Then & Now

Chapter One

LOGAN

Maisy Jacobs and I have never had good timing. She probably doesn't even realize this. Heck, I doubt she thinks about me much at all anymore, but I've known this to be a fact ever since I was fourteen years old and first laid eyes on her.

My family had just moved to Jasper County. It was my first day at Edison High School and I was far from looking forward to it. I was a shy kid and still resentful of the fact that my parents' divorce made me have to move in the first place, but my dad got a good deal on his cousin's garage here, and my mom wanted to travel with her new boyfriend, so it didn't matter what I thought.

My head hung low as I walked into class that first day. I wasn't looking for a fresh start, one was being forced upon me, and I missed everything about my old life: Atlanta, my school, my friends, my parents being together... Everything was different, and I wasn't prepared for it.

"Another one?" The heavy teacher let out a bothered sigh when she looked up and saw me standing at her desk. "I don't know where we're going to put you," she grumbled.

She stood up in a huff, like she was doing me some sort of favor, and took the my registration papers from my hand as she looked out over the crammed classroom. My eyes followed her gaze, watching as it stopped on the only available desk. It was a crappy seat near the back of the room, but I didn't care.

"Over there." She waved the paperwork towards the seat and shooed me off.

I walked towards the desks. Everyone was chattering and joking around, making the most of the few minutes they had before the final bell rang, and nobody looked up as I made my way down the aisle. It was like I was invisible, and I actually didn't mind. I wanted to be invisible. I wanted to disappear. I wanted to go back home. I kept my shoulders hunched and head down, not making eye contact with anyone. I didn't want to make any friends, and everything about me showed it.

A pencil hit my sneaker, rolling off onto the scuffed linoleum floor, and without thinking I bent down and picked it up. I turned my head and found myself staring at one of the prettiest girl I'd ever laid eyes on.

She had long brown hair, the color of chocolate, that swirled into a slight curl at the ends, and big green eyes surrounded by thick, dark lashes. There were a faint line of freckles across her nose, and a pink blush colored the cheeks of heart-shaped faced, which almost the exact shade as her full lips.

"Thanks." She smiled at me, flashing a set of braces before self-consciously closing her mouth again and taking the pencil from my hand.

The girls in the desks around her sputtered into giggles, and I found myself blushing too, even though my stomach exploded with feelings I didn't quite understand at the time.

I opened my mouth to say something, but the teacher's voice cut me off. "Mr. Stanfield!"

I spun around just as the final bell rang.

"You're not in this class dear!" She waved my schedule at me from the front of the room, appearing a whole lot friendlier than she had a minute ago. "You're next door with Mr. Higgins."

The class, of course, suddenly was quiet. I could feel everyone's eyes on me and heard someone snicker as I dropped my head again and slowly walked to the front of the room. But as I got led out the door I looked over my shoulder one last time at the girl.

I watched as a boy behind her tapped her on the shoulder and she turned around. Her dark hair splayed out around her as she pasted a big, sparkling smile on her face. It didn't look right though. It seemed almost too big, forced even, and I remember wondering why that was. The teacher started to shut the door on me, blocking my view of the girl, and I couldn't help imagine at that moment what could've been if I actually was assigned to that class.

By second period I found out her name was Maisy Jacobs. I rolled it around in my head all morning as I searched for her in the halls between classes. By fourth period I learned that everyone at this school either knew her, or knew of her, but it wasn't until lunch that I discovered that she was officially out of my league.

I sat in the back of the cafeteria, alone, eating my turkey sandwich, when suddenly a group of girls rushed the door, and there she was like a queen bee with her drones. The guys were almost worst. They did almost anything they could in an attempt to get her attention, shoving over each other to be the one lucky enough to sit next to her. It was like Maisy Jacob's was a prize and they all were fighting for her.

She played the part well- smiling, laughing, talking to everyone around her. She was a natural. But as the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch, and everyone buzzed around the cafeteria, throwing away their trash away and grabbing their books, Maisy just sat there for a moment. The smile slipped from her face and I watched as her shoulders trembled with a deep sigh. She was locked away in her own world and I couldn't help myself; I smiled for the first time in what felt like awhile.

And it was at that moment that I, just like everyone else in this town, fell under Maisy Jacobs' spell.