My New Love

Chapter 6

Jonathan is coming back to school today. He was only suspended for a couple of days. This sucks for me. I’m happy Alex has been by my side every day. Michelle has been leaving me alone all week as well. That is the greatest thing in the world right now. I hope she’s done torturing me forever. I hope she doesn’t do anything now that Jonathan is coming back to school.

            A few days ago, Michelle asked Alex to hang out. He flat out told her no. He also told her he would never hang out with her ever. She looked so sad. It was really pathetic, to be honest. She should have gone to hang out with, Jonathan. I laughed at her while she was walking away. She just glared at me.

            When I get to the school I run to my locker as quickly as possible. I’m not in the mood to see Jonathan at all. He sent me a text couple of days ago. I didn’t bother responding to it. He wants to talk to me about something. I don’t want to talk to him one bit. Why should I speak to someone that slapped me across the face? He sent me another text when I didn’t respond to his first one. He said he wanted to talk about something really important.

            Nicole arrives at my locker a few minutes later. She always comes to my locker in the morning. I shoot her the biggest smile I can muster. She can tell that something’s wrong with me. “What’s wrong? Are you doing alright?”

            “I’ll be fine. I have no idea why, but Jonathan wants to talk to me. I have nothing to say to him. He says it’s important. I really wish he wasn’t coming back to school today. I’m afraid to be around him,” I respond looking down. My body starts trembling a little bit. I hope he doesn’t lay his hands on me again. Hopefully Jonathan learned his lesson.

            “I don’t think you should talk to him at all. I don’t trust that he’s being sincere. I have a feeling he’s going to yell at you again. Don’t let him control any of your actions.”

            “I know, but I’m going to run into him again eventually. The school is only but so big.”

            “That’s very true. Try to avoid him for as long as you can.”

            “I will try my hardest to avoid him. I don’t want to talk to him anyway. He’s being a jerk. I’m  also afraid...he’s going to hit me again...”

            “You’re right. Well I’ll see you a little later. I need to drop off this project so I don’t have to carry it around until fifth period. Be careful, avoid Jonathan as long as you can, and hurry on to class,” Nikki responds, waves goodbye, and runs off. I chuckle and wave back. I’m glad that Nikki is here for me. Sometimes she knows what to say to make me feel better. That’s why we have been best friends since kindergarten.

            I close my locker and Alex is standing right next to me. Alex has a small smile on his face, but it’s not reaching his eyes. His demeanor sends a shiver down my spine. I tremble a little bit.  We don’t say much to each other for the first few minutes. I’m really tired right now too. I didn’t get a lot of sleep last night since I was really nervous about today. I yawn a little. “Hey Alex, are you alright? I’m ready to go to class whenever you are. I don’t want to run into Jonathan. He’s coming back today which sucks. He wants to talk to me, but I don’t want to talk to him. I have no idea what it’s about. ”

            “Yes, Aubrey, I’m alright. Thank you for asking. You don’t have to worry. I won’t let him hurt you if we bump into him. I’m sure we will bump into him eventually,” Alex responds a little icily. I can tell Alex is really hoping we don’t run into him either. I put one of my hands over my chest and pray we don’t run into him.  

             Alex and I bump into Michelle on our way to class. I roll my eyes at her when she tries to talk to Alex. He is ignoring everything she’s saying. It’s clear he doesn’t like her. He may be new to the school, but he isn’t an i***t. He can tell what her personality is already. She is bossy, rude, and very bratty. Who in their right mind would want to be friends with someone like that? If I were a male, I wouldn’t want to be around someone that acts like her either.

            “Alex, please stop ignoring me and listen,” she asks with tears starting to form in her eyes. I really don’t feel bad for her at all. Michelle wants every man she sees to be wrapped around her little finger. That’s not how this world works. Sure, she’s pretty, but her attitude pushes men away. Most of the guys in class try to stay clear of her except for Jonathan. I still don’t know what Jonathan sees in this girl.

