Aiden Scott was known throughout the school as the troublemaker. He was mischievous, charming, and always managed to find himself in some sort of trouble. Teachers constantly complained about him, his grades were average at best, and he had a reputation for jumping from one relationship to another without ever taking any of them seriously.
One Monday morning, Aiden sat in the back of his classroom with his friends, talking instead of paying attention to the lesson.
Suddenly, the classroom door opened. Their teacher walked in, followed by a girl no one had seen before.
"Class, I'd like you all to welcome our new student, Mia Anderson."
The room instantly fell silent.
Mia stood at the front of the classroom with a polite smile. Her long, straight dark hair rested neatly over her shoulders, and her warm coffee-brown eyes scanned the room. She looked calm and confident despite dozens of curious eyes staring back at her.
Within seconds, whispers spread across the classroom.
"She's gorgeous."
"Is she a model or something?"
"I wish I looked like that."
Aiden rolled his eyes at the comments until he finally looked up.
The moment he saw her, he froze.
For once, he understood what everyone was talking about.
She was beautiful.
But it wasn't just that.
There was something about the way she carried herself—confident but not arrogant, friendly but not desperate for attention.
Aiden found himself staring.
His friend nudged him.
"Dude."
"Huh?"
"You're staring."
Aiden ignored him.
Maybe I'll ask her out, he thought. The teacher looked around the room for an empty seat.
"Mia, you can sit next to Aiden."
Several students exchanged surprised looks.
The teacher then turned to Aiden.
"And since you're sitting beside her, you'll help her find her classes until she's familiar with the school."
Aiden sat up immediately.
"Of course, ma'am. I'd be happy to help."
The teacher raised an eyebrow.
His sudden enthusiasm was suspicious.
"Good."
Mia walked over and sat beside him.
Once she settled into her seat, she turned toward him and extended her hand.
"Hi. I know I already introduced myself, but I'm Mia."
Aiden smiled and shook her hand.
"I'm Aiden."
"Nice to meet you."
"You too."
"I hope we can be friends."
"Yeah," Aiden replied. "I'd like that."
The lesson began.
Mia immediately focused on the teacher, taking neat notes and listening carefully.
Aiden, however, was focused on something else entirely.
He couldn't stop looking at her.
Every few seconds, his eyes drifted back toward her. The way she tucked her hair behind her ear. The way she concentrated on her notes. The faint smile that appeared whenever the teacher made a joke. Suddenly, Mia spoke without looking up from her notebook.
"Are you staring at me instead of paying attention?"
Aiden nearly choked.
"W-What?"
She glanced at him briefly, amusement dancing in her eyes.
"You're staring."
"I wasn't staring."
"You definitely were."
"I wasn't."
"You were."
Aiden opened his mouth to argue before realizing she had caught him red-handed. Mia chuckled softly and returned to her notes. For the first time in a long time, Aiden felt embarrassed. Fortunately, the bell rang before she could tease him any further. Students immediately began packing their bags.
Aiden stood up.
"So, what's your next class?"
"Chemistry."
His eyes lit up.
"Really? Me too."
Normally, chemistry was one of the classes he skipped whenever he got the chance. Today, however, he suddenly found it very interesting. Together, they made their way through the crowded hallways and entered the chemistry classroom. They sat beside each other again. As the teacher prepared the lesson, Mia looked over.
"Are you good at chemistry?"
Aiden laughed.
"Not even a little."
"Wow."
"What?"
"Does that mean I'm going to have to teach you?"
"Probably."
Mia shook her head.
"And why exactly are you bad at it?"
Aiden shrugged.
"I don't pay attention."
"Why not?"
"Because it's boring."
She stared at him.
"That's a terrible excuse."
"It's worked for me so far."
Mia smiled and returned to her notebook.
"Then I guess I won't be teaching you."
"What?"
"If you don't want to learn, why should I help?"
Aiden placed a hand dramatically over his heart.
"That's harsh."
"It's fair."
For the first time that day, Aiden realized Mia Anderson wasn't impressed by his charm at all, and strangely enough... That only made him like her more.