The Ballerina & The Devil

Twenty. Their Pride and Their Prejudice

I looked to my left as Aidan slid into his seat twenty minutes after the bell had rung.

It had come to the point where Mrs. Carol would barely give Aidan a glance when he walked in late, or should I say if since there were plenty of times he didn't show up at all.

I smiled at him. "Hi," I said softly, so that Mrs. Carol wouldn't stop mid-speech to yell at me.

Aidan nodded and gave me a smile. "Hey, Cupcake," he sat back in his chair.

Today, he had on a gray beanie to go with his usual plain jeans and a plaid buttoned down shirt, which made him look even more attractive than he usually did. Of course, anything slightly new about his appearance I considered to add attractiveness to his him so.

"So, are we learning anything interesting today?" He asked.

I glanced down at the book we were analyzing. "Just going over who is the Pride and who is the Prejudice in the book between Darcy and Elizabeth."

Aidan murmured something quietly. So quietly I didn't catch it. I leaned towards him a little bit, catching a whiff of usual smoke mixed with spices cologne scent. "What?"

"Both," he said in a voice I could just hear. "They both represent pride and prejudice. Darcy's pride on how he was ranked socially caused him to look down on Elizabeth. That pride, or false pride, was based on his prejudice against those who happen to be in a lower class than himself. He pre-judges Elizabeth before he knows her at all, only going off of her social standing. As for Elizabeth, her own pride was injured when Darcy made derogatory remarks about her. That caused her to pre-judge him. She came to a judgement about him without knowing enough facts to justify the conclusion she concocted on her own accord."

I stared at him more then just a little shocked. I didn't know what was more surprising. The fact that he had read the book, or the fact that he was able to analyze it and then explain it better than the complicated nonsense coming out of my teacher's mouth.

"I think," he added, abruptly looking self-conscious. "I mean, I don't kno-"

"You read the book?" I asked.

Aidan gave me an annoyed look. "Is it that surprising I'm capable of reading and comprehending?"

"What- no, no, no," I shook my head. "It's not that, it's just....I didn't think you'd be someone that would actually.....read it," I frowned. That didn't come out right. "I mean, not because I think you're stupid or anything because that's not what I think of you. You seem like a very smart person. It's just surprising to me because, I don't know, I didn't even really get that until you explained it- not to say that I think I'm smarter than you, but I just- I-," I rubbed my head and sighed. "I should've stopped while I was ahead."

Aidan threw me a teasing smile. "Yeah, you seem to be incapable of that."

I made a face at him and glanced down at my worn paperback cover. "Who's your favorite character?"

He was silent for a while as he thought it over. I watched him tap his foot rhythmically on the floor, which I had come to realize he did a lot when he was thinking about something.

"Mr. Darcy," he finally said.

"Really?" I asked, giving him a look. "That's your favorite character?"

"Is that not the right answer?"

I shrugged. "I just don't really find his character all that appealing. He's kind of an asshole, as well as a drama queen."

"I think he's misunderstood right off the bat," Aidan said, picking at something invisible on his shirt.

"How so?" I asked curiously.