by Seven Steps
I craned my neck, looking past the love-sick Chance and Lisa’s googily eyes, and glanced at Jake. He was too busy texting to notice me, but he would.
I hoped.
Butterflies rioted in my belly, and I placed my hand over my stomach to quiet them. It didn’t work. In fact, it seemed to irritate them even more and their frail wings flapped even faster.
Ms. Mitchell called out another set of names.
“Poppy Pritchett and Joshua Summers.”
My hands shook violently and I placed one under each thigh. I sucked in a deep breath, the scent of cool air and rich perfume filling my lungs. My fellow students didn’t walk out of the house unless they smelled like money. Me? I smelled more like soap and Bath and Body Works Tropical Flower body spray. Not nearly as expensive as their French perfumes, but I’d never received a complaint about it.
“Nadira Empress and Kiln Slave.”
Only four names left. It was happening. It was finally happening!
“Bella French and…” She gave a dramatic pause and my anticipation ramped up so much that I thought I’d die. “Cole Winsted.”
What? No!
My eyes widened, my heart dropped in to my sneakers and my back stiffened.
It couldn’t be right. I must’ve misheard her. She couldn’t have said my name next to Cole’s. It was impossible. I wanted Jake. Not his brother who I hated more than anything. Even snakes!
Ms. Mitchell looked up from her white sheet of paper and smiled at me, as if she’d done something wonderful. But, this was the furthest thing from wonderful. This was a nightmare.
I blinked rapidly and laid my palms flat on my desk. My breathing turned ragged. I slowly turned my head. In the far corner of the room, Cole was bent over his English book. When he heard his name, he looked up. His blue eyes locked on to mine and he winked at me. Winked! I suppressed the urge to bare my teeth and growl. I hated boys who winked. It was rude and pretentious. Come to think of it, winking was perfect for a boy like Cole.
I’d gotten my Winsted brother, all right. The brother that I didn’t want! This wasn’t fair. I was supposed to be partnered with Jake so that he could see how amazing I was; not with his douche of a brother!
Ms. Mitchell moved on, as if she hadn’t just shattered my hopes and dreams. As if she didn’t ruin my future.
“Jake Winsted and Dana Rich.”
Her words felt like a blow to the gut and I squeezed my eyes together.
Perfect. Not only had Ms. Mitchell saddled me with the wrong brother, but she’d put Jake with his ex-girlfriend.
I looked back at Jake, watching everything that I wanted slip away. He looked uncomfortable, like someone just asked him to stand in front of the entire school in his boxers. And Dana looked downright angry.
My head fell forward and I let out a breath. It was over. My signs had all been lies. I would never be with Jake. Ever. I’d never felt so disappointed in my life. So crushed. I breathed in slowly and let the air out even slower, fighting back the tears that threatened. It was like thinking that I’d won the lottery, then realizing that I was off by one number. My chest constricted. My heart tried to fold in on itself so that it wouldn’t feel the pain. I put my hand on my stomach. The butterflies were quiet now. Or maybe they were dead? Maybe that was why I was so nauseous?
It was bad that I wasn’t paired with Jake, but having him paired with Dana was even worse. She was beautiful with lots of money. Plus, they had been boyfriend and girlfriend for, like, ever. What if they got back together?
I had to give it one more try. Maybe this was just God throwing me a curveball. Maybe if I talked to Ms. Mitchell after class, she could re-assign the teams?
I had to try.
As Ms. Mitchell neatly folded her white sheet of loose leaf paper into fours and turned back to the blackboard, I rehearsed what I was going to say. When the bell rung, signaling the end of class, I jumped out of my seat and ran to her. Every word that I’d practiced in the last ten minutes was suddenly forgotten, and I resorted to the only thing that made any sense.
Begging.
“Ms. Mitchell, I wanted to be partnered with Jake. Not Cole!”
Red rose in my teacher’s cheeks. She adjusted her glasses and cleared her throat, her eyes glancing to the right.
I followed her gaze.
Cole had stopped to look at us.
