Page 30 of The Other Side
I shook my head, trying to regain my wits. “Why are you telling me this?” I said through my teeth, though I wasn’t mentally strong enough to push him away from me.
“Because I don’t want you to hate me,” he whispered, leaning in.
The sound of feet shuffling and male laughter in the hallway pulled us both from our daze. Chance stepped back from me, just in time.
A few boys sauntered in, joking with each other.
“Hey, Mr. H,” Jonathan Walters, a sweet, but rather dim student said, looking around the classroom, completely unaware of the sparring match he and his friends had interrupted. “Is this the right classroom?”
I glared at Chance, wordlessly commanding him to leave.
He stood his ground as the boys settled in their usual seats at the back of the room, having come to the conclusion that they were in the correct place.
I didn’t know what he wanted from me, so I spoke the truth at that moment, hoping it would be enough to end the conversation. “I can’t hate you, Chance. I don’tknowyou.”
He gave an exasperated sigh at the sentiment, and I thought he might leave, but he just had to get the last word in. “Whoever made you feel like you need to be so guarded at all times, I’m not him. And I’m not giving up.”
“Get the fuck out of my classroom,” I growled under my breath.
