The library was quiet when I arrived, my heart still pounding from the confrontation with Marcus in class. I didn’t know what I had expected, but him choosing me as his partner had thrown me off completely. I was dreading whatever came next, but I had no choice but to face it.
Marcus was already waiting near the entrance, leaning against one of the shelves with his arms crossed. His expression was bored, and as soon as he saw me, he pushed himself off the wall, his eyes narrowing.
“About time,” he muttered, glancing at his phone. “I thought you’d chicken out.”
“I’m not late,” I said quietly, though I could feel my hands trembling as I clutched my bag.
He just shrugged. “Let’s get this over with.”
We headed deeper into the library, weaving through the shelves of books. I was trying to keep my distance, not wanting to be any closer to him than I had to be. Marcus wasn’t saying much, just occasionally glancing around, clearly uninterested in the project — or in me.
As we reached the physics section, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I hesitated, pulling it out to see Brent’s name flashing on the screen.
Not now.
I swiped to decline the call, but before I could put the phone away, Marcus reached over and snatched it out of my hand.
“Who’s this, Fat Betty? Your nerdy boyfriend?” Marcus laughed, his voice low and mocking as he looked at the screen. “What, you need him to hold your hand through this project too?”
My face burned with humiliation as I tried to grab the phone back, but Marcus just grinned, shoving it against my chest. I clenched my teeth, I couldn’t let him get to me.
I shoved the phone back into my pocket, blinking back the sting of tears. Brent’s concerned message flashed across my mind: Are you sure you’re okay? I wasn’t. Not even close.
Inside the library, the shelves felt endless, towering over us as we roamed the physics section looking for research material. Marcus, unsurprisingly, didn’t seem to care about the project at all. He lazily scanned the shelves, picking up random books, flipping through a few pages before tossing them back like none of this mattered.
I kept my head down, trying to focus. I wasn’t going to let him drag me down. I couldn’t afford it — not with everything else going on.
We were walking down an aisle when I glanced over and noticed something familiar on Marcus’s wrist. It was the watch. That watch. The one I had spilled my Slurpee on. The faint stain was still there, barely noticeable unless you knew to look for it.
I stared for a moment, my stomach knotting as the memory of that day flooded back. How I had tried to apologize, how everyone had laughed, how Marcus had called me "Fat Betty" in front of the entire gym.
“What are you looking at?” Marcus asked, his voice laced with annoyance. I swallowed, pretending to search for a book on the shelf in front of me.
“Nothing,” I muttered.
Marcus stared at me for a second longer, but then shrugged, turning back to the shelves. I let out a small breath, grateful the moment had passed without him mocking me further.
I spotted a book I needed on one of the higher shelves, just out of reach. There was a ladder nearby, and without thinking, I grabbed it and climbed up, determined to get the book on my own. I didn’t need Marcus’s help. I didn’t need anyone’s help.
But as I reached for the book, the ladder wobbled beneath me.
My heart skipped a beat as the ladder tilted, and I let out a yelp as I lost my balance. In that split second, I was sure I was going to hit the ground hard.
But I didn’t. My breath hitched as I looked up, my eyes locking with Marcus’s. For a moment, everything seemed to freeze. He was holding me, his face inches from mine, and for the first time, I noticed how handsome he really was. His jawline was sharp, his eyes a deep, stormy blue.
But then, just as quickly, the moment shattered.
“Get the hell up,” Marcus growled, his voice harsh as he released me. “You’re suffocating me.”
The heat that had rushed to my cheeks in that brief second of admiration evaporated, replaced with a wave of embarrassment and anger. I scrambled out of his grip, my hands shaking as I stood up.
“I didn’t ask you to catch me,” I snapped, my voice sharper than I intended.
Marcus rolled his eyes. “Yeah, well, you’re welcome.”
He turned away, clearly done with the moment, and I stood there, still trying to process what had just happened.