Crazy Things He Did For Love

Two Confessions, One Rejection

I stared at the two letters in my locker, wondering whether I had somehow become the main character in a joke nobody had bothered to explain to me.

Two boys. Two love letters. One girl who wanted absolutely nothing to do with either of them.

What were the odds?

I had to admit, though, that Ian Garcia and Louis Sparks were brave. Not because I was some terrifying demon who ate boys for breakfast, but because everyone at school knew how much I disliked them. Most guys wouldn't dare approach me with a confession, let alone leave love letters and flowers in my locker.

These two had apparently decided that common sense was optional.

I left the letters where they were and returned to class.

The moment I walked in, I found several girls gathered around Ian and Louis, giggling and competing for their attention. Honestly, I couldn't understand the attraction. They were just two ordinary boys with ordinary faces and an extraordinary amount of confidence.

Then they noticed me.

Both turned in my direction and smiled.

Ian even waved.

I frowned and walked straight to my seat.

If they thought I was going to blush, wave back, or start behaving like one of those girls who nearly fainted whenever a handsome boy looked their way, they had clearly mistaken me for somebody else.

The rest of the morning dragged on. Every time I looked up, one of them seemed to be watching me. It was beginning to feel like I had unknowingly signed up for a competition.

And I was determined to end it.

Separately.

First, I would speak to Ian. Then Louis.

Simple.

Or so I thought.

Louis had just left the classroom when I tapped Ian on the shoulder.

He turned around with a smile.

"What's up, Princess?"

I rolled my eyes so hard I almost saw my brain.

"First, don't call me that."

"Noted, Princess."

I stared at him.

He grinned.

I was already regretting this conversation.

"Anyway, I got your letter," I said. "I want to discuss it with you. Meet me in the cafeteria during recess."

His expression brightened so quickly that I nearly laughed.

"Sure. I'll be there early."

He looked as though I had just agreed to marry him.

Poor boy. He had absolutely no idea what was coming.

I turned away before he could ask another question.

Since there was no teacher in the classroom, I decided to find Louis before the next lesson began.

I spotted him coming out of the principal's office. The moment he saw me, his face lit up, and he walked over with the confidence of someone who had already won a competition.

"Hey, Mil. Looking for me?"

"Actually, yes. I got your letter, and I want to discuss it with you."

His smile widened.

"Oh, that's nice. I suppose you got Ian's letter too?"

I raised an eyebrow.

"Wait. You knew about Ian's letter?"

"Of course. I left mine after his."

"You saw his letter and still left yours?"

"Naturally."

I stared at him, genuinely confused.

"Why would you do that? You're both competing for the same thing, which happens to be me. A normal person would probably take the other letter and save himself the embarrassment."

Louis chuckled.

"That's where you're wrong, my love."

My love?

Somebody needed to confiscate this boy's confidence.

"And how exactly am I wrong?"

"I left mine because I'm confident you'll choose me." He paused, and his smile softened. "At least, I hope you will."

For the first time, he sounded slightly less certain of himself.

I almost felt sorry for him.

Almost.

"Oh, interesting," I replied.

That was all I could manage without laughing.

"So, what do you think about my letter?" he asked.

"Meet me in the cafeteria during recess. I'll give you my answer there."

His eyes brightened again.

"Definitely. I'll be waiting."

"Wonderful."

"Can we walk back to class together?"

I hesitated.

"The principal asked me to help with something," I lied quickly. "You should go ahead."

"Okay. I'll see you later, Mil."

He walked away, still smiling.

I watched him go, wondering whether either boy had ever heard the word rejection in his life.

They were about to become very familiar with it.

By the time recess arrived, I was ready to get the whole ridiculous situation over with.

I entered the cafeteria and immediately spotted Louis sitting at a table. He looked up, smiled, and gestured for me to join him.

"Hey, Mil."

"Hi."

I sat opposite him.

"Do you want anything to eat?" he asked. "I can order something for you."

"No, thanks. I'm fine."

