PLEASE READ! Hey Guys! I know I have been gone for way too long. Longer than I thought I could stay away from writing tbh. I'd be surprised if I even have any readers left. But, if you are there and are reading this, I want to thank you from the deepest corner of my heart. I have been through some rough time, a time where I almost gave up writing. A block so bad that I couldn't think of anything at all. But this time, I plan on coming back to my original pace of doing things. I'm done with not being good enough now. I'll try my best not to disappoint you guys now. Just know that I absolutely adore you all! Thank you so much for being with me!

I was thinking of doing a recap but I realised that since its only seven chapters, you might just want to read the book again if you guys don't remember the characters and the scenes.

Chapter VIII (Part II)

They say that you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. That's a fairly common saying that most of us fail to actually practice, especially when it comes to someone we dislike. And how can I be any outstandingly different?

Looking at the dance team perform their routine, I was sure my jaw was almost grazing the ground. Their moves were so fluid and mesmerizing that I was left wondering how they managed to twist their limbs like that. I knew for a fact that if I even dared to try those moves, I'd be lying on a hospital bed with broken bones at the very least.

It's not like I underestimated the dance team as a whole. I only formed my judgement regarding their captain, Lindsay, also popularly remembered as my arch nemesis. But if I had even an ounce of common sense in my head, I would've thought about the fact that she was the captain of the dance team, meaning she had to have had some sort of talent to actually qualify as their captain.

So, as she flounced on the stage, after the routine of her team, I tried my best to keep a bored expression on my face. She was good, I had to admit that, only to myself though. She was never going to hear even a word of praise from me.

I watched her as she danced in the area she was supposed to, which made me slightly suspicious. Didn't she say that she had some special performance that required communication with Adrian?

The thought made me straighten up. I observed as she continued her routine with her dancers. It was when the dancers started twirling off the stage, leaving behind just her, I got suspicious. I was about to go on the stage and warn anyone about it but I stopped when a thought crossed my mind.

It wasn't in my list of responsibilities to be concerned about what she did to 'communicate' with Adrian and since Principal Hamstring had given her permission to do it, he couldn't even blame me if she decided to do something outrageous which I didn't think she would do. At least I hope she won't.

I watched her as she twirled and jumped with much more grace than I can ever manage but the suspicious feeling in me didn't subside as I continued to watch her. You know, the feeling when you get when you predict something bad happening?

So just to be on a safe side, I waled towards Josh, one of the backstage managers and tapped on his shoulder, getting his attention. He lowered his mic and I motioned for him to step aside a little, just so that I could warn him a little.

He raised his eyebrow but followed me nonetheless.

"I have a bad feeling about this," I cut to the chase, pointing towards where Lindsay was twirling.

"You too?" he asked, widening his eyes a little.

I was taken aback by this. "What do you mean?" I asked, getting even more suspicious and a tiny bit nervous.

"She told us that she had shortened her performance by five minutes, which given she wanted her own ten-minute solo earlier, seems highly suspicious!" Josh said and immediately alarm bells rang in my head.

"She wouldn't cut her performance unless she has another plan. I am one hundred percent sure of that," I said knowing that what I just said was true.

Lindsay always wanted more attention on herself and giving up five minutes worth of extra attention without a valid reason didn't seem like her at all. Hell, I still remember how she fought with me for a two minute stage presence last year during the showcase. Apparently Mr. Hamstring had gone ahead and asked me to end the showcase with a small speech and a vote of thanks for the audience and Lindsay had fought with everyone for that part so bad that I ended up giving half of it to her.

Josh and I shared a look, the wheels in our heads spinning hard, trying to figure out what Lindsay's plan was. I scrutinised her as she performed, trying to draw out her thoughts. After a few moments of thinking hard, something clicked in my head and I quickly turned to Josh.

"Who all are working in the anchoring crew?"

He looked at me, startled. "Um, it's a couple of guys from the public speaking club and along with a few others. Why?"

"Is there anyone from the dance club?"

Josh's eyes widened when he nodded in affirmation. "Keith is from the dance club. He sprained his ankle so he couldn't perform and he ended up helping us with the anchoring stuff."

That is when it started clicking. She has to have something planned and there was no way she could've managed to do anything without the help of someone and the anchors were the only ones who had proper interaction with Adrian and Courtney, Keith was going to help her do something. And I really didn't want to find out what that something was.

"Is Keith supposed to do anything near or on the stage?" I asked, hoping that the answer was negative.

"He is supposed to announce the break," he said and dread filled me when I realised that the break was supposed to start in two minutes.

A loud round of applause and hoots reverberated in the hallway and Josh and I immediately exchanged alarmed looks. We both started our way towards the backstage, increasing our pace by each step. The moment we reached, we saw Keith going up the stage, his limp gone, with no sign of the so called sprain he had.

