SOPHIE
I’m late for English.
This is not uncommon. I have a tendency to doddle at lunch. ‘Doddle’ is a word my mom would use when she wanted to call me lazy. I never use it out loud, but I use it a lot in my head.
So, I’m late.
I’m running through the halls (well, let’s be honest here, I’m not running. I’m walking. Casually. English doesn’t excite me, so I refuse to break a sweat to get there) thinking about what my excuse for being tardy will be, and I see him.
Carter Jax.
He makes my heart stop, he makes my breaths shallow, he makes me want to sing.
I know, super corny, right? But, agh, it’s true.
He’s not the most popular guy in school. He’s not the hottest guy to ever live. But to me, he’s everything.
I’m somewhat disgusted at myself for thinking such dramatic, girlie thoughts. But I can’t help myself. He rocks my world.
You know how parents always say things like, “If all your friends jumped off a cliff, would you jump too?”
Well, if Carter jumped off a cliff, I wouldn’t just jump off after him. I’d throw myself over the ledge and dive toward the earth below so I could catch up with him and hold his hand while we plummeted to our deaths.
Yeah.
I’m that much of a sicko.
So anyway, Carter’s in the hallway, looking at me with his quirky smile and an eyebrow raised. He’s wearing his faded jeans and blue T-shirt like he just stepped out of a magazine ad. And he easily could have.
Broad shoulders, square jaw, piercing gray eyes…everything about his appearance is picture-perfect.
Everything except the scars.
I feel my heart squeeze in my chest and immediately redirect my thoughts to happier things.
Like root canals.
We walk toward one another slowly. It’s just the two of us, no other students around, which is rare. We don’t typically run into one another during school, at least not when we’re alone. And that’s how we like it.
At school, we pretend we don’t know each other. It’s a silent understanding we’ve had for years. It keeps our school lives separate from our home lives and keeps us from going crazy. School is our escape.
As we near each other I absently inhale, welcoming the familiar scent of Carter’s soap. It smells like the ocean.
I’ve never been to the ocean, let alone breathed it in, but in my mind the ocean smells like Carter. Therefore, I love the ocean.
“Late again?” Carter smiles. “What’s your excuse today, Sophie?”
I love it when he says my name.
He knows me well, so he knows I’m always late for English.
“I’m thinking about blaming a faulty toilet in the girls’ room.” I say, as I tuck my hair behind my ear. I sound normal because I’m good at acting normal around Carter.
He smiles.
I melt.
The conversation goes on. “I wish I was in your English class. I’d love to watch your teacher lecture you on punctuality day after day..,” he rolls his eyes, “…after day. Poor guy.”
I smile back, because any other response (like jumping into his arms and kissing him) would be stupid. “Yeah, well, AP English is for us smarties. Aren’t you supposed to be in class right now too? Like, maybe Womanizing 101?”
Carter’s not the most popular guy in school, but he’s got some serious swagger.
I hate this about him.
I also love this about him.
“Ah, you know I don’t need any classes on women. I’ve got them all figured out.” He gives a cocky smile and I narrow my eyes at him, twitching my lips so I don’t smile.
He’s not cocky at all, but like I said, we pretend at school. We’re completely different kids at school. We’re normal kids.
“Really? Figured out all the anatomical differences between our genders finally?” I tease him because he lets me.
“Ah, you know very well I figured all that out years ago.”
No, actually, I don’t ‘know very well’. But I have ears and my ears know very well.
“Women,” he begins, puffing out his chest and speaking with authority,
I’m late for English.
This is not uncommon. I have a tendency to doddle at lunch. ‘Doddle’ is a word my mom would use when she wanted to call me lazy. I never use it out loud, but I use it a lot in my head.
So, I’m late.
I’m running through the halls (well, let’s be honest here, I’m not running. I’m walking. Casually. English doesn’t excite me, so I refuse to break a sweat to get there) thinking about what my excuse for being tardy will be, and I see him.
Carter Jax.
He makes my heart stop, he makes my breaths shallow, he makes me want to sing.
I know, super corny, right? But, agh, it’s true.
He’s not the most popular guy in school. He’s not the hottest guy to ever live. But to me, he’s everything.
I’m somewhat disgusted at myself for thinking such dramatic, girlie thoughts. But I can’t help myself. He rocks my world.
You know how parents always say things like, “If all your friends jumped off a cliff, would you jump too?”
Well, if Carter jumped off a cliff, I wouldn’t just jump off after him. I’d throw myself over the ledge and dive toward the earth below so I could catch up with him and hold his hand while we plummeted to our deaths.
Yeah.
I’m that much of a sicko.
So anyway, Carter’s in the hallway, looking at me with his quirky smile and an eyebrow raised. He’s wearing his faded jeans and blue T-shirt like he just stepped out of a magazine ad. And he easily could have.
Broad shoulders, square jaw, piercing gray eyes…everything about his appearance is picture-perfect.
Everything except the scars.
I feel my heart squeeze in my chest and immediately redirect my thoughts to happier things.
Like root canals.
We walk toward one another slowly. It’s just the two of us, no other students around, which is rare. We don’t typically run into one another during school, at least not when we’re alone. And that’s how we like it.
At school, we pretend we don’t know each other. It’s a silent understanding we’ve had for years. It keeps our school lives separate from our home lives and keeps us from going crazy. School is our escape.
As we near each other I absently inhale, welcoming the familiar scent of Carter’s soap. It smells like the ocean.
I’ve never been to the ocean, let alone breathed it in, but in my mind the ocean smells like Carter. Therefore, I love the ocean.
“Late again?” Carter smiles. “What’s your excuse today, Sophie?”
I love it when he says my name.
He knows me well, so he knows I’m always late for English.
“I’m thinking about blaming a faulty toilet in the girls’ room.” I say, as I tuck my hair behind my ear. I sound normal because I’m good at acting normal around Carter.
He smiles.
I melt.
The conversation goes on. “I wish I was in your English class. I’d love to watch your teacher lecture you on punctuality day after day..,” he rolls his eyes, “…after day. Poor guy.”
I smile back, because any other response (like jumping into his arms and kissing him) would be stupid. “Yeah, well, AP English is for us smarties. Aren’t you supposed to be in class right now too? Like, maybe Womanizing 101?”
Carter’s not the most popular guy in school, but he’s got some serious swagger.
I hate this about him.
I also love this about him.
“Ah, you know I don’t need any classes on women. I’ve got them all figured out.” He gives a cocky smile and I narrow my eyes at him, twitching my lips so I don’t smile.
He’s not cocky at all, but like I said, we pretend at school. We’re completely different kids at school. We’re normal kids.
“Really? Figured out all the anatomical differences between our genders finally?” I tease him because he lets me.
“Ah, you know very well I figured all that out years ago.”
No, actually, I don’t ‘know very well’. But I have ears and my ears know very well.
“Women,” he begins, puffing out his chest and speaking with authority,
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