Somehow, we all accustomed to Oliver’s presence in our classroom. Though everyone avoided him, still, even after the initial two weeks, no one was all that scared of him anymore. He never said anything, never gave any reason to be. 

In fact, it was almost as if he was more scared of the entire class then the other way around. More often than not, he’d disappear during our breaks, as short as they were, and he’d only come back a few seconds before the doorbell rang, announcing the start of the next course. 

Despite the rumors, he never skipped any of his classes, but it wasn't like he participated, either. He was there, he was present, and that was about it. 

Every now and then, I’d gaze over at Oliver’s notes, and the scribbled handwriting he forced onto his paper when he attempted to pay attention, only to lay back down after writing a few words at most. 

Instead, he’d sketch ugly lines onto his paper, all corners turning into blue circles and shapes, weird faces and cubes. It seemed impossible for him to stay focused on class. 

Of course, I stared way too much, and he’d notice it rather quickly, as if he could feel my gaze tickling his skin. His dark eyes would turn towards me in slow motion, pen leaking blue ink onto his paper, and with a frown, he’d ask: “What are you looking at?”

"N-Nothing." I’d flinch and turn away, avert my gaze immediately in hopes he’d let it go, only to realize how scary Oliver truly could be. However, it never bothered him enough to actually do something about it. Once I twisted my head away from him, so quickly my bones would snap, he’d sigh and stare back out the window. 

How scary he really was, though, I’d learn relatively soon. It happened somewhere between English and physics class. I’d thrown my backpack onto my chair in our classroom for physics, and found myself talking with some of my friends, Matt included, as we laughed aloud, enjoyed ourselves, and I chewed on one gummy bear after the other, an entire bag in my hand ready to be devoured. We joked and complained all the same, especially about the upcoming test today, annoyed at the fact we had one so early in the year.

“It’s only been two weeks, and we've already got a test,” Matt groaned, the loudest complainer of all. Personally, it didn’t bother me that much; I’d understood most of the material, and had studied the day before.

"You should have studied," I grinned.

Matt and I were a couple of idiots. I didn’t even know how our little play-fight had begun, and why we even bothered running through the entire classroom, him chasing me, or rather, my pack of gummy bears. He wanted to steal them, and I wasn’t going to let it happen. Hopping about in the classroom, we laughed, and I pointed my mocking tongue right at Matt behind me.

It didn’t take long, then, for me to trip over a backpack in the aisle, ridding me of all laughter. I stumbled forward, bumping right into something hard and soft all the same. It didn’t budge, at all, and I realized sooner, rather than later, that I’d bumped right into a person in front of me, who now stood there, tense as a board. 

A hand clawed at my upper arm, fingers digging into my skin and heating me up from within. It stopped me from falling, and at the same time, pressed me away from the chest I’d fallen right into.

“Sorry,” I said first, still laughing, barely thinking about it much. Before me, all I saw was a broad chest, a tight shirt covering it ever so barely, and my heart dropped onto the ground. My gaze lifted upwards, the growling face of Oliver appearing too close for comfort. 

“S-S-Sorry,” I stuttered, panicking now. 

Oliver’s eyebrows hung low, his lips turned into a thin line, and I wanted nothing more than to disappear. My luck was just great, wasn’t it? Bumping into Oliver out of all people, who’d just entered the classroom to prepare for physics? 

The entire room turned quiet, and even Matt had ceased chasing me, and disappeared into his row in the back of the room, hiding away. Air turned thick, a knot building inside my throat, and his grip around my arm throbbed, turning tighter and tighter. It hurt.

After an endless gaze, his eyes staring right into mine, he reacted. Dragging me by the arm he held, he pushed me to the side as if I didn’t weigh more than a feather. 

“Watch where you’re going,” he hissed, my hip hitting the corner of a table almost too perfectly, forcing a gasp and sigh out of me. A dull throb followed, sure to become a bruise at my hip. 

In response, I dropped my bag of gummy bears, all of them spreading across the floor in all their colors; red, green, yellow, white. As my heart raced and confusion grew, Oliver stomped right past me, his shoulder bumping me away once more. 

Instantly, the whispering began. Girls wondered why Oliver was so upset, when it had been an accident, and I had apologized. Boys wondered what his damn problem was, and why he had to be so over-the-top aggressive. 

My chin trembled as I bit myself on my lower lip. My heart beat irregularly fast, its beat echoing on my hip, where the corner of the table had dug deep into my flesh. I, too, wished to ask what his problem was, and why he had to be this way. 

What had I done wrong? Did he not like me? Did I bother him, after all? Me sitting next to him, me staring at him, did it all annoy him? Was I on the path to be bullied into oblivion by him, until I no longer dared to come back to school? The thought alone made me turn pale, a student coming towards me with worry glittering in her eyes. 

“Are you okay, Finn? I’m sure it hurt,” she mumbled, but all I did was nod and bow down to pick up all the gummy bears I had dropped, all so I could throw them into the trash. What a waste…