            “Fine, I’m listening,” Alex responds in a harsh tone. I’m a little surprised he actually answered her. He’s probably annoyed with her always trying to talk to him. She’s tried every single day this week. He refused to answer her whenever she tried. Alex has only been in school for about four or five days now and a lot of people are trying to be his friend. He shuns a lot of the girls. I’m not surprised because he’s pretty shy. Sometimes, it’s really hard to talk to him. He doesn’t always answer my questions. I’m still trying to get to know him better.

            “I’m wondering if you would like to come to a party my family is throwing. You don’t have to dress fancy or anything. You are invited if you would like to come,” she asks.

            “Thank you for the invite, but no. I refuse to go to any party of yours.”

            “What if I invited Aubrey? Would you come,” Michelle asks. She has tears in her eyes again.

            “No, I still wouldn’t come. I highly doubt Aubrey would ever go to any party that you throw. You’re boyfriend slapped her across the face. Jonathan was dating her first, wasn’t he? Why don’t you back off and leave me alone? I don’t like girls like you. You act like you’re one of the best people in this world, but honestly you’re one of the worst,” Alex responds in cool tone. He’s right after all. Michelle is a snob. I would never go to a party that Michelle is hosting. In fact, I don’t attend any party that I hear Michelle is going to.

            Michelle looks completely crushed right now and for some reason I feel bad for her. I’m starting to surprise myself. I agree with what Alex said, but I think the way he said it was a little harsh. Alex starts walking away quickly. I run to catch up with him. I look back at Michelle and she glares at me again. “Alex, maybe you shouldn’t have said that.”

            “Aubrey, she needed to hear those words. Maybe, it will help her try to change for the better. I know she wants to be my friend, but I have no need for friends like that. I also don’t like the way she treats you either. ”

            “I don’t like the way she treats me either,” I respond and look down at the floor. We go to first period. That is the slowest period of the day. I have a lot on my mind too.

~

            Alex isn’t with me right now. I don’t feel safe without him being near me. He told me earlier that he had something to do. I sigh and walk to my locker alone. Jonathan is leaning against my locker when I arrive. I want to run in the opposite direction, but I can’t. I will miss my bus if I do.

            “Move away from my locker, please,” I ask him politely. He doesn’t budge an inch so I try to shove him. He frowns at me.

            “May I talk to you, please? I know you must hate me, but I have something really important to say,” he says softly.

            “I don’t want to hear anything you have to say.”

            “Please, just listen,” he yells, grips my shoulders tightly, and pushes me up against my locker. I look down at the floor. Jonathan is way too close to me right now. I’m feeling really uncomfortable.

            “Fine, I’ll listen, but you better leave me alone after this,” I respond with a bit of anger in my tone. I really hate that he’s forcing me to talk to him right now.  

            “I want to apologize to you. I know I have been treating you horribly lately. I didn’t mean to hurt you as badly as I did. I see the pain in your eyes even now. It’s breaking my heart. I realize now that being away from you is driving me crazy. I should have never told you that Michelle is better than you. I mean she’s been there for me, but she isn’t as tender as you are. When I hold her I don’t feel the warmth that I felt with you. I’m thinking about breaking up with her tonight. I want to be with you again. I want to hold you. I want to be the first person you think about in the morning. Please, forgive me. I’m sorry I broke your heart. I was stupid. I understand why you have been upset lately...I know your older brother was very important to you,” he tells me. I have tears welling up in my eyes. I push his hands off my shoulders. I have a lot running through my mind at the moment. Jonathan is the first person I really connected with. I don’t have the same feelings for him as I did in the beginning. He broke my heart into pieces.  Does he really expect me to take him back so easily?

            “No, I don’t want to get back together with you. I’m sorry. I know we were together for a long time. You chose someone else over me and broke my heart. You decided to be with someone like Michelle. You two deserve each other. You also hit me because I wasn’t going to apologize to her. How do you think that made me feel? You need to leave me alone now,” I say with tears filling my eyes. I really can’t believe I’m crying right now. I try to walk away, but he grabs my shoulder again.

            Out of nowhere I feel another arm wrap around my waist. Whoever it is pulls me away from Jonathan. I feel warm lips meet mine. I’m being kissed, but who is kissing me?