Resting my cheek on my palm, I gazed out the window, watching snowflakes drift lazily from the sky like fragile bits of lace. Winter had blanketed the world in white silence, but inside the classroom, the monotony was deafening. My eyes glazed over as the teacher droned on about formulas, his voice a dull, mechanical buzz that barely registered in my brain. If boredom were fatal, I'd have dropped dead on the spot.
Next to me, Eve muttered under her breath, aggressively scribbling something in her notebook like it had personally wronged her. I barely even noticed anymore — she always talked to herself when she was upset, which usually meant her date the night before hadn't gone well. She was nothing if not adventurous, changing boyfriends like outfits, and as a result, half the guys at school either hated her or secretly hoped to be next.
If she'd been born a boy, she'd have made a perfect Casanova.
She really was stunning — long, waist-length blonde hair that shimmered like gold, vivid green eyes that missed nothing, and a figure that turned every girl in school green with envy. She towered over most of us at just over five foot seven, striding through the halls like she owned them.
What I couldn't understand was why she took her frustration out on paper, considering she was the one who had dumped that poor fifteen-year-old boy the night before. I could only imagine the scene: some sweet, naive kid being lured in by this demonic blonde and then discarded like old homework. I couldn't help but wonder where his parents had been while their innocent child was seduced.
She was going to fry in hell. No doubt about it.
It was early January, and the world outside looked like something from a snow globe. Every morning, the freezing air made me want to stay curled up under my blankets forever — but I had one reason to get out of bed. One powerful motivator that made the cold mornings tolerable: him. My crush.
Felix.
Seeing him from Monday to Friday was the only reason I tolerated school at all. Everything else — the endless lessons, the stress, the soul-sucking tests — was just background noise.
In my wildest daydreams, I'd already graduated, had a fulfilling job, and was married — to Felix, of course. We'd be trying for a child, living some sweet domestic fantasy.
"Look at me when I'm talking to you, rascal," Eve snapped, nearly jabbing my nose with her pen.
Startled, I turned to face her.
"What do you want?" I whispered.
"Stop fantasizing about that cardboard cutout of a boy," she said, smacking my forehead. "Pay attention to me. I'm falling apart here. Comfort me or something. I'm this close to losing it."
"Should I kiss you on the boobs?" I snorted, not bothering to keep a straight face. Honestly, Eve worried about all the wrong things.
"If you've got the guts, I won't stop you," she replied with that perverted little smirk that always meant trouble. I really needed to stop giving her ideas.
"The only boobs I kiss belong to Felix," I quipped.
Without missing a beat, she jabbed my head again with her pen.
"Stop dreaming."
"No one's been arrested for dreaming — yet," I shot back, sticking out my tongue. "Besides, I have to dream. I'm writing a very peculiar story starring him."
Eve let out a dramatic sigh and mirrored my earlier pose, resting her cheek on her hand as she cast me a sideways glance.
"A sixteen-year-old girl who's never even kissed anyone writing an erotic story about her crush? That's a new level."
That time, I hit her on the head with my pen. We could get away with these little wars — the teacher wasn't paying us any attention whatsoever.
Apparently, we were considered the worst class in the school. No one expected anything from us, and we took full advantage of that.
"Don't act like you're any better," I said, smirking. "Your dating life's a disaster zone. Guys run away from you like you're radioactive."
Eve lunged, wrapping her hand playfully around my neck like she was about to strangle me.
"Watch your mouth. I can be very spiteful," she warned, wagging a finger in my face before finally letting go.
From behind us came the unmistakable thud of boots slamming against our chairs. Hannah — our class cryptid — had finally stirred. With her short, frizzy hair and half-lidded eyes, she always looked like she was halfway between this world and a nap.
"Shut up, cows," she muttered. "Let the man sleep."
The blonde beside me turned, feigning offense.
"Girl, what do you even do at night? The bench isn't comfortable. Let me buy you a bed — we can test it together if you'd like," Eve said, that same wicked smile creeping back onto her lips. She was always teasing like that, though for her, it was never about the act — it was always about the soul. She wanted to fall in love with someone's essence.
Hannah slammed her foot against the chair even harder, clearly unimpressed.
"Get on with your life, you overexposed lizard. Stop screeching like a crow during lessons."
Hannah sat alone. Always had. She didn't do friends. She thrived on hostility, like it gave her power.
"Will the day ever come when you let me be your friend?" Eve teased again, unbothered as she leaned closer like a mischievous cat pushing its luck.
Hannah flipped her the middle finger and promptly went back to sleep.
I clapped a hand over my mouth to stifle my laugh. Eve's expression was priceless — a mix of wounded pride and theatrical disbelief.
"A man offers a friendly hand and gets slapped in the mouth for it," she muttered, crossing her arms with a dramatic sigh.
In our class, everyone was definitely… special.
*
In winter, the worst thing was that basketball games were held inside the gym. I longed for spring, when I could watch Felix play outside in the breeze — he always looked his best that way.
Biting my nails, I sat in the stands among the school team's fans. Eve rested her chin on her hands, her gaze drifting over the court with visible boredom. She was a great friend for coming along, even if she suffered through it just to be with me.
