The Heart Exchange

Chapter Three

"Are you okay?"

"Fine, thanks. Would you mind if I sat close to the door?" I asked, keeping my tone lowered for the sake of not wanting to draw attention to myself.

"Of course. We have a new student in who also asked to be seated close to the door. Perhaps you can make him feel welcome?"

New student. Oh no...

I turned in my stance and found familiar, green eyes staring back at me. I hadn't noticed him when I first walked in. How did I miss it?

"Hi," he spoke, somewhat apprehensive.

Did I make him nervous?

"Hi, I'm Maddie Monroe," I introduced, sitting myself down next to him. "It's nice to meet you."

At this, his smile fell. Long gone was his shy politeness. Instead, he just looked confused.

"I'm Ethan. Ethan Ryder."

His name didn't ring any bells.

I took out my pencil case and fiddled with the zip, contemplating my next question. "This might sound odd..."

He made the effort to face me, offering up a perfect view of his chiselled face. The resemblance was uncanny.

"Have we met before?"

Again, confusion swept his face. His beautiful, flawless face.

Wait. What?

"No. We've not met before," he answered. "I've been told I have one of those faces, though."

Disappointment washed over me. "That must be it."

Silence consumed us both, seemingly stretching on for hours.

"So, you've lived here all your life?" he asked, feeling the need to attempt small talk.

I offered him a shy smile and nodded. "Yes."

I suddenly became very aware of my breathing patterns. I felt anxious talking to him and I had no idea why. He was cute. There was no denying that and the fact he was showing even an ounce of interest in me was unnerving. But it felt...nice. Exactly the way it did in my dreams.

"Where are you from?" I questioned, politely keeping our conversation going.

"Originally, Santa Barbra. My family moved here last month," he answered, happy to continue talking.

"Are you liking it so far?" I asked, unable to resist.

It seemed conversation between the two of us just flowed.

A broad smile broke out across his face, confirming that he did indeed like it. "I think it's great."

I smiled at his reply and took note of the way he looked at me. He tilted his head ever so slightly to the left and smirked. Not the type of smirk that made you wary. The type that made your insides swirl.

Yes, ladies and gents, Ethan Ryder makes me feel sick. But in a good way.

"Alright, let's get things started shall we?" interrupted Miss. Clark, standing from her chair. "I hope you all enjoyed your summer break and have come back to school, ready to learn." There were a few hushed disagreements but for the most part, our teacher ignored them. "We'll keep today relatively light but I did want to discuss some important assessments with you guys."

At this, a few students groaned.

"In total, you will hand in four essays, one group project and will undergo one solo presentation."