Looking For You

Chapter 23 - Impression

Chapter 23 - Impression

“You know who I ship you with?”

Early in the morning, you would see me rushing to get ready for college — putting on my usual makeup, brushing my hair to perfection and cleaning up the mess that Tibby and I would have created amongst ourselves. But right now, I sit cross-legged on my bed, Tibby mirroring my position on her bed. She stirs my mind with her unusual statement, thinking what on earth could she mean?

“Who?” I ask, cocking my head to the side. I stuff my intertwined fingers in my lap, warming them up from the cold air that drifts in the atmosphere. Last night, I had gotten back to Raleigh around ten thirty, being completely exhausted from the two hour drive. My eyes still hold dark circles beneath them, only being lessened from the makeup I caked on.

“Mason Campbell.” The name Tibby says rings a few bells, remembering him to be in my English class. I have never really taken notice of him because he’s always hanging out with the popular people and I automatically move my eyes away from the majority of the group whenever I see them. But why would Tibby ship me with Mason when we haven’t even talked?

I scrunch up my face, creating a mental picture of him in my mind — he’s the tall guy with muscles. He may look like a typical popular guy, but I heard he’s really nice and smart. His tan skin compliments his brown hair and eyes, giving him a bold look every time he comes around. I still don’t see how Tibby could’ve paired us up randomly. “But why?”

Tibby smiles, biting her lip as she does so. “Well, I can just picture you two together and I like what I see.”

Her words leave me slightly annoyed. She knows that I like Christian and here she is shipping me with another guy — a guy I have never even talked to before. What if Celine is behind all of this? What if she told Tibby to tell me to go for another guy so she could have Christian all to herself? The thought of that rises anger within me, forcing me to raise that suspicion.

“Is Celine behind this?” I ask mysteriously, tilting my head forwards. Tibby immediately shakes her head, changing her expression to an innocent look. “No, no, this has nothing to do with Celine. It’s just a thought that came to my head. And anyway, sometimes I see Mason checking you out every time we walk through the halls.”

“What?!” Outrage comes to me before I can stop it. Finding the amusement behind all of this, I chuckle at the end of my outburst, feeling totally shocked by what I’m hearing. Tibby laughs with me, lightening the mood. I just don’t really know how this conversation has ended up with random guys checking me out without me knowing. I feel flattered all of a sudden and a smirk creeps up onto my face.

“But you know who I like.” I add in, recovering from my laughs. The room becomes silent and Tibby nods, noticing my disapproval of her suggestion. “True.”

A few more moments pass before we head off to first period after turning the lights off and locking our dorm. I come to a standstill when I look at my timetable and see that I have English first up. And Mason is in my English class. Ugh, what a coincidence.

Scurrying past the usual group of students in the halls, Tibby and I part ways to our lockers where I grab my books and add them between my arms and my chest. I head over as fast as I can, not even bothering to see if Christian is at his locker. I wonder if he came back to Raleigh safely? I haven’t even seen him since yesterday, but I suppose I was locked in my dorm until five minutes ago.

Stepping into my English class, a few students scatter the room, leaving empty seats here and there. I take one towards the back, settling my books down on the desk as I nestle in my seat. I read over the notes that Mr. Holloman writes up on the board, remembering that we will be presenting our speeches today about our chosen topic about politics.