No. Not us. Me.
Challenge and amusement swirled in his blue eyes. He was so cocky. I hated cocky.
“Relax, French. Maybe with my name on the project, you’ll get a passing grade for once.”
“I am on track to be valedictorian,” I argued, wanting to knock that smug look off his face.
He sucked in a breath through his teeth.
“Oh. I think you have it wrong again. You meant to say salutatorian. Honest mistake, given your grade point average.”
My body trembled with rage. God. He was infuriating!
“I’ll leave you two to talk about the project.” His eyes left mine and went to Ms. Mitchell. “Don’t worry. I’ll be proofreading her work to make sure it’s up to par.”
I sputtered. I never sputtered, but my mind couldn’t come up with the right words to tell him how angry he made me.
By the time he passed through the classroom door and stepped out of sight, I could only think of swear words, and I couldn’t say them in front of Ms. Mitchell.
I turned back to her, but she had already moved back around her desk, sat down, and shuffled a stack of papers as if she were about to deal a hand of poker. After a moment, her eyes looked at me with confusion.
“Did I misread the situation?” she asked, pushing her glasses up her nose and leaning forward.
“Big time. How could you do this to me?”
“I thought you wanted to partner with him. Every time I mentioned the project, you looked back at him.”
“I was looking at Jake!”
Ms. Mitchell’s brown eyes went from confusion, to understanding, to remorseful.
“Oh, Bella. I’m so sorry. I wish there was something that I could do.”
I jumped on the opportunity.
“There is.” I leaned on her desk, and gave her a watery frown. These weren’t real tears, but I wasn’t beneath sinking to theatrics to secure my future as Mrs. Jake Winsted. “You can reassign the groups.”
Ms. Mitchell put a pale hand on my shoulder.
“I’m sorry, dear, but no.”
“But, Ms. Mitchell-”
“Bella, I know it’s not what you wanted but maybe this is a good thing. Maybe it’s fate.”
“Jake is my fate. Not Cole!” I cried. My faux tears threatened to turn real as I saw my entire future collapsing. No wedding on my grandparents’ farm, no vacations to Mexico, no twin baby girls. No dog named Asland. It was all turning to dust.
I wanted to scream but through pure will and pride, held myself together.
Ms. Mitchell laughed soundlessly and shook her head.
“Oh, Bella. It’s not that bad. Give it a chance. You might find that you and Cole have a lot in common.”
“Like we both want to kill each other?”
“Like you are both human beings.”
“Ms. Mitchell, I’m sorry, but I can’t do this. I can’t be partnered with that chauvinistic jerk!”
Her face turned serious.
“Then you’ll fail the project, which, by the way, is two thirds of your grade this semester.”
This wasn’t my reading buddy now. This was my teacher. An authority figure. The woman who held my grades in her hands. I’d always liked Ms. Mitchell, but today, she’d made herself public enemy number two. Right behind Cole.
I rolled my eyes so hard that they felt like they would pop out. Anger blurred my vision and sent shooting pains through my head.
“Book club is over,” I growled. I snatched my book bag off the floor and stomped out the classroom, disappointed tears blurring my vision. I’d seen the signs. I’d hoped for so much. How could
this day have gone so wrong?
11
I found Cole at his locker, sorting through a stack of bulky textbooks. If I looked at him quickly enough, he could pass for Jake. Granted, Jake had blond hair while Cole’s hair was longer and ink colored. Also, Jake made my heart go pitter patter while Cole made me want to pick up a sharp object and stick it in his eye. Otherwise, they could be twins.
Cole looked at me, a smile pulling at his lips.
I scowled back.
“Ready to come and make nice?” he asked, crossing his arms.
I closed my eyes and let out a deep breath.
Stay calm, I told myself. Just stay calm and don’t let him see how much you hate him.
“I have come over here to work out when we are going to work on our English project.”
“Well, that depends. You know I have a very busy schedule with schoolwork and football and home stuff. I’m not sure that I can squeeze in tutoring you in English, too.”
