The ride to school was not long today since we didn't have to give Quinn another ride. Lilith said she spoke with Quinn on the phone last night, and her car has been repaired.
After quick chitchat and new rumours for it seems to generate every day, the girls and I make ways to our lockers around In the hallway.
"Hey, I love your dress." Someone hug me from
Behind.
Turning, I find Evie in dungarees jeans. "You love my everything." smiling, I remind her.
"Who doesn't adore British?" She playfully winks, and I laugh while I shake my head.
I made sure I waved goodbye to Lilith, who's standing next to PDA Quinn and Harry.
Evie and I stroll to the half-filled class and situate ourselves in yesterday's spot. We discussed the number of notes I need to catch up on from the past week ago until the Modern literature teacher walked into the filled classroom, and everyone promptly focused attentively on her discussion about authors and what they've accomplished.
"Who can help us with the characteristics of Modern literature?" Mrs Murphy asks the whole class.
And my acquainted side reacts before my head approves—my hand was up. "Yes, you." Mrs Murphy beam.
"characteristics of Modern Literature can be categorised into individualism, experimentation, symbolism, absurdity and formalism," I state, not at all doubtful.
Smiling, Mrs Murphy nods. "Good, what's your name?"
"Ava Lancelot."
"Indeed, mother superior is definitely omniscient." A girl from front roll says, and everyone burst into laughter. Evie sends me an apologetic smile while I swallow the annoyance.
"Lisa, it would be better if you work on your drop GPA because you have only one shot In life ." Mrs Murphy calmly shoots back at the girl. with a smile, I watch her flare up and turn away. "So yes Ava mentioned, Individualism. In Modern Literature, the individual is more interesting than society. The Modern writers presented the world or society as a challenge to the integrity of their characters. Ernest Hemingway is especially remembered for vivid characters who accepted their circumstances at free value."
Smiling at my favourite subject, I continue to listen to Mrs Murphy explanation. "Irony, satire and comparisons are used frequently to illustrate points in regard to society."
"Excuse, can I please drop these to Ava?" A deep voice politely says to Mrs Murphy, A deep polite voice that I know.
Pressing down the blushing threatening to surge, I do my best to act neutrally as the figure of the tall, handsome, most popular student in the school appears by my desk, Leigh. He was wearing a brown leather jacket that made his hair shinier and popped out his lively green eyes. I stopped breathing as he stood by my desk. "Your tea." He says and holds out a purple mini thermometer Vacuum flask, and I force my hand to operate. "See you later." With that, he smiles and walks away.
Everyone in the class was frozen like the air had been knocked away from their lungs while I finally closed my slightly parted lip and regained my composure. Evie managed to whisper. "You know Leigh Boyce?" I nod once and focus back on the lecture or at least concentrate back on Mrs Murphy's moving lips. "Oh my gosh," Evie whispered, completely shocked.
***
"So, Ava, is it true you can drive from England to France via an underwater tunnel?" Suri asked.
"I've never tried that," I answer with a giggle, It's lunchtime, and all the four girls were at the table in the cafeteria, including Harry and some other boldface junior.
"What about Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh? are they really based on a real person?" Suri asked again.
Before I could answer, Quinn, lean over. "So it's true, Robin Hood was a real person... I could've married him."
"He's not the same as the movie Robin Hood, baby. I am." Harry answers her, appearing offended and within a second—another make out section begin.
"Eww, Gross." Embry rolls her eyes at them and continues eating and texting.
"Does your favorite dishes also include Spotted Dick, Bangers and Mash, and Toad in the Hole?" Suri curiously questions—staring at me.
Lilith covers her mouth with her palms, and Embry groans and moves her tray aside. "Thank you for ruining my lunch, Suri." Embry scowl. "All of you." She waves her hands around the table.
"But seriously, England most popular dishes include Spotted Dick, Toad in the Hole and Bangers and Mash." Suri pouted at her.
Harry and the other boy explodes with laughter while Lilith, Quinn and Embry struggle with their ruined appetite. I, on the other hand, continue to eat my lunch peacefully. "Seriously, hoe? How do you eat after that?" Quinn ask.
"She's British, of course." Suri smiled at me. Immediately I sip my tea, Suri added. "I heard there are more chickens than people in England."
Laughter rises to my throat, and the tea follows through my nostril, and instead to convulse with laughter—I choke. "Good Suri, now you'll kill her." Lilith blurts while patting my back as I cough nonstop.
I was trying to catch my breathing when another sudden occurrence froze me. Leigh showed up from nowhere and sat backwards beside me since I couldn't move since my breathing had finally ceased, and every hair in my body had risen. Leigh must figure I'm on reboot because he brings the bottle of water to my mouth and feeds me. I don't know if it's me, but the whole cafeteria was quiet, like you just press mute on a remote. All I could hear apart from the perfect sound of Leigh breathing that burns my exposed skin and makes the situation more challenging are low murmurs around the lunchroom. My half paralyse body consumed the water while the other half drooled a drip on my shirt. Leigh brought out a neat white napkin from his trouser pocket and hand over to me. "Here..." he presses his perfectly curvy lips to a straight line and beams at the tea flask he brought me earlier today—tea that tastes just like I wanted it. "English people consume more tea per capita than anybody else in the world." He smiles at me and stands on his feet. Playfully—he tousles Lilith's hair. That's when I noticed five boys had been standing behind for they follow Leigh as he stalks away from the room.
