Chapter 2

Jacqueline

The warning bell echoed through the hallway, signaling that students had five minutes to get to class.

Locker doors slammed shut one after another as conversations slowly faded.

Students began making their way toward their classrooms, though no one seemed to be in much of a hurry.

Claire nudged my shoulder. “Come on, let’s hurry.”

I glanced at her. “We’ve still got time.”

“I know.” She grinned. “But if we leave now, we won’t have to sprint when the second bell rings.”

I nodded, still trying to ignore the dull ache on my forehead.

We had barely taken a few steps when a familiar voice stopped us.

“Hey, Claire.”

Claire turned with a smile. “Morning.”

I froze. Every muscle in my body forgot how to function.

No…No, no, no…please walk pass….don’t stop…please, don’t stop

He did.

He stood only a few feet away–Close enough for me to notice the tiny scar near his eyebrow, close enough to smell the clean scent of his cologne.

“You finish Coach Miller’s assignment?” he asked Claire casually.

“Almost.”

“You’d better. He looked ready to murder anyone who didn’t hand it in.”

Claire laughed. “I’ll survive.”

“I wouldn’t count on it.” He flashed one of those effortless smiles that made every girl in school forget how to breathe. Mine included.

They continued chatting casually.

I stood beside Claire like a human coat rack. Invisible, completely invisible.

I stared determinedly at the floor.

After another minute, he smiled. “Anyway, I’ll see you in class.”

“See you.”

He walked away without sparing me a single glance, not one.

Slowly, I lifted my head.

I watched him disappear into the crowd before letting out the breath I’d been holding.

Claire looked at me before shaking her head. “You know…”

I already knew what she was about to say.

“If you actually talked to him once, he might remember your name.”

I laughed nervously. “I’d rather survive high school.”

Claire rolled her eyes.

“One day, Jacqueline Carter, you’re going to realize he’s just a normal guy.”

I smiled.

No. He wasn’t. Not to me.

The final bell of the school day echoed through the corridors, releasing everyone at once.

The hallway immediately filled with chatter, laughter, and the familiar scrape of lockers opening and closing as students hurried toward the exits.

Three classes had never felt so long. Between the headache that still lingered and today’s embarrassment I was completely drained.

Claire bumped my shoulder as we walked outside. “You look like you’re about to fall asleep.”

“I might.”

She laughed. “Go home. Eat. Study. Try not to spend the entire evening thinking about a certain basketball captain.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Sure you don’t.”

I rolled my eyes, trying—and failing—not to smile.

“Bye, Claire.”

“See you tomorrow.”

We headed in opposite directions.

—-

By the time I reached home, the familiar comfort of our small two-story house wrapped around me.

The front door hadn’t even closed behind me before my mother’s voice floated from the kitchen.

“Jackie? Is that you?”

“I’m home!”

“In here.”

I slipped off my shoes and wandered into the kitchen.

Mom stood by the stove, stirring a pot while the smell of tomato sauce filled the room.

“There you are.” She smiled. “How was school?”

“The usual.”

“The usual means what?”

“Classes.”

She gave me a knowing look. “Only classes?”

I reached into the refrigerator for a bottle of water. “Yep.”

“No surprise quizzes?”

“No.”

“No teachers driving everyone crazy?”

“The math department is trying.”

She laughed.

“I’ll take that as a normal day.”

I took a long drink before setting the bottle down. “I’m going upstairs.”

“Homework?”

“And updating my notes.”

“Dinner will be ready in about an hour.”

“Okay.”

“Oh, and don’t disappear into that laptop all evening.”

“I won’t.”

“You always say that.”

“I mean it this time.”

“We’ll see.”

I smiled before heading upstairs.

I took the stairs two at a time

The moment I stepped into my room, I sighed in relief.

“Finally, peace and quiet.”

I dropped my backpack beside my desk, kicked off my sneakers, and changed into an oversized sweatshirt and a pair of comfortable shorts.

“Much better.”

I tied my hair into a messy ponytail before settling into my desk chair.

My laptop hummed softly as it powered on.

I planned to organize today’s class notes before dinner.

But the moment the desktop appeared, my fingers betrayed me.

Without thinking, they guided the cursor away from my schoolwork and onto a familiar folder. Photos.

I stared at it, pressing my lips together.