“You’re not tutoring me in English!” I cried.
My hands balled into fists. What was crazy was, the madder I got, the bigger his smile grew. He was enjoying this.
Deep breaths, I told myself. Deep breaths.
“You should relax there, French. That vein in your head looks like it’s ready to pop.”
I wanted to pop him right in his stupid face.
“I will meet you at your house after school.”
“No can do.”
“What do you mean no can do?”
“Today’s no good. I got stuff going on. Plus, we can’t meet at my house.”
“Why not?”
He paused just long enough for me to know that he was lying.
“It’s being renovated.”
The bell was about to ring and I had no time to play Cole’s mind games.
“Fine. We will meet at my apartment tomorrow after school to go over the project. If we focus, we can have it finished in no time.”
“Are you sure? I mean, you have read Shakespeare, right?”
If looks could kill, Cole would be six feet under.
“Of course, I’ve read Shakespeare.”
“Like, have you read it or just watched the movie? Because if you’ve just seen the movie, I can-”
“Shove it, Cole!” I said it louder than I wanted to, but he was like a fly buzzing in my ear. Annoying. My thoughts turned murderous.
“Okay, but I’ll need dinner first.”
My mind processed what he was saying, and I couldn’t help but laugh. If Cole thought he would ever get near me in that way, then he was crazy!
I rolled my eyes at him and turned away, walking to my next class.
“Hey, French,” he called.
What could he possibly want now?
I turned around and he winked at me, his smile wide and annoying.
I gave him back a rude gesture before I whipped around and marched to French class.
This was going to be a long two weeks.
12
I thought today was a day of miracles, but as it turned out, miracles were overrated. After French class, my teacher, Mr. Coggs, informed me that he was personally signing me up for tutoring, effective today. My tutor would meet me in seventh period study hall.
I took the yellow slip from his hand and thanked him, while simultaneously hoping that his hair piece got snatched off his head by a near-sighted eagle. I should have felt bad about the evil thought but I was having a rough day. I had an annoying English partner, I was failing French, and I’d come to the depressing realization that Jake would never notice me, no matter how hard I tried.
On a scale of one to ten, this day was a negative eleven.
The only bright spot in my day was fifth period lunch.
Well, it was until I explained my craptastic day to Ariel and Jasmine, who immediately began hugging me as if I just told them that I only had twenty-four hours left to live.
“Don’t give up, sweetie,” Ariel said. “There’s always tomorrow.”
“No,” I said quietly. “I’m done.”
“Maybe if you wore something a little more grown up-” Jasmine began.
I raised a hand to quiet her.
“If you’re thinking that I’m going to throw myself at him again, you’re both crazy.” I chomped on my salad to emphasize how crazy they were for considering it. I may have been love sick, but I still had my pride. I was done talking about Jake, but apparently, my friends weren’t.
“Well, here’s some news that will cheer you up. I heard this morning that Dana’s declared that none of her friends can date any of Jake’s friends.”
“How is that supposed to cheer me up?”
“Well, now no one else can date Jake, either. That should help you feel a little bit better.”
Oddly, it kind of did.
“Where did you hear that?” Ariel asked. “I didn’t hear about that.”
“I overheard Dana, Stephanie, Mel and Ursula talking about it in the bathroom during third period.”
“Dana dictates who they can date now?” Ariel asked. “Those four sound more like a cult every day. By next week, they’ll be drinking cyanide-flavored fruit punch and wearing white robes with slide-on shoes.”
“It might as well be a cult the way they follow Dana around like she’s Gandhi reborn,” Jasmine said.
I looked over my shoulder at Jake just in time to see him make the cutest, goofiest face at his friends. Not only were he and Dana over, but she’d personally made sure that no other popular girl went near him. Why was God tormenting me?
Jasmine took another bite of her cheese sandwich, chewed and swallowed.
“The Fall Formal is coming up, and now none of the popular guys can ask any of the popular girls. Someone is going to crack.” Jasmine shook her head. “God help them.”
