“ I just feel like spending your days thinking you're a speck in the universe is useless you might as well be thinking that you're an elephant or a goat. Instead spend your days trying to impact and affect this world for the better even if no one knows , but the reason you do it shouldn't be for recognition instead it should be because it is the right thing to do.”

-

“Winter formal may be two days away, but that doesn’t stop Ms. Terrington from giving us a physics assignment,” I whine as I sit down on our lunch table. “It has only been a week since school opened!”

Jason nods his head in agreement. Oliver glances at me.

“Now, I have two days to finish it,” I groan.

“I have a load of geography homework, ” Jason says. “I am just gonna pretend I don’t.”

I laugh, hearing his tone. I place my physics book and notebook on the table. I got it out of my locker before coming here. After lunch, I will go to the library and work there until my next class.

“Can I see your physics book for a second?” Oliver says.

I raise my eyebrows, “What for?”

“Just need to be sure about something,” Oliver says. He may need to see a formula or something like that.

“Okay, sure,” I say. He takes my book. “Don’t borrow it, though. I need it for my assignment.”

“I don’t—”

“A pencil, two pens, two erasers, a sharpener, and a notebook,” I list. “You were saying?”

Jason booms with laughter. “You should open a shop.”

I roll my eyes.

“You have taken something bigger,” Oliver informs.

“I have taken something from you?” I ask in surprise.

Oliver stares at me but he doesn’t reply.

“What is it?” I ask, genuinely concerned.

“You will know soon enough,” Oliver says, then opens my physics book.

Jason at that moment says, “Hey, Gwen. I was thinking of asking someone out. Wanna be my wing woman?”

I turn to him. “Oh, really? I thought you were gonna dress up like a princess and wander around in your winter wonderland.”

Jason makes a face.

I chuckle. “Yeah, sure.”

“Hm.” Jason scans the cafeteria with narrowed eyes. “What about her?”

I look at the girl he’s looking at. She has big green eyes and curly black hair. She looks pretty.

“I don’t think she will say ‘yes’ to you. Besides, do you even think she's single?”

Jason glares at me. “Why wouldn’t she yes?”

“Look in the mirror?” I say with a serious face. Then I chuckle. Jason grumbles.

“I am serious!” Jason says.

I hear shuffling. I look at Oliver, who places my book on top of my notebook.

“Done?” I ask.

“Yeah,” Oliver says and looks at Jason.

“You know what,” Jason says, “I will come to the dance alone and find my date on the dance floor, you will see.”

“Yeah, for sure,” I wave. “The girl of your dreams will be waiting for you.”

Jason places his fist on the table. “She will.”

“But I am not sure if you are the man of her dreams.” I comment.

Jason gets angry. I pat his shoulder.

The bell rings and I head for the library as Oliver and Jason go to their respective classes.

I find a seat for myself in the corner. I have 40 minutes before my next class.

As I keep solving the problems, I don’t really need my textbook and solve them by myself. I hear a chair moving across mine. I look up.

It’s Woody. Woody from Halloween.

I wave at him and mouth hi. His eyes lit up, seeing me.

He mouths a hello as well. I couldn’t remember his name on Halloween night. His name is Chase Emerson. He is a senior student. Chase is also Owen’s close friend. He is one of the Populars. Girls don’t only stalk Owen. They stalk Chase too. He has got the looks.

We work in silence, but from time to time I find him looking at me. I raise my eyebrow in question.

Chase whispers, “Aren’t you the vampire girl?”

I smile. I nod yes.

“I have your cape,” Chase whispers back.

I glare at him. Then I chuckle. “You never gave it back.”

“Oops,” Chase says. We laugh silently as we keep working.

I find a question that I need to check in my book. I open it and search through the contents. While doing that I notice the time on my phone. I am ten minutes late for my math class. Crap.

I hurriedly take the papers and notebook from the table. Chase’s and my stuff are scattered everywhere. I grab what I think is mine and run. Chase makes a sound. I think he calls my name, but I don’t have time for that.

As expected, I get detention. I join my classes one by one and I get no chance to meet either of the boys and tell them about it.

At the end of the day, I find myself sitting in the detention room. This sucks. I didn’t deserve it at all. I’m so mad.

I’m looking out of the window when I hear a group of boys laughing. I glance at the doorway and see Chase entering with his group of friends. They are all football players. I don’t see Owen among them.

“Hey, Bradbury, the vampire girl!” Chase announces.

He and his friends come my way and take seats around mine. I am flustered at suddenly getting so much attention. I am used to living in the shadows. Me being social is a nightmare.

I may do somewhat well with Oliver and Jason, because they are just them. They bring out a part of me I can’t really express with anyone else. I know, no matter what I say or do, or how crazy I sound, they will think that’s Gwen. They won’t ever judge me.

But in front of a bunch of jocks? My brain is already freezing and showing me red alerts.

You are stupid.

You are boring.

You are boring.

God damn it. I know that already.

“What’s up? I couldn’t talk to you properly earlier,” Chase says, turning to me.

Thankfully, none of his other friends pay attention to me. It doesn’t seem like they mind being in detention. Chase doesn’t seem like he does either.

“I am great,” I say. “And about that cape.”

“Yes, I remember that,” Chase says. “I was so stoned the next morning. I tried a lot to remember from whom I got it from but bam, I remembered nothing!”

