Just So I Could Call You Mine

Chapter 9

                                           Jess

"Good afternoon, Jess," Mr Wallis greets me as I walk into class.

I lift my head up from the floor to smile at him. The classroom is fuller today, but he firmly tells us to stay with our assigned partners.

Mac breaks off from his group when he spots me arrive and slides into the chair beside me. His long legs are stretched out in front of him and he looks at ease, other then the looming darkness under his eyes.

I secretly check my phone while Mr Wallis has turned his back, and I cringe at my appearance on my camera screen.

My cheeks are spotted red and my eyes have a lingering stinging which I refuse to acknowledge.

"Okay lets do this thing," Mac says dropping all his pens and crap onto my desk.

We work on our project steadily for thirty minutes, making easy conversation and I feel the calmest I have all day.

I forget about everyone else and focus on Mac and this project.

Mac made a joke and my laugh bursts out of me unwarranted. I don't know if he could tell, but I felt much better.

"You're not funny," I whisper annoyed that he managed to make me laugh. He needed to be humbled.

"Uh-huh, yeah, sure Jess."

I was trying to stifle my laugh by covering my mouth, when I see Landon staring at Mac and I.

He nudges Alex and they whisper to each other. They don't notice that I was looking at them so I turn my head more and Landon flashes me a broad smile.

I return him a smaller shy smile and turn away. I feel a blush creep onto my cheeks.

I continue working with my head down when Mac leans closer to me and whispers in my ear.

"I have something to ask you."

His voice is breathy and it tingles my ear, making my stomach do a tiny flip, but I turn to face him. His green eyes search mine and his gaze lingers, without saying a word.

"What?" I whisper back as I break eye contact and resume writing.

"Did you forget what you were going to say?" I press on with my writing.

He leans in closer his mouth right beside my ear and I realize if I moved my head I would be close enough to kiss him.

"Who's boy X?" he whispers hurriedly, his mouth quirking up when my eyes widen.

He knows what he just asked sparked interest.

He immediately turns his head to anxiously start writing again. I stare straight ahead paralyzed, not able to form an answer.

Mac Griffin read my journal.

My journal contains my book. My romance book that no one else knows about, and worst of all he probably noticed the main character's name is Jessie and it's a romance book!

I'm mortified and my cheeks flush an even deeper scarlet than before.

"You read my book!" I hiss at him. He won't look at me so I punch him in the arm to get him to look at me in eye. "Why the fuck would you do that! That's private!"

He turns his head to face me sheepishly. He pulls at the hair at the nape of his neck and struggles to find words, which ticks me off.

In the silence, I wonder what it would feel like to tug on that piece of hair, and that mere irrelevant and bothersome thought aggravates me more.