It had been a little over three days since Eva's little spat with Terrence but she'd still managed to avoid him.
When it came to Anna, Riley, Jessalyn and the three boys whose names she didn't know yet, however, there was no such luck.
And whenever Eva had met Jess's eyes, the girl simply looked away. She never took part in tormenting Eva along with her friends, but she did nothing to stop it either.
Eva didn't know why she always looked at Jessalyn when the group cornered her. It was as if she expected something... anything. But a part of her also knew she didn't deserve aid; how many times had Jessalyn tried befriending her? And hadn't Eva pushed her away cruelly each and every time?
She blinked, pulling herself out of her thoughts and focusing instead on her surroundings as she sat in Home Econ class.
Mrs Lenora had told them that most of junior year would cover the syllabus relating to food, cooking and home management. Finances, social services, and the rest of the syllabus was to be done in senior year.
Eva found herself actually smiling â that too, at something related to academics. Anything related to food and cooking she'd do with a content heart.
Maybe school would become an escape from the hell that was home, rather than an extension of it.
âCan we make red velvet?â a girl from the back asked excitedly.
The teacher grinned, but shook her head anyways. âSorry, we donât start off the year by giving you guys projects that are usually of a more experienced nature.â
âSo weâll be doing the basics?â someone else asked.
Mrs Lenora nodded. âWeâll start off with the basics like making the standard dough for bread and cake, and from thereon we can learn the fun stuff like using those doughs to make pizza and red velvet, or whatever type of bread and cake you prefer!â
Eva thought sheâd truly found heaven. If they were going to start with basics, she was far too experienced than these students. The mere idea of her being more knowledgeable and better at something than all these other kids made her grin so wide that Mrs Lenora actually blinked thrice before smiling at Evaâs reaction herself.
âIâm glad you seem to like the class, Miss Carter,â the teacher said in a pleased manner but all it did was wipe off the grin from Evaâs face.
Because it didnât matter that she was here, in Home Econ, about to do something she was passionate of. It would never be an escape.
Not when she had his name tied to hers. Not when he was always going to be a part of her.
---
It was during the last period of that day that Eva first laid eyes on him.
Sheâd been sitting at the very back of the classroom, chewing on the cap of her ballpoint pen, when the door had swung open.
The teacher stopped explaining something mid-sentence and everybody turned to see who the interrupter was.
Eva thought the black hoodie he wore with red draw cords dangling down his neck looked very familiar. Wait⦠this was the same boy sheâd run into the other day!
Her interest suddenly piqued, she focused her eyes on his physique, taking in the deeply set almond eyes and messy dark hair. He was quite tall too, and though Eva was a quiet girl, she wasnât blind. Her eyes did notice his well-built frame and she felt her cheeks heat up due to it.
It wasnât the first time sheâd felt this way towards a guyâ it wasnât the first time she could appreciate a guyâs looks. But something about this one boyâ¦
âYouâre a whole ten minutes late,â the teacher muttered with disdain, eyeing the boy like he was a dirty rag.
âAnd?â the guy asked nonchalantly, looking bored out of his mind.
A few of the students chuckled and Eva herself had to bite down on her lips to stop the smile. Something about his devil-may-care manner seemed to capture all her attention.
The teacher just let out a deep sigh. âSince this is your first day here, Iâm going to let it slip,â he said firmly. âBut try this again, and youâll find yourself in detention.â
The boy just rolled his eyes and strolled in as if he was taking a walk in the park. He commanded the attention of every single student in the room, and Eva seemed to like that. The way he was a natural at being domineering. At being powerful.
The boyâs eyes landed on the vacant seat next to her and for a brief second, he paused in his tracks and his eyes landed on hers. Evaâs breathing faltered. Her heartbeats quickened.
He tore his gaze away and began walking towards her, dropping his bag on the ground right beside the desk as he seated himself.
Eva stiffened at the unexpected turn of events, suddenly feeling all too self-conscious and overwhelmed that he was this close to her. She was used to being overlooked, but somehow, with this mysterious but intriguing boy sitting right next to her, she felt like she was going to be seen for the first time.
---
When the final bell had rung and Eva was walking down the hallway that lead to the main doors of the school, she felt a hand on her shoulder.
She whipped around, coming face-to-face with a familiar pair of pale blue eyes while at the same time her stomach coiled in discomfort at the gentleness of the gesture.
âHey.â Terrence smiled, but it looked hesitant.
Eva knocked his hand off her shoulder and frowned at him. âWhat?â
He sighed, throwing her a sceptical look. âYou canât still be mad at me?â
She raised her chin and fixed him with a steely look.
He sighed again. âI miss being able to talk to you,â he said quietly. âIâm sorry if I pissed you off, it wonât happen again.â
Something inside Eva tightened painfully. He missed talking to her? Even though its been only three days?
Its been eight years; didn't her mother miss her?
âWhy?â she asked suddenly. âAll we do is fight. All the time.â
He smiled crookedly then, the left corner of his mouth raised higher than the right. âI miss those too. I donât know whyâ maybe Iâm an idiot.â
Evaâs lips twitched, but she pressed them together, not letting herself return his smile.
âYou canât say stupid stuff to me,â she said slowly, as if deeply thinking about this.
He nodded, âokay.â
âOr t-touch me,â she muttered, cheeks flaming, âlike you did in class.â For a moment, she could recall his fingers slowly trailing down her cheek. It was so odd how soft Terrence was.
His cheeks seemed to turn a dark shade of pink and he looked away, not meeting her eyes. âYeah, yeah,â he muttered, looking like he needed to be somewhere else.
âOkay then,â she said.
He turned back to meet her eyes, âokay what?â
She offered him a tiny smile now. âYou can speak to me again.â
He grinned, âyou mean we can be friends again.â
Eva didnât say anything; she just shook her head to herself and started walking in the direction of the school doors.
Feeling like she was being watched, she lifted her head and found a pair of almond eyes on her.
The boy with the black hoodie was staring at her with a guarded look, as if there were a thousand things going through his head right then.
Eva felt her breathing stop for one long moment but then the boy turned away and walked out of the school, and her lungs began working again.
It seemed like this boy was going to be the death of her. But somehow that only drew her in more.
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Written on 21st July 2017
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