Page 80 of Exactly What I Needed
“How?” I asked.
He wiggled his brows.
“Right. You hacked it. Again,” I grumbled. “Well, unhack it and freeze the screen again.”
“Not until you tell us who ‘A’ is.” He crossed his arms.
I took a deep breath. “None of your business, is who he is.”
“HE’S A HE?” Selena gasped, shooting up from her seat.
I clenched my jaw. Mistake. I should not have said that.
“Miss Duval, do you have a boyfriend?” Caralee added, giggling.
“My personal life is just that. Personal. Now go back to gossiping.” I waved them away.
“I’m not freezing your screen until you tell us who he is.” Dane grinned, crossing his arms.
“Come on, Miss Duval. You seem happier today. And you’re smiling at your phone. Show us who he is!” Benson chimed in.
“You too?” I gasped, shocked, and he nodded slowly.
“Miss Duval has a boyfriend. Miss Duval has a boyfriend!” they began chanting. I rolled my eyes.
“I never said that.” I didn’t confirm nor deny what they were saying.
“Okay, well, you like whoever it is, even if he is or isn’t your boyfriend.” Selena crossed her arms, as nosy and perceptive as always.
I sighed. “I’ll admit to that,” I said flatly, and my class cheered, excitedly.
“We want to see him!” Caralee shouted. Agreements rose chaotically around the room.
“No,” I shortly said, shutting it down immediately.
But teenagers were brutal, and they didn’t give up.
“At least one Picsnap. Please!” They begged over and over.
And over.
And over.
“Fine!” I exclaimed, groaning. “You guys are giving me a headache. One snap. That’s it.” I picked up my phone and opened the app. Pausing before I dared to look at the one sitting unopened, I glanced up at my class.
“Before I ask for him to send one, I need to warn you. He’s with some friends and they are…” I paused, not sure how to explain them. “Extravagant,” I finally finished. That wasn’t even the right word, but I knew that whatever he was going to send in reply to my request was going to be unique.
Keeping my earbud in, I carefully opened the video really quickly to find Drake on his knees, thanking me so graciously for saving his nuts. I snorted and then promptly let the Picsnap close. Taking the earbud out of my ear, I stood up.
“All right, say cheese!” I took a picture of my class and then typed a caption on it.
My class wants to say hi and meet you. But make sure you cover any defining features that would give you away. Like your face. And tattoos. And earrings. And yeah….
Then I sent it and we waited. It was quiet. So deathly quiet that I could hear the muffled voices coming from Elysia’s classroom across the hallway—even with my door closed.
The anticipation was thick, on edge as the icon finally changed from unopened to open. I turned my screen around so my class could see it.
“He opened it,” I stated, and they all slid forward in their chairs. We waited as the entire class sat on the edge of their seats. My heart was racing in my throat, wondering what he would come up with. Wondering how he would keep them from figuring out who he was. There were a lot of distinct markers that he would have to cover up.
