Chapter2-UnexpectedTurns
1314 Words
Evelyn's POV
I stared at the stage, waiting for someone to laugh.
Or correct the mistake.
Better still announce that the entire fellowship committee had collectively lost its mind.
None of those things happened and the applause continued.
Chloe looked seconds away from passing out.
“Oh my God.”
“No.”
“Oh my God.”
“Stop saying that.”
“You got paired with him.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose.
As if hearing his name once hadn’t been traumatic enough.
“I know.”
“The hockey captain.”
“I know.”
“The same hockey captain you publicly insulted.”
“I was there, Chloe.”
“I’ve never seen karma work this fast.”
“That’s not what karma is.”
“It’s exactly what karma is.”
The chairperson thanked everyone for attending and invited the selected participants to remain behind for a brief orientation.
I felt like the universe had singled me out for entertainment.
A few rows away, Luca was speaking to another guy wearing a Hawthorne hockey jacket.
The guy looked in my direction and he laughed.
Great.
Now there were two of them.
“He’s looking over here,” Chloe whispered.
“I know.”
“Do you think he’s talking about you?”
“I hope not.”
“Actually, no. I definitely think he’s talking about you.”
“You’re not helping.”
“That’s because this is helping me.”
Before I could respond, the partnership coordinator stepped back to the microphone.
“If all selected participants could please stay seated, we’ll begin in a moment.”
The room slowly emptied.
But Luca Hayes stayed exactly where he was.
Within a few minutes, only the partnership winners, a handful of faculty members, and one hockey captain remained.
“Firstly, congratulations.”
“Being selected for the Hawthorne Student Partnership Program is an incredible achievement. We had more than three hundred applicants this year.”
Three hundred?
The coordinator continued.
“Over the next six months, you’ll participate in partnership projects, networking events, and community initiatives. Your assigned partners will work alongside you throughout the program.”
My mood dropped.
There it was again.
Partners.
“Because collaboration is a core component of the program, partner evaluations will contribute to your final assessment.”
Great.
So if Luca decided to spend six months treating this like a hobby, my evaluation would sink with his.
The coordinator moved on to deadlines, attendance requirements, and expectations. I tried listening.
I really did.
My attention lasted almost thirty seconds.
Then my brain started constructing worst case scenarios.
By the time the briefing ended, I had already imagined twelve different ways this partnership could collapse and eight of them involved Luca.
The coordinator clapped her hands once.
“Now, we’d like partners to exchange contact information and discuss availability for your first project.”
People immediately turned toward their assigned partners.
I considered pretending I hadn’t heard her.
A shadow fell across my notebook.
I looked up.
Luca.
Of course.
“Partner.”
I closed my notebook.
“Please don’t call me that.”
“Interesting. Most people start with hello.”
“We’ve already met.”
“That’s true.”
“Let’s try this again. Hi.”
Apparently, this was happening.
“Hello.”
“There we go.”
“You seem very proud of yourself.”
“I am.”
He just sat there smiling.
“Okay,” I said, opening my notebook. “Let’s discuss schedules.”
His eyes dropped to the page.
Then to the color coded tabs.
Then back to me.
“Oh, wow.”
“What?”
“You really brought the whole system.”
“The whole system?”
“The tabs.”
“They serve a purpose.”
“There are six colors.”
“There are seven.”
“Of course there are.”
I pointed at the page.
“Tell me your availability.”
“Most afternoons.”
I waited for more information and they failed to arrive.
“That’s not an availability schedule.”
“It is if you’re optimistic.”
I closed my eyes for a second.
When I opened them again, he was smiling.
Again.
I was beginning to suspect smiling might be his default setting.
“You don’t plan anything, do you?”
“I plan to play hockey.”
“That’s not reassuring.”
“I get where I need to be.”
“That sentence should never be used as a defense.”
He looked like he was enjoying this.
Like arguing with me ranked somewhere on his list of favorite activities.
This should have annoyed me.
Instead, a small, unwelcome thought appeared. At least he wasn’t boring.
My attention returned to the notebook between us.
“Tomorrow.”
Luca leaned back slightly.
“What about tomorrow?”
“The project.”
“What project?”
“The project they just assigned us.”
“Don’t tell me you forgot already.”
“No, I heard them.”
“Then why did you ask?”
“I wanted to know if you were about to explain it to me.”
My grip tightened around my pen.
“You are remarkably difficult.”
“That’s funny.”
“I was about to say the same thing.”
Oh my God!, the nerve of this boy.
A corner of something peeked from Luca’s backpack resting against his chair.
A book.
The title was unusual.
“The Silent Witness?”
His gaze followed mine.
“What about it?”
“You’re reading that?”
“It’s a book. That’s usually how it works.”
I blinked.
“That’s a mystery novel.”
“Congratulations.”
“You read mystery novels.”
“You say that like I admitted to tax fraud.”
I hated that I nearly smiled.
“I just wasn’t expecting it.”
“What were you expecting?”
Good question.
Something sports related.
A biography or a nutrition guide.
Definitely not a murder mystery with a suspiciously handsome detective on the cover.
I shut my notebook a little harder than necessary.
“Let’s stay focused.”
The coordinator smiled the way people smiled when they were about to ruin your day.
“One more thing.”
“Your first partnership presentation will take place tomorrow evening.”
The room erupted.
Questions immediately flew from every direction.
Tomorrow?
That’s impossible.
We just got our partners.
Isn’t there supposed to be preparation time?
I didn’t join the complaints.
Mostly because I was too busy calculating how many hours remained between now and tomorrow evening.
it was nowhere near enough.
Luca looked completely unbothered.
The coordinator spent another few minutes answering questions before finally dismissing us.
Chairs scraped against the floor and people gathered their belongings.
I packed my notebook into my tote and stood.
My plan was simple.
Leave.
Go home.
Create a presentation schedule.
Create a backup presentation schedule.
Then create a backup for the backup.
I had almost made it to the aisle when I realized my pen wasn’t in my bag.
After a brief search, I spotted it a few rows away.
The minute I reached down to grab it, voices coming from the other side of the room caught my attention.
It sounded like hockey players voices.
Not that hockey players had their own language.
That would be ridiculous.
One of them laughed.
“Man, you got the partner you wanted.”
Luca’s voice followed.
“Keep your voice down.”
The other guy sounded entirely too entertained.
“I’m just saying, you got Evelyn.”
I waited for him to laugh or deny it at the very least.
Maybe I had misheard it.
Maybe there was a perfectly reasonable explanation.
Because that sentence didn't make any sense.
Luca barely knew me.
Right?
- Writer
