My simple dreams of Sano and I walking through the park holding hands aren’t real. But waking up and remembering that a strange rich kid moved into my house is. How exactly did I get in the Masidone line up of marriage candidates?

I feel my mom is behind all of this since I know my dad wouldn’t let a boy not only stay in our house but get close enough with me to possibly form a relationship. He doesn’t even like the idea of me dating so I know my mom did something to get him on board with this. She must have found out about their son and this ‘match making game’ as he calls it and jumped on the band wagon.

I would’ve thought if I didn’t agree or if I had someone else, they’d let me off the hook with this. But sadly, that isn’t the case since he’s still here. That won’t stop me from trying to get rid of him though. I’ve already started the ignoring process. Giving him the cold shoulder long enough should have him rethink things. I don’t have time for people who will insult others on first meeting. 

Surprisingly, I’m glad I have school today. Hard times calls for ‘time to talk to Sano’ plans to take place seeing as simply stating I like someone isn’t enough to get Ken to leave. I could see the sun coming in through the cracks of my curtains letting me know it was just about time to get ready. I turned over in my bed and heard a voice oddly close to me ear. 

“Wake up, sleepyhead!” Ken sang. He was there beside my bed, in my room. I nearly fell to the floor from shock.

“Ken!? What’s your deal coming in my room like that?!” I asked. 

“Well, your mother has been calling you for twenty minutes now. You’re going to be late for school,” he says, pointing to my clock. School starts at 8:20am. and it was 7:45am. 

“Oh no! I overslept again!” I jumped out of bed and started getting my things together for a quick shower. 

“Ohh, so you wear that to bed,” Ken said looking at me, nodding in approval. I didn’t know what he was talking about until I realized I was wearing just a shirt, and my underwear. 

“G-get out you pervert!” I quickly tried to cover myself from his view with my covers.

 “Alright, alright, I’ll see you downstairs, pinky,” he said leaving out. I made sure my door was closed really, really wishing I had that lock. 

“Oh my gosh!” I said finally exhaling. He just saw me in my underwear! He hasn’t even been here a full day and this already? I don’t think I’ve ever been this embarrassed in my own house before.

I listened for him to go downstairs and made a mad dash for the bathroom. I didn’t exactly have time to sit in embarrassment as I’ve been late twice this week already.

After I got dressed, I had no time to eat breakfast. I paid no attention to Ken and just kept going. He’s already seen too much of me for one day anyway. I was running like mad to get to school on time. I went straight in and headed for my class room, setting foot in the door just as the bell rang. 

“Made it!” I say, finally able to breathe again. Luckily Mr. Hallens is hardly ever in his class early, so he didn’t catch me this time. As I was catching my breath, I felt someone looking at me. I looked up and saw it was Katie. Once I got my breathing under control, I went over to her. 

“This doesn’t seem like a regular overslept face. Something happened?” She asked. Katie, my best friend, can tell everything about me even if it’s a slight change in expression.

“It’s a long story. I’ll have to tell you later.” 

“All right, class, take your seats.” The teacher finally came strolling in holding his morning cup of coffee he didn’t seem to have had enough of yet. 

“We have a new student coming in and I need to see what seats are opened.” The cold chill I’m getting is a sign that makes me hope this is all but a terrible coincidence. 

I repeated that to myself over and over until I saw Ken walking through the door. “Alright everyone, this is Ken and he’s yet another body in this small room.” 

Why this class? Why this school!? 

“I’ll try not to take up much room. Hey, it’s pretty in pink!” He looked over after I accidentally made eye contact.

“Miss Macky, do you know our new student?” Mr. Hallens asked. 

“I-I have no idea who that is Mr. Hallens.” 

“Is that really how you’re going to treat your fiancé?” 

“What!?” My eyes could’ve fallen out of my face from how wide they got.

“Well, well then. If that’s the case, why don’t we sit you next to her then?” Mr. Hallens chuckled. 

“Sure, I’ll sit there. You don’t mind do you, pinky?” He actually came and sat next to me. I was pretty sure Mr. Hallens was only joking. And first period so happens to be the one class Sano and I share! He sits two rows over behind me. I can never look at him again after this. He’ll probably never take me serious now. Still less than 24 hours have passed since he’s come here, and he’s ruining everything.

Ken took his seat and leaned over to me. “You know, you didn’t have to run. Your mom was kind enough to drop me off just as you left out. Would have saved you some energy.” He whispered and grinned like he’s having a good time. I turned away from him resisting the urge to hit him.

That made getting through the first half of the school day brutal. Lunch time couldn’t have come sooner. I just needed to survive this and get through the rest of school, and my life, without seeing anyone.

The topic of new student romance has already gotten through the school like wildfire. Rumors spread faster than the plague at this place. I just knew it would happen. And it did.

I was going quickly in the hallways to the lunch room, not paying attention to my path ahead when I ran into someone. 

