"True love doesn't exist, does it?"
Lizzie Walter has struggled with the belief that love could actually exist. After her parents' failed relationship, Lizzie prefers to stay with her best friend, avoiding making new friends. When she ends up being...
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Thanksgiving break had passed quickly, and spending the evening with Hunter's family went well. Jason was pretty much a mini Hunter, while Hunter himself took after both his parents, from his father's slightly competitive nature to his mother's comforting nature.
Going back to school was boring. Skylar and Oliver were closer than ever, having hung out most of the break, except actually on Thanksgiving. As well, Harper had started talking to Logan even more, one of our late night calls was mostly spent with me laughing at her while she ranted about the mixed signals he was giving. I hid my smile behind my hand as I tried not to burst out laughing at her frustration.
She had a simple option; continue waiting for him to make the first move, or she could woman up and do it herself. My best friend chose the former- obviously or she would have a boyfriend by now.
I shook my head slightly while slamming my locker closed, only to flinch backwards at Hunter's wry grin from his position at the locker beside mine. I arched an eyebrow at his appearance, shifting away slightly to start walking towards my first period.
"Good morning!" Hunter chirped, his enthusiasm seeping into his voice. I gave him a small smile.
"Morning," I murmured, sleep still evident in my voice. My eyes drifted to the ground as we walked, raising one of my hands to cover my mouth as I yawned.
I was pulled to the side by a hand on my elbow, and I glanced up in surprise to see Hunter bite back a snarky comment at the guy who almost ran into me. Instead, he settled for a low, "Watch it."
The guy turned around slightly, scoffed, and continued making his way down the hall. Hunter straightened, opening his mouth to call something at him. I gently rested my hand on his shoulder, giving him a small shake of my head when he met my eyes.
It took a moment, but I could feel the tension leave his body while my hand rested on his shoulder. His eyes were still locked with my own, and I could feel heat rushing to my face. Hunter glanced away from my eyes for a moment, shooting a glance lower before his gaze returned to my eyes.
I felt my face turn red for a moment, before I stepped away from him to continue walking, "C'mon Hunt, we're going to be late!" I smirked slightly as his rushing footsteps from behind me, still trying to calm my flaming face.
***
The lunch bell rang, and I waited for a few moments before getting up, having no desire to get stuck in the throngs of students rushing to get to the cafeteria. Once the last few people had trickled out, I followed, glancing down at my phone for a moment to see a message from Harper, letting me know she had brought some leftovers to share with me.
It was fairly easy to find a path towards the table, most of the other students having to rush forward toward the bustling line. The table itself had filled up for the most part, many of the football players and some of the cheerleaders had taken to joining us during lunch, causing the table to become the center of attention due to the noise.
Skylar had also opted to sit beside Oliver, causing Hunter to switch sides to sit on my other side, Harper still on my right across from Logan. Harper had her head lowered, opening up her backpack while grabbing out her sandwich bag with the leftovers, a small smile gracing her lips while listening to Logan explaining something over the table.
Oliver and Skylar were slyly holding hands under the table again, Oliver ducking his head close to hers to whisper something that made her blush occasionally. I felt a nudge on my hip, turning away from Harper while taking the offered slice of cold pizza. Taking a bite, I looked at Hunter with a brow raised, to which he responded with a grin.
I rolled my eyes, swiveling back towards Harper for a moment, before there was another jab in my side. I stifled a yelp, shooting Hunter, who gave me an innocent smile, a glare. He leveled with my glare, his smug grin holding strong on his face. Rolling my eyes once more, I chose to ignore his attempts at getting my attention if he didn't want to have an actual conversation, let alone while I was eating.
There was a loud thud from the other side of Skylar as a lunch tray was slammed to the table beside her. I flinched, glancing over slightly at the broad shouldered, tall, blonde haired boy who had plopped down beside Skylar. I watched as she shifted into Oliver, who slipped his arm around her waist, moving both of them over towards Logan, who rolled his eyes at first before he winced as there was a thud under the table. Looking over, there was a sly smirk on Harper's face, and Logan levelled her with a mock glare.
The guy settled himself there, turning away from us and facing the posse of cheerleaders surrounding Melissa Brown, cheer captain and resident popular girl. It wasn't long before that side of the table was full of loud chatter, and I ducked my head down, slightly scooting towards Harper, leaving a small gap between Hunter and myself.
It wasn't long before the guy turned towards us, glancing over the boys and shifting his gaze to land on Harper and me. His face morphed into a wide grin, pearl-white teeth flashing. He shot a look towards Skylar, but noticing Oliver's harsh glare and arm around her waist, brought his attention back to Harper and I.
Subtly, I shot a glance at Logan, whose face had hardened, a small frown across his lips. I looked back towards the guy, waiting for him to either start up a conversation or leave. It wasn't even a minute before he cleared his throat, bringing the attention back to him, "Hi, I'm Jacob. Jacob Wilson." Nobody moved for a moment, before Harper shifted uncomfortably.
"Hey, I'm Harper. This is Lizzie, Hunter, Skylar, Oliver, and Logan." She introduced us, gesturing to us in turn. Jacob nodded, the grin never leaving his face, even as his gaze settled onto me and Harper again. I shrank back into my seat slightly, trying my best to remain mostly unnoticed.
It was rather difficult, especially when one said guy attempts to start a conversation.
"You know, I think we have the same history class, Lizzie. I'm not super great at history, would you maybe wanna, like, I don't know, study together some time?" Jacob twisted a bracelet around his wrist several times, although his grin never faltered. I tried to withhold my wince, attempting to not make him feel worse about asking me.
"Sorry, I'm pretty busy most of the time, I don't really have any time for a study group or anything." His smile cracked, eyes darkening a bit and I attempted a small smile. His eyes shifted from me to Hunter, his face paling slightly before he nodded and gave me a rushed 'No worries' before turning back to the group of hounding cheerleaders.
I turned towards Hunter, raising an eyebrow. All I got in response was a sly smirk, before he turned back to his lunch. I rolled my eyes, a miniscule smile gracing my lips as I nudged his shoulder slightly with my own before returning to the conversation Harper and Skylar were having. The smile was present for the rest of the day, even after the bell rang and we all went our separate ways. It remained there until I reached the house, and I entered into a quiet abyss, where the smile retreated, to be found another day.
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Hey y'all! So sorry for the lack of updates recently, been incredibly busy and have had no creative motivation. Either way, hope you enjoyed the chapter! I have some new projects on the way as well, so stay tuned! Have a good week!
