Enigma

THEN

Los Angeles, California
Bell High School
2015

"You have to get tutored by him, Polina or you won't graduate this year" Ms. Rink says to me long after everyone left the class. My phone is going off with my friends waiting for me to ditch class and head out to the beach. "Are you listening to me?"

I lift my eyes up from my phone and pop my bubblegum in her livid face. "I'm not meeting up at some weirdos house to study" I say and start text back my best friend, Kami.

"Then he can come to your house or maybe you guys can meet at the library" she says with her calm tone. "He's such a nice boy and he's willing to do it for no reward, not even extra credit"

"What a fucking sucker... never find me doing shit for free" I say laughing not looking at her and when I get no response, I lie my head to see him standing inside the room. He has a clean cut brown hair with freckles on his nose and hazel eyes.

"That was extremely rude, Polina" Ms. Rink says but I can't stop focusing on his baggy and cheap grey sweatshirt and run down has been white shoes.

He's as far from my crowd as I could imagine.

A loser and a poor one. I almost feel sorry for him.

"I should've knocked, I apologize" he says and I wish I had a camera to catch this moment to show my friends. God, they'd have a good laugh.

"It's okay, Bentley" she says and signals him to come stand by me.

The whole way over, he doesn't make any eye contact with me. He's significantly taller even though I'm wearing wedges making me at least 5.7".

"Eyes on me, Polly" Ms. Rink says and my blood starts boiling that she thought she could use my nickname.

"Don't call me Polly" I snap and bang my hand on her desk. "Only some family and my best friends call me that"

If I'm not mad enough about that nonsense and the overall situation I'm in because I'm at risk of not graduating, this Bentley kid has the nerve to turn to me, with a shocked expression with his face.

"I'm out of here" I say in his face, take my Louis Vuitton bag and push the door.

I walk down the already empty hall, pass past the class I'm supposed to be in not giving a damn.

My phone rings loudly, echoing in the halls.

"Where the hell are you, Polly?" Kami yells over the wind.

"On my way now, god you wouldn't believe the guy they want me to get tutored by!" I say loudly.

"Do you know him?"

"Never seen him in my life" I say. "His name is fucking Bentley!"

"What kind of name is that?" Chanel says and now I realize I'm on speaker phone in her Mercedes.

"Don't know, don't care" I say by my locker. "I'm grabbing what you guys need and I'm on my way"

"Love you!"