THE FOX EFFECT: ONE PACT. TWO HEARTS

Falling into trouble always feels harmless at first—like stepping onto a smooth, familiar path before realizing it’s paved with quicksand. I've always had a keen, weirdly attentive sense. At least that's what my mom thinks. It’s a good fallacy to keep my family and most people I relate with off my back, they don't try to be sneaky with me. Metaphorically and otherwise. I slammed my locker shot, turning on my heels and walking into a hard wall. Since when did they have a wall here? I wondered, looking up at the really gorgeous yet snarky face of an i***t. Meanwhile, this i***t of mine takes it upon himself to be extra sneaky and make sure I'm either surprised, or pissed by his grand entrance. I sighed lazily and picked up the book I had dropped. "Hey Poppy." He smiled sheepishly, showing off his straight white teeth, his piercing blue eyes bemused. I chewed on my lips, contemplating whether to slap or punch the jerk. "Stop calling me that Zane, someone might hear you." I warned, glaring daggers at him. He smirked and leaned on the locker. "It's a beautiful name Elena gave you, embrace it." He urged, with a coy smile. I stared at him the way I would stare at a vomit. Yup, that's the face. " Okay fine, I’ll stop. Just for now. So, how did it go with Justin? " He probed, my frown deepened, a long groan escaped my lips. " Horribly, ” I answered pointedly. The remnant of his smile disappeared so fast that it seemed as if he hadn't been grinning a few seconds ago. " What do you mean horribly? Did you not ask him out? I told you to ask him out. " "I did. He said he wasn't ready to be in a committed relationship. I paid for our food, Zane. I couldn't let him. " I whispered the last part, when I noticed my voice had gone an inch higher and kids were sending us weird glances. "I think I should start wearing makeup, and dresses maybe?" Zane's face hardened, he held my chin up, almost squishing my cheek with his thumb. “ Listen to me Syd, Justin is a cowardly bastard who just earned himself a free ticket to beating-villa. And no, you're gorgeous just the way you are, hear me? ” I could only nod animatedly as he drew away from my face. If anyone had seen him, they’d think he was promising to make my life a living hell with how serious he looked. I wanted to laugh at his hostility, but I didn't want to make him mad. I let out a dramatic sigh, then asked the question that had been nagging at my brain for a while. "Mia?" I questioned quietly. He knew what I was asking about. He shrugged, a coy smile returned to his lips once more. "She hasn't really replied to my text, or calls, or sixty-two voice mails." He turned his head on the locker to face me. "You don't think she's ghosting me, do you?" I pressed my lips together and shook my head in response. "Of course, not... she's probably just um... feeding her fish." As the words fell from my lips, the laughter I'd been struggling to contain exploded. I nudged him slightly when he frowned. "She doesn't have a fish." He told me, with a smile. I chuckled at the disappointment in his face, my smile faded when I noticed the person behind him. "Bro, Mia, she's heading this way." "Wait really? My Mia? " He asked. " Yeah, yeah, don't look back though, she's really close. ” He swallowed hard, his eyes darting back, but he would have to turn all the way if he wanted to see her, which I would not allow. "Okay, Okay. Be cool Syd. " I eyed him, and if Mia Sanchez hadn't been a few feet away, I would have collided my knuckles with his smooth face. "I am cool, jerk." I retorted. Fixing his stance frantically, worry skated his face, he looked like someone had threatened to give him a wedgy. He seemed to be more mindful of how wide he grinned and how much he said now. " Hi Zane, Hi Sydney. ” Mia Sanchez, Nile's high school sweetheart and Zane’s improbable crush, smiled sweetly at him. Nodding in my direction, which I reciprocated ideally. "Hey Mia, been a while." He flashed her a smile of his own. Her cheeks turned as red as a tomato. She rubbed her arms shyly, then bit her lower lips as if she couldn't say what was on her mind. It was so obvious she liked him, or am I just imagining this tension? "Yeah, it has. Um... I forgot my contacts in the car, I’ll just go fetch them. Later. " She murmured. He nodded curtly and watched her walk away, her long blonde hair bouncing behind her, making me tug on my own short black mane that was in a haggard bun. " That was smooth, a little dry but cool. You should go after her and maybe talk more. " I suggested, he beamed at the idea. “ I should get my cologne from my backpack though." He muttered quietly. " Zane, you smell just fine. Go before she comes back. " "What about my breath," He breathed in my nose. "Does it stink?" "No, you disgusting piss of s**t, go already." I urged him, frowning at his reluctance. I pushed him slightly towards the school entrance. "You said I smell fine, and then you call me disgusting, make up your mind Syd." "Honest, you smell excellent." I probed, shoving him as hard as I could to move him from his rooted spot. "Here's a gum though, just for safety measures." I threw a gum to him, and he caught it, taking off the wrap and walking away. A weak sigh left my lips as I turned in the opposite direction and headed towards class. Sure, enough the students didn't care about the ruckus. Geeks were probably eyeing the clock and waiting for the bell to ring and announce the start of the day. Meanwhile, the majority, which are the jocks, cheerleaders, the popular d***s, AKA trendsetters, the band pricks who I think are mostly full of wannabee pricks and snobs, the overachievers, the rebels, the loners and the art kids, they were waiting for the last bell of the day, to mark the end of the learning section, and so am I. I walked past a group of cheerleaders who were gossiping about a new 'Hot' teacher, as they called it. I almost gagged in my mouth when one of the girls said something that caught my attention. "Let's see who will hook up with him first." A shrill voice giggled, followed by random laughters and exaggerated gasps. "Probably Carla, she's the hottest after all." Another voice spoke, it took all my moral training not to turn to send a disgusted look their way. I pushed open the door and sat in our usual seat. I set my backpack on the spot where Zane would sit, then rested my head on the table. The stiff desk felt too rough against my head, making reading my book annoyingly stressful. The bell rang finally and students started to rush in. As the grumpy old calculus teacher stepped in, I felt all the energy in me leave my soul. Damn, I’m so not ready for this.