My Ex-Best Friend: The Bad Boy (Smythe #1)

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

       "Shouldn't we have more time to complete this project?" I asked Ty. We had to hand in the project in two days, and we were just about halfway finished typing up the report. So we decided to meet in the library after school to work on it together.

       "I have no idea," Ty said. "Mr. Shay usually does it. He's a nice teacher, but he rarely gives us enough time for assignments. But he marks easy, so that's a plus."

       "That's good," I said. "But that doesn't stop me from stressing out on this."

       "You and me both," Ty said.

       The door to the library opened, and I looked to see who walked in because who didn't do that? I was a bit surprised when I saw Seb walked in, but he was with Dax, so maybe Dax was forcing his older brother to be there.

       Dax saw me and gave me a smile as he waved, so I returned the smile and wave. He was the complete opposite of his brother. Dax was such a sweetheart and was always saying hi to me in the hallway. Before I moved, there were times where Dax hung out with me and Seb, so I did consider him as my friend.

       "You know that kid?" Ty asked.

       "Uh, yes," I said. "And he's not really a kid considering he's just two years younger than us." Ty shrugged and continued typing on his laptop that he brought for the project. "You know that Seb is my ex-best friend. I already knew Dax before I moved away. Why?"

       "No reason," Ty said.

       Seb was suddenly standing by our table, his hands pressed down onto it. "Artie, can I talk to you?" he said, his voice twisted in anger.

       "Now you want to talk?" I asked. "Because if I recall, you have told me many times to leave you the hell alone and never talk to you again."

       Seb narrowed his eyes. "I'm not kidding. I need to talk to you. Now."

       I sighed. "I'll be back," I told Ty before getting up and following Seb to the other side of the library.

       "What the hell are you doing with him?" Seb asked.

       "Excuse me?"

       "Ty Moretz," Seb said. "Why the hell are you with him?"

       "Relax, we're just doing a project together," I said. "And I don't know why it's such a big deal. You're pissed at me so you shouldn't care about what I do."

       Seb crossed his arms over his chest. "Ty is a jerk, Artie. Trust me when I tell you that hanging around him will just end badly."

       "Seb, we're doing a project together," I said. "That's it. And if I do end up deciding to hang out with him, that's my choice, not yours."

       "He's just going to hurt you," Seb said. "I care about you and I don't want you getting hurt."

       So Seb just went from never wanting to talk to me again to caring about me? "Really?" I asked. "Because just yesterday, you told me that you hate my guts. And now you care about me?"

       "I never said that," Seb denied.

       "What are you talking about?" I asked. "You just said that you care about me and you don't want me getting hurt."

       "Really? I don't recall saying that."

       I groaned. "You are so frustrating! Look Seb, you told me plenty of times to leave you alone and not talk to you, so you have no say in who I hang out with. Ty seems sweet, but we're just working on a project together. So relax and stop trying to control what I do."