“…Just one minute,” I whispered, trying to justify it to myself.

I clicked it open; hundreds of pictures filled the screen. Most had been taken during school events, basketball games, sports festivals, club fairs, assembly days.

And somehow…he was in all of them.

I smiled despite myself. “I seriously have a problem.”

I enlarged one picture from last year’s sports festival.

He wasn’t even looking at the camera. He was laughing with one of his teammates.

It wasn’t a perfect picture.

Actually…It was blurry. Yet somehow…It had become one of my favorites.

I rested my chin on my hand.

“Definitely not obsessed,” I muttered.

A deep rumbling sound interrupted the silence.

Vrrrrrrr…

I frowned. “What was that?”

The sound grew louder, heavy and metallic, not like a regular car.

Curious, I looked toward my bedroom window.

Another rumble followed. Then the unmistakable hiss of air brakes.

I pushed back my chair. “What’s going on?”

Walking across the room, I pulled the curtain aside.

A large moving truck was parked directly in front of the house next door.

“Oh.” I blinked. “They finally sold it.”

The house had been empty for months.

Ever since the elderly couple who used to live there had moved away. For weeks, a FOR SALE sign had stood in the front yard.

Apparently…someone had finally bought it.

Movers carried large boxes through the front door.

A couch followed, then a dining table, then several lamps wrapped carefully in blankets.

I watched absentmindedly, resting one shoulder against the window frame.

“I wonder who bought it.”

A voice suddenly called from downstairs. “Jackie?”

“Yeah?”

“Can you come here for a second?”

“I’ll be right down!”

Reluctantly, I left the window.

Mom was setting plates on the dining table when I entered the kitchen.

“Could you help me rinse the lettuce?”

“Sure.”

“Looks like the house next door finally has new owners,” she said casually. “I saw the moving truck. I’ve been wondering who would buy it.”

“So have I.”

“Maybe they’ll have children your age.”

“I guess.”

Mom smiled. “It’ll be nice not having an empty house beside us anymore.”

A horn sounded outside. Both of us glanced toward the window.

“They’re still unloading,” Mom said.

“I think so.”

She handed me a bowl. “Thanks for helping.”

“No problem.”

“You can go finish your homework.”

“I will.” I headed back upstairs.

The moment I stepped into my room, I instinctively walked back to the window.

The movers were still carrying furniture inside.

Then…a sleek black SUV slowly turned the corner.

It rolled down the street before stopping behind the moving truck.

I barely paid attention at first. Probably another mover or maybe the owners.

The driver’s door opened.

A tall figure stepped out. He closed the door with one smooth motion before running a hand through his dark hair.

My eyes narrowed.

Something about him felt…familiar.

He turned slightly to say something to one of the movers.

My heartbeat stumbled.

“…No.” The word escaped before I realized I’d spoken.

He looked up toward the house. Sunlight caught his face.

The tiny scar near his eyebrow, the easy confidence in the way he walked.

The exact same Mr. Charming I’d seen only hours ago at school.

My mouth slowly fell open. “No…”

I blinked, then blinked again.

Maybe I was imagining things, maybe the headache was worse than I thought.

I pushed up my big glasses and rubbed my eyes before looking again

He was still there, still talking to the movers.

My pulse exploded. “Oh…”

My hand flew over my mouth. “Oh my God…”

No. Absolutely not.

I looked at him, then at the house, then back at him.

“He…” The realization hit all at once. “He’s moving in…”

Every coherent thought abandoned me.

My heart pounded so loudly it filled my ears. “What do I do?”

I began pacing across my room. “No… no… no…”

I stopped in front of my mirror. The girl staring back at me looked just as horrified as I felt.

“Calm down,” I whispered.

“You are never going to embarrass yourself in front of him.”

I took one deep breath, then another. Then immediately hurried back to the window.

I peeked through the curtain.

He was helping carry a box inside now.

I ducked behind the curtain before he could possibly look in my direction.

A second later…I peeked out again. “…He’s really here.”

A smile spread across my face before I could stop it.

Then came another wave of panic. “Oh, this is bad, very bad.”

The boy I’d spent the last two years secretly loving from a distance…had just become my next-door neighbor.

And I had absolutely no idea whether that was the best thing that had ever happened to me…or the beginning of the most embarrassing chapter of my life.