condition I’m used to all this weird stuff. I doubt if I should even ask him.
Damian clenches a pencil , which he fiercely sways back and forth. Then he writes down something on a piece of paper and squeezes it in his hand until it’s crumpled. So I’m not the only one whose thoughts are somewhere else. No, the best time to ask him about all of this is not during class, but after. Chances are the teacher would interrupt me or Damian would pretend not to hear me. I have to wait until the bell rings and then walk after him again, just like last time. I need to speak to him again.
The clock is ticking, but time doesn’t seem to pass. I don’t dare look at him, because I’m afraid I’ll spill my secret, so I watch his c lenched fists. I can feel the friction between us, but I’m not sure yet if we attract each other or push each other away like magnets. Ever since that kiss I just don’t know anymore.
T he bell rings and I stand. I tell Lillian and Emma not to wait for me, because I want to ask the teacher something. Of course it’s a lie. The girls walk out of the classroom, while I wait at the door. Damian’s still talking to Joey Mason. They seem like friends, because for the first time in days there’s a smile on Damian’s face. They shake hands. When he turns toward me, I sneak out the door and wait in the hallway. I’m just in front of the door now, so when Damian comes out he’ll run into me. Joey walks out and doesn’t spot me. He walks through the hallway and turns a corner somewhere up ahead.
Damian com es out of the classroom. All I see is his unmistakable green shirt and his brown hair. I walk up to him as I take out the shredded diary from my backpack, ready for the attack. The paper in his hand is my weapon.
As soon as I’m close enough I pull the piece of paper from his hand. Immediately he turns around to look at me. Today he seems even more enraged than the last time we met, though I didn’t think that was possible.
“Give that back,” he says through clenched teeth. “It doesn’t belong to you.”
“Right, just like my diary doesn’t belong to you, in case you forgot.” I open the book and show him the inside cover. It clearly says ‘they’re real’ . I hold the paper he just wrote on next to it and compare the two. The crooked, hasty writing is almost unreadable. So I was right. The handwriting is the same. Then he snatches the paper away, before I can read what it says.
“You wrote in my diary , and that is proof.” I point at the paper in his hand. I seem to have struck a nerve, because his brows go up and his pupils get bigger. The hallway empties of students. My class will start soon, but I don’t care.
“Why did you write it?” I ask. “And what were you doing with Joey at the park yesterday?”
First he looks around to see if there’s anyone watching us, but we’re all alone. Then he comes closer to me. Instinctively I withdraw, bumping into the wall behind me. He pushes against my shoulder.
“Stop asking questions. It’s for your own good,” he whispers in my e ar.
Is that a threat?
“N o, I won’t stop,” I answer and bite my lip. He frowns and pushes himself off me. Then he marches away fast. Again I’m letting him slip through my fingers. I can’t, I have to follow him. When I try to go after him, Lillian and Emma stand in front of me, gawking.
“What are you doing, Raven? ” Lillian folds her arms. “You shouldn’t hang around Damian. He’s not good for you, not for anyone. Look at how he behaves,” Lillian says. “Your date obviously didn’t go so well. I mean, look at how he ran off. Just let it go, Raven.”
“Our date went fine. He’s just angry about something else,” I lie. “Wh y shouldn’t I hang around him?”
“Well, didn’t you see that house he lives in? His parents are wackos and drunks! And look at Damian: he ignores school rules, does what he wants and regularly disappears off the planet,” she says, circling
Damian clenches a pencil , which he fiercely sways back and forth. Then he writes down something on a piece of paper and squeezes it in his hand until it’s crumpled. So I’m not the only one whose thoughts are somewhere else. No, the best time to ask him about all of this is not during class, but after. Chances are the teacher would interrupt me or Damian would pretend not to hear me. I have to wait until the bell rings and then walk after him again, just like last time. I need to speak to him again.
The clock is ticking, but time doesn’t seem to pass. I don’t dare look at him, because I’m afraid I’ll spill my secret, so I watch his c lenched fists. I can feel the friction between us, but I’m not sure yet if we attract each other or push each other away like magnets. Ever since that kiss I just don’t know anymore.
T he bell rings and I stand. I tell Lillian and Emma not to wait for me, because I want to ask the teacher something. Of course it’s a lie. The girls walk out of the classroom, while I wait at the door. Damian’s still talking to Joey Mason. They seem like friends, because for the first time in days there’s a smile on Damian’s face. They shake hands. When he turns toward me, I sneak out the door and wait in the hallway. I’m just in front of the door now, so when Damian comes out he’ll run into me. Joey walks out and doesn’t spot me. He walks through the hallway and turns a corner somewhere up ahead.
Damian com es out of the classroom. All I see is his unmistakable green shirt and his brown hair. I walk up to him as I take out the shredded diary from my backpack, ready for the attack. The paper in his hand is my weapon.
As soon as I’m close enough I pull the piece of paper from his hand. Immediately he turns around to look at me. Today he seems even more enraged than the last time we met, though I didn’t think that was possible.
“Give that back,” he says through clenched teeth. “It doesn’t belong to you.”
“Right, just like my diary doesn’t belong to you, in case you forgot.” I open the book and show him the inside cover. It clearly says ‘they’re real’ . I hold the paper he just wrote on next to it and compare the two. The crooked, hasty writing is almost unreadable. So I was right. The handwriting is the same. Then he snatches the paper away, before I can read what it says.
“You wrote in my diary , and that is proof.” I point at the paper in his hand. I seem to have struck a nerve, because his brows go up and his pupils get bigger. The hallway empties of students. My class will start soon, but I don’t care.
“Why did you write it?” I ask. “And what were you doing with Joey at the park yesterday?”
First he looks around to see if there’s anyone watching us, but we’re all alone. Then he comes closer to me. Instinctively I withdraw, bumping into the wall behind me. He pushes against my shoulder.
“Stop asking questions. It’s for your own good,” he whispers in my e ar.
Is that a threat?
“N o, I won’t stop,” I answer and bite my lip. He frowns and pushes himself off me. Then he marches away fast. Again I’m letting him slip through my fingers. I can’t, I have to follow him. When I try to go after him, Lillian and Emma stand in front of me, gawking.
“What are you doing, Raven? ” Lillian folds her arms. “You shouldn’t hang around Damian. He’s not good for you, not for anyone. Look at how he behaves,” Lillian says. “Your date obviously didn’t go so well. I mean, look at how he ran off. Just let it go, Raven.”
“Our date went fine. He’s just angry about something else,” I lie. “Wh y shouldn’t I hang around him?”
“Well, didn’t you see that house he lives in? His parents are wackos and drunks! And look at Damian: he ignores school rules, does what he wants and regularly disappears off the planet,” she says, circling
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