Counting Down with You(36)
Ya Allah. How did I get here?
The bell rings and I sigh, pushing his shoulder again. “We’ll talk later.”
All through class, I wonder why I’m stupid enough to even consider his request. Pretending to date Ace Clyde means a tsunami of problems I’m not equipped to deal with, the first of which means being stared at. Already, at least four of my classmates are shooting me disbelieving looks when they think I can’t see them.
I take out a piece of paper and start writing, trying to put my thoughts onto the page as coherently as I can. Today’s my last day of trying this method.
Ace isn’t popular. He might be infamous, but he’s not popular. My classmates might be looking at me now, but I doubt it’ll last longer than a week. I’m pretty sure he’s never dated anyone in this school, so he doesn’t have any exes out to make my life miserable. The only person who might cause issues is Xander, but what can Xander really do to *me*? He graduates within three months, and then I never have to see him again.
Which means the real problem is my family. Samir’s head is stuck up his robotics club’s ass, so I doubt he’d even realize I’m “dating” Ace. Plus, he’s a freshman and I’m a junior...would this wave of gossip even reach him? Why would any of the freshman care who Ace Clyde dates? With 2,000 kids in our school, I think the freshmen have more to worry about than Ace’s dating life.
But still, I should be careful and keep an eye out for Samir when I’m with Ace. Though, I *could* say I’m his tutor. I am his tutor. It’s not technically a lie.
Maybe I should tell Samir right now...my brother’s a dumbass, but he’s not *evil*, and he wouldn’t rat me out on purpose.
But accidents happen. If I bring this situation to Samir’s attention, is it more likely he’ll slip up and tell Ma and Baba without realizing? Is it better to leave him in the dark? We don’t talk about our social lives with each other, so bringing it up unnecessarily might raise a red flag...
Maybe I should keep that disgusting can of worms closed. I’ll just briefly mention I’m tutoring Ace, so if he sees us around it’s not a big deal. If I keep my head down, I’m sure I can make this work somehow—
It takes me a second to realize the direction of my thoughts and my pencil halts. I groan, dropping my head into my hands. I might as well have agreed already if I’m planning out contingencies.
Writing out my thoughts didn’t help my anxiety either, so I guess it’s time to move on to the next technique on my list. Maybe I’m destined to ping-pong between coping methods until one lands.
By the time I sit down in English class, I’ve resigned myself to helping Ace. At least until my parents come back. When he drops into the seat next to me, I’m contemplating whether I can submit myself as a Nobel Peace Prize applicant.
Ace looks at me. “I’ve been thinking about it, and I—”
“Yes.”
His mouth snaps shut. “Really?”
I sigh, avoiding his gaze. My heart is pounding unevenly with the knowledge of what this will bring. “Yes. But you only get three weeks. And I want my books. If you’re going to use me, I get to use you, too.”
Ace slumps into his seat, his eyes fluttering shut. “Thank God.”
“Don’t thank God, thank me,” I say, nudging him with my shoe. “And take notes.”
He sits up straighter and grins at me, dimples as sweet as ever. Allah, why? “As you wish.”
“Don’t quote The Princess Bride at me,” I say under my breath.
My friends are staring from a few desks away, and I give them a look, which I hope they understand as I’ll explain later. We’re not in the business of keeping secrets, and I sure as hell am not going to break that rule.
“Is our entire relationship going to be you bossing me around?” Ace asks, reaching over to play with a strand of my hair.
I bat his hand away, heat rushing into my cheeks. If he’s going to keep touching me, I’m going to spontaneously combust. “You signed up for this.”
His expression is annoyingly smug when he says, “Yes, I did.”
“You’re pretending to date Ace Clyde?” Cora says in disbelief, her fork halfway to her mouth. “In exchange for books?”
Nandini looks between us. “Is this all a dream? Maybe we’re in Inception?”
“I can’t believe this is happening,” Cora says, shaking her head. “Who are you? Are you Karina’s wilder identical twin?”
“Shut up,” I say, dropping my head to the table. Telling them about it is making this situation far too real. Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. “I don’t know why I said yes. Why do I ever agree to anything?”
“Because you’re too nice,” Nandini says, patting my cheek. “You should’ve just told him to go fuck himself. I don’t care if it means his dad knows he’s being tutored. Babe, you’re an anxious mess right now.”
I don’t bother asking how she knows that. I keep bouncing my leg and biting my nails, which is as sure a sign as any that there’s an uncomfortable weight pressing against my lungs, making me want to roll over and die.
“Don’t say that!” Cora says. “Ace is hot and he’s offering to buy her books. That’s like...perfect for Karina.”
“Yeah, but in case you happened to forget, Karina’s parents are batshit,” Nandini says, “and if they find out about this, it doesn’t matter how hot Ace is, because they’re going to kill her.”