Want You To Love Me, page 2
Ollie carried me over and sat me down.
“Thank you,” I said, looking up at him.
“It was a pleasure to maketh thy acquaintance, milady. Thanketh thee for granting me the privilege of aiding thee in thy timeth of needeth,” he said in his Shakespearean accent.
His eyes were filled with laughter. Gaw—he was awful, but I didn’t care. I was smitten.
“Um…” I was rendered speechless.
“See you around, Sam.”
“Thank you so much for your help, Ollie. See you around,” I blurted out.
He winked, turned on his heels and stepped out of the room. I watched his retreating figure and felt something die inside of me. It felt like he was walking out of my life forever. Never would I have an opportunity to be this close to him or speak to him again. He was my dream guy and totally out of my league.
Sadly, I was right, too. When I went back to the classes that I had with him, it was like I never existed. He would smile and nod at me. But he did that with everyone else, too.
After that incident, it seemed like I noticed him everywhere. And I know this might sound ridiculous, but he was the only reason I was able to drag myself out of bed every morning and go to school. He was the only bright spot in my life.
People only saw Ollie as the class clown or the cute, popular jock. He was much more than that. They’d never seen him as caring or serious. But at that moment, when he took charge of the situation when I fell, he earned my adoration and respect. He’d opened up a little of his world to me, and I saw a different side of him that no one had ever seen before, and I would cherish that memory forever.
Chapter 2
Ollie
“Dad,” I yelled. “I’m off to school.”
“Okay, have a good day at school,” my dad called out.
“Thanks.” I grabbed my backpack, popped a slice of toast into my mouth and opened the door to the garage. With keys in hand, I paused in front of my red 70’ Chevy Camaro to admire it. My beautiful baby. I loved her so much. It was a birthday present from my dad for my fifteenth birthday. That year, I’d worked odd jobs and saved enough money to put a few thousand dollars into it to restore it back to its original beauty.
I checked the front exterior of the car for any small dents or scratches and did the same thing all around the car. Maybe I was getting a little too obsessed with my car. I’d already checked for dents and scratches when I came home the night before. Satisfied, I climbed into my car and reversed out of the driveway. While I was on the road, I had to drive down Main Street to get to school. The shops were opening up for business as some shop owners set up their products outside the shop. Elderly folks were already sitting in their usual spots outside of a cafe. Moms were pushing strollers down the sidewalk. Pedestrians hurried across the street to get to their destination.
Hazel Pathway harbored an old town charm, providing citizens enough jobs and attractions for some of them to make this their permanent residence. It had a population of 10,000 and boasted one theater, one town hall, one police station, two fire stations, a fairground, and parks, just to list off a few things that the town had to offer. Half of the townspeople commuted to the Twin Cities to work, and half of them worked in town. They went big on their special events here and went all out in order to draw in visitors.
Another thing that the town was really popular for was its serene and brilliantly blue lakes, which drew tons of fishermen, boaters, and other water sports enthusiasts. The rich and well-off lived along the shoreline and docked their boats behind their back yards. There was the middle class who lived closer to town and the one side of town where people with lesser income lived. It was the older side of town and a little more run down and unkempt looking. That’s where I lived.
I drove into the school parking lot and made sure to park in a spot far from other cars to ensure the safety of my car. Sure, I might be a tad obsessive about my car, but at least I didn’t have a name for her. I got out of my car and sauntered over to the school building.
“Morning, Ollie,” Casey cooed as she sashayed past me. I flashed a flirtatious smile and said good morning to her. She was a cheerleader and a senior. A group of freshmen girls was giggling as I passed by them.
I was fully conscious of my effects on the fairer sex. I flashed them one of my killer smiles. “Good morning, ladies.”
I heard the girls giggled, and they replied. “Hi, Ollie.”
I continued on to my usual hangout spot in front of the building. I spotted Chase and some of my football buddies already standing or sitting around the picnic table. I greeted and fist-bumped them.
