Rumor Has It (Rumor Has It #1)(6)

Chapter 4





Emma





UNKNOWN: Watevs. Thanks for the help HW-Buddy





“What the heck is ‘HW-Buddy’?”

Jen glances over my shoulder and shrugs, as we get up from our table. “I don’t know. I’ll see you later.” She waves, as she heads down the hallway to her next class.

ME: ???





I switch my phone to silent in case whoever this is decides to text me during class. I'm still looking at the messages, wondering why exactly I'm exchanging texts with a total stranger. I mean, if they are a senior at Woodbridge, then I guess it's not some forty-year-old guy, but still. I probably should end this soon.

I’m about to slide my phone into my pocket when I feel the blister on my toe again and cringe in pain. Then someone shouts, as I slam against a chest.

“Whoa.” Carter Dixon is standing in front of me, between myself and the door to our classroom.

“Ew.” I look up at him, annoyed.

"Excuse me?" He curls a lip. "You walked into me. Of course, I could've let you keep going and run right into the metal door." He knocks his knuckles against the door. "You seemed to be distracted. I saw you behind me and opened the door, but you kept walking."

“Oh.” I look around. A few students look over, noticing the exchange.

Carter Dixon is one of those cool kids I was talking about. He's got light brown hair, with eyes to match, and a pearly white smile that unleashes a cute dimple. Yes, he's gorgeous, but he's also one of the popular kids. Which means, he tries to act cooler then he probably is. Although to be fair, I don't really know him.

I only really know three things about Carter. One - he's the captain of the varsity basketball team, and I just found out first hand, that all that time shooting basketballs has given him a firm chest and stomach. Something I can also see, as his T-shirt fits snuggly against his chest. Two - he's friends with Jeremy McCormick, who acts like he's God's gift to women and has the ego to match. I have two classes with Jeremy and cringe every time he makes a ‘that's what she said' joke. It's like he waits on the edge of his seat for the teacher to say something–anything–that would be the slightest bit applicable to that joke. And three - Carter probably had sex with Sarah Donovan in the women's restroom at homecoming.

Rumor has it, he's the biggest manwhore at Woodbridge. Hey, I'm not slut shaming anyone. Jen, who I know has had sex and is kind of boy crazy, is my best friend. I don't think any less of her. But imagining Carter with half the girls in our senior class is gross, no matter how hot he is. Hence, my reaction to bumping into him.

“Yeah, ‘oh’.” He gives me a confident grin.

“Well, thanks.” I try to give him a cordial smile, but it vanishes as I see his eyes roam from my face to my chest. He tries to play it off, his eyes flicking back up to meet mine, but I already saw it. Rolling my eyes, I walk into the classroom. Gross.

As I take my seat, I pull out my phone, taking a quick glance at my text messages, but they haven't replied. Mrs. Yanick starts handing out packets of our next subject, covering the Civil War, and I see Carter on the other side of the room. He’s writing something down before he even gets his packet. I scrunch my eyebrows, wondering if he knows what the assignment is already. I’ve heard some of the jocks know what certain assignments are going to be, so they can work on them before whatever game they’re playing.

By the time history is over, I let out a sigh of relief. Art is my last class of the day, and since Ms. Hales has been my art teacher all four years, it's become somewhere I let my hair down. I still do all my work, but it also it doesn't feel like work to me. And since it's Ms. Hales, I plan on finally slipping out of my boots. I don't even care if my socks stink.

Right before I get to the door, my phone chimes.

UNKNOWN: Homework-Buddy. Since u won’t tell me your name





I give my phone an incredulous stare.

ME: My name isn't HW-Buddy either

UNKNOWN: So, what do I call you?





Walking into art class, I drop my bag by my easel and look back at my phone, unsure what to say next.

ME: Um…





I roll my eyes at my lame answer. As if thinking the same thing, they answer with a snarky reply.

UNKNOWN: Okay, Um. Nice to meet you. I’ve never met anyone named Um. Is it foreign?





Even though it's snarky, it's funny, and a smile cracks my lips. But the reply is still dumb.

ME: Don't be a jerk

UNKNOWN: Oh! Ur a girl!





“Emma, class is about to start,” Ms. Hales says.

“Sorry.” I put my phone away, but now I’m even more intrigued. How do they know I’m a girl? Does that mean they’re a girl? What if it’s a boy? Is it a boy I know?





Chapter 5





Carter





I spend the entire time in history working on my calculus assignment and finish it just before the bell rings. I may get a little behind in history, but nothing I can’t make up. I’m pretty confident that my calculus work is all good too, so I’m all smiles as we leave the classroom.