How to Steal Mason's Heart

TWENTY

We sat on the bench in the park for an hour, the winter air breezing past us. I shivered a little at the harsh coldness, my eyes glancing occasionally towards Jason. He was awfully quiet, opposing his bubbly loud self while I kept biting my lip, wishing he would speak any random thing that would spill out of his mouth.

But that would be selfish of me. He cried an hour ago, in front of me, which was a strong thing a person would do. I wrapped my shoulders around my chubby frame.

“I wished I was the one who died,” Jason whispered, his eyes connecting to mine. He looked frightened, guilty even of something that I didn’t know of. “It would be much better. Everyone would be happy,” he added bitterly, the resentment laced around his tone. I had never seen someone so passionate about the thought of dying.

“If you did die,” I said, “I would never meet such a wonderful person like you.” We were starting to grow nearer and nearer, his eyes going glassy.

“That’s b-bullshit Alex,” Jason interjected, his voice shaky, cracking like he had been all along. I was too dumb not to notice he was broken beyond repair but what appalled me was I only thought of myself, not even thinking if he was hurting.

But maybe it was because he never said anything about it, too.

“I don’t care if you believe me or not,” I told him, holding a gaze towards him. “But you are one of the most beautiful people I have ever met, aside from myself, of course.”

He chuckled slightly, the crinkles faintly appearing in his eyes, his face lighting up like the whole town.

“That was the sappiest s**t you ever told me Sanchez.” I rolled my eyes.

“Why can’t you accept a damn compliment from me, Ward?” I complained, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

“It’s because you can’t accept the fact of how beautiful you are. I told you that a thousand times, but, I kept it to myself or else you’ll flick me in the forehead,” Jason answered, which literally threw me off guard. All those jabs he had given me were all along true?

I didn’t know that. Or maybe I was too doubtful to care he meant it.

“I am not used to it,” I said. “My father always tells me how ugly and fat I am.”

My heart jumped against my chest when his hand came contact to my cheek. It was a feathery touch, giving me a shiver around my neck, my eyes automatically shutting down. It was so soft a tear fell down on my eye. Jason wiped it away.

I opened my eyes to see our faces were merely inches apart.

His lips were drawing nearer and nearer and they planted on my forehead, so slow, so soft, filled with a lot of unspoken emotions. It lingered for a few more seconds than intended and he broke it, his eyes widening, his breathing had gone shallow.

“You’re beautiful, Alexie Pixie, okay?” he said, levelling his gaze towards me.

“Okay?” he asked once more.

“We’re not Hazel Grace and Augustus,” I answered.

Jason laughed. “You just ruined the moment, Alex!” he whined. I laughed at him. “When I say okay, you say it as well. Got it?”

“Here I am thinking you are the worst at cheesy moments,” I commented sarcastically.

“What am I supposed to say?”

“How about yeah will be our okay since okay is their always. Therefore, yeah is our always,” I suggested but Jason just sent me a horrified expression.

“You’re lamer than I thought.” He threw his head back laughing like a bastard going out of a jail cell. I always had a way with words, so sue me if I compared him to an ex-convict.

“But yeah is like not mainstream. For example, let’s buy this Walk the Moon album Talking Is Hard. Yeah? Yeah!” I raised my arms in the air to make it look more convincing. He just sent me a stink-eye.

He sighed in defeat, shrugging his shoulders. “Alright. But don’t do this to blackmail me.”

Oh, I feel so threatened. “Sure.”

“So, yeah?”

“Yeah.”

We shook our hands, his rough palm itching my soft one.

“Your palms are so rough. You might as well apply as a sandpaper.”

“f**k you, Alex. At least I’m good in the kitchen. Unlike you, you’re only good at the kitchen when you’re eating.”

I winked. “I’m also good in bed.”

“Stop giving me dirty thoughts!” he cried. “I cannot imagine you—“

“Stop being so dirty-minded!” I reprimanded. “I’m good in bed when I’m dead asleep Loser.”

“So now we’re back to the Loser-i***t basis? I thought we’re with the Alexie Pixie-Jason Coleslaw vibe?”

“Who says we are? I’m calling you Loser. It’s a necessity.”

He rolled his eyes. “Let’s go home before your mother thinks we eloped.”

I gave him a disgusted look. “I’m so lucky you don’t like me like you do with Courtney.”

“Hell, I’m luckier that we’re not together. I can imagine you throttling me every day.”

“So that means you imagine that you and I are together? Oh, how sweet. How many kids are you planning to make with me?”

“You’re so gross, Al. Let’s go home. I think I’m going sick.”

I smirked. “Good, because I don’t want to see your face near me tomorrow.”

+ + + +

Chemistry was to say, bearable.

There were no experiments for today, except for long lab reports that was due next week. A series of groans echoed around me. I could say the same, since my condition was not going to help me finish it.