When the cafeteria became lively again, everyone's eyes were on me, that I suddenly wanted to hide under the table and wait until the bell rang and everyone was back to their classes. "Give me that." Before I realised what Embry was doing, she snatches the napkin away. Napkin that smells different than anything I've ever smelled, and now that Embry took it away, I feel like throwing a tantrum and burst into tears until she gives me back. Still, then again, I'm already mother superior—I don't want another nickname before school closes.
***
After my last class, Evie and I stroll to the lab to say goodbye to Lilith and afterwards walk to the car park. I already told her about my relationship with Leigh because I'm afraid of what these kids can generate. I've heard about numerous rumours that went wrong from Lilith and the girls already.
"So you ride with Leigh Boyce in that millions worth car every day?" She asked me.
"For this semester, Lilith's taking after school lessons."
"That's a huge success." She laughs, and I suddenly begin to blush. "I don't think he's ever let anyone ride in his car, even his best friends Arlen and Tyron, not even his little sister. . . He used to ride with Hailey. She was the only person in this school or the world entirely to ride in Leigh car until you." Of course, Lilith doesn't ride in low cars but hearing that. I accept it's really a huge success until the realisation hits me.
"Who's Hailey, and is she dead?" I remember the girls mentioning the name yesterday, and it seems like she's a past.
"No." Evie laughs louder. "Leigh used to date her since freshman year. I mean, she was his first and only love. But they broke up this summer break. she even went to the limit of changing school around meadows. . . No one knows who among them calls it off."
"Wow." I shrug.
Leigh does have a story. I suddenly want to know more about Hailey and Leigh. Who is she, where she leaves? The school she goes to. Does Leigh still love Hailey? I'm so curious.
Smiling, Evie says. "Teenage life be stressing."
"I won't blink to that." I laugh, suppressing my curiosity.
"I've been meaning to ask you, you should join the cheerleaders, you're slow in swimming, but you're flexible... besides the group, you all hang around with our cheerleaders."
I shouldn't be surprised, but I am. Lilith didn't mention it, neither did the girl. I thought Lilith was some science focus student only to find out she's also live for the school fun. "I don't think it's my thing, but thanks anyway," I tell Evie as we get to my ride at the lot. We say our goodbyes, and I slide into the passenger seat for the second time. Leigh was waiting for me already, so he made sure I fastened my seatbelt before pulling the gear on the drive.
"Thank you for the tea. It was delicious," I said when he didn't say anything.
He smiled and glanced at me for seconds while I stared at the boy whose heart shattered months or weeks ago. "Was I right?" He asks.
"What?" I confusedly ask.
"My earlier fact, was I right?" His deep voice travels through every angle and corner in my brain as the scent of him circulate my whole organs.
"Yes." I simply answered and looked away from his heavenly smile, only to dart my eyes on another white napkin on the centre console. "Can I have it?" I blurt out, surprising both of us.
"What?" He asks.
"Your napkin? Can I have it? Embry took the other one." I pathetically say.
Without a reply, he picks the white napkin and hands me. Our fingers slightly graze, and the sudden contact ignites something indescribable in me. With goosebumps, I hold the napkin tight in my hand, biting the smile that already appears on my face. In that moment of electrifying and undefinable emotion, my phone went off, and as presume, it was Sawyer.
"Hey, cousin." She said immediately I brought the cell phone to my ear.
Sawyer fed me in detail about her day and her ex, who keeps trying to make up. I tell her everything decent about today, excluding the fact that Leigh saved me from the mother superior title, the fact that he shows some non-innocent gestures that I believe to be flirty, the fact that I'm the only one to ride in his car apart from his ex, the fact that he's sitting beside me. I have a million butterflies in my stomach, the fact that I will keep reminiscing his looks when he drops me home.
I didn't tell sawyer not because Leigh was beside me but because I couldn't tell anyone that some strange feeling was occurring within me towards my mother's fiancé son. A feeling that shouldn't be there. A feeling that I know is wrong.
I could feel Leigh eyes on me as I told sawyer about today's classes and the food I ate for lunch, the people I came in contact with.
I hang up at the same time he pulls into the driveway. "I hope someday you will be able to tell your stepbrother everything about your day and don't miss a single detail." He says with a legit smile and innocent gaze below his thick eyelashes.
I try to find the wrongness in his words, but his face holds no repulsive intention. If anything, it was amicable. Lilith was right about Leigh. He's a good person. He didn't let his reputation or other success get in the way of how he treats people.
"I hope the same," I say to him and get out of the car. To my surprise, he followed behind me.
Tuesday, not only did Leigh came into the house, but he also stayed for dinner and went to bed without leaving the house. Tuesday, the place feels complete. I fall asleep with Leigh napkin melded to my nose as I sniff through his spicy flavoursome cologne that consumes my system and invades my dreams.