“Come on,” I muttered, twisting the key in the ignition.

My car spluttered for a few moments before going quiet again. The red car icon on the dash flashed on and off, warning me that my seatbelt wasn’t buckled. Groaning in frustration, I wrenched my key out of the ignition, slamming down on my steering wheel. The horn erupted, making me start.

“Maybe we should have taken my car,” Casey suggested, her breath making moisture in front of her. “Your car sucks. Nothing personal.”

I turned to give her an exasperated look. “I know, but usually it at least turns on.”

“Maybe it’s too cold.”

“We’re going to be late,” I complained, smacking my head against the back of my seat. “Damn it.”

Casey sighed lightly, reaching over, and taking the key out of my hand. “Let me try,” she insisted, putting they key in the ignition again.

“There’s no way you can do…” I trailed off as the engine started, my radio coming on a little too loudly. “How did you do that?”

She sent me a small smirk. “Secret.”

Rolling my eyes, I snapped my seatbelt, and shifted the car into drive. “You just got lucky.”

“Probably.”

The trip to school took much longer than it would have if it were Casey who was driving. She was more comfortable behind the wheel than I was— especially since I only started driving this car about three weeks ago. My mom got it for my Christmas present: used and needing a ton of work. At least the heater still worked.

When we were finally parked in the student parking, I cut the engine, quickly getting out of the car and locking it. Casey had our backpacks, and she tossed mine to me as we hurried towards the building. When I tried to push open the door, I found it was already locked. Casey pounded on it, pressing her face against the glass to try looking for someone who could open it.

“Did the bell ring?” I asked her.

She shook her head. “No, we still have five minutes.”

I quickly joined her in her pounding. Thanks to my car, I had been late four times in the past three weeks already. If I was late again, it was detention for me.

“What are you two doing?”

Immediately Casey and I twirled around in surprise. Standing before us was Chris, an amused expression on his face. Casey and I exchanged embarrassed looks before I dropped my head, feeling my cheeks burn.

“Morning, Mr. Heywood,” Casey chirped, recovering swiftly. “We’re locked out.”

“No you’re not,” he responded, sounding interested. “That door’s always locked, remember?”

It was quiet for a moment. Now more humiliated than before, I looked up to see Casey giving me a condescending look. A sheepish smile crossed my face as I forced out a small laugh. “Whoops…”

Chris chuckled, going over to the open door, and holding it open for us. “You girls better hurry, or you’ll be late.”

Casey hastened towards the door, making a face. “Thanks, Mr. Heywood.”

“Yeah, thanks,” I muttered, trying not to make eye contact with him as I passed through the door.

Before I had even taken three steps, someone grabbed the back of my bag, pulling me to a stop. “Hold on, Holly.”

“Chris, I’ll be late,” I protested.

“That’s okay.”

I turned to frown at him. “You’re a teacher. You shouldn’t say that.”

He grinned back at me. “I’m not your homeroom teacher, so that’s okay.”

“Chris…”

He held up his hands defensively. “What? I just want to make sure your hand is alright.”

“Oh,” I responded lamely, blinking at him. “Yeah, it’s fine. Thanks.”

He ruffled my hair with his hand. “Don’t thank me. I was just worried.”

I pushed his hand away. “Don’t do that.”

“Holly, you’re so cute.”

“D-don’t say that!”

“Say what? Holly? You’re? So? Cute?”

Chris smirked as I glowered at him, my face hot. “I’m going inside now,” I informed him, pushing open the next set of doors. “See you later.”

He quickly caught up to me, grabbing my backpack again. “Five, four, three—”

“What are you doing?”

A loud ring sounded from overhead. “One,” Chris finished with a grin.

“Mr. Heywood!” I cried angrily, twirling around to glare at him.

He cocked an eyebrow. “Hm?”

“Erg, Chris! Now I have detention!”

 Chris started laughing again as I fumed at him. The hall we were in was completely empty, so the sound echoed off the walls. Irritated, I stomped down the hallway away from him. He easily caught up, but this time didn’t pull me to a stop.

“Holly, I have to stay after school today to correct Wednesday’s test,” he started, falling into step beside me. “Do you want to stay after with me?”