He points his two fingers to his head and fires.

I smile. “That sounds like it.”

“And hey,” Chase says. He opens his backpack and brings out a book. “I think this belongs to you. You took my book instead.”

“Huh?” I look at the book. It’s my physics book.

“When you were leaving, our books got swapped,” Chase says with a smile.

“Oh,” I facepalm. “I am so sorry. I didn’t even realize .”

“It’s okay,” Chase waves. “Although Ms. Rene gave me a detention for not bringing my physics book.”

“Oh, crap. I am so sorry!” I say and I bring out what I think is his backpack.

Chase chuckles. He takes his book as I take mine.

“Now, I don’t accept sorry that way,” Chase says, leaning back in his chair, sitting relaxedly.

What does he mean?

“Then?” I ask.

“I will let you know. But, I have something that you own. So I guess I will see you around, huh?” Chase says and winks.

I roll my eyes.

He turns to his friends next as I look out the window.

Our detention ends. Chase walks by my side, talking about Halloween once again. He jokes about being drunk and seeing real vampires in the haunted house. I share my story of how I was not scared, and Owen was screaming like a girl. We both laugh at that.

When we are laughing as we leave, I suddenly see someone familiar in the school gate.

My eyes go wide. What is he doing here?

Oliver stares at me. Then he looks at Chase. Chase is still smiling and talking about something.

“Hey,” I say to Oliver. Chase glances at me.“What are you doing here?”

Oliver is still looking at Chase. Chase notices him and narrows his eyes.

Oliver then snaps his head at me. “I sent you texts asking you where you are. You didn’t reply. Jason got to know that you had detention.”

Oh, crap. My phone is on silent and I didn’t even check it.

“I would have told you but I didn’t find time. My phone is on silent,” I reply.

Oliver doesn’t say anything. He glances at Chase again.

“Hey,” Chase says to me. I look at him. “I will be leaving then. I’ll see you. Bye, vampire girl.” He smiles.

Oliver and I stand in silence for a moment.

“Vampire girl?”

I look at Oliver, “He talked to me on Halloween. I was a vampire, remember?”

Oliver stares at me. “I remember more than that.”

I don’t know what he remembers, but I remember more than that too.

Oliver stares at me.

“Thought of going home?” he says.

“Yeah,” I say.

Oliver grabs my hand, clasping his fingers with mine as we start for home. I don’t know why it feels like he is holding me tighter.

*****

I finish my assignment on time and submit it. I have no homework now. It’s only two days from the winter formal. School will remain closed tomorrow so that Jason, the students from the council, and the volunteers can decorate the gym. The day after that is winter formal.

Oliver has yet to ask me out.

I don’t think he is going to.

I am sitting at the lunch table in silence. Jason is busy with the council, so he won’t have lunch with us. Oliver is staring at his lunch. He hasn’t said a word yet. He has been silent since the morning. I found him staring at me from time to time, but when I look at him, he looks away.

It seems like he is expecting something from me. What does he want?

I know that I am in love with him. But I don’t know anything about his feelings.

I am scared to think about it, but this feels like every other time when the people didn’t want me around. They stopped showing cared. They stopped talking to me. They stopped being something to me. Faye, Dean, Claire. It was the same story every single time.

I don’t want to think Oliver will ever do something like that.

But it is heading that way.

I have never been in love before. My friends have disappointed me, hurt me. My ex has cheated on me.

But if Oliver does something, it will be far worse than anything else that ever happened to me. He has the power to hurt me the most.

My heart squeezes. I close my eyes and think, no, nothing has happened yet. I am making myself miserable. Oliver did nothing.

I look at Oliver. Once again, I find him staring at me.

As soon as I look at him, he looks away.

“You, um—” I try to start a conversation, but I don’t know what to talk about.

“Yes?” Oliver asks almost eagerly.

“No-nothing,” I stutter.

Oliver sighs.

The rest of the lunchtime passes the same way. We don’t talk. After we are done having lunch, we leave the cafeteria. We walk side by side, but Oliver doesn’t hold my hand. I don’t hold his hand either.

“Vampire girl!” I hear Chase’s voice.

Both Oliver and I turn around. Chase comes our way, smiling.

“I found your cape!” Chase says. He opens his backpack, brings out my cape, and gives it to me.

I take it. I can feel Oliver’s eyes on me.

“Thanks,” I say.

“No, thanks, I owe you that one. You also owe me something, remember?”

“Um?” I’m not sure what he is trying to say.

“What’s your last class?” Chase asks.

Why does he need to know that?

“Biology,” I say, confused.

“Great!” Chase says. He glances at Oliver for a second and then he looks at me as if he didn’t see someone standing by my side just now.

Then he says, “You look pretty today.”

I blink. Chase smiles and then he turns around and leaves.

My heart beats like something has gone wrong. Oliver beside me is so silent, you can’t even hear him breathing.

I gulp and I look at him. He is staring at the floor. I clear my throat.

“Let’s go to class,” I say.

Oliver then looks up at me. “My class is that way so I’ll be going on my own.”

Then he storms off without another word.

I feel a cold shiver going down my back. And I have this instant thought.

I am losing him. I am losing Oliver.

That can’t happen. I don’t know what Oliver thought. I don’t know why he just stormed away. But if I’m right, it has something to do with Chase.

Doesn’t Oliver see I love him?

What do I do now?

*****