Mr. Thorne practically choked on his water, sputtering as he looked at me like I had just announced I was planning to set the gym on fire.
"What the—?" he started, his voice rough and bewildered.
My face was on fire. I could feel it spreading from my cheeks all the way down to my neck. But I tried to play it cool—somehow. “Well… it’s the truth,” I mumbled, crossing my arms like that would somehow make this less mortifying. “And it was a compliment, so, you know… you’re supposed to say thank you.”
Inwardly, though, my mind was practically screaming. Why the hell did I just say that?
Mr. Thorne stared at me, his gaze unreadable, like he was processing what he had just heard and trying to fit it into his perfectly ordered world. After a long, awkward moment, he finally let out this soft,
