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Last night Kenya called questioning me about what had happened at the party, I explained to her that it was all a misunderstanding and with few ranting she finally gave up.

Fully enclothe in my denim jean and a hoodie, I masticate the pancakes Mom arranged for me.

"If you want I could make more." Mom informs and I shake my head smiling at her.

"This is enough ma, thank you."

"Your dad told me that Mr Manuel had an accident?" I try my best as I avoided choking on my pancakes.

I grab the can of syrup gently smothering it around my pancakes, "that's what I also heard, but How did dad find out?"

"Your dad said Mr Manuel called him yesterday to inform him, they also talked about your result, and he's still willing to tutor you."

"Mom... Can't we just not talk about this right now, I'm eating." I tell her feebly.

Mom shakes her head moving to take my hand on hers, then she notices, "your hands are shaking Marianna. Are you nervous about something," she lifts her eyes from my hands to stare at me skeptically, "Is something going on Maria? You know you can always talk to me, I'm your mother."

Crap, "Mom I'm fine, you don't have to worry." I smile at her but she doesn't seem to buy it.

"If you don't want to be tutored by your teacher it's fine and I also find it weird, don't they have like smart kids in your class, we could always talk to the principal and see what we can do."

"They have a lot of smart kids in my class and yes that would be alot better." she smiles

"Now see your hands aren't shaking anymore." she points out before grabbing her phone from the counter table and walking off, "I'll give your dad a call."

I step out of the house only to see Mrs Sarah playing with one of her cats, "Good morning Mrs Sarah." She turns around to smile at me.

"Hey kiddo, I haven't been seeing you around of late," she looks at me worriedly, "have you been avoiding me."

"No! Definitely not, I've just been busy that's it... I'll never avoid you." I admit and she smiles from ear to ear.

"I was wondering where Josh was, his motorbike isn't around."

She scowls, "He didn't tell you?" mrs Sarah asks sounding shocked, "maybe he forgot, Josh went back yesterday."

"What?" He left a-already.

"I'm pretty sure he has a reason to not telling you, are you okay?"

"Yeah...." I smile at Mrs Sarah before turning around to meet Mom who is now standing beside her car. "Mom did you know that Josh left yesterday?"

"Yeah... I saw him drive off with his bags, something about resuming classes."

"Oh," I enter into the passenger seat as Mom drives me to school.

I thought we were friends, how could he forget something that important, he just left without informing me yet everyone knows about it.

I don't know what to feel angry or sad, we didn't even do anything important before he left all he did was help my sorry ass throughout.

"You okay sweetie?" I lift my eyes from my trembling hands to smile at mom.

"Yeah." I look around only to see that Mom has already stopped. I stepped out of the car.

"Try not to get into detention!" Mom say with a hint of what seems like a joke, I smile waving her goodbye.

I'm about to turn around when I hear a deep voice whisper in my ear, "Be mine Mari."

My expression is in between mortified and shocked as I shift away from the person, "what?." I turn around to meet the cocky smirk on Xander's face?

He chuckles lowly and I'm still partly weireded out that he can actually laugh, it also scared me that I liked seeing him like this, happy and not looking like a sad depressed bad boy. But I just have a strong feeling that this isn't Xander, the looks are different, I guess, Xander doesn't smile like that, if he even smiles at all, he prefers leather jacket than jean jacket and he most definitely do not look at me like he's about to strip me off my clothes.

"You're really cute when you're scared Maria and those lips of yours, I want to suck them soo bad."

I face palm my self feeling totally ashamed, this isn't Xander but his triplet brother, I should have noticed when he spoke to me first. His voice, the way he looks at me, his behaviour...

"Zachary?" I question nonetheless even when I'm positive that he's the one.

"Its Zach."

"What are you doing in my school, aren't you supposed to not be seen with Xander?"

He takes a step to me and I took one back, "I missed you so I came to meet you." Was his shameless excuse for an answer.

I shake my head suddenly feeling lightheaded, "You saw me for the first time yesterday!"

He licks his lips slowly, "There's something called love at first sight sweetie."

Urgh what is my life turning into, "just go back home and hopefully this would be the last time we meet."

He laughs, "no sweetie as from today I'll be schooling here."

"What."

"Me too." I turn around only to see chance on his nerdy glasses, grinning at me.