"We need to get him down!" I shouted to Josh over the loud noise.

He immediately nodded. We both started our way towards Keith but before we could make our way across the wide space, a sudden crowd blocked our way. We looked around to see all the dancers milling around, pushing and rushing towards the sidelines through the backstage, trying to get a good look at what was happening on the stage.

The dancers weren't even supposed to come down from here!

I tried to find my way through but there was no luck. I was getting shoved a little too much. My emotions were a mix of aggravation, frustration and a lot of irritation, all directed towards a certain person.

"Let's try to get to the stage from the other side!" Josh yelled, grabbing my arm when I was abruptly push away.

The way to go to the other side of the stage was though the back of the stage that was hidden behind a bulky curtain. It connected both the sides to make it easier for the performers to make their way to the opposite sides for their performances. The back was also where the people waited for their turn to go on the stage.

"Will we reach in time?" I asked as we started our way towards the other side of the stage from where the dancers were actually supposed to get down from.

I might've underestimated just how determined Lindsay was to get near Adrian. I really shouldn't have taken her lightly and this late realisation might just cost me.

Both Josh and I pushed and shoved our way behind the stage, earning a lot of curses and glares in return. I would've happily glared back if I had even a little time to spare. There were way too many people than required and they were spread all over, making it difficult for us to maintain a regular pace.

Once we reached it was too late. Keith was already talking into the mic and Lindsay stood on the other side, grinning gleefully. Her grin was so wide that if she stretched her mouth a little more, I was convinced it would split her face into two. He grin just confirmed all of my suspicions, if there were left.

Keith was already in the middle of the stage, starting to speak.

"It is now time for our stars to take a short break," the crowd let out collective grumbling and whines but settled a bit as Keith continued,"- but before that, we have a surprise for you all," he started and dread crept up my body.

A few cheers echoed from the crowd while supporting curious expressions. Everyone, including Josh and I watched as Keith motioned to another guy who got three clear glass bowls with folded paper chits in all the three. They were numbered from one to three in bright red and bold one one side.

Josh and I exchanged looks. We didn't know what to do or how to stop whatever was going to happen and I hated that Lindsay had an upper hand on the situation right now. Josh and I were the ones in charge of this and to get Keith off the stage was going to be tough, especially since he had already begun with whatever Lindsay had planned. And with the crowd interested, I didn't know how we were going to stop the storm from happening.

We couldn't even drag Keith down kicking and screaming. It would be bad for the reputation got the school, seeing how the media from different companies was present as well.

I watched as Adrian looked at whatever was happening, in confusion. He grabbed the sheet with his schedule on it from beside him and examined it, his eyes furrowing, probably upon not finding anything about the so called surprise on it.

His glanced up from his sheets, looking around as if looking for something or someone. He examined the crowd before turning slightly towards where I was standing. Once his gaze landed on me, it relaxed a little. He discreetly motioned to whatever was happening, silently questioning me about it.

I tried to think of a way to tell him, warn him a little about what might happen in the next few minutes but my mind blanked out on me. I looked around in frustration, trying to look for a way to get to him instead of just marching right onto the stage. That would be weird.

I kicked into the air, out of frustration and accidentally knocked off a small table with cups on it. I groaned as I bent down to pick the cups up when an idea struck me. I quickly looked around for something when I spot my clipboard in Josh's hands.

"Josh! Give me my clipboard. Fast!" I yelled, startling Josh. He looked at me with wide eyes and quickly handed it to me.

I put two cups on the clipboard, hoping that it looked like a tray. Even though the cups were empty, I hoped that at least it looked as if I was going to Adrian to give him refreshments. This was much better than simply going to him to talk.

"Are you ready for the surprise?" Keith spoke into the mic and the crowd went berserk, hooting so loud that I almost flinched at the sound.

The more the crowd got invested, the harder it was going to calm the situation without damage.

With the attention of the crowd trained on whatever Keith was doing, I tried to discreetly go to Adrian, pretending to give him refreshments. I stepped on the stage and went straight to Adrian who was eyeing the glass bowls, confused.

"Okay, so we have prepared a random draw of names. As you can see, we have three bowls. All the three bowls have names of the students shuffled thoroughly. Adrian Carter will do the honours of drawing one slip each and the three students called out will receive a special gift from our beloved guest itself," Keith announced and my senses were on high alert. The crowd cheered, clearly excited for this draw.

This wasn't sounding good.

I increased my pace towards where Arian and Courtney were seated. Luck wasn't on my side because they were seated on the other end of the stage and our stage was pretty big. I couldn't make out Courtney's expression since she was faced away from me.

I had a feeling that whatever Keith ended up announcing, would put Adrian in a tight spot since he also wouldn't necessarily be able to give any reaction or deny anything in front of all the reporters. And everything was supposed to be scripted so anything like this wasn't supposed to happen.