“You can share the same answers with your lab partners,” Professor Juliet, with her raspy voice, announced in a delighted tone. I wasn’t sure if I would be happy since Jason wasn’t as good as Chemistry as far as I could remember. He was alright but sometimes he didn’t understand Chemistry like Michelle did or perhaps like I did.

“You can start now. I will give you time to answer your lab reports. You can pass today since Christmas is nearing, I won’t give you homework. That will be my present to all of you.”

Groans were replaced with giggles and squeals of gratitude. I was glad she wasn’t one of those insufferable teachers who gave assignments. Maybe due to her old age.

But I could disagree. Dr Williams gave us another project and he did some pairing. Luckily I wasn’t paired up with Andrew, the bastard who called me dumb three weeks ago, or else I would rather fail than pass his subject.

“Yo, Alex?” Jason called meekly beside me, his posture slouching.

I turned my head towards him. I raised a brow, my eyes sending him a questioning gaze.

He scratched the back of his head lightly, his eyes tinted with timidity. “Can you help me solve the change of heat on this one?” he asked, letting me see his solutions. There wasn’t one except erasures and doodled hearts all around Courtney’s name. I smirked at him.

“You sure do know how to mess that scratch paper,” I teased and his cheeks flamed, red circles appearing. “First of all, you need to use 4.18 which is the constant for water. You won’t get the change of heat if you don’t use it.”

An imaginary light bulb lit on top of Jason’s head, like it was eureka moment of his, his eyes widening in astonishment. He glanced at me, shame filling in his face. I waved my hand in nonchalance, signalling him it was nothing.

“It’s fine if you don’t get it. We’re not expected to learn them in just a second,” I told him, scrawling the numbers carefully on the paper, my eyes focusing more on how to write it.

“I know,” he merely whispered, creating a large gap between us as he continued answering on his own, and I did as well, not minding if we weren’t talking after that. It wasn’t uncomfortable, it was just right because sometimes words shouldn’t always be a necessity around people

The bell rang and it was a relief. I was finished with my laboratory report and gave it to Professor Juliet, scrutinizing my handwriting under her spectacles, gesturing towards me that I could leave the room. I slung my bag on my shoulders, expecting Jason’s presence to be right beside me, so we could practice for the musical, or the thing that I always convinced inside my head.

I turned my head but he wasn’t keeping his pace beside me because Courtney was waiting at the doorstep, planting a kiss on his cheek.

I wasn’t sure if I was disappointed or mad, but my blood was boiling for sure, for such an unknown reason. They held hands while I stood rooted on my place, staring at the couple in my vision, Mrs. Dunst’s words echoing in my head.

“Break them up.”

I didn’t want to no matter what, because the two of them didn’t deserve to be in a predicament held by a parent, and I didn’t want to break any friendship that mattered to me. I turned around, trying my best to be under the radar and I was lucky they did not notice me. I disliked the idea of being the third wheel after all.

Lunch was after Chemistry, my feet not taking me to the cafeteria. It was blissful to be alone for a moment, since Courtney and I had always been attached to the hip when we first met. She wasn’t suffocating me but it was such a breather to linger all by myself.

As I stepped out of the school grounds, I walked to a destination in my head, the sound of burgers making my stomach produce a low growl. I chuckled, reminiscing the time Jason treated—more like stole—me with some food. I remembered the horrified expression of the mother, the guard kicking us out.

The guard opened the glass door for me, the place surprisingly quiet. It was still ten minutes before twelve noon, which was some sort of an explanation why it was silent. I slid in the line, the short queue growing shorter and shorter as the minutes passed by.

I ordered the Whopper King Burger, paid the cashier who had a toothy smile on her face, like it was her mission to make the world know of her smile. It was contagious because I was already grinning as I took a chair and sat on it, biting the burger peacefully in between my teeth.

“Don’t freak out. I followed you here,” Mason said.

I almost loosened my hold over my food, my eyes widening in surprise.

“I thought you had classes?” I asked, quipping a brow to my forehead.

“I skipped them,” he answered simply. He already had a burger on his grasp, quietly eating it as well.

“Why did you follow me?”

Now I knew how it felt like someone was following you, most especially if it was your crush who was following you. Should I be in awe or should I feel creepy?

“I-I want t-to,” he answered sheepishly, catching me more off guard with his reply.

“What?” I asked, my eyes widening in shock. “You want to?”

“I don’t know, okay?” he answered, his voice raising a notch. “I can’t stand seeing Jason and Courtney together. Might as well go out of there and look for you.”

I nodded, keeping my lips shut. All my hopes had gone downhill again. I continued chewing the burger and swallowed it, feeling Mason’s gaze burning towards me.

“You’re not mad?” Mason asked. I looked at him, connecting his blue eyes on my brown ones.

“Why should I?” I questioned back.

“Because I know you like me.”