What have I done!!!!

"Go before someone sees you." I rushly yell waving them off.

But Zach don't relent, "And if someone sees us what's gonna happen?"

"Aren't your life at stake if someone sees you?" Zach laughs hard clutching unto his stomach.

"Hell no, Xander just doesn't like being around us, the guy hate our guts." He replies wholeheartedly, and I can tell why Xander hates his guts.

"Your guts not mine, Xander loves me." Chance says proudly causing me to smile.

I look at them pointedly, "so nothing is going to happen if someone sees you?"

"Oh something is going to happen maria," Zach starts eerily, "they'll be too awestruck and wouldn't stop drooling after gazing at this undeniably massive arms of mine... and my face, they'll loose focus and they might try anything just so they can touch this skin, who knows they might even want to rape me." Zach finishes his boast and I face palm myself, he's so proud and his ego is something out of a fictional character.

"Who's that?" He yells, I follow his eyes till it lands at.... Kisha?... "I bet she'll be easy, see you around Maria."

Before I can stop Zach he's already walking towards her, then I remembered that she doesn't know yet, she could also mistake Zach for Xander and if that happens, she won't pester me again.

"Are you okay?" I look up to meet the concern gaze of chance.

"Ya." And something comes to mind, "you were the one at Malloy's eatery that day right?"

He smiles sheepishly, "What! you wanted it to be Xander?."

I laugh, "no I'm just curious."

"Yeah," he lift his hands to rub his neck, "I'm sorry I acted as someone else, if I told you that I was Xander's brother, you'll probably laugh."

Chance is different from the rest, he's sweet and really friendly. And his smile, his smile is so contagious that I just cant-

"Chance!?" We both simultaneously turn to meet Xander's angry face, his hands are clenched and my heart can't help but beat ferociously.

"Hey Xandy."

I hid my smile at the nickname but Xander frowns at his brother, "don't call me that, what are you doing here?"

"Remember what I was telling you earlier today that Zach is coming here."

"Zach is here!?" And somehow Xander feels worried, is Zach like the black sheep of the family or what.

He avert his eyes from his brother to glare at me, I swallow hard waiting for his insults, "This is all your fault!" he points out, "If you didn't follow me yesterday that idiot wouldn't have seen you!"

"Now you're going to get him out of here and I don't care how you do it!"

"Xander!" Chance calls and Xander frowns but looks at him nonetheless.

"What!"

They shared a look between themselves for seconds before Xander's angry face changed into something else, as if he just realised something.

"Don't tell him." Xander whispers to his brother before moving towards me and grabbing my hand, "go to your school chance."

"Whatever don't hurt Maria, bye homo sapien."

I instantly turn around, now I remember, "why does he keep calling me that."

"Because his brain is malfunctioning," I look beside me to glare at Xander as he continues dragging me to God knows where.

"No it's not!"

"What? You already like him too, someone you saw for the first time yesterday?"

Sometimes talking to Xander gives me headache. "I never said I like him at least he's friendly and charming unlike some grumpy person I know."

He stops to look at me with a raised brow, "and who is this grumpy person you know."

I swallow hard before finding my voice, "it's this guy in my church."

His lips tilt up for a second that I wouldn't have picked it, "again Mari, you don't go to church." He says as he continues to drag me again.

"How would you know that?"

"I know everything about you." I cock my head upwards looking at the back of his head.

"Y-You know everything about me?" Including the fact that Mr Manuel keeps assaulting me.

"Everything!" He concludes before finally stopping, "you got to be kidding me."

I turn around to see what Xander is looking at, "what the-"

Zach is kissing Kisha.

This just keeps getting complicated by every minute. And I realise that Xander wasn't the one kissing that girl that day, it has to be Zach and somehow that made me a lot happier.

"Why are you smiling? Is anything funny here." Xander growls and I shake my head.

"I bet Kisha thinks you're the one kissing her right now."

"And that's funny right? Go there and drag him away!"

"Me?" I question when I knew he was talking to me.

"No me." He replies blankly, Groaning I slowly made my way to Zach and Kisha.

"Hey Koala! Some of us have classes to attend to." I turn to glare at him only to see a faint smirk on his face, turning around I walk up to Zach.

Who knew Xander had a faint sense of humour.