“Hey, Ty and Alex here yet?” I asked Chase. I was referring to my two other best friends. I’d known them since we were just little kids. We did almost everything together and have stuck together through thick and thin.
He shrugged. “I haven’t seen Ty, and Alex is probably with Raine.”
It had been a few weeks since Raine and Alex started officially dating. I knew Chase had strong feelings for Raine. He said he was happy for them, but I could tell he was tight-lipped about his true feelings. I felt bad for him and hoped he found someone special in his life. I wished he wasn’t so picky; there were plenty of girls who would love to date him. But no, he had to hold out for that special someone. I was glad I was nothing like him. Life was too short to stick to one girl.
Speaking of one girl. Ugh. Here came Chrissy.
Chrissy was this cute sophomore I’d been flirting with. I’d thought I’d give her a chance, but as it turned out, she was too much trouble. She was obsessed with me. Ugh, I hated it when, after just a few dates, a girl would fall instantly in love with me. I know I’m a great catch and everything but seriously? After just one date, Chrissy started messaging me constantly, asking me where I was when we could go out on our next date, what I was up to. She’d try to text me, and when I didn’t answer, she’d try to call me. And if I didn’t pick up, then she’d try to catch me in between classes or before and after school.
“Hi, Oliver,” she cooed when she approached me.
That’s another thing that was annoying about her. I didn’t mind that she called me by my full name. But I hated how she said it. It was a high pitch nasally “Oli” and sharp “ver.”
“Um... hi, Chrissy.”
“Can I talk to you for a sec?”
“Is this going to take long? ‘Cause I’ve got to get to class soon.”
“No, it won’t take long at all,” she said.
I looked at the guys. They were preoccupied with their own conversations, and Chase grinned at me and gave me a thumbs-up.
We walked over to a nearby tree.
“Oliver, when are you going to take me out on our second date?” she asked, her hands caressing my chest. “I miss hanging with you.”
I tried not to cringe when she enunciated my name in her nasal voice, and not be annoyed when she started running her manicured fingers up and down my chest.
“Sorry, I’ve been busy with football and school,” I explained, which was true.
“Well, my mom and dad are going to be out of town next weekend. It’s just going to be me alone in that big empty house. You want to come over?”
Chrissy’s family was fairly well off and owned a sizable house by the lake. I weighed my options. Go over to her house or be free of her. As I reflected back on all the girls I’d dated, I thought Chrissy had to be one of the most annoying girls by far. I almost didn’t make it through our first date. She had kept on stroking my chest and complimenting me on how muscular I was. And then she’d suggested that we walk down Main Street together to show us off as a couple. And she kept laughing at every little thing I said. People see me as funny or the class clown, but I wasn’t even trying to be funny. In fact, I was annoyed and bored out of my mind. To make things worse, she kept on insisting on paying for everything, even our dinner. I wouldn’t mind that much if she didn’t keep on hinting that it was because she was rich, and I was poor. Seriously? I had way more pride than that. It was definitely time for me to cut ties with her. But before I could say anything else, the school bell rang. What a relief. I was saved by the bell.
“Maybe we can talk about it later?” I suggested.
“Fine. Later,” she said with a pout. She leaned forward and gave me a lingering kiss. “See you, Oliver.”
She turned and sashayed away.
“Ready to go?” Chase asked, coming up behind me.
“Yeah.” He and I headed towards the school building.
Chase shook his head. “Don’t know how you do it.”
“Do what?”
“Move from one girl to the next like they’re a different flavor of the week.”
“I think you mean a different flavor every other month.”
Chase raised an eyebrow.
I shrugged. “Fine, maybe it’s every few weeks.”
Chase just shook his head. We said goodbye to each other and parted ways.
While in homeroom class, I started dreading going to my first-period class. It was calculus, and I was failing it. If I didn’t get my grades up, my football coach was going to kick me off the team. I had to pass calculus, or else I wouldn’t be able to play in any games!
