Oliver tripped on his way to class. Again.
His face reddened as he picked up his scattered papers and hurried away from the stares of his peers. They should really be used to it by now, he was clumsy by nature so it happened often. His friend Mason fell into step beside him, taking in his embarrassed look.
"Trip again?" Oliver nodded solemnly.
"Hey man, look on the bright side. At least Annaliese didn't see you this time." Oliver flashed back to a week ago when he'd been zoned out and had tripped right in front of Annaliese, who was easily the most popular girl in school and probably the crush of 99% of the guys at school- including Oliver. His face reddened at the memory, how she had looked like she was trying not to laugh. He was thankful he hadn't scattered any papers that time, he'd been able to dust himself off and run away in record time. She seemed so untouchable and larger than life, nobody could help but admire her- she was confident and didn't care what people thought. Oliver wished he could stop caring so much about what other people thought.
"I guess that is a plus." He mumbled back as they walked into class.
Annaliese sat in the front row, surrounded by a few of her friends from her friend group. They tended to stick to themselves, but that only made them more revered somehow. All of them were popular in their own right. Beside her was Roman, who was big, ripped, and had a shaved head. He didn't talk much but that didn't stop all the girls in school from gushing over him. Next to Roman was the more talkative and friendly River, his brother. He had pushed back dark hair and an easy smile, he was one of the few that didn't seem that threatening. On the other side sat Amber and Brook, both stunning and untouchable like Annaliese. Brook was bubbly and friendly, she'd even talked to him once, although it was just to ask him for a pencil. Amber was more intimidating, and Oliver got the feeling that she and Annaliese would butt heads sometimes. All of them were beautiful, but his eyes were drawn only to Annaliese. Her eyes were on her desk, reading a handout the teacher had passed out. She brushed her long golden hair behind her ear and didn't even glance up as he walked by to get to his seat.
The rest of the day passed without Oliver making a fool of himself thankfully. He walked out of his last class and went to his locker to wait for Mason and their other friend Tim to get out and meet him there. They were going to his house after school to play videogames. He had just seen Tim start walking up and raised his hand to wave to him when he heard the commotion. Tim finished approaching and shot him a questioning look.
"What the hell is going on out there?" He asked, looking excited. Tim was always ready for something interesting to happen. Oliver shrugged, following Tim as he began walking hurriedly towards the crowd that was forming just outside the front doors of the school.
Tim pushed through the crowd with no issue, elbowing people aside without a care. Oliver followed behind him in the trail he left, apologizing to those who got elbowed. Finally, they made it to the front in time to see Annaliese facing another girl.
The other girl was another one of the more popular girls in school, but not in Annaliese's group. Her name was Melissa, Oliver recalled. She was yelling something to Annaliese, looking ready to blow steam out her ears as she said it, while Annaliese just stood there and listened, looking bored. Melissa was trying to pick a fight, something about her boyfriend breaking up with her because he was in love with Annaliese? She must be crazy. Annaliese had gotten a reputation in the few months since she and the rest of her group had transferred here. And it was a violent one.
The girl stopped yelling and seemed to be waiting for Annaliese's response. Annaliese looked up, a smirk spreading over her face, and she simply said:
"And how is that my problem?"
The other girl shrieked in anger and lunged forward, her hands going for Annaliese's hair. Annaliese carefully sidestepped, moving easily out of her reach with a swiftness that shocked Oliver. Her fights were legendary, but Oliver had never seen one up close like this. She was amazing. And very scary. Oliver was having some conflicted feelings.
Annaliese had tripped the girl as she lunged again, her face amused and calm. As she watched Melissa pull herself to her feet, one of Annaliese's friends stepped forward, Roman. He tried to step in front of Annaliese, and Oliver saw her face twist from gentle amusement to thinly veiled rage. Roman was on the ground before anyone could blink, Annaliese standing over him with her lips pulled back in a snarl. She said something to him that Oliver couldn't hear, then turned back to the girl, her face serious now.
"Let's just get this over with."
Oliver couldn't believe a teacher hadn't stepped in yet, and as he thought it, he saw one pushing through the crowd. The vice principal, Mr. Lee. Just as Annaliese's fist connected with the girl's face, he reached the front of the group and blanched. After the second of shock he thrust himself forward and got between them, and Oliver admired his bravery. He almost expected Annaliese to take him down the way she had her friend, but she only stopped, her face shifting back to her uncaring mask. Melissa was on the pavement, her nose bloody and her eyes watering. She still looked angry- if anything, angrier than before. She had lost big time. Oliver felt bad for her, but also knew she had started it and known what she was getting into.
