Pure As Gold.

+2

I was completely oblivious as to why Layla hated me so much on Monday, but on Wednesday realization hit me like a bag of bricks. She was jealous. I sat inside for lunch on Tuesday because it rained like crazy and Aria, Luke, and I couldn't sit underneath our tree. Neither of us made it to lunch in time to grab a table under the breezeway, so we were forced to pack inside of the cafeteria like sardines. All of the tables were filled, so we sat in the corner on the floor, enjoying each other's company like we always did. I shared small talk with Noah as I did on Monday, but he didn't allow me to excuse myself like he did the previous day. Instead of keeping his seat at the table when I turned to join Aria and Luke, he followed me and sat on the floor with us. I was beyond shocked.

I could practically see the steam flowing out of Layla's ears as Noah joined us on the floor. He was seriously a gentleman, and I'd never even seen him give her the time of day, so I was unsure as to why she was so possessive of something that clearly wasn't hers. The feelings she had for him weren't mutual, and it seemed as if he honestly didn't care if she existed or not. Even though they sat at the table next to each other most days, I could tell she was just there to try to be noticed. I wasn't sure if they had history in the past and I wasn't interested in knowing, either. I just knew that Layla had claimed him hers, and she hated any girl who caught his attention simply because it wasn't on her. So when he followed me over and joined me with me friends on the floor, I knew I'd have to deal with her sooner or later.

—

"So I smooth it out like this? Like to get that curve?"

I was helping Noah with his clay sculpture, and he wasn't doing too bad. He chose to aim for the stars and make a Range Rover, and I promised to help as best as I could. Art had been an outlet of mine for a while, and I had made plenty of clay sculptures, but never a car. It was a new one for me, but I was determined to get it done. We had car magazines scattered all around the table, and he'd sketched a few into his sketchbook the night before for practice before he started working on the slab of clay.

"Actually, more like this."

I wet my hands with water before standing to my feet and walking behind his chair, reaching over his shoulders and putting my hands around his. I showed him the correct way to smooth the clay so it had sharper edges as he sculpted the front of the truck. He nodded, repeated what I'd done, and I made my way back to my seat. Layla never took her eyes off me as she rolled them, but I brushed it off as I sat back in my seat across from him. I picked up my own project and continued to sculpt an afro queen out of my slab. I'd been sketching all morning in English since I'd finished my paper, and I couldn't wait for Art so I could actually bring my idea to life.

Art ended before I knew it, and when the bell rang both Noah and I had clay everywhere and our table looked a mess. Ms. Lo walked over to us, laughing to herself.

"I'm not used to anyone being in here after the bell," she says, playfully.
"I lost track of time," I say, truthfully.

I was focused on my project and so was Noah. We'd both been diligently working since before class fully started, and here we were after everyone else had cleared out, still working away.

"I saw you over here tryna take my job too," Ms. Lo says, laughing. "Great job helping Mr. Mason."

I cut my eyes in Noah's direction to see the big smile plastered on his face, and I laugh.

"She's pretty good," Noah says as he stands to his feet.

I don't even attempt to hide the smile on my face. I watch as he sits his sculpture on the nearly empty shelf and comes back to the table to begin cleaning his mess.