Jasper’s POVI watch Tara leave the kitchen, and I know I want more of her. She has become so addicted to me that I can’t control myself anymore. Every time I see her, every time I’m near her, I lose my mind completely. The way she kissed me back just now proves that she feels something too, even if she won’t admit it.I grab a glass of milk from the fridge, trying to calm myself down. My hands are still shaking from our kiss, and I can still taste her on my lips. I need to get back to my room before I do something stupid like follow her upstairs and kiss her again in front of her friends.I walk back to my room, still thinking about the way her body felt pressed against mine. But when I open the door, I find Xavier pacing around anxiously like a caged animal. His face looks stressed, and he keeps running his hands through his hair.“What’s wrong with you?” I ask him, setting my glass down on the desk.Xavier stops pacing and looks at me. “Nothing. Everything is okay,” he says quickly
Tara’s POVWhile I am organizing the snacks, I hear footsteps behind me. I turn around and see Jasper walking into the kitchen. My heart immediately starts beating faster, and I feel nervous.He pretends to be super busy opening a pack of Doritos, like he just came in here to get a snack. But I know he followed me. I can feel him looking at me even though he is acting like he is not paying attention to me.I try to ignore him and focus on what I am doing. I pour milk into three glasses very carefully, making sure not to spill any. My hands are shaking a little bit, and I hope he does not notice. I do not understand why Jasper makes me feel so nervous now. Before today, seeing him just made me angry. But now everything feels different.I open the package of chocolate chip cookies and arrange them nicely on a plate. I can hear Jasper still messing with the Doritos package behind me. The crinkling sound is so loud in the quiet kitchen. Part of me wants to look at him again, but I force
Tara’s POVI get home with Jane and Zoey, and my heart feels heavy. This is the last day they will be staying with me before they go back to their own homes. We have had such a good time together studying and hanging out, and I am really going to miss them.“We need to make tonight special,” Jane says as we walk through the front door. “This is our last night together before we go back to normal life.”“Yes!” Zoey agrees, dropping her school bag on the floor. “We should go out and spend all night talking and making memories. We can stay up late and do all the fun things we want.”I smile at my friends. They always know how to make me feel better when I am sad. “That sounds perfect. We can take lots of
Jasper’s POVThe moment I see Xavier walking toward us, I immediately move several steps back from Tara. My heart starts pounding so hard I’m sure everyone can hear it. I don’t know why I’m acting like this, but something about Xavier catching me talking to Tara alone makes me feel guilty and nervous.Xavier looks between Tara and me with this curious expression on his face. His eyes narrow slightly, like he’s trying to figure out what’s going on. “What’s going on here?” he asks, his voice casual, but I can hear the suspicion underneath.I open my mouth to say something, anything, but my brain feels completely blank. I just stand there staring at him like an idiot while my palms start sweating.
Tara’s POVI wish that one of my friends would just appear right now and save me from this incredibly awkward moment. Having Jasper kiss me by the pool was one thing, but having him stand here confessing his feelings to me is so much worse, especially when I hate him so much. Or at least, I thought I hated him until this very moment.My heart is still racing from everything he just told me, and I can feel my hands getting sweaty. I don’t know what to say or how to react to this situation. Part of me wants to run away and pretend this conversation never happened.“Please, Tara,” Jasper begs me, his voice sounding desperate. “Please say something instead of just standing there being quiet. I’m dying here.”
Tara’s POVI keep completely silent for a whole minute, thinking this has to be some kind of joke or prank. There’s no way Jasper just said what I think he said. I stare at his face, looking for any sign that he’s playing with me, but his expression looks so serious and intense.Jasper nods his head and repeats himself again, slower this time. “I said I’m in love with you, Tara.”I scan Jasper’s face for another long minute, still waiting for him to break character and start laughing. When he doesn’t, I start clapping my hands together loudly and looking around the locker room.“Okay, very good job, Jasper!” I say sarcastically, still clapping. “You can tell the cameras to come out now. That was some r