Chapter Ten: You Really Have to Stop Dropping Cakes When You See Me
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Despite how hard I try, my mind just isn’t completely focused on academics today, and I am more than relieved when the sound of the bell is heard, signifying the end of school hours.
I pick my bag and rush out of the class, not even bothering to bid goodbye to the teacher. While I know it was rather rude of me, I just don’t have the mental energy to exchange pleasantries or force a smile unto my face right now.
I am rushing towards my locker while trying to stuff all my books into my bag. I am so fixated on the task, I don’t notice the person in front of me until I run into him, letting go of my grip on my books as I stumble backwards, thankfully not falling and making a complete mockery of myself.
Out of habit, I move to adjust my glasses, only to remember I am not wearing it anymore. Inhaling deeply, I look up to find Alex's glare directed at me and I gulp, waiting for the vocal abuse and maybe shove that’ll accompany his anger.
Alex was one of Ben’s close friends, a member of the basketball team and someone who has also actively participated in making my life a living hell.
The tall and buff boy with shaggy blond hair takes a step towards me, a glower on his face that makes me feel a lot smaller than I already am.
“Before you beat me up and break every bone in my body, let me just tell you that I am –”
“Shut up!” He snaps, taking another step towards me, his already dark eyes darkening even more with anger.
Before he can inflict pain on me however, he is suddenly help back and I release the breath I didn’t even realize I was holding, looking up to behold my saviour.
My insides feel all fluttery at the sight of Asher Reid with his ginger hair and beautiful amber eyes and perfect freckles under his eyes, but upon remembering Trixie’s threat, I quickly pick up my books and hurry away, keeping my face low.
“Bells!” I hear him call as he follows after me, but I walk faster, eager to leave the school. Unfortunately, I am stopped by Cherry who is waiting for me by my locker.
“Hi, Bells. I was just – oh lookie! Ash is calling for your attention. Hey, Ash.” She waves at the guy and I internally groan, wondering why life just cannot go my way for once.
When he has caught up to us, Cherry steps forward and wraps her arms around him in a typical Cherry embrace and he smiles, though his gaze is fixed on me.
“How’re you doing, Cher?” He asks, not taking his eyes off me and she excitedly answers him, happy as always. She however trails off when she realizes he isn’t paying her any attention.
She takes a step backwards and stares between us before shaking her head.
“I’ll be waiting in my car. Bells, when you’re done, you can come with me, let me drive you to Lina’s. Ash, you going?”
“Oh no. I have basketball practice today. With Ben gone, I have to assume his position,” he says and Cherry nods before skipping out of the school.
When she is gone, I turn my attention to my locker, totally ignoring Asher as I search for my maths textbook which I know I’ll be needed for an assignment.
“Are you avoiding me, Bells?” Asher asks, leaning against the locker beside mine and I bury my face in mine, trying to hide the blush that creeps unto my cheeks at the way my name just rolled off his tongue.
‘You are doing this for the only people who have ever treated you like you are actually someone’ I tell myself as I suck in a deep breath, pulling out my textbook and the letter from my secret admirer before banging the door of the locker.
“We’re not exactly friends, are we?” I snap at him and he flinches, hurt flashing across his perfect features.
“Bells,” he calls out softly, looking like he doesn’t know what to say, and it hurts me to talk to him like this when I really want nothing more than to get to know him better and become even closer to him.
From the corner of my eyes, I notice Tiffany and Trixie standing across the hallway, staring at the drama.
Oh biscuits!
“No! You can’t just come and try to talk to me simply because Ben is dead and you pity me or something. If you wanted to be my friend so bad, why didn’t you say so when your best bud was still alive? Why?”
“I did talk to you,” he defends.
“Yes, when no one was watching,” I snap at him. “Well, that’s not good enough. Goodbye Asher. Try not to bother me again.”
With a heavy heart, I turn away from him, trying to hold back tears, but he calls my name, stopping me in my tracks.
“You look really beautiful, by the way,” he compliments.
Without looking back at him, I walk out of the school, hiding the blush creeping unto my face at the compliment.
I find Cherry leaning against her car, and she frowns when she sees my glum expression. With a sigh, I get into the passenger’s side of the car, dropping my bag on the floor and strapping on my seat belt.
We drive in silence for a while, with Cherry sending me occasional glances as she waits for me to explain what has me in a bad mood and I am glad she isn’t bombarding me with question.
