Inevitable (4 page)

“
Cool. I’ll see you there!” And then she skipped away
–
literally
skipped.

I had
never felt more out of place in my life. The whole environment and
all the people were everything you see in the movies and then some.
What the hell had I gotten myself into?

Following Blaine into the building and into the doors of
the office I decided I would give today my best shot, but unless
some unlikely miracle happened that gave me even a marginal ability
to tolerate this place then I was done. My mum would just have to
suck it up and watch me work my way to the top in
McDonalds.

I open
ed my mouth to introduce myself to the round, grey-haired
lady sitting behind the tall, oppressive reception desk but Blaine
took over.

“
This is Maddie, um… what’s your last name?”

“
Davis,” I stated
and felt like an utter imbecile when the round
lady flashed me a pitiful look as she clearly pondered why I was
incapable of speaking for myself. She ran the tip of her finger
down a printout on her desk.

“
I’v
e
got a Madonna Davis?” she said my name as if it was a
question.

“
Yep, that’s me.” Blaine snorted back a laugh and almost
choked
on his
own saliva. “What can I say, my mum is her biggest fan.” And she
was probably high as a kite when she sauntered into the registrar’s
office.

The
round lady twirled around on her swivel chair and rustled through a
stack of papers on the shelf above a desktop computer. She snatched
a handful and swivelled back round.

“
Well, Madonna-”

“
Please, call me Maddie.” Please. Please. Please.

“
Maddie
, I’m Mrs Jenkins. This is your schedule.” She handed me
the wad of papers. “Unfortunately with it being the middle of the
semester most of the electives are full, so I’ve pencilled you in
for Spanish and dance.”

Dance? You
have got to be fucking with me…

“
Okay.
Thanks.” I wasn’t planning on returning tomorrow so it
didn’t really matter.

“
There are also some brochures in there detailing our extensive
range of extra curricular activities and also a guide to the
school. You should find the map very helpful.”

“
Thanks.”

“
If you have any problems or queries you know where I
am.”

“
Thanks.” Christ,
was I incapable of saying anything
else?

“
Come on, lish, I’ll show you to your first class,” Blaine
said, taking the schedule from my hand and accidently brushing the
edge of his fingers across the back of my hand. The warmth of his
skin injected me like a surge of electricity causing me to gasp
like an idiot. Although he didn’t make eye contact, a devilish grin
spread across his lips and I knew damn well the gorgeous bastard
was painfully aware of the effect he had on girls… on
me
.

“
We’ve got physics together second period, pre-calculus
four
th and
economics fifth,” he stated, tracing the schedule with his taught
finger. “You’re also in my humanities class on Wednesday’s and
history on Friday’s,” he added with what I wanted to believe was a
genuine smile. “But right now you’ve got English Lit. Come on, I’ll
show you the way.”

Holy shit I was
nervous. Actually screw that I was completely
petrified. The sneers and whispers from nearly every passer-by
hadn’t gone unnoticed.

“
Nice sweater!” a girl with poker straight copper hair
muttered sardonically as she sauntered past me, causing her group
of clones to giggle as they twirled their ponytails around their
fingers. One even had pigtails.
Actual
bloody pigtails. I’d not worn pigtails
since I was five – and neither should she.

“
Get fucked, Liv,” Blaine snapped. Copper Bitch blushed,
threw
a look
of disgust my way and left without another word.

“
It’s cold in England. This move was kind of sprung on me –
I didn’t have time to shop for summer clothes.” Or the money… I
felt compelled to justify myself as I fiddled with the hem of my
jumper.

“
Don’t sweat it, lish. You gotta feel sorry for ‘em really…
what with only having one brain cell to
share between ‘em.” Blaine winked at
me and somehow it managed to send my insecurities packing. Until I
remembered he wouldn’t be in my first class...

Thousands of evil butterflies from hell with shards of
glass
for
wings took up flight in my stomach when I realised I was about to
endure a whole hour of snide comments and cackles with nobody to
defend me.

Lucky me.

Blaine paused
by a strip of metal lockers and after
double-checking the letter attached to my schedule he pointed to
the one reserved for me. I twisted the combination to the numbers
printed on my letter and peeked inside at the empty space which
smelled of sweaty socks and aftershave.
Yum.
As yet I had nothing to put inside so I
closed it again and turned to Blaine for further directions to my
class.

“
English L
it’s right through there,” Blaine gestured his hand towards
a door with ‘3B’ etched onto the square pane of glass.

“
Thanks,” I said
, making no attempt to move.

“
Don’t take no shit from anyone, lish. Them girls can smell
fear.” I nodded weakly and reluctantly started to drag my feet
across the floor. “Hey, Maddie!” he called after me and I yanked my
neck around to meet his gaze. “I’ll meet you back here and walk to
you to second period.”

“
Thanks,” I uttered
with a heartfelt smile. I really needed to Google
alternative words of gratitude.

Wal
king into the lion’s cage I kept my eyes firmly focused on
my destination – the teacher’s desk. I heard whispers and giggles
but maybe I was just being egotistical to assume they were directed
towards me. I wasn’t that special. I approached the desk prompting
Mr Franks (according to the silver name plate) to look up. He was
younger than I expected – mid-twenties at the oldest. I wondered
idly if he was even old enough to teach. He ran a hand through his
thick brown hair and widened his greyish-green eyes when he stood
to greet me.

“
You must be Madonna?” he said. A painfully thin girl with
bottle-blonde hair scraped into a ponytail so tight it made her
look like she’d had a facelift made no attempt to hide her
amusement. I glared at her as she whispered to the girl behind her
and pointed her thumb in my direction over her shoulder.

