Chapter 3 Girlfriend Problems
Thea
It was the next day of school, and I had no expectations for today, but I didn’t expect to get stares and side talks as I walked down the hallway. I looked around curiously and confused. What seems to be going on? I was quite popular in school. People know me as the nerdy girl who has won multiple awards for the school, tutors a lot of students, and participates in school activities. In fact, everyone wanted me to campaign for school president, but I knew the competition would be fierce between me and Katie, so I decided to back out, for peace to reign. But, even though I was popular, no one paid much attention to me when I walked down the hallway or into the cafeteria. But today seems different, and I couldn’t tell if it was a good thing or not.
“What’s going on?” I asked Mia who was beside me. She breathed out.
“People have been talking since what happened in the cafeteria yesterday. They found out you are tutoring Evan,” she replied. I looked around again, wondering if it was something worthy of their gossip and stares.
“They are shipping you two together. When Katie finds out, she is going to be filled with rage,” Bridget says. I knew this was a bad idea, and I couldn’t sleep all night regretting why I said yes. Evan is truly difficult, and now, I have a mad, possessive girlfriend on my back. Senior year is going the opposite of what I expected.
“Why would they ship us together? That’s stupid,” I said. Mia laughed.
“Well, it would be interesting to see. Two students who have hated each other since freshman year finally falling in love, it’s going to be messy. Besides, everybody hates Katie,” she said, an excited grin on her face. The hallway suddenly got quiet. We turned around and it was Katie. She walked down the hallway with her two friends behind her. Her face was full of makeup, her skirt extremely short with ridiculously high heels, and her fake blonde hair was tied in a high ponytail. As usual, one of her friends carried her bag. She walked down the hallway like she was on a runway, an angry expression on her face.
I always wondered what Evan saw in her; she was extremely fake and a bully. But now that I think about it, they were a match made in heaven. She’s arrogant just like him. Of course, they would be attracted to each other. I looked away, opening my locker, and I hoped she was going to walk past me. But of course, I was wrong. My locker was slammed shut aggressively, and I breathed out, looking at the perfectly manicured nails. I sucked in a deep breath.
“Yes, good morning, Katie. How can I help you?” I asked, a fake smile dancing on my lips as I turned to her. She chewed her gum loudly, blowing a bubble.
“What am I hearing about you tutoring Evan? ” she asked, looking at me like I was filthy. I glanced at her friends, and they were all chewing gum with a nasty look on their faces.
"Ms. Debby gave me orders to tutor him,” I replied. There was a little murmur in the hallway, and Katie frowned. She slammed her hand on my locker, moving closer to me, trying to seem intimidating, but I didn’t budge. I looked up at her, my gaze unwavering.
“You? Tutor Evan?” she says with a scoff.
“We all know that the teachers don’t pair you two together. I find it weird that you are suddenly his tutor. Is this one of your plans to snatch him from me?” She asked, narrowing her eyes at me. I never would have thought anyone would ask me such a dumb question today.
“Snatch him from you? He is not an object that can be snatched. If he loves you that much, why do you need to worry about him being snatched?” I asked, tilting my head. Katie frowned, her eyes glaring murderously at me. She walked closer to me, and I stepped back until my back touched the locker.
“I don’t like your tone, nerd,” she whispered. I tried to appear unfazed, but Katie is a big bully. Her father owns part of this school. He is influential and powerful, which is why he's so untouchable. Even the teachers kept their distance. I always made sure to stay clear of her way until now.
“You will no longer tutor Evan,” she commanded. I frowned.
“But, Ms. De…" she cuts me off harshly.
“I don’t care what anyone says. You will no longer tutor Evan. I don’t want to see you close to him,” she says through gritted teeth. I couldn’t think of anything to say, but the more she stays close, the more I get nervous.
“What is going on here?” The deep voice asked, and Katie moved away from me sharply. I let out a shaky breath, looking away.
“Are you okay?” Mia whispered, and I nodded.
“What’s going on here?” Evan asked again. I avoided his eyes. Katie smiled sweetly.
"Nothing, baby, I was just having a small talk with Thea,” she said, her voice sweeter than honey. Evan's eyes stayed on me; not once did he glance at his girlfriend. My eyes slowly turned to him, and I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. He looked back at me blankly while maintaining eye contact. I felt my skin crawl, and I moved uncomfortably on my feet.
“Let’s go,” Katie snapped after noticing his stare. She dragged him off, giving me a stink eye. When they left, I let out a deep breath I didn’t know I was holding.
“She is such a bitch!” Mia exclaimed angrily.
“Tell me about it. Evan doesn’t even look like he cares about her. She’s always all over him, so disgusting,” Bridget added. I went back to my locker, and they both stood behind me curiously.
“What are you going to do?” Bridget whispered. I sighed.
“Stay away from Evan,” I say bluntly.
“I just want to graduate peacefully; I don’t want Katie on my back. It won’t end well for me.” They both sighed. I turned to them with a tight smile.
“I will head to class,” I say, not waiting for a reply. I walked away feeling eyes on me as I went. I tried to calm my racing heart and shaky hands. I took multiple deep breaths, and afterward I felt calm. I can’t do this; I can’t be bullied again. I will stay away from Evan like Katie wants. I brought out my phone, going to my contacts. Without thinking twice, I deleted Evan’s number. A sense of relief watched over me. Now, I can go back to how things were: no Evan, no Katie. If only I had known it was the beginning of what would become the hardest year of my senior life.
