I stared at him and sighed. You again. Despite my irritation, I did my best to compose myself this time to avoid overreacting as I had only minutes earlier. Besides, it looked like he was hurt this time too. He watched me, waiting for me to be overly dramatic again.
“Did I do something to piss you off?” I smiled to let him know I wasn’t serious. “If I didn’t know any better I’d say you have it out for me today.”
“Yeah…..it kind of seems that way I guess. You alright?” He was visibly relieved that I didn’t seem angry.
“Yeah, it’s cool,” I replied.
He stared a few seconds longer than I deemed necessary, smiled when he realized it, and then casually turned to pay attention to Ms. Jamison who was beginning to write something on the board. I sighed as I realized that she was assigning another group project. They were famous for being extreme in every sense of the word.
She began to speak. “Alright class, I was saving this for the week after next, but you all did so well on your test on Wednesday that I decided to give you a head start on this one. You’ll be paired off into groups of two to three. If your partners are absent today,” she rolled her eyes before continuing, “then you’ll need to fill them in on the details when they return Monday. I’ve already assigned everyone to groups, so don’t bother worrying about it.”
I shot Leslie a look hoping that we would be working together. She was already looking in my direction. Ms. Jamison began with the students toward the front of the room, so I waited patiently for her to get to me.
When she approached Leslie, she handed her the slip of paper with her group member’s names on it. Leslie turned to me and smiled, letting me know that we’d be working together.
Ms. Jamison started to speak again. “Alright class. Anyone who didn’t receive a piece of paper, your name is on one of the lists that I’ve passed out. So at this time, please assemble your groups and I’ll be passing out the syllabus for the project.”
I gathered my belongings and headed toward the available seat next to Leslie. As I sat down I saw her waving her hand to motion someone else in our direction. I turned swiftly to see who she was beckoning…………...AJ . I had more to do with this guy on this day than in all our years in school together. He approached the seat directly in front of me and sat down.
That scent. Was that him? As he passed by, I caught a whiff of whatever cologne he was wearing. The fragrance mingled perfectly with his body chemistry, creating an aroma that made me close my eyes to savor it. A single girl would’ve been swooning…..but I’m already had a man.
This AJ had taken me by surprise more than once today – but none of those instances was more surprising than the commanding presence that he brought with him. He was taller than most of the boys in the school, about 6’2” – maybe just an inch or two taller than Antonio. His short, glossy, black hair was scattered all over his head in a deliberately messy way. As I assessed his athletic build, I remembered that he was on the basketball team. He had a style that, like his hair, was in thoughtful disarray – faded, tattered, designer jeans. My elbows rested on the desk while I observed closely. I wouldn’t let myself admit that he was attractive, but I made a mental note to bring him to Megan’s attention; she’d definitely like him. But maybe he wouldn’t be attracted to her. Yeah, she’s definitely pretty, but maybe he didn’t like black girls. That’s not something you see everyday – Asian men with Black women. A black man with an Asian woman is a more common occurrence, but not the other way around. All I’d have to do was just put the bug in Megan’s ear – the logistics were her problem.