As they reached the hall steps, the teachers at the front motioned for them to simmer down their conversations. A hush fell over Seth’s group, as they neared the hall entrance. The quiet around him elevated the voices of those approaching behind.
“Come on, yousohave a new crush.”
That was the voice of Celine Seang, a girl from Seth’s class.
“Don’t tell me it’s stillPeter?”
Peter must refer to Peter Russo from the class just below them.
“You likePeter?”
That one belonged to Anthony Hayes.
“No,noI don’t.”
The commotion tickled Seth’s interest, as would any gossip to do withcrushes. He turned around, and about four people behind him stood a girl with brown hair, with her back turned to him, facing Celine and Anthony.
“Oi, what’s going on there,” Seth asked Joshua.
Joshua, who’d been slyly checking his phone in his pocket, shrugged.
“I don’t know, that chick Nina in our class likes Peter Russo apparently.”
Nina Mendez? Seth had a knack of being incredibly ignorant and forgetting names and faces.
“Who is Nina again?” Seth asked.
“You know, that girl with the Hello Kitty keychain on her bag? She always puts her hand up in English?” Joshua informed, and the memory of Nina Mendez lit like a bulb.
That cute girl,his mind told him instead,the one with the bright smile.
Seth recalled chatting to her in class once, at the beginning of term. “Yeah, she’s kinda weird and loud,” his friend continued, with a shrug, “And average-looking. Just, whatever.”
Seth’s brows crinkled at the retort, unsure that he agreed with it at all. But Joshua’s mouth widened into a smirk, as if he were this sly stud, and nudged him in a coax to agree with his joke.
He swallowed, and nodded, plastering his own mockery of a smile. “Don’t think I remember her then.”
“You likePeter!” Anthony exclaimed, louder.
Annoyance bubbled at the pit of Seth’s stomach. Why did this Anthony guy care so much about who Nina liked?
“No - no I don’t!” Nina’s voice quivered.
“You’ve gotta tell us who you like then!” Celine prodded.
“PeterandNinasitting in a tree -” Anthony sang, their peers around them began to snicker.
“Shutup, Anthony!” Celine hit the boy in the shoulder, which only made him laugh.
“I don’t like Peter!” Nina’s voice carried further now, louder. He tilted his head subtly, craning his ears in his general direction, direly curious. There’d been a shortage of gossip in the grade at the moment, ever since the news of Erin Jovanovski from the middle-classes getting together with Xander Park from the grade above them broke out.
“Yes youdo!” Anthony cooed.
“No!” Nina exclaimed. Her voice had reached its peak, and Seth heard it echo across the school hall. The teachers peered outside, holding a finger to their lips.
Mr. Stachmann, their English teacher, coaxed Seth forward into the hall, where their class would finally take their seats.
Seth stepped through the hall doors, the commotion of outside blurring. He sauntered toward his seat, followed by Joshua, Will, and the rest of his classmates.
