How To Be The Best Third Wheel

Original Edition - Tip 10: Keep Your Cool

First period went by really fast. We had an interesting lesson about writing techniques that authors use. Of course, everyone else found it incredibly boring. I had to hit Logan in the back of his head just to prevent him from sleeping.

I walk to my second period class, Biology. As I enter the classroom, James is sitting in his assigned seat which is beside mine. How unfortunate, really. I roll my eyes as I approach him and look at the other way. Ignore, ignore, ignore. Not too hard, right?

Mrs. Lewis sits at her desk, reading a novel. Although it does make me feel a bit weird since the cover of her book features a half naked couple. I mean, if that woman is into Fifty Shades of Grey and all that ish, I'm not judging. I just really wish that I wasn't given this fate of being stuck with helping James for the rest of the semester.

I glance around the room and Holden catches my eye. He smiles at me and for once, I don't melt. I smile back. He goes back to his book and I find myself daydreaming, like usual.

I feel a poke on my arm. I ignore it. He pokes me again. I ignore that as well. He pokes me again!

"What the heck is your problem!" I scream at James. Half the class isn't present at the moment but the other half whips their heads in our direction.

"Give me your number." James demands.

First of all, you can't just demand phone numbers from people as if they were fast food companies! What do I look like? Do I look like freaking MacDonalds? Bruh, my "company" is not going to benefit from a thousand people knowing my number. Second of all, I don't want to be receiving a gazillion text messages from people that I barely know and only want my homework answers! I get enough drama from opening texts! Okay...maybe that last part was a lie. C'mon, I can't open all zero messages at once.

"No thank you." I reply.

"How will I be able to contact you for tutoring then?" he counters in his smart-alek voice.

"Call the landline. Your parents know the number since our parents talk 24/7." I tell him.

Plus, his family probably has our home phone number saved at the top of their contact list. I mean, they call each other every single day!

He nods. "Oh, okay. I'm sure my conversation with any of your family members that might answer the phone will be very interesting."

Fishballs. I didn't even think of that! Who knows what will happen if one of my family members pick up the phone! There is a 6/7 chance that someone other than me will pick up the landline. It is highly likely considering the percentage of one of the other six people that are not me answering the phone is 85.71428571%. Yikes.

This observation has led me to another dead end. Another point in my life where I have no other choice than to give in to the demon.

"No! No it's fine, I'll give you my cell number." I say, gritting my teeth in frustration.

He smiles at me, his pearly white teeth almost sparkling. Basically how people's teeth look like in the movies. "Ah...I had a feeling you'd say that."

I roll my eyes at him. Don't punch him Lara, keep your cool. He grabs my phone from my hands, opens the screen and frowns at it. I am so glad that he got to see the lovely wallpaper on my lock screen that says, "Don't touch my phone you stupid idiot. You don't know the password anyways."

I know...I am extremely friendly.

He passes back the phone and I enter my password. I open my contacts and he grabs it again to insert his number. He pulls out his phone and enters my number too.