BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
Grace groaned dramatically and slammed her alarm clock with the force of a thousand tired students.
"Ughhh—why is it always morning? Who invented this cruel cycle?! I swear, if I ever meet the person who created 7 a.m., I'm throwing toast at their face!"
She rolled over, burrito-wrapping herself in her blanket, only to realize—
Wait.
Her eyes shot open.
"…WAIT!"
She threw the blanket off like a superhero shedding their cape, bolted upright, and stared at the clock in horror.
"NO NO NO—IT'S MONDAY?! I HAVE P.E. FIRST PERIOD! WHY, UNIVERSE?!"
She scrambled out of bed like a gremlin possessed, nearly tripping over a shoe, her hoodie half-on and socks mismatched.
Just then, her older brother's voice shouted from downstairs, far too cheerful for this hour:
"GRACE HILTON! IF YOU DON'T GET DOWN HERE AND EAT IN THE NEXT THREE MINUTES, I'M EATING YOUR TOAST!"
Grace stormed out of her room and leaned over the railing dramatically.
"YOU WOULDN'T DARE, YOU MONSTER!"
"WATCH ME!" he yelled back.
Muttering under her breath, she marched down the stairs like a grumpy queen.
"This is sibling betrayal. You should be on my side. Or at least offer to teleport me to school."
He was already at the table, casually munching her toast.
"Too slow, princess."
She glared, grabbed an apple in protest, and pointed at him. "This is a declaration of war."
He just grinned. "Then get ready faster. You're losing."
After a short debate that ended with some serious death stares, I stormed out of the house in a hurry. But of course—just my luck—something had to go wrong.
"GAHH—!"
And here I am..the sun smiled gently, wrapping me in its warm embrace—though honestly, I was already burning up under the punishment from the infamously strict teacher at school.
Maybe it was fate—or maybe just bad luck—that my day started with me accidentally stepping on a black cat's poop front my house. If I hadn't stepped on it, I wouldn't have had to change my shoes and miss the bus stop to school. Ugh.
"Stupid cursed cat! Fuc—" I barely got the words out when a deep voice interrupted me, and a warm hand gently stopped mine.
"Grace? That tiny mouth of yours shouldn't say such nasty things."
Ugh. Of course. It's Tom Scout. That annoying upperclassman who just loves to mess with me. And look at him now—wearing his classic smug face like he just won a prize.
I looked into Tom's sapphire-blue eyes, caught off guard by how… calm they made me feel. For someone so endlessly annoying, he had no right to have eyes that beauti- I mean bad eyes! Ah! Nevermind. "Ugh! This is so unfair," I grumbled, plopping down under the tree—of course, he followed right after.
"Stop whining. I know that teacher the worst... but you're way more annoying," Tom said, sticking out his tongue at me like a five-year-old. Unbelieveble. My sweat was already dripping down and soaking my gym shirt. Great—this is what I get for being late to P.E. class. Go me!
"Then maybe you should stay in class, so I don't have to keep seeing that smug face of yours!"
"Oh? Smug, huh?" His tone dropped playfully. "Are you sure you're not secretly in love with this handsome face?"
Then, before I could react, he leaned in. Too close. Way too close. Hey!
His face was just inches from mine—his voice low, his breath warm. "Tell me again how irritating I am… when I'm this close."
My heart jumped. My breath caught. The air between us changed—buzzing, heavy, charged with something unspoken.
I backed up, startled by the sudden rush in my chest, and pushed gently at his shoulder. "Y-You're really annoying!"
He just laughed under his breath, eyes never leaving mine. "And yet… here you are. Still sitting next to me."
I stared at Tom in total disbelief, rolled my eyes dramatically, and pointed a finger right in front of his face.
"Tell me, how many fingers am I holding up?"
Tom grinned.
"One?" he answered, raising one thick eyebrow like he was so clever.
I cleared my throat and stood up. "Exactly."
"...And what's that supposed to mean?" he asked, following me with a confused look.
"It means," I said, turning to face him with a smirk, "You have exactly one week to make me admit you're actually handsome—though your confidence is taller than the school building."
Tom chuckled, that smug little smile creeping onto his face. "Oh? Are you sure about this? Don't come crying to me when you fall for me."
Before I could snap back, he gently plucked a leaf from my hair. Wait—leaf?! Since when was that there?
"Whatever! I'm leaving—bye!" I huffed, giving his shoulder one last push before turning away, refusing to look back and see that ridiculously charming face of his.
Okay. Breathe. Don't look back. He's probably smiling that stupidly charming smile again. Ugh, why does he always do that?
I could still feel the warmth of his hand brushing that leaf from my hair.Seriously, why did that feel like something out of a drama? Calm down, heart. Calm. Down.
He's so full of himself. "Don't fall in love with me," he said? Pfft. As if!
…But still.
That voice. That face.
Nope nope nope. We're not doing this today, brain!
I picked up my pace, cheeks getting warmer by the second.
***
One week? Hah. I'll win this game. No way I'm falling for that ridiculous, smug, way-too-good-looking—ugh whatever—Tom.
Tom stood there for a second, watching me walk away, the corner of his lips twitching into a smile.
He held up the little leaf he'd taken from my hair, spinning it between his fingers.
"That girl," he muttered under his breath, amused. "She really thinks I need a whole week?"
He chuckled softly, eyes still following me from a distance.
Challenge accepted, Grace.
And as I disappeared around the corner, he whispered with a grin,
"One week, huh? I'll make you fall in love with me in three."