"I feel like eating McDonald's," she muttered, smacking her cheek.
"And your ass will grow," I replied, eyes locked on Felix as he aimed for the basket. Cheers echoed through the hall, and my ideal smiled brightly, high-fiving his teammates.
I glanced at Eve and caught her electrifying stare on me.
"You don't have to worry about my ass. It's doing just fine."
I shrugged.
"Well, the bottom line—"
A classmate joined us. I had no idea what he was doing there — basketball didn't interest him.
"Looking for attention?" Eve asked, leaning past me. She loved teasing everyone, and Sebastian knew it well. "Didn't you tell Selena a few days ago that she was crazy for being a fan of the school team? So what are you doing here?"
"I came to have you poison my life. I missed your venomous remarks."
Their words rattled in my ears, making it hard to focus on the game. I wanted to knock them both out.
"Move if you're just going to bother me."
They fell silent. Only Eve still looked like she was ready to punch him. Sometimes I wondered if they were secretly friends — they always seemed exultant when they argued.
"I don't get this craze over Felix… The guy just runs around the court, and girls wet themselves over it."
If looks could kill, Sebastian would've dropped dead on the spot.
"Shut your mouth if you're going to waste saliva on nonsense."
"If you admired someone like Michael Jordan, I'd get it. But this pimped-up—"
That was it. I smacked him on the head.
"One more word about Felix, and I swear I'll cut your tongue out."
"You're getting aggressive from hanging with the blonde nut next door," he teased, rubbing his head.
"The only blonde nut is your mom, who chased you around school with a belt," Eve shot back.
Sebastian finally shut up and left, clearly burned.
"I don't know what he's trying to prove… Sometimes I think he's jealous of Felix because he flies to you," Eve said, eyeing me.
I stared at her, wide-eyed.
"Maybe it's me he's watching in class. But it's you he's really staring at."
Eve snorted.
"I know I'm every guy's dream here, but he can only dream about me. Actually, no — I'd rather not show up in his dreams at all."
"Just saying... Maybe he's the one meant for you. Maybe that's why you don't stay with any of the guys you date."
Her fiery gaze warned me to drop it.
By the end of the game, I was focused solely on Felix. Eve had fallen asleep on my shoulder, completely unfazed by the noise or my wild reactions every time he scored. My heart swelled with joy when our team won.
As we left the gym, I glanced back and saw my crush surrounded by teammates, all celebrating. Girls from upper classes passed us, gushing over Felix.
"…such a shame he doesn't pay attention to any girls at our school. Seems none of them meet his standards. I wonder what his type even is?"
"I heard he has a girlfriend outside school. Beautiful, like a model."
I snorted. Pathetic. People loved spreading stories that sold, but I didn't believe a word of it.
Eve wrapped her arm around me.
"You need to make your unreachable crush notice you already."
I looked at her like she'd grown two heads.
"You slept too long. Your dreams are leaking into reality."
"I'm serious, Selena. You have to make Felix notice you. Thumb your nose at all the girls chasing him. Be the first one he sees."
"I'm no miracle of nature."
"What do you mean no? You're gorgeous — the prettiest girl in school."
"Not long ago, you said you were every guy's dream," I snorted.
"But you can be his dream."
"Stop reading fanfics obsessively," I muttered. "Life's not some dumb internet story."
"Oh no? Then I'm about to prove life can be a story." That lunatic shoved me — right into someone's arms.
I looked up, wide-eyed, into the face of one of Felix's teammates — the one he spent the most time with. Brown hair, brown eyes, a familiar smirk.
"Sorry," I mumbled, cheeks burning. I wished I could kill Eve.
He steadied me and stepped back.
"Change your friend. One day, she'll get you killed," he said, amused. I'd expected him to yell, but he wasn't so bad. People always said he was a malicious jerk, but after watching Felix's vlogs and seeing how they joked around, I hadn't quite believed it. And now he'd proven it — maybe the rumors were wrong.
"She's a little crazy," I explained.
He smiled and turned when Felix called him over.
"Come to the shower, stinker!" Felix shouted, making everyone laugh.
There's nothing like friends looking out for you.
Mike smiled back at me.
"My sweat rubbed off on you. Better wash up or you'll stink."
I blinked, watching him run off after Felix.
Eve bit her lip and wrapped her arm around me again.
"That was a suggestion — you could shower with them. A threesome in the locker room? Sounds erotic. You should write it into your story."
"He was teasing," I said darkly. "He is a bastard, just like they say." My lips tightened. "Do I really stink?"
"You smell like nature."
She was insane, and I should've cut her off long ago. It was all her fault I'd run into that idiot.
I hated people who threw around stupid subtext. I just hoped he wouldn't tell Felix — or I'd be lost in his eyes forever.
"Don't try that on me!" I snapped, pushing Eve's chin off my shoulder. "And don't ever pull a stunt like that again! I'm your friend, not your clown."
She looked stunned as I walked away.
Good. Let her learn a lesson before she did something stupid again.