"The third name to be called will get to personally meet and shake hands with Adrian! The second name will get a hug from our superstar and-" he bellowed before giving a dramatic pause and the girls shrieked loudly. There were a few cheers from the boys but they drowned in the noise, barely making their presence known.

I reached Adrian the moment he paused. I quickly pretended to offer a drink to him and bent down, my back facing the crowd.

"What the hell is this?" Adrian was quick to ask, not even wasting a second. I watched as Courtney sat talking to a person in a professional suit, who I assumed was her personal assistant.

"I don't know! This wasn't supposed to happen!" I spoke frantically, returning my gaze back to Adrian.

"Then why do you look like you had the idea that something might happen?" he raised his eyebrow, taking the empty cup from my clipboard.

I looked at him a little guiltily.

"My arch-nemesis is a big fan of yours. She wanted to be close to you so she had boasted about doing something during her performance, or that is what I assumed. I might've underestimated her just a tiny bit," I rambled, feeling a little embarrassed. I averted my gaze, trying to look anywhere else when I noticed the lady in the suit whispering something to the anchors and they quickly nodded before making way for Courtney who excused herself.

I would've wondered where she was going if I wasn't consumed by guilt because indirectly, it was somewhat my fault.

After a moment, I hesitantly turned my gaze to Adrian and saw him eyeing me with slightly narrowed eyes. He opened his mouth to speak but before he could do that, Keith's voice blasted from the speakers, catching both our attention.

"And finally, the person whose name gets called out first, will receive a kiss from Adrian Carter!" he exclaimed and the cheers that followed were deafening. The whole auditorium seemed to shake with the ear-piercing screams from the crowd.

I went pale.

Adrian's eyes widened in shock.

Lindsay's plan finally dawned upon me. I turned around and eyed the first bowl. I could bet on my future career that all the slips of paper had her name on them. I exchanged a look with Adrian who seemed to click the pieces together.

"Whats the name of your friend?" he quickly asked, his eyes darting towards the crowd who was ready for him to come up and draw the slips.

"Who?" I asked, dumbly.

"I mean your enemy. The one who is my fan and apparently planned all this," he said, looking at me as if I was the most idiotic person he had met, which given my current situation and reply, looked like it.

"Lindsay Carlton," I answered him and he simply nodded, his expression thoughtful. He stared blankly at my makeshift tray for a few moments before the cheer of the crowd snapped him out of it.

"Let's hear it for Adrian!" Keith's voice reverberated and he moved aside a little, his arm out in the direction of Adrian.

I backed away a little as all the attention now focussed on him. In my peripheral vision, I saw Lindsay smile giddily as Adrian stood up and started walking towards where Keith stood near the bowls, his pace and posture surprisingly relaxed and casual as he walked up in the front. Once Lindsay caught my eye, she smirked victoriously at me, making me want claw that smile off her face.

I was so doomed. I couldn't believe this was happening.

I was angry at Lindsay for making a fool out of me but more angry at myself for being a little too over confident. I shouldn't have underestimated her at all.

I made my way towards the backstage, dejectedly. I looked for Josh but he was nowhere to be found. He was probably busy preparing for damage control.

Frustrated at being unable to do anything, I decided to just stand and watch. There was nothing I could do right now, anyway. I watched as Adrian dug into the bowl with the number 3 painted on it.

It was as if the crowd was holding their breath. The cheers were more of excited murmurs now as they wished and anticipated for their name to come up.

I wondered if Lindsay had rigged the other two bowls as well. I hoped she wasn't stupid enough to put her name in all the three bowls. That would be like screaming 'I am desperate' in front of the entire school.

Curiosity bubbled inside me as I waited for Adrian to unfold the slip of paper and read out the name. It was as if he was taking his sweet time to do it, taking a dramatic pause as he read the name.

Was he enjoying this?

"Tracey Stuart," he called out and I scanned the audience, curious to know who it was.

All my surprise died when I saw that it was one of the girls from her group. Tracey was in the dance club with Lindsay. She still had her costume on from the performance before and her copper hair spilled down in perfected waves.

Of course! I didn't even know why I was expecting it to be a random person from the crowd.

Their was a few groans and disappointed sighs that went around the room as they watched Tracey strut to the stage confidently and proudly in her heels. She smirked at the crowd as she sidled up to Adrian who cautiously took a step away. He turned to her and gave her a small smile before saying a small 'congratulations' and shaking her hand.

He tried to let go off her hand after a soft shake but it was as if she wasn't ready to leave his hand. He tried to shrug it off with slight force but it seemed to have no affect on Tracey. A few moments passed and the handshake looked a bit awkward now.

A chuckle escaped my mouth as I watched Adrian trying his best to keep his smile intact. He tried to be polite as he shook her hand again, giving it a final shake before trying to free his hand but her grip seemed to be firm as she tried to close the space little by little.

