Only what? I barely know the guy. Do I make a move or wait him out? After pining over Jackson for so long and getting nowhere, I feel incredibly inexperienced right now.
I am so out of my element and my league, but something is growing inside me, a desperate need to see what this is between us.
Crap. Am I blushing right now?
I sit beside him in complete silence with my heart racing until our detention is over. The bell rings and I grab my things off the desk before pushing back out of my chair. My phone gets slipped back into my jeans pocket and I make my way out of the classroom with Noah right behind me.
“I hope I don’t have to see any of you tomorrow,” Miss Jameson calls out as the students file out of the room.
Candice is waiting for Monica just outside the classroom, and the second I step out and they lay eyes on me, it’s like an all-out war. “Well,” Candice says, roaming her eyes over me and taking in Noah right beside me. “Look who’s trying to bag herself a man.”
I roll my eyes and keep walking, only they follow right behind us. “You know,” Candice continues with a laugh, “it’s kind of pathetic. You don’t belong in this world. You’re a loser. Why don’t you go find someone else to sink your claws into? You know, someone a little more your speed.”
Noah looks back over his shoulder. “Knock it off,” he tells her.
“Excuse me,” she sputters. “You need to remember who you’re talking to.”
That stops Noah in his tracks and within the blink of an eye, he spins around and storms towards her. Candice’s eyes widen a fraction, but for the most part, she holds her own. It’s like the king and queen of Haven Falls facing off and I don’t doubt who the winner will be here. “You need to remember who you’re talking to,” Noah shoots back at her, using her own words against her. She begins to shrink back from him and I desperately wonder what kind of look is on his face to make her react this way. “Leave her the fuck alone or you’ll have me to deal with, and I can guarantee, just one word from me and you’ll lose your fucking crown.”
Woah. I’ve been forgetting what kind of power he has around here, but he’s right, he could crush her and leave her as the school reject in a matter of seconds, and clearly, she realizes this. Candice narrows her eyes on Noah as Monica huffs and narrows her eyes on me.
I briefly want to hate on the fact that he’s standing up for me when for the past eight months, I’ve been standing on my own two feet. I don’t need his protection, but at the same time, it’s kind of nice knowing someone has my back.
Noah turns back to me, throwing his arm over my shoulder and dragging me away, only Monica and Candice storm past us in one last show of superiority before walking ahead of us towards the cafeteria.
Noah scoffs under his breath as they strut off in front of us, swaying their hips as though they’re trying to prove some kind of point. Though I don’t know if the point is supposed to be made to me or to Noah. Either way, it doesn’t seem like either of us really give a shit.
“You ok?” he murmurs, pulling his arm in a little closer, drawing me into his side.
“Yeah,” I laugh. “Trust me, that shit wasn’t even the tip of the iceberg with those girls. I can handle it.”
“But you shouldn’t have to.”
“It is the way it is,” I tell him. “That’s just the price you pay for being me. Kaylah and I have been dealing with it for years. Believe me, if there was something I could have done to make it stop, I would have already done it. This is just my life.”
“I don’t like it,” he says.
“I don’t exactly find it a walk in the park either, but I’ve grown a thick skin.”
“I can make it stop,” he tells me.
I give him a grateful smile. “I don’t mean to crush that big ego of yours, but I seriously doubt it. If Jackson couldn’t make it stop, nobody can make it stop.”
Something flashes in his eyes that I can’t quite place. “You know, the sun doesn’t shine out of Jackson’s ass right?” he questions. “He’s just a guy.”
“Yeah,” I sigh. “I know that now.”
“So, that’s…over?”
“Over?” I laugh. “Are you subtly trying to ask me if I like anyone at the moment?”
His only response is a wide grin before his phone buzzes in his hand. He looks down at the screen before grinning back at me. “Duty calls,” he says, evading the questions like a pro. “Got to go.”