Chapter 12

I really thought that I wasn’t going to care that he wasn’t going to talk to me. But I found that I did care. I cared a lot. I hated being ignored.

Logan looked perfectly fine. As if not talking to me didn’t even bother him. His friends had a smug smile whenever I walked past them but I tried to ignore that and focus on something—anything —else. But it was entirely too difficult to ignore Logan even when he was quiet and saying nothing at all, and especially when I knew I was the reason for his silence.

I wasn’t used to it so, yes, it bugged me.

I had really thought he’d meant Yvonne. Somehow, I’d gotten fixated on that fact, completely forgetting that hours before I got it into my head that he was in love with her, I was convinced that he hadn’t a heart inside that muscled chest of his.

I wouldn’t admit it out loud but a part of me had been hoping it was true. Maybe then I wouldn’t think he’d wanted to kiss me because he liked me which I knew to be false. Logan hated me. Hell, he was risking expulsion just because he didn’t want to spend any time with me.

That had hurt.

Not more so the look in his eyes.

I thought about going to him to talk but he’d made it extra clear by his actions that he didn’t want me to come anywhere close to him. Yesterday, he’d left the cafeteria a few seconds after I’d walked in and today, he’d been so engrossed in whatever conversation he was having with his friends that he didn’t even bother to acknowledge me.

I was in a sour mood.

The last bell rang for the day and class ended. I was happy the weekend was already here, as I wasn’t sure I could do any more of this again for the rest of the week. The only downside to this was that Principal Donna would be expecting a full rundown of our progress so far by the end of the day.

I sighed loudly, falling back against my locker with a thud. The hallway was packed with students chatting, talking and walking, the buzz loud enough that one would think we were all at a concert. “I am exhausted.”

“Physically or mentally?” Aimee asked me, shoving thick textbooks into her locker with force that almost scared me.

“Both,” I sighed again. Was this what failure felt that? It was foreign.

“I know, right? Principal Donna doesn’t think my idea to organize a race for the elderly is helping the community enough. Does she understand that old people aren’t all that easy to deal with? She’s asking that I put more effort into my thought process.” Aimee frowned, shutting her locker. “I swear, if she wasn’t the principal…”

I understood her plight, seeing as I was facing my own. “At least you’re able to graduate. I’m probably going to end up making burgers at McDonald's at this rate.”

Aimee shook her head at me, leaning against her locker like I was doing mine. “Just go talk to the boy for goodness' sakes, Lexi. I know we committed the act together, but the misunderstanding is all on you.”

“I tried. He won’t even look at me.”

“Then you haven’t been trying hard enough, Lexi. Logan always looks at you.”

I rolled my eyes at her because now was not the time for her usual teasing. This was serious. I was at risk of losing my Harvard dream because of a little prank. Not even when I’d tried to burn down the school was it this bad.

“Did you even say a word to him?’ Aimee asked. Her eyes roamed the crowd, probably for Darren.

“I told you,” I replied. “He wouldn’t look at me.”

She nodded absentmindedly, gesturing toward a direction with her neck. “There’s your chance. He’s alone.”

I followed the line of her sight to see Logan walking toward the school’s front doors. She expected me to face him now? Alone? The thought was scary. But there he was walking, his black backpack hung over one shoulder, blue demin jeans and a leather jacket that gave him an aura of danger. I didn’t want to think about why I was suddenly giddy to talk to him. What on earth was going on with me?

“Don’t think. Just do it,” Aimee murmured.

I nodded; she was right. I took one deep breath and willed my feet to move. “Logan!” I yelled, running as quickly as my legs could carry me. “Logan!”

He swung his head to see me running after him and… wait, did he just increase his pace? Was he trying to make me run after him?

“Logan Hernández! Stop!” I yelled, out the front doors now. My heartrate was picking up speed and I was scared of passing out. Why wouldn’t he stop?

Now he was almost running. What was wrong with the boy? I was trying to apologize. Why was he making it harder than it already was?

“I’m sorry!”

He paused, his feet halting in mid-step. Ugh. “Thank God,” I breathed, counting my steps until I got close enough to stop. He swung on his heel to face me, this time with his entire body. We were in the parking lot, short of getting to his red truck.

I bent against my knees, gasping for air. My throat felt like it was constricting and I was reminded again how much I hated sports. “Lo.. Logan, I..I—I’m so… sorry.”

“Wow, Hale. You are seriously unfit.”

I lifted my eyes to look at him with a grin, “I know, right? My diet and exercise program might work better if I would actually diet and exercise.”

He burst out laughing and the force of his smile hit me hard. Why did he look so… handsome? Why did I like that he laughed at my jokes? Something weird was going on.

He sobered up after a few moments and stared me dead in the eye, like he just remembered he had been angry at some point. “What did you want, Hale?”

I licked my lower lip, finally catching my breath. “I wanted to apologize and ask you not to tell Principal Donna that you want out of our project.”

He pursed his lips, then smacked them inaudibly. “Why not?”

“Because...” I started, then realized there was probably nothing I could say that would be of consequence to him. “Listen, I wouldn’t have started those rumors if I’d known they’d hurt you so bad.”

“It was never the rumors, Hale.”

“Then what was it?”

He sighed, looking around the parking lot for a bit then resting his eyes on mine. “It’s the fact that you thought it funny to make fun of me liking someone. Why do you think I’m a heartless beast?”

That was laying it extremely thick. “I don’t think you’re a heartless beast, Logan. I just…” I drew out, not knowing how to phrase it. “It just seemed weird that you’d actually like someone. You’re usually the object of desire and not the other way round.”

He smiled a little. “Am I the object of your desire?”

I scoffed, “Don’t be ridiculous.”

We both chuckled.

“Alright,” he finally said. “I won’t say anything to Principal Donna.”

I was glad he didn’t make me beg, was even gladder because it seemed like we’d just had a moment. And funny thing was, I wasn’t disgusted. “Thank you.”

“She’s still expecting feedback on our project,” he said. “I was just on my way to the animal shelter. Wanna tag along?”

I was pretty sure he hadn’t been on his way there but I smiled and nodded nonetheless. “Why the hell not?”