We walk into the cafeteria and head towards our standard table. I sit across from Ruby and Zaria sits next to her.

"So, where did you move from?" I ask Zaria.

"Washington, D.C." She says. "My parents used to work at a law firm there, but they decided to start up their own here."

"That's so cool. My parents are both doctors." I share. "Do you want to be a lawyer like them?"

"Yeah, I've grown up around it and I love it." She gushes.

"I want to be one, too." I smile, glad we have something in common.

"What's the name of the firm?" Ruby asks.

"It's called Johnson and Jones. They're still finalizing employees and interns." Zaria explains.

The name sounds familiar, but that could be because law firms don't have the most creative names. I push the thought aside and return to the conversation. We're talking about our favorite books when a guy from my Chemistry class slides into the seat next to me.

"Hey Daniel." I smile, internally wondering what brought him here. I turn slightly towards his athletic frame. He has fair skin and dark brown hair.

"Hey, you're Zaria, right?" He grins, ignoring my greeting.

I raise an eyebrow at Ruby. He's usually friendly and flirty with me. Ruby shrugs her shoulders.

"Yeah, that's me." She says, with a friendly smile. "May I ask who you are?"

"I'm Daniel." He says.

"What's up?" Zaria asks.

"Well, I seem to have lost my number. Can I have yours?" He smirks.

Zaria lets out an awkward laugh. I'm not surprised. Daniel has tried to get with every attractive girl at school.

"So..." He says.

"You should leave before you embarrass yourself further." Ruby says, before Zaria can let him down easy.

"I don't think she's interested..." I add, trying to soften the blow Ruby sent.

"I think she can speak for herself." He says, his bad temper peeking out. "She has a right to say who she's interested in."

"Oh, trust me. She has." Ruby smirks. "And the girl she's interested in wouldn't appreciate your sad attempt." Ruby adds, leaning over the table and into Daniel's face.

"Wait. You're ga-" He starts, turning bright red. Zaria nods before he can finish his sentence. He hurriedly leaves the table.

"You're quite possessive aren't you, Amethyst?" I say, raising an eyebrow at Ruby.

"Amethyst?" Zaria asks.

"She calls me random gems because my name is Ruby," she says with a playful eye roll. "And I don't like guys bothering my friends."

"That's cute." Zaria giggles.

I smirk at Ruby. "Sure, that's why."

We spend the rest of the lunch period talking about random things and getting to know each other better. After a period full of laughter, I can sense a new friendship blossoming.

"What class do you have next?" I ask Zaria as we exit the lunchroom.

"I have History with Mrs. Brown." Zaria says, not even checking her schedule.

"Damn. On my first day I had my schedule and a map out." I joke.

"I like being prepared." She laughs.

We hug Ruby goodbye and walk to History together. Zaria walks in before me to introduce herself to Mrs. Brown.

I notice Hakeem in his usual seat and mentally debate whether things have changed enough between us for me to say hi. I decide to throw caution in to the wind and say hi. As I'm walking to his seat, I notice his head snap up. His eyes find Zaria's moving figure and seem to follow her all the way to Mrs. Brown's desk. I've never seen him pay so much attention to someone that wasn't a teacher.

"Hakeem." I say, playfully poking his arm.

"Oh, hey." He says, snapping back to reality.

"Hi."

"Do you need something?"

"I can't say hi to my new friend?" I smirk.

"Don't say that. I don't want people to think I like you." He teases.

"You're right. You love me." I wink before sliding into my seat.

Mrs. Brown assigns Zaria the seat right next to Hakeem and begins the lesson.

When there's about ten minutes left, Mrs. Brown tells us to discuss the causes of the Cold War with our neighbor. I turn to the person next to me and begin talking to him about the topic.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Hakeem laughing at something Zaria said. What happened to the serious prick I had to deal with?

I push the question to the back of my mind. At least he didn't trip me today.

The bell rings, signaling the end of class. By the time I look up from putting my work in my bag, Hakeem is gone.

I don't see him again until I arrive at our table in the library after school. I lost track of time talking to Ruby, so when I sit in the seat across from him, I find him impatiently tapping his pencil on the the table.

"Nice of you to show up." He says, crossing his arms. With this unfamiliar action, I notice that his arms are a lot more toned than I thought.

I quickly swat away the thought. "I'm so sorry. I was just making sure Ruby had a ride home. Usually, I'm her ride." Luckily for her, Zaria offered to drive her.

"Whatever." He sighs. "Let's get to work. We have a test tomorrow."

I nod and begin to pull out my materials. I don't want to anger him any further. I like the nice Hakeem.

After our allotted hour, we walk out of the library together.

"How are you getting home? It's already dark out." I ask.

"The same way I always do." He says as we step out into the parking lot.

"Do you drive?"

"You're just full of questions today, aren't you?" He responds. "I take the bus."

"Oh! I'll drive you home." I suggest. "I thought your dad would've designed you a car by now." I playfully tease.

He lets out a laugh. But, it doesn't sound natural. It seems forced.

"He's teaching me to be humble." He says.

"My car is right here." I say, pointing it out.

"It's fine. I take the bus all the time." He says, backing up in the opposite direction.

"My car is warm..."

"It's fine, really."

"You don't have to wait in the cold..."

"Fine." He reluctantly agrees. "I'll bless you with my presence for a bit longer."

I unlock the doors and we get in. I drive out to the road and ask Hakeem to type in his address on my GPS.

He stares at it for what seems like an eternity before typing it in.

"I almost thought you forgot your address." I laugh, beginning to follow the directions.

After about ten minutes of driving, I feel like I've made a wrong turn—or two. The neighborhood I'm in feels darker than all the others. The family style houses of my neighborhood turn into cold, dark buildings.

My phone tells me that we've arrived.

"Did you put in the right address?" I say without thinking, my eyes following the man who is smoking what smells like weed on the corner.

"Yeah." Hakeem says. "I'm visiting an aunt. My dad is going to pick me up in half an hour."

"Okay." I nod. "Stay safe. This doesn't look like the best area."

"I will." He says, stepping out. "Thank you for the ride."

"No problem." I smile.

I watch him disappear into the dark building before driving as fast as possible out of there.

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-Gaëlle