Page 17 of Heartthrobs Don't Date Wallflowers
Ivy
Good good
I was worried
“Guys, I know it’s early and you’re just coming off the weekend, but let’s focus please!” The teacher called. I snapped my head up, sure she was talking to me directly, but she was looking at some girls in thefront row, who also had their phones out—much more obviously than I did. I didn’t want to be the next one to be looked at, though, so I shoved my phone back in my bag and tried to pay attention.
Not that I could focus at all, though. Because for the rest of the period, all I could think about was wondering if he’d texted me back.
five
“And if I turn here,I should end up…” I sighed and let the paper fall to my side as I found myself back in front of the music room for the third time. “Right where I started.”
I’d left lunch early to have enough time to find my next class and it was a good thing, because I’d been wandering around this stupid, gigantic school for twenty minutes and I wasn’t any closer to finding the classroom. I’d walked up and down hallways, gone up a staircase that seemed to lead to the same floor I’d started on, and somehow kept ending up at the music room, like the universe was trying to tell me I should have chosen it as my elective.
I pressed my hand to my forehead and groaned. Why was this school such a maze?
“Need some help?” A girl asked from behind me. I barely held in my scream of surprise as I spun around. I thought I was completely alone in the hallway, but a girl with light brown hair was now standing behindme. I hated the immediate jealousy I felt as I looked at her—while the school uniform looked frumpy on me, she looked so effortlessly beautiful in her Summerfield Cheer sweater, plaid skirt, and Doc Martens boots.
“Oh, I’m okay,” I said immediately, even though I really wasn’t. At this rate, I was only going to be attending half my classes on the first day of school.
“You sure?” She asked. “You look a little lost. And I’m sure we can help.”
I glanced around the hallway, wondering if I’d missed anyone but it looked just as empty as I thought it was.
“We?” I asked.
“Yeah me and…” She started to point over her shoulder, then seemed to realize there was nobody there and spun in a circle. “Uh, my boyfriendwashere. He tends to disappear.” She spun around again and called out, “Jude?”
“Jude?” I asked, remembering the boy in my first period class. “You mean Jude Turner?”
She spun back around so quickly, her ponytail hit her face lightly, but she was smiling. “Yeah! You know him?”
“Oh, uh, he’s in my first period class,” I said, tugging at my backpack straps. I smiled just the smallest bit. “It seemed like every girl in the room was in love with him.”
She laughed. “Yeah, that’s pretty standard. You get used to it.”
My brows furrowed. “To other girls being in love with your boyfriend?”
“Well—”
“I’m back!” The boy from this morning came jogging around the corner, his messy brown hair flopping on his forehead. He hadn’t looked very school-ready this morning, but he somehow looked even more casual now, with his tie so loose he might as well not have been wearing it and his backpack dangling from his forearm like an afterthought. He pressed a kiss to the girl’s cheek then looked at me appraisingly. I shifted awkwardly under his gaze as he frowned, seeming like he was trying to figure out who I was—or why his girlfriend was bothering to talk to me. “Hey, you’re the new girl, right?”
What a lovely nickname.
“Ivy,” I said. I wasn’t sure whether to hold my hand out to shake or not, but he saved me from having to decide because he went straight in for a hug. I froze, letting him pin my arms to my side and glancing at his girlfriend over his shoulder. Was she really okay with this? My ex would havehatedme hugging another guy, even in front of him, but she was just smiling endearingly.
“Nice to meet you!” He stepped back and slipped his hand back into the girl’s and tilted his head toward her a little. “You have good taste in friends if you’re already hanging around Sloane.”
“Oh,” I glanced at the brunette girl—Sloane, I guess—not sure how she would feel about being called my friend when we just met two minutes ago. “We’re not?—”
“Yes, she does,” Sloane said firmly,cutting me off. She leaned forward like she was trying to read the paper in my hand and asked curiously, “Are you lost?”
“That obvious, huh?” I mumbled, also glancing down at the school map in my hand. My hands were so sweaty that it was getting permanently wrinkled and some of the ink was smudged. “I’m looking for my science class. I think it’s on the third floor—I mean, the room number starts with a three, so I have to assume that’s what it means? But I keep ending up on the main floor or the basement, and so I thought maybe one of these floors have rooms that start with a three but…” I realized I was rambling and awkwardly trailed off. “Yes, I’m lost.”
“Don’t worry,” Sloane said, with such confidence in her voice that I thought I’d be willing to follow her into battle if she asked me to. She snatched the map out of my hand and crumpled it up. I probably would have protested if the map wasn’t already useless to me. “There is a third floor, but that staircase doesn’t go all the way up.”
“I still get lost on it,” Jude added helpfully.