"Are you sure? I could get you—"

"Didn't you hear her? She said she's fine."

I turned towards the interruption.

Ian.

Naturally.

He stood beside the table with his hands in his pockets and an irritatingly confident expression on his face.

Louis's smile disappeared.

"And who invited you here, freak?"

Ian pulled out the chair beside me.

"Mildred did. Is there a problem?"

Louis looked at me.

"Mildred?"

"Yes, I did."

Ian sat down, looking pleased with himself.

Louis narrowed his eyes.

"So you invited both of us?"

"Exactly."

For the first time since I had met him, Ian's confidence faltered.

"Both of us?" he repeated.

I gave him a sweet smile.

"Yes, dummy."

Louis laughed.

Ian shot him a glare.

"Don't insult me."

"Then stop acting like you're the only person here with a brain."

"Enough!" I interrupted.

They both turned towards me.

I took a breath. I wasn't about to spend my entire recess watching two boys compete over who could annoy me the most.

"Let me make this clear. I invited you both because I wanted to discuss your letters. I am not interested in a relationship with either of you."

Their expressions changed.

"I was genuinely surprised when I found those letters," I continued. "Everyone knows I don't like boys, so I never expected either of you to confess your feelings to me. But I don't want you to misunderstand my surprise as interest."

Neither of them spoke.

"I'm not looking for a boyfriend. I'm not secretly waiting for someone to change my mind, either. I'm simply not interested. So, I'm rejecting both of you."

I paused, making sure they understood.

"I'm sorry if that sounds harsh, but I would rather be honest than pretend to have feelings I don't have."

For once, the two boys had nothing to say.

I stood up.

"Thank you for understanding. Enjoy the rest of your day."

I walked away before either could turn the conversation into another competition.

I didn't look back, but I could feel the tension between them.

When I finally glanced over my shoulder, Ian was staring at Louis with an expression that could have frozen the entire cafeteria.

Louis wasn't smiling anymore, either.

Well, that was their problem.

I had made my decision, and I wasn't about to lose sleep over it.

At least, that was what I told myself.

The rest of the school day passed without any major drama, which was probably the universe giving me a brief break before ruining my afternoon.

When the final bell rang, I packed my books and headed outside.

I had barely reached the school entrance when Pixy approached me, waving enthusiastically.

"Hey, Mildred!"

"Hi, Pixy."

Her face brightened.

"Aww, you know my name!"

I blinked.

"Of course I know your name. We're classmates."

"I thought you were too busy avoiding everybody to notice me."

I couldn't even argue with that.

"Well, I noticed you."

She laughed.

"Good! Because I'm trying to be your friend."

I studied her for a moment.

Pixy was a girl, which automatically made her easier for me to tolerate than most of the boys at school. Besides, she seemed genuinely friendly.

There was no reason to reject her friendship simply because I didn't enjoy socializing.

"Okay," I said. "We can be friends."

Her mouth fell open.

"Really?"

"Don't make me regret it."

She squealed and threw her arms around me.

"Thank you!"

I stiffened for a second, completely unprepared for the sudden hug, before awkwardly patting her back.

I was beginning to suspect that friendship involved a lot more physical contact than I had anticipated.

Before I could say anything else, Louis appeared.

"Hey, Pi!"

He stopped when he noticed me.

"Oh, Mildred's here."

"Yes, she is," Pixy replied, nudging him with a knowing smile.

I immediately disliked that look.

"Pixy, what did you want to say?" I asked, hoping to rescue the conversation before it became any more suspicious.

"Nothing urgent. I just wanted to be friends with you."

"Well, now we are."

Louis seized his opportunity.

"Since we're all friends now, perhaps we can go home together. We might even be taking the same route."

"No, I—"

My phone rang inside my backpack.

Saved by technology.

I pulled it out and saw Dad's name on the screen.

I answered immediately.

"Hello, Dad!"

"Hello, honey. School's over now, right?"

"Yes, Dad. Are you outside?"

