Chapter 2

He frowned. “There’s nothing you can eat near the classroom. Don’t skip meals just to make things difficult for me.”

I hitched my backpack higher on my shoulder. “You’re overthinking it.”

Selene pulled a packet of peanut butter crackers from her bag. “How about these?”

Zane nodded, took the packet, and held it out to me. “Take them. Stop making a fuss.”

I stared at the ingredients printed on the packaging.

Back in elementary school, I’d broken out in hives after eating peanut butter during a school field trip. Zane had carried me all the way to the nurse’s office, his eyes red with worry the entire time.

Now he’d forgotten.

I didn’t take the crackers. Instead, I calmly said, “No, thanks. I’m allergic to peanuts.”

Zane’s expression changed.

Selene froze, too. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

Zane opened his mouth, then hesitated. “I forgot.”

“I know.”

“Vivian…”

“Class is starting.”

I walked past them toward the classroom building.

Behind me, Selene asked quietly, “Does she hate me?”

Zane replied, “No. She’s just jealous.”

That evening, the class committee elections were being held. My classmate, Lena Brooks, asked me, “You’re really going? I thought you hated this kind of thing.”

I shoved the pencil case Zane had given me into the bottom of my drawer. “I can’t keep hiding forever.”

My phone lit up with a message from Zane.

“Let’s go to the classroom together tonight.

“Don’t sit somewhere random. I’ll save you a seat.”

I replied with two words.

“No need.”

He called almost immediately, but I didn’t answer.

By the time I entered the classroom, most of the seats near the front were taken. One seat beside Zane remained empty.

Selene was sitting on his other side. When she saw me, she waved.

“Vivian, over here!”

I ignored her and took a seat in the last row.

Zane frowned and messaged me.

“Why are you sitting so far away?”

“I can hear just fine from here.”

“Come over.”

“No.”

He was so irritated that he sent another message.

“Vivian, don’t make me come over there and drag you to the front.”

A little while later, he stood up and came to sit beside me.

Someone in the front row teased him. “Zane, weren’t you saving that seat for the prettiest girl in our class?”

Zane ignored them and lowered his voice. “How long are you going to keep this up?”

“I’m not doing anything.”

“I saved you a seat up front. You’re nearsighted. You won’t be able to see clearly from back here.”

I opened my notebook. “I’m wearing my glasses.”

“You hate wearing them.”

“I don’t anymore.”

He fell silent.

The elections began. Selene was the first to take the stage, and the applause was thunderous.

Zane watched her, tapping his fingers against the desk. He even raised his phone to take pictures.

Back when I gave presentations, he’d sat in the front row doing the same thing, tapping the desk before becoming the first person to applaud when I finished.

Now his camera was pointed at someone else, and I no longer existed in his eyes.

When it was my turn to run for class representative, I went up and gave my speech.

As I stepped down, the class president smiled at me.

“Vivian, you and Zane have known each other forever. Why don’t you ask him to help you get some votes?”

Before I could answer, Zane spoke first.

“Vivian isn’t good at organizing people. Being on the class committee isn’t right for her. Don’t put pressure on her.”

Someone in the audience laughed.

“Zane’s so protective of her!”

“She’s his girl next door, after all.”

I turned to look at Zane.

“I can do it.”

He froze. “What?”

“I said I can organize people.”

When the results came in, both Selene and I had been elected.

Selene hurried over to me. “Vivian, we’ll be working on the class committee together from now on!”

“Yeah.”

She turned to Zane. “Could you help me take photos of the performances at the welcome party? The professor said we need pictures for the promotional materials.”

Zane glanced at me.

I closed my notebook. “Go ahead.”

He frowned. “I haven’t even said yes.”

“You will.”

Selene twisted the hem of her sleeve. “Never mind. We don’t have to do it.”

Zane slipped his phone into his pocket. “I’ll go. Selene just joined the committee, so she doesn’t know how everything works yet. I’ll help her out.”

“Okay.”

He hesitated before asking, “If you’re feeling upset, I can keep you company over a late-night snack.”

I shook my head.

“I need to organize the spreadsheets tonight. They’re due today.”

Zane sighed. “You weren’t like this before.”

I capped my pen. “Back then, I had someone to help me.”

He looked at me. “I never said I wouldn’t help you.”

“Help her first.”

On my way back to the dorm, he messaged me again.

“Don’t stay up too late. I’ll bring you some oatmeal.”

I replied, “Thanks.”

His response came almost immediately.

“That’s my good girl.”

Lena leaned over to peek at my phone. “Who is it?”

I locked the screen.

“My neighbor.”