Twelve

Katherine

The car ride to school was awkward. I sat in the front passenger seat, while Katie sat in the seat behind me. She and Alex talked and laughed the entire way to school, while I remained silent and listened to their conversation.

They looked compatible, which made me wonder why Alexander never gave Katie a chance and seemed to have completely forgotten about her. It made me wonder if it had always been a one-sided relationship. I wasn’t really sure. After all, based on their conversation, Alexander didn’t seem to remember who Katie was, or was he just pretending not to remember her because I was there?

Fvck!! This was making me very confused! Why was I stuck in the middle of something I didn’t want? All I wanted was a quiet and peaceful life, but that is coming to an end as of today. Agreeing to follow him to school marked the end of my quiet and free life.

Everyone’s attention was drawn to us the moment we arrived at school. To make matters worse, Alexander refused to allow us to open the door ourselves, insisting on being a gentleman, by first opening the door for Katie, then for me.

When I came out, he leaned in beside me and whispered into my ear, “Welcome to my world, honey, you are the queen now. Come to me when things become too difficult and unbearable, and I will be your knight in shining armor, rescuing you.” He winked before walking away from me and toward his friends, who were waving for him to come.

My hands were clenched. I hated him. I hated everything about him and wished he would suddenly disappear from the face of the earth. That would make me happy.

“Relax, tiger. I can see you murdering him with those eyes, but don’t let him get to you, love. Remember, he’s dancing to your tunes,” Katie tried to calm me down.

I hadn’t even noticed when she walked up beside me. I was too angry to notice, and all my thoughts were on Alexander, planning how to murder him and hide his body without the cops finding out.

“Is it he, or am I the one dancing to his tune? From where I stand, I am the one who is agitated, whereas he smiles and acts as if nothing is wrong. From the moment I discovered someone like him existed in the school, all he has done is piss me off. I fvcking hate him so much.” I cursed under my breath, which made Katie laugh. “What? Why are you laughing?”

“This is the first time I’ve seen you so worked up. You seemed so calm and relaxed during projects that everyone said were driving them insane, but now look at you, you’re almost running wild and we haven’t even gotten to the good part yet.”

“You can’t compare schoolwork to dealing with a jerk like him. They are completely different and not alike. Please never compare them again, and besides, I haven’t agreed to make him pay for what he did to you yet, I’m still thinking about it,” I told her as we walked toward the locker room.

“Oh, come on! I thought you’d already agreed. I’m your best friend and sister, can’t you just do one small favor for me? ‘'m not saying you should have sex with him, just make him fall in love with you and then break his heart. It’s that simple.”

“His lifestyle and mine are so different that we don’t get along, don’t you see? He is the life of the party, a flirt, captain of the football team, bad at schoolwork, his grades are nothing to write home about, and he spends money to buy friends and grades. We are completely different! How do you expect me to win over someone who seems to have thrown his heart out the window?” I questioned as I entered the password to open my locker.

“Well, he chose you, and it appears that you are the only one who is having these crazy thoughts in your head,” Katie said as she also entered the password same to her locker.

We were fortunate to find two lockers in the same roll, and we decided it was fate as we gladly placed our belongings there. We always teased that we wouldn’t be able to stay away from each other, but I’m glad for it now. Going from one locker to another was a waste of time and energy because we could both go in the same direction at any time and on any day.

“He did, indeed. He only wants me as a plaything, not for a serious relationship. You should know his plan, he wants to have sex and then leave, and darling, I’m not that kind of girl. I haven’t kept my virginity all this time to lose it to someone like that.”

“Darling, you didn’t stay a virgin because you wanted to, you stayed a virgin because you weren’t given the freedom to do otherwise.”

Katie was right. I hated the fact that, despite my desire to experience the lives of girls my age, I was unable to do so because my life was centered on books, school, and the library. Nothing else.

“I hate you, Katie,” I said, glaring at her.

“I love you too, my sweetest Katherine,” she said as she blew a kiss in my direction, which I ignored, so she made an ouch sound that made me laugh. “You can change him, honey. Make him realize that not everyone will jump into bed with him simply because he asked them to. Honey, you’re the one with the brains, use them."

“I’m not sure how having brains works in this one, but I’ll think about it and see if I have the mental strength to carry it out. In the meantime, please don’t put any pressure on me or I’ll go insane. Please,” I begged, and she nodded.

“Don’t worry, I won’t pressure you, but I will make it work one way or another,” she said as she walked away, ignoring my calls.

I wished she could understand me and realize how much pressure it will put on me and my grades, which would cause my mother to snap and take away my freedom.

How do I get out of this without hurting my friend or myself?