Bitch.

“
I prefer Maddie.”

“
Maddie it is then. Well, here you go, Maddie. There’s a
spare seat just over there. Go and make yourself comfortable.” He
handed me three textbooks and pointed to a double table at the back
of the room. My heart sank when I noticed a girl already sitting at
it and started to pray that she was a ‘keeps herself to herself’
type.

I should
’ve know better than to pray for the impossible…

“
You know Blaine Elwood?” she asked incredulously as I slid
in beside her. I couldn’t help but be taken aback by her blatant
disregard for the word hello.

“
His step-mum and my mum are old friends,” I replied
nonchalantly.

“
Oh my god, you’re British!”

I know.

“
Do you know Robert Pattinson?”
she asked
enthusiastically.

Is this chick
for real?

“
Sure, he came round for tea with the queen last
week
.” Her
bright green eyes widened in astonishment.

“
She’s fucking with you,” the most deliciously deep, smooth
voice in the world interrupted. He laughed and I swear I could hear
several people around us literally piss their pants.

“
Blaine!
What are you doing here?” the shamefully dumb blonde next
to me asked, her face falling like she’d had a stroke as she gawped
up at Blaine. Honest to god, a shallow pool of drool formed on the
curve of her lips threatening to spill over at any given moment. I
hadn’t noticed him creep up beside me and my heart began to thud so
loudly I was almost certain he would be able to hear it.

“
This paper was due in yesterday. I just found it in my locker
and thought I’d drop it in. Better late than never.”

“
Are y
ou going to Wayne’s party a week on Saturday?” she asked
eagerly and my eyes blinked rapidly as my brain struggled to catch
up with the fact this wasn’t déjà vu – this was life actually
repeating itself.

“
Probably.” He
gave the same answer in the same uninterested tone
as he did the last girl who fluttered her eyelashes at
him.

“
Me too.” She grinned
like a desperate idiot, twisting a rogue tendril
of her hair (which had been bleached to the point of being almost
white) around her small finger. At that moment in time I was
feeling fairly confident I would not be coming back
tomorrow.

“
I’ve gotta get going. I’ll wait outside for you, Maddie.” I
nodded a little too eagerly and realised I had just turned into the
puppy-eyed blonde to my left.

“
O.M.G are you two like a thing?”

“
No!” Wow, I wasn’t expecting that to sting so badly. What
the hell was wrong with me? “We’re new to the area and like I said
my mum knows his family. He’s just being friendly.”

“
Blaine Elwood doesn’t
do
friendly. Blaine Elwood does screwing and fighting and not
much else. I’m telling you he’s crushing on you, girl.” I allowed
myself to consider her words for a second, and then immediately
wanted to slap myself for being so stupid.

“
That’s ridiculous. He’s just showing me around, that’s
all.” Blondie surrendered her palms.

“
Whatever you say. I’m
Lori. Lori Hanson.” Lori offered her tiny
manicured hand to shake and flashed me a genuinely warm smile. It
was like she was actually happy to be sat with me. I shook her hand
gratefully, pathetically desperate for her to like me.

“
Maddie Davis.”

Blaine

I
gave Mr Peterson a dodgy excuse about a dental appointment
so I could cut Biology early and make sure I was outside Maddie’s
English Lit class on time. Loitering outside the door to class 3B
in the derelict corridor I stole a peek through the window. In all
honesty I was more nervous than I should’ve been when I saw her
laughing with Lori Hanson. Were they talking about me? I bet she
couldn’t wait to fill Maddie in about my reputation.

Immediately I want
ed to punch myself in the head for thinking I was
that freakin’ important.

I was
so engrossed with my stalking I almost shit my pants when
the bell rang, deafening my ears and making me jump. Along with
everyone else Maddie gathered her books and stuffed them into her
backpack before throwing it over her shoulder and following Lori
down the aisle between the desks.

I retreated
back a few steps and then purposely mingled with the
exiting crowd so it looked like I’d just arrived. Maddie spotted me
immediately, eyeing me up with those big chocolate eyes from under
her lashes. I’d be damned if she wasn’t flirting with
me.

“
How’d it go?” I asked casually.

“
Better than expected, I suppose.” She shrugged and I had to
blink my eyes away when I noticed her pert tits heave up and down
with the roll of her shoulders.

Think kittens
and grandmas.

I walk
ed Maddie to second period and found myself balling my
fists in my jeans pockets to stop me reaching out and holding her
milky hand. She informed me of how much she liked Lori and my
instinctive reaction was to laugh. Then she said Lori had talked
her into a trip to the ice rink Thursday night. She couldn’t have
seemed less enthusiastic about that if she’d tried. Then she gave
me a recap of her English Lit lesson and said she got through it
with only one derisive comment from Tamara Hammer.

“
Yo, Dora! Boots not with you today?” My best friend
and brother from
another mother, Jason Fuller, hollered when he spotted Maddie
sliding her purple backpack off her shoulder. I opened my mouth to
tell him to fuck off but unexpectedly Maddie got in there
first.

“
Last I heard from him he was at home screwing your
mother.”

I swear I just
fell in love with this girl a little bit.

“
Meow!” Jason retorted
in a pitch I’d not heard since his balls dropped.
Maddie shrugged, her lips pursed together in a firm line. She
looked seriously pissed… and
hot
.

“
I’ll be back in just a sec,” I said to Maddie, summoning
Jason to follow me with stern eyes. He followed me down the
corridor until we reached the double glass doors which lead out
onto the courtyard.