Annaliese turned and walked away, following another teacher that had just shown up as Mr. Lee helped Melissa. As she walked by she looked up, meeting his eyes where he stood partially behind Tim. She stared at him for a moment, her eyes narrowed, but then seemed to dismiss him and keep walking. Oliver's heart was beating hard and he felt a little like throwing up as he turned to follow Tim away from the site of the fight.
"Damn, that was great!" Tim was saying back at Oliver's place after they had explained the details of the fight to Mason, who had been greatly disappointed he'd missed it. At the moment Mason's head was in his hands and Tim was grinning wildly. "Girl fights are the best. That one had a lot less hair pulling than I imagine most do. I can't even imagine Annaliese letting someone touch her hair." He said, shaking his head.
"Ollie, you've been quiet, what did you think? Still head over heels or are you more scared of her now?" Tim asked teasingly. Oliver wasn't sure how to respond and sputtered for a few seconds before Tim spared him and clapped him on the back. "It's okay, I understand. You're not one to be deterred by such a small thing as the fact that she could easily kick your ass! You're a brave man." Oliver rolled his eyes at that but couldn't help laughing.
"Are we gonna play or not?" Mason asked, grabbing a controller. "I dunno about yall but I have homework to procrastinate at home." Oliver and Tim laughed and complied, grabbing controllers of their own and sitting next to him to play.
The next day Oliver woke up late for school. After he left Tim's place he had been up late thinking about Annaliese, and how gracefully she moved, like a dancer- or a predator. She scared him, definitely, but he couldn't help being drawn to her. He was thinking about it again as he walked himself to school, not in a hurry since there was no way he was going to make it in time. He was almost there when a group of guys noticed him and must have decided they were bored and he looked like an easy target. Oliver wasn't paying attention and didn't see them until they were on him. One of them pushed him down, sneering.
"This is the geek in my English class." One of them said. Oliver was surprised he remembered, considering Oliver had seen him come to the class maybe once. He was also surprised at the use of the word 'geek', wasn't that an outdated term? Oh well, he thought, not the time.
"He's got a kickable face." The guy who had pushed him down said, bending over him. "Do you mind if I try it?" Oliver was prepped to get up and book it away, his mind clear even as he felt his heart pounding. Before anyone could move though, a gold streak flew through the air and struck them all at once, knocking two of them down and making the other stumble.
His only thought as he saw the graceful form standing in front of him was: Holy shit it's Annaliese.
He was frozen in shock and could only stare from the ground as she bore down on them. Their faces were horrified, and they scrambled back to get away from her, the two who had fallen to the ground getting up and running the opposite direction. The one who stayed probably regretted doing so because a moment later he received a kick to the face. Blood started pouring out of his nose and he grabbed it with his hands.
"You bitch!" He said, though it sounded more like "you bith" from his swollen mouth. She only made a motion like she was going to hit him again, causing him to jump back, tripping and falling on his ass.
Annaliese turned her cold amber eyes onto Oliver. She looked incredibly bored and annoyed, like it was Oliver's fault he had gotten jumped and she had decided to save him. Oliver had a moment to wonder if she was going to offer him her hand to help him up before he saw the guy she had knocked down stand up and start to come towards her again while her back was turned.
Oliver quickly jumped up without thinking, placing himself between the guy and Annaliese. The guy drew back, not seeming to care that his target had changed, and punched Oliver in the stomach. Oliver doubled over in pain and when he looked up, Annaliese had the guy by his neck, and was holding him off the ground, his legs dangling and kicking in the air. She held him there for a couple seconds before dropping him and simply saying "go." in a voice that didn't leave room for argument. The guy took off.
Oliver only had a moment to marvel at her strength before she turned to him with a sigh, looking more annoyed now than she had before.
"Maybe try being less pathetic next time," She told him, not bothering to look at his face, "and never try to protect me again. I don't need it." She went to walk away then, and Oliver had a moment of panic at the thought of her leaving.
"Wait!" He said, and took a step towards her with his arm outstretched.
Oliver's foot hit a crack in the pavement and, as if in slow motion, he fell towards Annaliese. She heard him and turned, her face going from annoyed to surprised as she saw his body falling towards her. She seemed to be too shocked to react though, and he crumpled onto her in a pile.
On the ground, Oliver's body was pressed against hers as he hovered over her, holding his weight on his elbows. He was frozen in place, scared to even look at Annaliese, but he couldn't help it. It was like he couldn't control his body. He wasn't scrambling to get up, and his eyes were lifting to meet hers. When they did, a shockwave ran through him.
She didn't look angry. Or annoyed. She was looking at him in what seemed like wonder and confusion. The places where his body touched hers he felt tingly and warm, and he had this strange thought run through his head that he had no idea where it came from.
It's her.