Finally when Keith asked him to pick the second slip, he shrugged off her hold, a little not-so gently before digging into the second bowl.

It was hard to spot but I didn't miss the flash of relief that crossed his face when he escaped her grip.

Tracey seemed a bit unhappy with letting go of his hand.

Poor Adrian. I kind of felt a little bad for him.

If the second bowl had one of Lindsay's groupies' name again, he might be getting ready to face a tougher situation. I wondered if the girl turned out to be like Tracey, how was he going to get free from a hug?

I watched as Adrian scanned the crowd, as if trying to look for something. He fished out a slip of paper and opened it.

On the sidelines, I saw another one of Lindsay's friend get ready as if to come on stage. I think her name was Karen or Karley. Realisation dawned upon me and I understood that it was going to be her name next. I watched as she started to make her way towards the stage, even before Adrian could announce the name.

I watched as Adrian scanned the crowd once more before his eyes landed on something. I tried to see what he was looking at but failed to recognise the spot where he was glancing. Once he switched his gaze back to the slip, he read out the name aloud.

"Cassie Brown," he spoke.

I furrowed my brows in confusion. That wasn't the name of Lindsay's friend or was I wrong?

I turned my attention to where her groupie stood. My suspicions were confirmed when she stood there, shocked. So it wasn't her name, after all. This confused me even more. Did something go wrong? Because judging by the expression on Lindsay and her friend's face, they weren't expecting this too. I could practically see fumes coming out of Karen or Karley's (whatever her name was) ears.

I watched as a timid girl walked towards the stage. She wore a black pencil skirt with a white blouse. Her hair was up in a bun. Looking at her attire, I figured that she was a part of the crew in-charge of helping the reporters.

Principal Hamstring had asked the students helping the media people to dress a little professionally!

I recognised the girl once she came closer. She was a sophomore, popularly known for her absolutely adorable chubby cheeks. Everyone loved the girl and it was evident as the crowd didn't groan in disappointment as bad as they had on Tracey's turn.

She already supported a rosy blush as she climbed the stairs to the stage. I actually felt a little happy as I watched Cassie shyly walk towards Adrian. An involuntary smile took over my face and I thought that maybe this wasn't such a bad thing.

Adrian grinned at Cassie who blushed harder. Adrian's grin was infectious since even the crowd was cheering now. He adorably opened his arms for her and I watched as she slowly walked into them.

His arms wrapped around her to give her a tight bear hug and the crowd went wild. He twirled her a little before setting her back down and that moment even melted my heart a little.

No wonder Adrian had such a big fan following! He was really good with fans.

Cassie walked down the stage, her face flushed with rosy pink and a cute smile spread across her face.

"And now, for the final one! Let's see who the lucky lady will be," Keith spoke into the mic but his eyes were trained on Lindsay who set her hair and applied a layer of what seemed like lip balm over her lips.

I looked at Adrian, trying to gauge his reaction but I got nothing. He was standing there relaxed, as if he was perfectly fine with this. I frowned a little but shrugged it off.

If he didn't have a problem with it, who was I to worry?

I watched as he put his hand into the last bowl, shuffling through the slips of paper. I almost wanted to snort. It wasn't going to change who the last person going up was going to be.

Adrian finally picked up a single slip of paper and opened it.

Even though it was obvious that Lindsay was going up, I still couldn't help the curiosity that bubbled up inside me.

"Adrian Carter, please announce the name of the lucky girl, who'll get a chance to receive a kiss from you!" Keith dramatically spoke into the mic.

I rolled my eyes.

The whole auditorium was silent by now. Eagerly waiting for Adrian to open his mouth. I could drop a pin and it would make sound. That's how silent it got.

"The name written here is...," Adrian drawled, again going for the pause.

I watched as a slow smirk crawled up his lips, making me furrow my eyebrows a little. He seemed to be enjoying this and I couldn't figure out why.

I should've been wary of his a little too calm behaviour and I shouldn't have been standing there without being alert because the moment I let go of the worry that anything suspicious could happen, it was that precise moment Adrian opened his mouth and my mind became a confuzzled mess.

"Addison Woods. Can we have you on stage here?"

Like the dumb person I was, I actually looked towards the audience, trying to see who the girl was. It took a couple of seconds for me to realise that it was my name.

This has to be some kind of a joke.

My first instinct was to look at Lindsay. And it was safe to say that there was only one person more shocked than I was at the moment.

And that person was Lindsay Carlton.
***********
Hey Guys!

How was it?

I tried to make the chapter a little longer :)

I know it's a little cliché but who doesn't like a bit here and there?
I'll try my best to update on time from now on! So no more delayed updates!!

Thank you all for sticking with me!!

Love you all❤️❤️❤️