There was a brief pause.

"Not today, sweetheart. I got caught up with work at the office. You still have your credit card with you, don't you?"

"Yes."

"Good. Take some money and get a bus home. Be careful, and let me know when you arrive."

"Okay, Dad. No problem."

"Love you, honey."

"Love you too!"

I ended the call and stared at my phone.

So much for being rescued.

Louis leaned towards me hopefully.

"Does that mean you can come with us?"

I opened my mouth to refuse.

Pixy beat me to it.

"Of course she can! You don't mind, do you, Mil?"

Two pairs of eyes turned towards me.

I could have said no. I should have said no.

Instead, I forced a smile.

"Sure. We can take the bus together."

"Yay!" Pixy exclaimed.

Then another voice joined the conversation.

"I can come too, right?"

We turned.

Ian stood a few feet away, smiling as though he hadn't spent the entire morning being rejected.

Louis's expression immediately soured.

"No, you—"

"Of course you can, Ian!" Pixy interrupted.

"But—"

"Please, Louis. No arguments."

Ian smiled triumphantly.

"Thanks, Pixy."

"You're welcome!"

I looked between the two boys and sighed.

I had rejected them both a few hours ago, yet somehow they were already finding new reasons to compete.

Was rejection a foreign language to them?

Apparently, I needed to start speaking more slowly.

We began walking towards the school gate, and I was looking forward to getting on a bus, going home, and never discussing love letters again.

Then Ian stopped.

"Wait. I'll book a limousine for us."

I stopped walking.

Louis stopped walking.

Even Pixy looked as though she needed a moment to process the sentence.

"A limousine?" we exclaimed almost simultaneously.

Ian shrugged.

"It's not a big deal."

Not a big deal?

Some people worried about whether they had enough money for bus fare. Ian Garcia apparently considered hiring a limousine an ordinary afternoon activity.

"But there's one condition," he added, glancing at Louis with a smirk. "I don't want certain people in it."

Louis folded his arms.

"If you're planning to leave someone behind, forget the limousine. We can take the bus."

Ian's smile faded slightly.

For a moment, I thought he might actually abandon the idea.

Then he sighed.

"Fine. He can come."

"I don't need your limousine," Louis snapped.

"Please, bro," Pixy begged. "Let's just go together."

Louis looked at her pleading expression, then at Ian.

"Fine," he muttered. "But I'm doing this for you, Pixy."

"Yay!"

I stood there, wondering how a simple journey home had turned into a negotiation between two wealthy boys and one determined girl.

A few minutes later, the limousine arrived.

We climbed inside, and I settled into my seat, trying not to look too impressed.

I failed.

The seats were comfortable, the interior was beautiful, and the entire ride felt like something out of a movie.

I wasn't suddenly in love with Ian Garcia.

I simply appreciated comfortable transportation. Even I had standards.

The drive passed more pleasantly than I expected, although Louis and Ian occasionally exchanged looks that suggested their competition was far from over.

When the limousine finally stopped outside my house, I gathered my things.

"Thank you for the ride," I said, stepping out.

Ian smiled.

"Anytime, Princess."

I pointed a warning finger at him.

"Don't call me that."

He laughed.

I shut the door before he could come up with another irritating nickname.

As I entered the house, I found Claire in the kitchen preparing dinner.

"Hey, Claire."

She didn't answer.

Instead, she hissed and continued what she was doing.

I rolled my eyes.

"Peasant," I muttered under my breath.

I could have started an argument, but Claire and I fought often enough to qualify for our own television show.

I wasn't in the mood for another episode.

I went upstairs to my room, took a shower, changed into comfortable clothes, and flopped onto my bed with my phone.

I listened to music, letting the familiar sounds drown out the day's nonsense.

Eventually, my eyelids grew heavy.

I closed my eyes, intending to rest for just a few minutes.

The next thing I knew, I was asleep.

I had no idea that the events of that afternoon would make things far more complicated than I wanted them to be.