips; it seemed to be a habit to do that. Annabelle looked down at her fingers, before furrowing her eyebrows together and glancing back up at me. Confusion had drifted into her eyes and she opened her mouth to speak.

"Why are you still here?" Annabelle asked. "I don't mean to offend you, but why are you still sat here, with me? I don't even know why you came looking for me in the first place. You're Charlie Jones for goodness sake, why would you look for me? Annabelle Smith, the girl that lends people pencils when they forget them, the girl that holds doors open for people. Why me?"

I looked right into her sparkling, green eyes then. She blinked, snapping me out of the trance they had put me in and I let out a soft cough before speaking up. "I don't exactly know. You're interesting. I'd like to get to know you better." I said truthfully. Annabelle watched me curiously, as if trying to figure out if I was lying or not. Well, I wasn't lying, but I wasn't telling her the whole truth.