Sean froze. In an instant, his face contorted into a mask of dark fury.
19:22
Adrian looked directly at Sean, a knowing, dangerous smile playing on his lips. “Oh, and by the way, classma te,” he added, his voice dripping with condescensioh. “Ava’s grades might not be worse than yours for much longer. And you don’t have to worry about her liking you. After all, she’s not interested in someone who car only manage second place.”
He put a special emphasis on the words “only manage second place.”
In the end, Adrian and I were both sent out of the classroom to stand in the hall as punishment.
After a long silence, I couldn’t help but let out a small laugh. “Think you’ll be pulling any more heroic stunts anytime soon?”
Adrian smiled back. “Absolutely.”
I looked up at him. “Are you crazy? You can’t just joke about writing a note like that.’
”
He met my gaze, his eyes shining like stars. “What if,” he said softly, “it wasn’t a joke?”
My heart skipped a beat.
“Ava,” he said, his voice serious now.
“Yes?”
“If I can help you get a higher score than Sean on the final exams, will you grant me one wish after graduati
on?”
In that moment, the chaotic noise in my head went silent. The wind felt cool and clean on my face.
I nodded. “Okay.”
When class was over, I returned to my seat, ready to catch up on the notes I’d missed.
Olivia immediately pushed my arm. “Ava, can you move? I need to discuss a problem with Sean, and you’re kind of in the way.”
Since I was Sean’s deskmate, this was a common request. And Sean never stopped her.
The comments started buzzing. [【Don’t you dare move, Ava! If you stand your ground, he might actually consider getting back with you!)
[He’s pretending not to care, but trust me, he’s secretly thrilled. He’s waiting for you to stake your claim, to
Chapter 2
show Olivia who’s boss right in front of him.]
I fell silent.
Then, I started gathering my things.
19.22
“Since you like discussing problems with Sean so much,” I said, my voice even, “why don’t we just switch seats?”
As it happened, Olivia’s seat was right next to Adrian’s, which would make it much more convenient for us to study together.
Sean’s brow furrowed.
I had packed up all my books and was about to leave when he suddenly grabbed my wrist, his grip tight. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
I looked at him and slowly pried his fingers off my arm. “Please have some self-respect, Sean. I wouldn’t want you to get the wrong idea and flatter yourself into thinking I still like you.”
Sean’s face went rigid with fury. His jaw tightened, and a muscle ticked in his cheek. “Fine,” he bit out. “Don’t regret this.”
That night, he and Olivia made their relationship official on social media. The picture was of their hands, fingers intertwined.
From then on, their feed was a constant, public display of affection. A picture of them hugging at an amus- ement park. A video of them sharing a milkshake at a dessert shop. Every post felt like a deliberate perform- ance, a flaunting meant for an audience of one.
I started hearing rumors about him. They said Sean was going off the rails. That he was genuinely falling for Olivia, skipping classes and getting into fights for her.
But I didn’t have the energy to care.
The numbers on the countdown clock in the classroom dwindled day by day. The date of the SATs loomed
larger on the blackboard. I buried myself in a mountain of books, rising at dawn to review notes and staying up late under the glow of my desk lamp, working through problem after problem. On weekends, Adrian and I
sat side-by-side in the library, the only sound the soft scratch of our pens on paper.
One day, Chloe called me, breathless and frantic. “Ava, you have to do something about Sean! He skipped
class again to get into a fight for Olivia! She can’t stop him. You’re the only one he ever listened to. Please, you have to go see him.”
The comment-feed stirred with excitement.
[Hehe, Sean totally put Chloe up to this. He wants Ava to come and handle him like she used to. He does still care!)
[Go, Ava, go! If you go, he’ll definitely think about getting back together with you tonight!)
1022
Chapter 2
Adrian gently tapped my textbook with his pen. “This problem is important. Don’t get distracted.”
19:22
I took a breath and spoke into the phone. “Chloe, I’m busy. From now on, don’t call me about his problems anymore.”
I hung up.
The comment-feed was stunned into silence.
【Oh no. It looks like she’s really, completely done with him. Is my favorite romance novel about to have a bad ending?)
2
【I think this is great. In the original story, she was so consumed by him that she messed up her SATS. Don’t
you think she’s so much cooler now that she’s ditched the man-drama and is focused on herself?]
The comments were right. I had no intention of wasting any more time competing with Olivia for a boy’s
attention.
On the day of the SATs, Adrian and I were assigned to the same testing center. At the school gate, he lookec at me like a nervous father sending his daughter off. “Don’t be nervous,” he said. “Just do your best.”
We walked toward our respective testing rooms, heading toward our separate futures.
After the exam, Adrian recited the questions from memory while I tried to recall my answers. When we finis hed comparing, he let out a breath of relief and looked at me with a proud, satisfied smile. “Ava,” he said. “Y.
ou nailed it.”
