Control Freak ✔️

02 knives//nevermore

Of course he liked her.

She was the girl he sat behind in second period.

"Okay, who can answer the first practice question?" asked the teacher, scanning the class. He chose the girl in front of Caleb who had raised her hand.

"Ivy." Caleb gazed at her as she answered the practice question.

"Organisms that reproduce sexually exhibit zygotic, gametic, or sporic meiosis. One way to determine the type of life cycle an organism has is by... 'B': comparing the diploid and haploid forms of the organism."

"Correct. Thank you. Next question."

Another student raised his hand, but Caleb's attention remained fixed on her, poised with perfect posture and her hands clasped together and resting on top of her knee as she smiled along with the class. She had a way of looking at someone, nodding along as they spoke, that could make anyone feel as if she really gave a shit. She had jade-colored eyes that were stoic and disarmingly cool, intricately-woven and complex like a network of vines burying a darkness never to be seen by man. Her perfect, pillowy lips were parted slightly, enough to see only a bit of her white teeth. There seemed to be so many secrets hidden behind her cryptic smile. It was something entirely alien, strange and inviting.

Someone looked back at him and noticed him staring, throwing him a dirty look that made him sink in his chair and hide his blushing face. For the rest of class he watched the clouds and daydreamed about the kind of girl that all boys imagined of when they first dreamed of princesses who were locked in castles guarded by dark knights and fire-breathing dragons.

Of course, he liked her.

But, there was one problem.

The hallway was abuzz with the cacophony of lockers opening and shutting and chatty students loitering around until it was time to go. He felt someone yanking at the strap of his backpack.

"Cales, my man." Only one person called him "Cales."

It was Max Pratt, the starting quarterback and easily the most popular boy in school. He had short black hair, etched on his boxy cranium as if by charcoal, and sharp, dense eyebrows that bore down on the tiny blue marbles he had for eyes and made his glare similar to that of an eagle's. His jaw was very square and muscular which perfectly framed his large white teeth when he smiled. There were some other jocks orbiting him, like always. Most of the time, Max was so far into his own world to give a fuck about anything or anyone unless it was directly in front of him. But this time, he afforded a slight bit of attention to his peripheral to espy Caleb, standing there alone at his locker packing his belongings.

The beautiful Ivy Quinn was by his side. He had his arm wrapped over her shoulder as he held her very close to him. Caleb glanced at her, as she stood there, twirling her golden hair with her fingers. Instantly, he was captured in her gaze, in a fine web of shining pieces of jade. He had no idea how long he had actually been staring at her.

Her beautiful face was frozen in time like that of a mannequin, and her eyes looked down upon him with nothing more than a scientific curiosity as if observing a specimen beneath a microscope. Her cold lips would not move to speak or betray any sort of emotions inside of her. Instead, she turned her empty gaze away from him once Max opened his mouth.

"Yo, so, the teacher let me take my final after school," he casually declared, not even having the decency to raise his eyes from his phone. "Oops, I mean, you're taking my final after school."

"Oh. Uh, alright." His eyes again ventured towards Ivy's. As she reciprocated, he immediately shot his gaze back down to his feet.

"Get me an A, okay? C'mon, babe," he muttered, continuing down the hallway. With his index finger and thumb, he guided the girl by the chin, and pushed his lips against hers as she offered little resistance.

"Whatever you say, Max," he replied.

Of course, they hadn't stayed to listen for his reply. They never did.

He could hear the other girls in the hall, all camped around and openly admiring Ivy as she passed by them.

Soon, their shadows faded away, and just like that, Caleb's moment that never really was, was over. In the end, Caleb knew it was a mere fantasy to ever think he could be equal to a guy like Max in her eyes. The reality was that she was his bully's girlfriend, and he would never, ever have a chance with her. Of course, he liked her. But, like everyone else at his school, he wished he'd never known her.