The Do-Over (Extra Credit series, Book 2)

Chapter 2: ANNIKA

"Different rules for different people...." She tries again.

"That's a slippery slope! I could demolish that argument in three seconds flat, Mom! Try again."

She sighs. "I have to get to work now, but the short answer? She wore us down, bunny. She wore us down. I'm not sure you cared about dating half as much as she does."

Maybe not. I don't know Lena so well after a year away from home, but she was always a social butterfly. Which no one would ever say about me. I can hear Lena in the background asking if I'm mad.

"Gotta go, Anni-bear-Kisses!"

"Kisses," I repeat. "And you can tell Lena I'm not mad." And I'm not. Who needs a boyfriend anyway? Who needs friends when you've got family?

* * *

Over the course of the week we're supposed to write up our thoughts about the problem that got us into Marjorie's class. But I don't know where to start so I write a lot about being an international student and having no clue what's going on here sometimes. That Night was a prime example of my complete misunderstanding of a situation. Of a person. But I don't want to think about that.

Except everything spiraled downhill after that. The whispers, the gossip, the rumors, the backlash. It made my head swim and I guess I lashed out. So maybe I made some enemies. Maybe a lot of them. And maybe I did yell at those Delta Nu girls but it was in Estonian so what do they care? At least this is all temporary. And it can't get any worse, right?

It does.

I'm late to the next Extra Credit class and hurriedly pull out my notebook and pens as I sit down, glancing around. Everyone is looking at me. Except Matt, but I'm not looking at him either so I don't notice the tension in his shoulders, or his long legs stretched out in front of him.

"I'm so sorry! What did I miss?"

"We've paired up with partners to swap notebooks. You're working with Matt." Marjorie says neutrally.

I still. "Oh, fuck me!" Matt and I say this at the same time and everyone laughs while the two of us glare at each other.

Marjorie explains that each pair is supposed to work together to solve each other's "problems" so they don't happen again. I consider begging Marjorie for an out but I've already tried that once. I glare at Matt as I drag my metal chair noisily over to his. He winces at the sound and I'm absurdly pleased that I've succeeded in annoying him. His dark hair falls over his forehead but otherwise he's perfectly composed and it drives me crazy. His polo shirt could have been tailored to him and his jeans fit him to a letter. No droopy-butt pants for him. Mr. Smooth. Mr. Popular Perfect. Everyone sided with him.

"You're so full of shit," I say because his very existence is intolerable.

"Gee, hello to you too, Annika!" He smirks at me and I hate it when he smirks. It makes me feel like a bug and it draws attention to his mouth.

"That's exactly what I mean. You just want to bullshit your way through everything. Okay, then, let's get the courtesies over with: hello, how are you, sure is cold out! Now what?" I'm almost out of breath and he looks surprised by my outburst. I'm a little surprised too.

"Huh. I was going to say that maybe we should try to keep things polite, since we have to work together," he says slowly, watching me. He has the darkest eyes. They're brown but a very dark, dark brown and very intent. It's unnerving because his mouth says one thing--always joking, bull-shitting, smirking-and his eyes say a different thing, like he's thinking about something else altogether.