Their words swirled around in my brain, dragging my mood even further down in to a depressing pit.
“Are you all right, Bella?” Jasmine asked, raising an eyebrow in my direction. “You look paler than usual.”
“I’m just…” I stuttered, trying to make my mind work again. “I’m fine.”
Ariel nudged me with a knowing smile. “Still thinking of Jake?”
“No,” I lied, chewing on my thumb nail. “There’s nothing else that I can do. At least not without ambrosia, nectar and a flock of doves.”
Jasmine’s brows furrowed. “What?”
I shook my head. “In ancient Greek mythology, ambrosia and nectar transferred immortality to mortals. It made them gods.”
“But Jake isn’t a god. He’s just a boy. Granted, a hot, rich, insanely popular boy, but a boy nonetheless.” She placed a hand over mine. “Why don’t you go talk to him?”
My cheeks heated. She made it sound so simple but I couldn’t just go talk to him. I didn’t have the right words. Or the confidence. Or the wardrobe. Or any of the hundreds of things that Jake was, no doubt, looking for.
I chewed more fiercely on my nail and stole another look at Jake holding court at the popular table. The sole girl in his group was his sister, Regina. She was beautiful, with her long black hair, big blue eyes, a long, hour glass figure and perfect fashion sense. She was also notorious for disliking all of Jake’s girlfriends and actively showing them how much she hated them with her lies and her fists.
Cole was sitting near the other end of the table. He was laughing so hard that I could see the food in this mouth. Gross.
He caught me looking and opened his mouth even wider, showing me the chewed-up chicken.
Double gross.
I glared at him.
He winked at me.
I turned back around, tamping down my fury.
“Maybe we should head to The Center tonight,” Ariel said. She took a bite of her cheese sandwich and wiped a glob of mustard from the corner of her mouth. “We can let off a little steam and scope out the hotties.”
“I can’t,” Jasmine said. She stabbed her salad with a white spork. “Gymnastics pract
ice then volunteering at the animal shelter.”
“An animal shelter?” I asked. “Since when did you become Jane Goodall? You barely like your cat.”
Jasmine shrugged. “For the record, I love Raja. But my dad is freaking out about how my nearly nonexistent extracurricular activities will look on my college resume. He wants me to kick it up a little.”
“College,” Ariel groaned. She pitched her head forward, causing a mountain of red hair to fall forward like a crimson avalanche. “Don’t remind me about college.”
They had just begun to converse about how Ariel’s father refused to let her go to an out of state school when cat calls erupted from the opposite corner of the lunch room. We turned toward the sound.
“Evil Queen alert,” Jasmine announced. She was always the first one to spot them. Like a sixth sense or something.
Dana Rich, daughter of the famous actor, Martin Rich, and Jake’s ex-girlfriend.
Melanie ‘Mel’ Pleasant, heir to Zippy gasoline fortune and the queen of bad choices. Based on her visits to student guidance, I knew her life’s story well.
Stephanie Pleasant, Melanie’s cousin and granddaughter of the guy who created MTV.
Ursula Meyers, heir to the Meyer’s Shrimp and Stuff fortune, and cousin by marriage to Ariel.
We called them the Evil Queens. Everyone else called them the four most popular girls in school, led by Dana. Their Alpha. Their Leader. Their Goddess. If Dana jumped off a mountain, I was sure that Mel, Stephanie and Ursula would follow her like a herd of lemmings.
The four girls in their too short skirts and trendy tops were the furthest thing from invisible in this school. I swore spotlights followed them wherever they went. They walked through the lunch room with confident strides and sat at a table next to Jake’s. Just as Jasmine had said, there were now two popular tables. One for the boys and one for the girls. The boys, mostly jocks and Regina, sat with Jake. The girls, mostly cheerleaders, student council members and generally beautiful people, sat with Dana.
“Dana said that even fraternizing with Jake’s friends was punishable with banishment from the girls table,” Jasmine whispered. “She’s already kicked out Julissa Torrington for not breaking up with Chad Jackson.”