The bell rang, and I dragged myself out of the classroom. I stopped at my locker and grabbed a few things, then headed to my first period. I ran into Todd and Derek, football buddies of mine, and we wandered into the calculus class together joking and laughing. Once we were in the classroom and found ourselves some desks, a couple more of my buddies, Ashton and Cameron, came to join us. I didn’t know how we got onto the subject, but Todd was telling a story about his younger brother in junior high who was having girl issues. Apparently, he was seeing two girls at the same time and got himself stuck in the middle.
“Wow, Todd,” Derek remarked. “Your brother’s got game; he already has girls fighting over him?”
Todd shrugged and smirked. “What can I say, good looks run in my family.”
“Good looks run in the family, but it just ran past you,” I joked.
The guys started to crack up. Todd crossed his arms and frowned. “All right, all right, have your laugh.”
Fortunately for Todd, our calculus teacher, Mr. Larkins, stepped in and began class. I tried so hard to focus on what Mr. Larkins was saying, but he might as well have been speaking a different language. I found myself doodling in my notebook.
Mr. Larkins was going on and on about how important calculus was and how it was used in many different areas such as physics, astronomy, biology, engineering, and that there was even a desire to integrate calculus into matters of social injustice. Then he challenged anybody who thought calculus was a stupid subject to stand up if they felt strongly against it.
I looked around. No one dared stand up. I raised my hand. “Looks like you’re the only one standing up, Mr. Larkins.”
The entire classroom bursts into laughter.
Mr. Larkins was the only one standing up because he was the teacher. “Very funny, Oliver Harris, this little lecture was a test. My point is that there is a lot of social injustice in society today, and you shouldn’t be afraid to stand up for what you believe in, and that’s why I strongly advocate for the integration of mathematics and sociology in the classrooms because students can learn and benefit a lot from the subject. By the way, Harris, I want to see you after class today.”
The classroom was cracking up.
“Ooh, Ollie’s in trouble!” Derek teased.
I gave a wry smile and sat back in my chair. I’d been dreading this moment and knew that he wanted to talk to me about my progress in class.
I feigned a big smile. “Sure thing, Mr. Larkins.”
I endured another 30 minutes of class, and the bell rang. The students rose from their desks and grabbed their backpacks, some of them snickering and looking at me as they left, including my so-called buddies. I just shook my head in exasperation and told Todd and Derek that I’d see them at lunch.
I noticed that Sam Keaton was still in the classroom. Raine had introduced me to her not too long ago. I had her in a few of my classes. She was really shy and quiet and always sat in the back of the room. She avoided eye contact with me. She went up to stand by Mr. Larkins’ desk.
“Thanks for seeing me after class,” Mr. Larkins addressed Sam.
She nodded. “Not a problem.”
“Well, I’m still waiting for Oliver to come up here,” Mr. Larkins said, raising an eyebrow at me.
I sighed, slid out of my chair, and lumbered over.
“Well, I’m assuming you already know why I wanted to see you after class.”
I felt like saying something snarky but held back. “Yes, I do, sir.”
“It appears that you’re having trouble in this class, so if you want to continue to play football, you’re going to have to get your grades up. That’s why I have Sam here. She’s one of my best students. I’d like her to tutor you. So, what do you say, Sam, do you mind tutoring Oliver?” Mr. Larkins asked.
Sam’s jaw dropped open in surprise. I scrutinized her reaction and wondered what she was thinking. I didn’t know her very well. I did know that she kept to herself and was friends with Raine.
“Um. I-I…" She was looking everywhere else except for me. “S-sorry, I can’t do it,” she stuttered. “I can't tutor him.”
My smile disappeared. What? Was she refusing to tutor me? I needed help, or else I couldn’t play any football. What was wrong with tutoring me? And what did I ever do to her? Maybe if I turned on the charm.
