Why Won't You Fall Into My Arms?

“I hate you,” I hissed out, the very words on my tongue tasting like acid.

I did too, I did hate Jack Adams. This boy striding alongside me as if nothing was wrong in the world, as if he hadn’t just scratched my car with his by swinging out an expensive door too far. It was on purpose too. He didn’t do things like this to me by accident.

There was the gum he’d stuck in my hair last summer, like we were in middle school all over again, which had forced me to get it cut short so I really did look like I belonged back in middle school. There was the time he had gotten my date for prom to ditch me by threatening him with physical injury if he didn’t tell me he had priory engagements with ‘surfing’. In the middle of winter. Jack Adams didn’t even have the gull to make the sorry boy tell me a better lie.

And there were all of the sarcastic comments he’d hurl my way in hallway. And those moments when I’d catch his eye and he’d send me a smile so bitter that I was surprised the wind hadn’t once changed so it would be stuck on his face forever.

I prayed one day for the wind to change. Actually, I just prayed for Jack Adams to disappear altogether, taking his sarcasm and smirks and stupid swoopy hair with him. It infuriated me that I had to face him so often and it made me sick to look at him giving me that sleepy look, bored almost, that he was watching me with now.

We were on our way into the high school and I was striding along next to him, finally happy that my height kept me not too much shorter than him. He couldn’t intimidate me with that at least although he had a lot more that he could try with.

“Oh come on Sophia, you don’t hate me. It’s impossible to hate me. I’m like a magnet, attracting girls to the point to exactly where they’re exactly where I want them.”

“Jerk,” I seethed. “Magnets’ sole purpose in life isn’t to get laid so don’t even compare yourself to them!”

“They’re inanimate objects Soph,” he pointed out, unimpressed.

“Don’t call me that,” I snapped “only friends of mine get to call me that.”

“I think someone’s on her period,” his tongue rolled over the words as if they were a song, a bard to torture me. I narrowed my eyes at him as we entered the large building, the sunshine disappearing off of our backs so I had to blink away the sharp colours. Too bad I couldn’t blink him away.

“Don’t worry sweetheart, it won’t take long for you to warm up to me.”

“I wouldn’t like you even if you were the last person on earth,” I shot him a look which should have stopped his heart. Instead, I found amusement in his eyes and a smirk toying at his lips.

“Try last person in the universe sweetie.”

The smugness dripping from his every pore practically had steam erupting from my ears. I shot him another dangerous look before turning pointedly on my heel, clattering through the empty hallways and realising the drama with Jack had made me late for class. Of course, I would probably get detention now. Of course, he’d probably fabricate some beautiful excuse which would get him off scot-free.

“God,” I groaned angrily to myself “I really hate him.”

Then I pushed open my classroom door, braced myself for the teacher’s onslaught and pictured a wonderful life without Jack Adams.