The moment I approach them, Zach breaks the kiss and Kisha glowers at me, "can't you see I was having my moment."

"I told you Maria... Easy." Zach insist, "and tell ugly face to buy two packs of condom later on alright?"

I scrunch my nose and my eyes are wide open and so are kisha's as we watch Zach leave the school.

That was easy.

"So what did you find?" Kisha mutters and I inwardly groan.

"You want to find that out or bask in the feeling that your crush for years finally kissed you?"

Her eyes dilate for a second before she smiles to herself, "Yeah whatever see you later jerkface." she does that hair flip thing before walking off, "but don't think I'm done with you."

I smile when I finally see that she's gone, turning around I also see Xander going to class and I run towards him, to slowly follow behind him.

"Stop following me Shakespeare." He groans but I ignore him as I move to his side to walk with him.

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I stare wide eyed as the AP math teacher writes down an equation on the board, he then stops and I place my pen between my teeth biting through it lightly as I stare at the board.

Advance math hasn't been a problem for me but lately I haven't been studying because I had too much on my mind...

"Solve this and I don't want to hear any form of chattering understand?"

I look behind me to see students solving and those who couldn't solve peeping at others work.

After scribbling the questions down on my notebook i lean in scanning my eyes around it as if the answer were hiding behind the questions.

I look by the corner of my eye as Xander solves all the equations easily, and I sigh, as if noticing my stare on his face, he turns to meet my eyes and I quickly avert my gaze to my notebook acting as if I was writing.

"Five minutes more." The AP math teacher informs and I'm still shamelessly struggling with the first equation, it's not as if I'm not smart, funny enough I am but I always struggle with math, give me an hour and I'll be able to finish it, not five minutes! when I manage to finish the first equation I sigh in relief, moving to the other ones.

"Six more to go, you can do this Shakespeare." I self-praise myself, wiping the beads of sweats gathering on my head.

I hear a frustrated sigh beside me and before I can look to the person, my notebook is snatched away from my table.

I turn to glare at Xander and I see him writing on my book, h-his he helping me?

"Here." He places my notebook back on my desk, at the same time I hear the teacher say pens up.

I'm stunned and my eyes are focused on Xander.

The AP math teacher is up taking our notebooks and he groans the moment the bell rings. "Keep in mind that I won't take it likely with any one who fails even a question from this." The math teacher complains as students scurry off out of his class.

Xander gets up from his seat and I look up at him, "Thanks."

He ignores me, walking out of the class, after arranging my things, I made my way to my locker.

I watch from the corner as Kisha approaches Xander, she flirts a smiles at him and I could see Xander's clenched hands, Xander shoves her off and I could see the disappointment on her pan-caked face, I smile knowingly.

My smile drops the moment she locks eyes with mine, on realisation I quickly turn around walking in long strides.

"Jerk face..." Kisha calls out but I ignore her, increasing my pace, once I'm sure I'm out of her line of sight, I steadied my breath going into literature class with a smile on my face, since Mrs Jane is still taking us literature I could only help but enjoy the moment while it lasted.

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After a very eventful day at school today Mom picked me up from school, I still look beside our place hoping to see Josh's motorbike but reality still stands that he was gone, I look at my phone hoping he calls first but he doesn't.

I'm standing beside Mom as she prepares one of my favourite dish, casserole.

"So Maria, this morning after I dropped you off, I saw the kid that your dad punched." my eyes protrude as I turn to face Mom with my mouth fully agape.

"I apologized on behalf of your dad and he said it was okay, he seems like a good kid, then I asked him how his result was like, he told me without hesitating and with the way he spoke I knew he had brains, so I asked him if he would be able to tutor you."

I move closer to Mom as the aroma from the casserole evades my nose, "what did he say?"

"He said it was okay as long as he got to pick the place."

Oh my god!!! "Mom what was he wearing, like how did he look."

She looks at me with a frown, "I totally forgot but there was something that caught my eye, he was putting on some cute nerdy glasses." Mom smiles and I facepalm myself.

Oh no! Xander would definitely kill me now.

• • •

Thank you sooooooooooo much for reading 💜❤️💜

If you manage to read thus far 🤭...
Who's your favourite character so far??

Mines Kisha and Manuel 😭 kill me 😂