“C’mon Sam, I need help, or else I’m going to fail this class, and I can’t play football,” I pleaded and flashed her one of my dazzling smiles that I knew always worked on every girl I’ve come across.
Again, her expression was unreadable. She was definitely not falling for the Harris charm.
“Sorry, I just can’t. I gotta go or else I’m going to be late for my next class. Sorry, Mr. Larkins,” she said. She turned and quickly exited the classroom.
Did she just turn down the opportunity to tutor me? Wow, this was a new one for me. I turned to Mr. Larkins. No girl has ever rejected me before.
He grimaced. “Sorry, I’ll talk to her. I just assumed she would be eager to help out, and she’s never turned me down before. She is one of my very best students, and other students love her tutoring style because she’s very patient and explains to them in a way that helps them understand.”
That was the kind of tutoring I needed in order to pass this class. It was beyond me why she would refuse to tutor me. I don’t recall ever being mean to her or anything.
“I’ll talk to her, too,” I remarked.
“Okay, you do that, and I’ll touch base with you later,” Mr. Larkins said.
I said goodbye to him and headed to my next class. I was more determined than ever now to get down to the root of the problem.
Unfortunately, she was doing all that she could go to avoid me because I wasn’t able to locate her anywhere, not even during lunch when I’d asked Raine if she’d seen Sam.
Raine sat next to Alex at my lunch table. She was my buddy, Alex’s girlfriend. She was also one of the coolest chicks I’d ever known. She and I had become good friends ever since she’d started dating Alex.
“So, why are you looking for her, anyway?” she inquired.
I explained my situation to her.
She nodded. “Okay, I’ll keep an eye out for her and let her know that you’re looking for her.”
Alex was rubbing Raine’s back with one hand and eating his lunch with his other hand. I swear he was obsessed with her.
I rolled my eyes. “Jeesh, Alex, every time I see the two of you guys together, you’re always so touchy-feely, it’s almost enough to make a person puke.”
Alex’s face flushed, and he withdrew his hand from Raine’s back. She snatched his hand back and put it on her back. “I find it rather soothing. Hush, Oliver, or you're going to feel deep physical pain from me.”
I chuckled and raised my hands up in surrender. “Sorry, you know I was just teasing right, Williams?”
“Man, I can’t wait until you find that special someone so I can rub it in your face,” Alex remarked.
“Don’t worry, baby; I’m working on that special someone for Ollie,” Raine said with a secretive smile.
I rolled my eyes. “Whatever, your scheming isn’t going to work on me. I’m happy with where I’m at right now. Find a girl for some other chump.”
“Mark my words, Oliver, you won’t know what hit you when you fall in love with my girl,” Raine said in a sing-song voice. She grabbed her backpack, turned to Alex and dropped a peck on his cheek, “I gotta get going, baby. See ya later.”
Just to irritate me, Alex smirked at me and said, “Okay, see you later, Pookiebear. Eskimo kiss?”
Raine giggled and leaned in to rub her nose with his nose and took off. I snorted and shook my head. There was no way I was going to allow Raine to get involved in my love life.
Chapter 3
Sam
I had my lunch in the lavatory located in the back of the school library. During my freshman year, I’d discovered that barely anyone used it so I kind of considered it my secret hideout spot during school hours. At that moment, I was hanging in there because I was trying to avoid a certain someone and hated that Ollie had such a strong effect on me that it actually forced me to hide in the bathroom. I could tell he was anxious to convince me to tutor him. He’d been looking for me in the hallways, before and after the few classes we had together.
I reflected back to when we were still in Mr. Larkins’ classroom when Ollie flashed me his killer smile. He knew how to use his charms and looks to get things his way. And I was not immune, either. I was very close to caving in and agreeing to tutor him. I’d built him up to be this majestic, unattainable, god-like prince in my mind and was content with just admiring him from afar, but now if I said yes, I would be working closely with him. And I was concerned that I wouldn’t know how to act around him and would make a complete fool of myself.
