I blink as he disappears into the hallway and I press my lips together.

Death.

That’s a bit dramatic. Still, I have that empty, twisty feeling in my gut that makes me feel nauseous.

“Don’t worry, he treats everyone like that.”

I snap my attention to a smiling girl that sits a desk away from me. She looks to the teacher for a second before grabbing her things and shifting to the seat Zaid had just left.

“I’m not worried,” I whisper. “I’m just glad he finally left.”

She snorts. “Yeah, he tends to make everyone feel like that.”

I snort back.

“I’m Nikki, you’re new, huh?”

I smile, “Alina, yeah I am. Only my second day so far. Is it so obvious that I’m new?”

She studies me as she hums. “Well, you’re really pretty, hard to miss you when half the school is talking about you.”

My cheeks heat up and I groan, “Oh, please don’t tell me I’ve become the hot new topic of gossip. I wanted to blend in.”

“Well when you have Aiden and Zaid trailing behind you it’s kind of hard to blend in.” She smiles at me like she has some inside joke with the rest of the school and I am left out in the open.

I shake my head, frowning. “What’s up with that anyway? Aiden has a girlfriend, doesn’t he?”

She nods, pressing her lips together.

“Then why is he being like that with me?”

Nikki laughs and when I give her a pointed look she frowns. “You’re serious?”

“Well, yeah. I thought he was flirting with me. I kind of flirt back, but now I feel silly.”

“Oh, trust me, he is flirting with you.”

“But you just said he had a girlfriend.”

“Yeah, but he’s Aiden. He bounces between girls like they’re nothing. You’re the new girl who’s got his attention. Sadie swears she’ll marry him, but something tells me he’d leave her for you the moment you tell him your interested.”

“I’m not interested,” I stutter. Liar, I’m a terrible liar.

She looks at me up and down. She knows I’m lying. “Okay.”

“I’m not!” I double down, attempting to hold on to at least some of my dignity.

“All I said was okay.” She forces down a smile.

I bite my tongue to stop myself from laughing, but Nikki is not very good at it and she bursts out into an infectious laugh.

I groan, throwing my forehead onto the desk. “What, he’s hot, okay? I can’t help it.”