My heart began to beat faster by just hearing him ask that. It was almost comical how easily Chris could set my heart racing. “I want to.”

“Then after do you want to come to my house? Jeremy insisted on coming over today for some reason, so he’ll be there too. But I was planning to invite you over first.”

“Really?”

Chris rolled his eyes. “See? You are trying to make that your catch phrase.”

Flushing, I shook my head. “No I’m not!”

“Okay, Holly.”

“Chris!”

“You should probably get to homeroom now,” he suggested, giving me a gentle push on my backpack. “I’ll see you later.”

Frowning again, I turned my head to look at him. “Fine.”

He smiled. “And by the way, since it’s a new semester, your tardy count gets reset.”

Without another word he began walking in the opposite direction. I stared after him for a moment, my mouth hanging. Today was the new semester— I forgot. But that meant that on the first day I already got a tardy. Making a face, I started off for my homeroom. Chris was definitely going to get it later.

The first part of the day passed by slowly. The only good thing that happened was that instead of having health second period, it had switched to a study hall with the new semester. When lunch came by, I sauntered into the cafeteria, glad that I could see Lance and Casey. My happiness was cut short when I realized someone was sitting in my usual seat at our table— and not just any someone. It was Lexi. Next to her, in Casey’s usual seat, was Aaron. Casey and Lance were sitting on the other side of them, so I went to that side and took a seat next to Lance. He grinned at me in greeting before returning his attention to Lexi.

“Hey, Holly,” she greeted me, sending me a flashy smile.

Hesitantly, I smiled back. “Hi.”

“You didn’t tell me you had such a handsome friend.” She pointed to Lance with her fork, which had a piece of grilled chicken at the end.

Lance grinned at her. “Holly’s preoccupied these days.”

I jammed my elbow into his side. “Shut up.”

“Preoccupied by what?” Aaron asked, suddenly looking interested in the conversation.

My eyes flickered to him for a second. He gave me a curious look and I dropped my gaze, stopping at his shirt. Once again he was wearing a shirt from one of my favorite bands, except instead of a t-shirt, it was a thermal shirt today. When I realized I was staring I quickly looked away, hoping no one would notice.

“That was a pretty lingering look, Holly,” Lexi teased, ruining my hopes. “Are you interested?”

Aaron rolled his eyes. “Shut up, Lexi.”

“I’m not,” I stated smoothly. “I just like the band on his shirt.”

“Or do you— oh my god! Who’s that?”

My head snapped in the direction that Lexi was looking. An underclassman I didn’t recognize was by the vending machine, staring at the items inside.

“That’s Robby,” Casey informed Lexi. “He’s a jun—”

“He’s hot.”

Casey abruptly shut her mouth, looking surprised. Lexi was grinning excitedly, staring at Robby. Aaron rolled his eyes, turning his attention back to his lunch. Mystified, I studied Lexi for a moment. Did she say that about everyone? If so, then her saying it to Chris could have meant nothing.

“Hey, Lexi,” Lance started, pulling her attention back to him. “Did you take recreational games?”

“Yep!”

“What period?’

“Sixth.”

“So do I!”

Casey glanced at me, frowning the tiniest bit. “Holly, when do you have it?”

“Sixth,” I informed her.

“Really?” Lexi interjected, sounding excited. “That’s awesome!”

I turned my attention to her, slightly taken aback. She was excited to have a gym class with me?

Now Aaron spoke up. “Same here.”

“And me too,” Casey added, her eyes flickering to Aaron for a moment. “It’s going to be like a party.”

“But we have Ms. Apple-Smith,” Lance muttered. “It will be more like hell.”

“Actually, she had to take her pregnancy leave,” Casey informed him, grinning. “We have a substitute gym teacher. I don’t know who though. Hopefully she or he will be better.”

I blinked in realization. After Jeremy told me he was going to be the gym teacher, I figured he was lying and let it drop. There was no way he was old enough to be a gym teacher. But now it made sense. He wasn’t the gym teacher— he was the substitute gym teacher. My substitute gym teacher. A small groan left my lips.

