Norah would be lying to herself if she didn't admit that she fancied William Manuel at one point. He was perfect: tall, handsome athlete, straight A student, devoted boyfriend, kind and polite. He didn't need to stick to a particular group of people; he was the kind of person who got along with everyone and could be friends with whoever he chose.

It was a mild crush, an admiration of sorts. Nearly all the girls liked him at some point. Until Rafe came along with his infamy, blasé attitude, and Italian profanities that made him seem more like a movie star than a teenager.

She never saw his girlfriend, but everyone knew William spent nearly every weekend in London with her. Even if she would never have a chance or the courage to date someone like him, it was always nice to have him around, hear his voice in the classroom, or see him smile to everyone in school.

His weeklong absence was noticeable to Norah, who would always secretly compete with him to answer the most questions in class or glance at his final marks to see if he had done better than her (it rarely happened).

Now he stood by the lockers, chatting to the girls from the year below who flocked to express their sympathies over his broken leg.

As soon as the girls left him alone, his eyes locked on to Norah's.

"Hey," he said with a warm smile and waved her to come over.

"Hi," she replied in a small voice. "You're back."

He showed his leg wrapped in a cast and leaned onto his crutch. "Yep. Got so sick of lying around for the whole week."

"Yes, I can imagine. Are you okay though, now?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. But no football for me this year. Rafe is taking over as captain. He's more enthusiastic about school now, I think you've been a great influence on him."

Norah warmed at the thought that Rafe had been making progress, and it was noticeable to all, not just the teachers. If she ever got tired of being a lawyer, being a teacher wouldn't be such a bad option.

"He just needed a little push," she replied, which was a bit of understatement. What he needed was more of a shove and a drop kick down the stairs whilst screaming orders in Japanese.

"He mentioned you were really worried about me."

"He what?" Norah asked through gritted teeth.

"Honestly, I'm fine. This sort of thing happens. And it's cool that Rafe takes over, he's great. I'd rather he lead the team than some idiot..."

Norah had an inkling that the idiot he was referring to was Jack.

Her cheeks flushed with color and heat. She kept her facial expression in check, whilst imagining going over to Rafe and sellotaping his mouth shut for good. Why would he tell William she was worried about him?! They weren't even friends.

"Well, I'm glad you're okay now, it's nice to have you back," Norah blurted.

"See you in class," he said.

She walked towards the classroom, down the long corridor, and at the end of it she saw Rafe, leaning against the lockers with a triumphant smirk on his face. Students were already gathered outside the classroom waiting to go in.

"Happy to have Manuel back?" he teased.

"Why would you tell him I was worried about him?" She said adding a smack on his arm. He barely felt it.

Rafe shrugged. "You were. You thought I was stealing his thunder whilst he's all alone and injured. You made it sound like I was some sort of a usurper."

"Yes, because I knew how much it meant to him. Being a captain."

"It means a lot to me, too. I need this for my application. It would prove to my dad that I can do something. I thought you were on my side," he said hotly.

"I'm not on anyone's side," Norah muttered. She was frowning at him and his childishness.

"Well I told him because you obviously fancy him."

"Oh for the last time, I don't. Yes, I admit I was attracted to him, but I don't have any intentions or feelings or... chances," she muttered. "So stop telling him stupid stuff."

"You can go for him. And thanks to me, you two just had a proper conversation, probably the first ever," Rafe said, pointing at himself with his thumb in triumph.

She held a deadpan expression on her face. "Look, Cupid, let's focus on schoolwork, okay?"

"It's not the most important thing, Norah. You're seventeen, for god's sake. Let loose. Go snog someone for once in your life."

"Who I snog and when is none of your concern, Rafe. I'm your tutor and my job is to get you good grades."

"Fine, you're such a killjoy. By the way, when are you giving me a proper tour of this crappy town? Check it out," he said with a grin and pushed a report into her hands. There was a significant leap from last terms grades. He got 90% on some coursework. Norah could feel her chest swell with pride. This was her hard work too.

"Well done," she said, giving the paper back to him. "You see? I told you you could do it. Let's do Sunday then. A deal is a deal."

"It's a date then," he said with a wink as Mrs. McGrath began calling students into the classroom.

"No it's not," Norah muttered with irritation. Rafe took on a habit of flirting with her as a means of teasing, and seeing a frustrated reaction out of her seemed to encourage him further.

He'd began doing it more often as they spent more time together. She didn't mind it before, but recently it has become increasingly distracting to Norah. And she couldn't understand why.