“I got a letter from my secret admirer again, and a bar of bounty chocolate,” I eventually tell her and her eyes light up.
“That’s your favourite, isn’t it?”
“How did you know?” I ask with furrowed brows and she shakes her head at me as she breathes out a laugh.
“How do I – You told me, silly. Yesterday in the shopping mall. You told me, I told the girls because that’s the kind of thing you NEED to know about your best friends. How have you forgotten this already?”
I shrug, racking my brain to think about when I told her about the chocolate, but I come up empty.
“Wow! You may have told someone else and not even remember it. Well, this secret admirer sounds amazeballs, don’t you think?”
“I guess so,” I admit. “I just find it odd that he knows my locker code. I just changed it and I am sure I didn’t tell anyone about it.”
Cherry shrugs, pulling into the driveway of Lina Pastries.
She throws her car door open and hops out before I can even get my seatbelt off. She opens my door and pulls me out of the car, looking eager.
“Come on! Let’s go, let’s go. Can I come with you to the kitchen? Perhaps you could show me how to make a muffin. Or maybe I could have one straight from the oven. I don’t really like cooking, but God! Lina’s muffins are the best things my buds have been fortunate enough to taste. Come on!”
She skips happily towards the back of the building and I watch her for a moment, wondering how so much energy can be packed into one small frame.
Upon walking into the kitchen, I find it empty. Shrugging, I pick up my work apron and hair net, fishing a spare net for Cherry which she accepts with a grin as she finds a stool and perches herself atop it, staring at everything with wide eyes.
She looks like a kid who is seeing a toy store for the first time.
I walk to the deep freezer and find a yellow post-it note sticking on it, Mrs Lina’s neat handwriting scratched on the note.
Picking it up, I read all the things she expects me to make for the bakery and the orders I am supposed to fill.
“Hey, Bella.”
I look up when I hear my name, my eyes meeting with a short lady with honey coloured hair. Grinning, I walk up to her and throw my arms around her in a hug.
“I’ve missed you!” I gush. “How is your baby?”
“A girl. The cutest baby you’ll ever see,” the Korean woman tells me, her eyes crinkling as she grins widely. She turns to Cherry and smiles at her.
“I’ve never seen you here. Are you new?” She asks and Cherry shakes her head.
“Nope! I’m a friend of Bells here. I’ve seen you though. Months ago when your stomach was this huge.” Cherry gestures with her hands and Cho chuckles.
“Nice to meet you…”
“Cherry.”
“Cherry!” Cho repeats. “It’s glad to know Bella is making friends.”
“She has been since Ben died. She even has a secret admirer.” Cherry grins and once again, my face heats up as Cho turns to me, lips parted in surprise and excitement.
“Bells has an admirer?” Brittany peeks in at us, blue eyes glinting with joy. “That is super cool! You have to tell us all about him. How about we – oops! Customer. We need pies, Bells, and bagels.” She disappears into the main shop.
“Yes, we’ll talk later. Bye. Bye, Cherry.” Cho waves at us before leaving to the shop and Cherry waves back excitedly.
“They seem lovely,” Cherry notes and I nod, opening the bag of flour and setting a clean bowl atop the scale.
“They indeed are.”
“So, you never told me how you met Sam,” she reminds me, staring in awe as I measure ingredients without paying much attention to them as I have done them a lot of time already.
“Well, I met him in an alley the other day. He scared the wit out of me, then walked me home, talking all the time like a pest. I never imagined him to show up at school,” I offer the vague explanation and he hums.
“So I’m right and there’s something off about him. He’s a creep.”
“I guess you could say that.” I laugh.
We spend the remainder of the day in silence and soon, it is time for me to head home. Cherry is nice enough to drop me off at the house where all the orders came from.
It is a huge white painted house, one of the biggest in town and has been vacant for a while. The lawn is neat and decorated with garden gnomes.
I throw my backpack over my shoulder before picking up the eight-inch cake in one hand, I use the other to pick up the box of cookies. Cherry helps me place the small box of croissant atop it. She even offers a helping hand, but I refuse.
“See you in school.” She waves at me before driving off.
I stand in front of the door and am suddenly faced with the problem of ringing the doorbell as I have no spare hand. Fortunately, I hear footsteps as someone walks up to the door, almost as though they sensed me.
The door gently opens and I gasp, losing my hold on the cake. Fortunately, he catches it before it falls, shaking his head it me.
“You really have to stop dropping cakes when you see me, Bells.” Sam chuckles in amusement.
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