“What is it?” Lance questioned, turning to frown at me. “Are you okay?”

I hesitated for a moment. It was best not to ruin the surprise for them. “Yeah, I’m just hungry. I’m going to get food.”

“Okay.”

Pushing myself up from the table, I headed towards the a la carte line. Fortunately, there were barely any people in it and I made it to the front quickly. Just as I was about to enter the kitchen area, someone cut in front of me, gently bumping me out of the way. Surprised, I opened my mouth to complain, but shut it when I realized who it was.

“I heard teachers get cutting privileges,” Jeremy commented with a grin. “I thought I would take advantage of it.”

“You’re a substitute.”

“Same thing.”

“Has Chris seen you yet?” I questioned, following him into the kitchen.

Jeremy grinned widely. “Nope. I plan on visiting him after this. Do you want to come?”

Grabbing a bagel off the rack, I bit my lip, debating. As much as I wanted to see Chris’s reaction to Jeremy, I didn’t want to make anyone suspicious by going to his room every day. But maybe if I were with Jeremy, people would think I was actually with him. It wouldn’t matter if people thought Jeremy and I were dating. “Okay,” I finally responded, grinning at him. “I want to see his reaction.”

Together Jeremy and I set off towards Chris’s room. I texted Casey so she would know where I went. Jeremy suggested I should go in first, so I did, trying to keep my face straight. Chris was at his desk. He looked up in surprise when I entered, and a questioning look came onto his face when he realized it was me.

“Is something wrong?” he asked as I stopped by the edge of his desk.

It took all I had not laugh, but a smile still slipped onto my face. “Nope. I just brought you some soup.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

“I thought you liked this kind of soup…”

Chris shook his head, gesturing for me to give it to him. “No, I do. Thank you, Holly.”

“No problem… Say, have you heard about the new substitute gym teacher?”

He shook his head. “No, why?”

“I’m surprised none of you haven’t heard anything from your other students,” I responded honestly. When Chris arrived here, it was the talk of every grade.

“I tend not to really listen to them while they gossip,” he responded with a small smile. “But I’m going to guess he’s easy on the eyes? Are you going to ditch me for him?”

“No!”

He smirked at my immediate denial. A blush spread across my cheeks— that was an involuntary response.

“I have to admit though, I feel like I know him from somewhere,” I told him, forcing my blush away. “He’s the type of person who would be best friends with you.”

Chris furrowed his eyebrows. “What?”

“I just get the feeling from him.”

“You’re a strange girl, Holly.”

“I actually invited him to come see you.”

Now he looked surprise. “Why?”

 The door opened as if on cue. Chris’s head snapped towards it. His face blanked for a moment as he took in Jeremy, who was grinning like a maniac. “Hey, Chris!” he greeted.

“You’re kidding me,” Chris groaned, letting his head fall back on his chair. “Holly, pinch me to wake me up.”

Jeremy walked over to the desk, humming happily. “Or you could lay a gentle kiss against his lips.”

I sent him a warning look. “Jeremy. Our relationship is a secret. Do you know what a secret is?”

“Noun. Something that is kept, or meant to be kept, unknown or unseen by others.”

Chris rolled his eyes. “You don’t need to be a smart ass.”

Jeremy shrugged. “Hey, it could be an adjective too.”

“Jeremy.”

“Relax, I’m not here to reveal your secret to the school,” he responded, shaking his head. “I’m here to be a substitute teacher!”

Chris turned to me. “Holly, please tell me he’s doesn’t have you in one of his classes.”

I half-smiled back. “Sixth period.”

“Seriously?” Jeremy said, sounding enthusiastic. “I’ve always wanted to see Holly in short-shorts.”

My eyes widened in surprise. “What?”

“Jeremy,” Chris growled threateningly. “I suggest you shut your mouth before I do it for you.”

“Jealous?”

“No.”

Jeremy gave him a skeptical look. “Sure.”

He returned it with a hard one. “I don’t need to be. Holly is dating me, not you, idiot.”

“Um, you know, Jeremy, Casey is going to be in the class too,” I interjected, trying to stop their bickering.

