CONTRADICTED STARS || L. PARTRIDGE [1 | EDITING]

O6. Rot In Hell, Partridge

OUR SHOULDERS brushed the second he placed himself next to me. It was a quick unpleasant feeling that I had to stop it immediately. I took a tiny step away from him and fixed my gaze back to the woman.

"All right. Almost forgot about you, Miss Cabrera," Miss Doehren announced as she fixed her gaze on me. I smiled in return before she continued, "You and Mr. Partridge right here have quite the colourful history with the media. It's nice you two decided to follow each other in Brixley. I expect no trouble, and a spotless Brixley name in your hands, because I will keep a very close watch." She squinted her eyes at the both of us, making the tension rise, but thankfully, as quickly as that, she immediately created a segue on the topic, "You are from the Philippines?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Before I forget, my name is Amybeth Doehren. The headmistress. I prefer to address me as Ma'am or Miss. Now, each of you are assigned to different houses. We have six. Ataraxia, Wysteria, Grecia, Athena, Estellion and Clayton."

So, this is like Hogwarts? Is there a hat for the sorting ceremony? Is it going to talk and tell me I'm stupid and that there's no place for me?

"Unlike Harry Potter, we assign you randomly by a generator. When the tour is finished, you will have to take your schedules from the office. My assistant, Laura Pine will be there."

"State your names and she'll hand them right to you along with your uniforms which are the number one rule. Take it off, detention." Miss Doehren added.

"Mr. Partridge, Ms. Cabrera, please pick those papers up and shove them in the bag. I assume that a little teamwork will get the job done."

We both looked at the scattered records before looking at each other and turning our heads away.

"It's a free day today. So, you'll have all the time you need for the tour. I'll assign Armani Hooves to take care of you both. Other students whom I did not mention, come and follow me."

They didn't have to wait longer to start walking away, leaving me behind with the same boy I despised so much. I just want this to be over quickly. And so, I started picking the scattered papers one by one. I can feel his tempting warmth a little nearby and I really can't get myself to focus. It was awkward, like I want to melt away or fade along with the wind, but I kept finding myself wanting more and more moments like this.

I shook my head, throwing away the distasteful anticipations. Perhaps it was the coffee I drank earlier. The back of my head felt weird. It has been a long while since I ever felt like this. The feeling of being watched.

"Can you please stop staring?" I said and went back to doing the task given. I heard him clear his throat for the second time today before copying my actions. Soon enough there was only one.