Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 107944 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 540(@200wpm)___ 432(@250wpm)___ 360(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107944 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 540(@200wpm)___ 432(@250wpm)___ 360(@300wpm)
A pit sat in my stomach as I headed to the bathroom before first hour. The popular girls were giggling in the bathroom about Aiden, and I hated the idea of them getting their manicured hands anywhere near him.
The intercom screeched in first hour, reminding us of our broken-down school equipment. Principal Warren’s voice broke through the scratchy sounds with the morning announcements, and he welcomed us all back for yet another year of being told to sit down and shut up.
“Last, I want to welcome back Leeks’ own Emmy-winning actor, Aiden Walters, to school. We are excited to have his return. Make sure you all stream his Emmy-winning television show Forgotten when you get home tonight. Welcome back to school, everyone. Here’s to a new year!”
Intercom speeches about my best friend? Normal was the opposite of what our senior year was about to become.
7
Hailee
* * *
I hated lunchtime. If I had it my way, school would’ve skipped past lunch period and allowed us to get out of prison an hour earlier. Instead, I was left in a cafeteria packed with people I knew but didn’t really know, surrounded by individuals who all seemed to have friends to sit with, unlike me.
Ever since I gained weight, I felt even more self-aware when it came time to eat in front of other people. It was almost as if I’d become obsessed with eating things I didn’t want to eat because I didn’t want others to comment on my choices.
“We should’ve gotten here sooner. It looks like this chick’s gonna take all the food,” someone behind me joked. I didn’t look back at them. I didn’t know who it was, and I wasn’t even sure they were talking about me, but I felt as if they were. They had to be talking about me. My thighs rubbed together when I walked. A tire of pudginess that unfolded from the top of my jeans whenever I sat down, which made at least one of my arms always rest against said bulge whenever I sat. Even oversized T-shirts didn’t hide the beast.
My hands were clammy around the dull, brown plastic tray that shook in my grip from the unwanted attention.
“Will you just shut up, Robby? I told you, I’m PMSing,” a girl’s voice replied. I glanced back to see Hilary was the one who the guys were joking about taking all the food.
Well, hell. If her guy friends were bullying her about her diet when she was slim, then I was a hopeless case. All I had to do was try my best not to draw attention to myself.
Sit down. Eat quietly. And don’t make a—
“Hailee Jones! Behold!” someone hollered.
My heart shot up to my throat.
I turned to see Aiden standing a few feet away from me, holding a piece of paper up in the air. “I took my grievances to the top tier of authority, and I am officially in lunch A. Victory is ours!” he shouted before he began to hip thrust the air, dancing poorly, reminding me that even though Aiden was famous as heck by society standards, he was still, in fact, my Aiden.
My bad dancing, over-the-top Aiden.
My favorite dancing taco.
I couldn’t wait to have lunch with him for one hundred and eighty more days.
“I can’t believe you had them change your whole schedule so we’d eat dog food together,” I joked as Aiden walked over to join me at our table after getting his food. It was insane how my comfort level shifted the moment I spotted him.
“I refuse to spend my senior year not interacting with my best friend throughout the day. You’re the whole reason I wanted to have a senior year. We also have last period study hall together now, too.”
I smiled. “We’re not allowed to talk in study halls.”
“As if we aren’t close enough to be able to talk without using words. Like right now.” He sat straight and narrowed his eyes at me. “What am I thinking?”
“Nothing.”
He tossed his hands up in the air. “See?! You know me.”
I snickered, shaking my head. The more he sat with me, the more relaxed I became. All the nerves that I felt before when Aiden wasn’t with me had evaporated and turned into joy. Only Aiden had the ability to take my nerves and flip them sideways.
“So should we check the high school bucket list? See what else we have left?” he asked, shoving his chicken patty into his mouth.
I shifted in my seat and nodded. “Yes.” I reached into my backpack and pulled out my notebook. I flipped to the first page, where the list existed.
Tom & Jerry’s Ultimate High School Bucket List
We’d created the list of goals for our high school experience, and we’ve made a pretty good dent in them.
Get on the honor roll for at least two years