Chris smirked. “Better be careful, Jeremy. Casey knows your secret.”

Jeremy flushed. “I don’t shop at Victoria’s Secret!”

“Sure.”

“I don’t!”

Shaking my head, I sat down at the desk closest to Chris’s desk— naturally, it was my regular desk. While he and Jeremy continued to bicker, I began to eat my lunch. It was strange to see Chris act so normally at school. Usually he was at least a little reserved; he still had his outer persona to keep up after all. However with Jeremy here, he seemed to have dropped his whole guard. It was kind of cute.

Eventually Chris got tired of Jeremy and banished him from the room. He slumped onto his desk, heaving a long, heavy sigh. “You knew he was going to be a teacher here, didn’t you?”

 Smiling in amusement, I moved back over to his desk. “I just found out yesterday.”

“Well at least I don’t have to deal with him in a gym class.”

My smile dropped. “Don’t remind me…”

Chris looked up from his desk now, smiling smugly. “You know he’s going to pick on you.”

“And my short-shorts,” I muttered, cursing myself for not switching out my gym clothes.

“You should wear sweatpants from now on.”

I raised my eyebrow. “Why?”

“Because.”

“Because why?”

“Just because.”

I raised an eyebrow. “So you are jealous.”

Chris turned away from me, crossing his arms. “Well, I have a right to be.”

“You’re so cute,” I told him, grinning widely.

He rolled his eyes. “Don’t call be cute, Holly.”

“Is that not manly enough for you? How about adorable?”

“Holly, stand beside me for a moment.”

Intrigued, I obeyed his command, and moved to stand next to him. He stood up as well, now forcing me to look up in order to meet his eyes. Before I knew what was happening, he had my face in his hands. As I opened my mouth to protest he swiftly placed a quick kiss on my lips. My face flushed as he dropped his hands, looking smug. “D-don’t do that in school!”

He shrugged. “Don’t call me adorable.”

“It’s a compliment!”

He flicked my nose, making me wince. “I prefer being called the handsomest, hottest, most dashing person in the world.”

“You’re so narcissistic.”

“I love you.”

Caught off guard, his words sent my heart into a frenzy. It took me a few moments to remember to respond. “I love—”

My words were cut off when the door to his classroom suddenly opened. Chris and I took a step back away from each other at once. Once again my heart was racing, but this time not do to Chris. That was too close. When I finally turned to the door, I saw Aaron and Lexi coming in.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Heywood,” Lexi greeted, her already famous grin on her face. “I see this is where Holly disappeared to.”

“I had to finish my test,” I quickly made up, sending Chris a panicked look. “Lunch was my only free time.”

Aaron shot me a skeptical look. It was clear he didn’t believe my lie. However Lexi on the other hand looked like she did. “If I don’t finish a test, can I come in during lunch and finish it?” she questioned, giving Chris an innocent look.

Chris cleared his throat, frowning at her. “It has to be a last resort.”

“That works.”

I grimaced in annoyance. Could she make herself at least a little less obvious? Aaron seemed to be having the same thoughts as I was, because he was glaring at his twin. She was oblivious to this though.

“How come you two are here so early?” Chris finally asked, breaking the awkward silence that had settled in.

“We were told to leave early so we wouldn’t get lost,” Lexi responded, walking to the back of the classroom where he seat was. “Not that it’s that hard to find.”

“I see.”

Frowning, I turned away from Lexi and found myself looking at Aaron again. The corners of his mouth twitched slightly, as if he was trying not to grin. This made my frown grow deeper. Aaron seemed like the observant type. Chris and I would really have to be careful around him.

_________________________

A lot of what you guys are assuming is so wrong, haha. Out of the four obvious things that can happen, three of them aren't going to :P I'm not going to tell you which idea I'm keeping though. And if you message me guessing, I'm not going to tell you either :P

Today's song is... Lovestruck by Blood on the Dance Floor. Just because it's so cute, and I do believe it's how Chris feels about Holly. And vice versa. Kind of like Anywhere But Here. It has a line where it's like "when we're together thoughts of her disappear." The first time I heard that I was like... Ouuuu Holly and Holly. But now I'm getting off topic...