For the first time since transferring to the school, Mia Anderson was distracted. It was annoying. Very annoying. Normally, she paid attention in class. Normally, she finished her work early. Normally, she didn't spend half her day thinking about a certain boy with messy brown hair and an infuriating smile. Yet here she was. Staring blankly at her notebook.
"Mia."
No response.
"Mia."
Still nothing.
"Mia!"
Mia jumped.
"What?"
The entire classroom laughed. Her teacher raised an eyebrow.
"Would you like to share your answer with the class?"
Mia blinked.
"What answer?"
More laughter. Even Mia's cheeks turned pink.
"That's what I thought," the teacher said.
As the lesson continued, Mia rested her head on her hand. Something was wrong with her. Or maybe someone. The bell finally rang. Students flooded into the hallways. Mia gathered her books and stepped outside. Almost immediately, she spotted Aiden leaning against a locker. His hands were in his pockets. He looked completely relaxed. As if he hadn't caused absolute chaos in her brain for the past week. The moment he saw her, he grinned. There it was. That stupid grin. The one she secretly liked.
"Hey."
"Hi."
Aiden narrowed his eyes.
"You're acting weird."
Mia nearly laughed. The irony was unbelievable.
"I'm not."
"You are."
"I'm not."
"You are."
Mia rolled her eyes.
"You're impossible."
"Yet you keep talking to me."
Unfortunately, he had a point. During lunch, Mia sat with a few girls from her classes. The conversation quickly turned to relationships. A topic Mia desperately wanted to avoid. Especially when she noticed Aiden sitting across the cafeteria. Unfortunately, her friends noticed too.
"Mia."
She immediately looked away.
"What?"
One of the girls smirked.
"Why were you staring at Aiden?"
"I wasn't."
"You were."
"I wasn't."
Another girl laughed.
"You totally were."
Mia groaned.
"I'm literally just eating lunch."
"Sure."
The girls exchanged knowing looks. Mia hated knowing looks. They were rarely good.
"You like him."
"I don't."
"You do."
"I don't."
"You definitely do."
Mia buried her face in her hands. This conversation was a disaster. Across the cafeteria, Aiden looked over. The moment their eyes met, he smiled. Mia immediately looked away. The girls screamed. Not literally. But close enough.
"Oh my God."
"You smiled."
"No, I didn't."
"YOU DID."
Mia wanted the floor to swallow her whole. Later that afternoon, Mia headed toward the library. She and Aiden still had work to do on their presentation. When she arrived, she immediately noticed something strange. Several girls were gathered around Aiden's table. And they were clearly flirting with him. Mia froze. One girl touched his arm. Another leaned way too close. Aiden looked uncomfortable. Which surprised her. Usually, according to everyone at school, he loved attention. For some reason, seeing the girls around him made her chest tighten. A strange feeling settled in her stomach. One she didn't like. At all. Before she could stop herself, she marched over.
"Aiden."
His face immediately brightened.
"Mia."
The girls looked between them. One of them frowned.
"We were talking."
Mia forced a polite smile.
"We have a project."
Aiden stood up so fast he nearly knocked over his chair.
"Right."
The girls exchanged annoyed looks. Then, eventually left. The moment they disappeared, Aiden sighed in relief.
"Thank God."
Mia blinked.
"What?"
"They wouldn't leave."
"Really?"
"Really."
Mia looked suspicious.
"I thought you'd enjoy that."
Aiden stared at her. Then laughed.
"Wait."
"What?"
"Were you jealous?"
Mia's eyes widened.
"No."
"You were."
"I wasn't."
"You totally were."
Mia immediately understood how he'd felt when she'd teased him about Lucas. And she hated it. Aiden was enjoying this far too much.
"I was not jealous."
"Sure."
"I wasn't."
"Mhm."
Mia grabbed the nearest pencil and threw it at him. Aiden caught it effortlessly. His grin only widened. A few hours later, they finally finished the presentation. The library was almost empty. Outside, the sky had turned golden.
"We're done," Mia said.
"We survived."
"Barely."
Aiden laughed. Then a comfortable silence settled between them. Neither seemed eager to leave. Eventually, Mia looked at him.
"You know..."
"What?"
"I'm glad we're partners."
For once, Aiden didn't make a joke. Didn't tease her. Didn't smile smugly. He simply looked at her. And said quietly,
"Me too."
Something fluttered in Mia's chest. Something dangerous. Something she wasn't ready to name. Because for the first time since arriving at this school... Mia Anderson was beginning to realize she might have a problem. And his name was Aiden Scott.