Letters From An Admirer

Chapter | 03

03
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I take the seat at the back of the classroom, not because I'm avoiding spitballs, but because I am not comfortable sitting in front. I'm just used to the backseat, where I can be left alone, without anyone or anything bothering me. I can listen to the lesson without interruptions, and the best thing is that no one bothers to sit next to me.

The teacher walks in and the class settles down, allowing her to continue with the new year greetings and the usual speech about doing our best throughout the year. After the last few words of encouragement, she says that we can busy ourselves since it's the first day and that we can start getting our work on-- her words, not mine-- tomorrow.

I lose myself in a book I've been dying to finish throughout the break. The plain words written as art in black ink, always captivate me. They're my pathway to temporary freedom, to peace. It's like living in a new dimension, where everything is purely planned out. The endings may not always be happily ever afters, but they're enough to supply me with hope. Hope that assures me that there's a better life beyond the one that seems to be pulling me down. And that's all I could ever ask for.

The characters unfold as the words increase, with each character blending in with the other, creating a perfect harmony. Lives unravel in the thin pages of the book, playing themselves out before my eyes. Word by word, my eyes carry me ahead, leading me closer and closer to the hopefully blissful ending. Such beauty displayed in mere words.

Sadly, the bell hauls me out of my book, leaving me disappointed that I couldn't at least have read ten pages. It's every reader's nightmare to be interrupted when your lost in your perfect world. Sighing, I close my book and place it back into its original place-- my bag. I trudge out of the class into the halls, avoiding the usual bustle and hustle of the school. Pushing through the multiple bodies, I finally reach my next class, AP Literature.

Awesome! [No sarcasm.]

The class is already half filled with students, conversing about whatever they talk about. The back row seats have already been filled by the school's notorious bad boys, which, until this day, wonder how they weaved their way to an advanced class. Skimming through the row, hoping for at least one vacant seat, I spot an unfamiliar face, laughing with the bad boys, Nathan Madoff and Liam William. His brown locks with golden highlights, bounce up and down with movement. His pale blue eyes grab my attention. They glimmer without a hint of worry in them, drawing my attention even further.

Before, I'm caught staring, I search for a vacant seat and luckily I find one at the second last row, right in front of Liam. Great. I pull out my book, without wasting another minute, and I find my place in the book. I quickly enter the other dimension and soon, my eyes dance along the black ink. Ashley, one of the main characters has just discovered herself, and she's now seeking for love. Love that will comfort her at night when she lays her head to rest. She seeks someone who she will hand her heart to, someone who will always guard it from hurt. Her life has been filled with distraught and deceit; every time she would catch a breath, something would just come and steal it. She seeks freedom.

"Riley, baby." Nathan's voice interrupts my concentration, causing flares of anger to erupt in my mind.

"What?" I snap at him. That only causes his smirk to widen, leaving irritation to rain all over me. If he could survive three years without uttering a word to me, the outcast, then surely one more year is nothing.

"Party. You and me. Tonight." His wink makes me gag in disgust, and I just flip him off.

"Feisty. I like it." He says. "So?" He prods further.

"So what?" I roll my eyes at him.

"Party?" As if I will ever step inside a house with loud music almost breaking my eardrums, and horny teenagers grinding on each other, making out and doing more things which shall not be mentioned.

"Go poop yourself Nathan." I say before turning my eyes to my book again. His friends chuckle at him and he shuts them up in shame. Where was I.... oh! I know!

"Riley, right?" Another voice behind me speaks up.

Oh come on!

"What do you want?" I look over my shoulder to see the unfamiliar guy staring at me. If I had known it was him, I probably wouldn't have snapped at him like that.

"Whoa, chill. I just wanted to introduce myself. I'm Ashton." He says flirtatiously, adding a wink at the end. I must say, he's the most beautiful guy I've ever laid my eyes on. He must have crawled his way out of a magazine, stealing all the glory in the real world. His features are clearer in person, and I notice how his eyes have specks of green in them and a faint trail of freckles cross his nose bridge. He has a well defined jawline, his skin is smooth, clearly shaved before coming to school. Oh, wait. He said he name's Ashton. Ashton Rider?

Of course you idiot! Who else?

"And I'm not interested." I deadpan, before quickly checking where's the supposed teacher. There he sits in his seat, eyes glued on the small screen in his hands, as he pays no attention to the boisterous class of learners before him.

Must be first day vibes.

"Who said I was interested?" Ashton retorts.

"I-I..." Embarrassment colours my cheeks with a red blush, but I quickly recollect myself and say, "Is that really a comeback?" I arch an eyebrow. "If it is then I suppose you head back to the factory that you call a brain and manufacture a new one, because that was really lame."

A chorus of 'oohs' fill the class, alerting me that almost every ear in the class is listening attentively to our conversation, maybe because it's not everyday you see the so-called bad boy conversing with the school's outcast. Anger masks Ashton's face but he quickly washes it off and replaces it with a smirk.

"Be careful with your tongue Cupcake. You don't who you're talking to."

"Let me guess, you're a typical definition of a bad boy, involved in gangs and whatever. So I should probably keep my distance." I mock him.

Just then, the shrill bell fills in our conversation, causing eavesdropping ears to tear their attention away from us. The learners begin filing out one by one and I pack up my belongings to follow them.

Before I reach the door, an arm snakes around my waist and soft lips slightly touch my ear. "You don't know who you're messing with, Cupcake." Ashton whispers in my ear, before leaving me baffled and rooted in my spot. Evil glares find my eyes, as pairs of jealous eyes scan me in disgust and envy.

"You have got to be kidding me." I mutter before finally leaving the classroom.

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A/N: Do you guys like Ashton? I know I do.

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