“S-sorry!” I blurted before even seeing who it was. I backed up to let them pass when I noticed it was none other than Sano that I was standing in front of. “S-Sano. Uh, sorry, are you alright?” 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he answered. 

“That’s good. Well I-I should go then.” I started to walk away. I didn’t know what else to say. My plan to talk to him didn’t involve a hallway attack!

“Oh hey,” he suddenly called out to me, “good luck, and congrats with that fiancé of yours.” He said. Then he continued to walk away. 

“Wait! He’s not...” I tried calling back out to him, but there was no use. His fast legs put him through a huge crowd of students shuffling around. I can feel the panic and worry begin to develop. Yet another bad first impression. All still within twenty-four hours of this storm starting.

I took the walk of shame to the lunch room and found a table in the corner. The lunch room is large. Round tables, long tables, and short tables all filled the center while the outside was all different food options.

Katie and I normally sit at a small table with a few other friends, but today I went to the back by the vending machines to try and hide. However, Katie came and found me with little to no effort. 

“Misa, what happened?” She asked as I kept my head on the table. “Does it have something to do with that guy whom you still haven’t fully explained?”

“That guy showed up out of nowhere. And according to my mom, he’s supposed to be my ‘fiancé.” I lifted my head adding air quotes since I refuse to accept this.  

“So what, you’re in like some marriage arrangement type thing?” Just as I was about to say no, I felt someone come up behind me. 

“Yeah, we’ll be together forever!” I looked behind me and saw it was Ken with his arm wrapped around my shoulder. 

“What are you doing over here?” I said moving him off me.

“Oh, there’s that angry face again! What’s got you so upset, Mimi?” 

“I told you not to call me that! Why did you tell the whole class about this situation?” 

“I had too! If I didn’t, who knows who would try to take you from me?” He put his hand to his chest. Ken is having way too much fun with this.

“Do you really have to bother me right now?” 

“As much as I’d like too, I have to stop by the office again. See you later, Mimi!” He smiled and walked away. 

“Ah, so you guys are together?” Katie asked observing the situation. 

“No! We aren’t!” 

“You sure? He sees otherwise.” 

“It’s not what he makes it.” 

“And here I thought you wanted Sano this whole time. You know, you really had me fooled.” She kept going. 

“Katie, you don’t understand, this is my parents doing. I had no part in this.” 

“I don’t know about that. I saw the way you were looking at him. Outside you had a fierce and a harsh aurora, but inside you were warm and at peace.” 

“That’s not true. I don’t even know the guy.” 

“It could be love at first sight. That’s how it was for me and Eden,” she said looking off into the distance as if remembering it all. I remember it perfectly. Katie’s temper was a lot less controlled before she got with him.

Back then— We were at the freshmen assembly looking for seats when someone bumped into her. As if she knew it would happen, she quickly reached out to them and yelled, “Am I invisible? How about looking before moving!” Then she walked passed, brushing against them returning the favor. I found the closest seats to where we were, so we could avoid any possible expulsion the first day of high school. 

The assembly was held in the gym and we sat on the fourth row of the bleachers. As we sat down, someone was taking a seat on the other side of Katie. I watched as he was sitting down and bumped against her. I saw instant trouble again, but as I noticed her face grow angry again, the person quickly said, “I’m sorry, are you okay?”

She quickly turned her head, making her freshly ‘new year new me’ hair cut flow in the wind. I saw the anger she wanted to release leave just as fast as it came when she looked at the stranger. “Yes, I’m fine.” She answered him in this tone I’ve never heard before. I think…it was a shy voice.

Katie Brooks. Shy.

“That’s good.” The lion tamer said with relief in his voice. He smiled to her and Katie smiled back, taking her fingers and brushing her hair back behind her ear. She must have forgotten it was shoulder length because her hand kept going.

Watching that was slightly weird and unnatural. Never have I ever seen Katie act like that with a new face. Suddenly, the two of them started talking after he decided to introduce himself. His was Eden. Or as I saw him: Eden, the Katie whisperer.

My meeting Ken was nothing like that. I couldn’t like someone like him. Could I? I mean, how can I like someone who came in my room and saw me in my underwear and said I was like a bullhorn? Plus, I like Sano anyway. He might think Ken and I are together, but I could just tell him that he misunderstood.

“I just want to wake up from this nightmare.” I said.

“Maybe it won’t be that bad.” Katie tried to comfort me.

I looked towards the direction Ken walked out. Two tables in front of us sat a bunch of girls. They had also been looking in the direction he left out. One of the girls looked back to me. I was certain she was one of the girls from the gymnastics team that used to try and talk to Sano a lot. 

Recently, not as many girls have been talking about him. It may have something to do with how he’s been even more antisocial than usual.

Something about the way she looked back to the hall Ken disappeared down makes me thinks Sano may soon be yesterday’s news. 

Of course, that just may work out in my favor. I just need to get rid of this uneasy feeling. I leaned against Katie and I just exhaled heavy for the third time today.

“I hope you’re right.”