“It’s finally time to start our group projects,” Mr. Hill said. “From concept to business plan, you and your group will come up with a new, innovative business keeping in mind the things we’ve been studying in class. And it’s worth a quarter of your grade, so you need to take it very seriously.”
Whispers broke out throughout the classroom as students started picking their group members. I melted into my seat, invisible as always. It was like gym all over again. But I didn’t run the risk of being picked last. I ran the risk of not being picked at all. Hopefully I’d just be allowed to do the project alone. I looked around the room. There were an uneven number of kids in the class, which would leave one student out of a duo.Perfect.
Mr. Hill cleared his throat. “Before you get too excited, I already picked the groups.”
Everyone in the class groaned except for me. But I should have. Being the outcast forced to work alone was one thing. I could handle that. But being randomly put into Matt’s group? That could not happen. And just the thought of it happening had my stomach twisting in knots.
I took a deep breath. The odds of being forced into a group with Matt were slim. But then Mr. Hill started calling out the groups. And it wasn’t two people in each, it was three. Which raised the odds significantly…
“Mr. Caldwell, Mr. Hunter, and…Miss Sanders.”
“Screw me,” I said. Out. Loud. I immediately slapped my hand over my mouth, wanting desperately to go back to being invisible.
Rob laughed and turned around in his seat to face me. “What…we’re notthatbad to be teamed up with, Sanders.” He flashed me a smile with his perfectly white straight teeth.
I swallowed hard.
Matt just stared ahead like he hadn’t been called at all. How were we supposed to work on a group project if he wasn’t speaking to me?
Charlotte raised her hand.
“Yes, Miss King?” Mr. Hill said.
“Brooklyn is having such a very hard time adjusting to our school. I think that it would really benefit her to be in my group. I can help her so much.”
Gag.Why was she trying to get me in her group? To torture me to death?
“Can I trade Missy for her?”
“Hey,” Missy said and gave her a dirty look.
Mr. Hill placed his attendance sheet down on his desk. “Although I agree with you that Miss Sanders is not adjusting well, the groups are set in stone.”
“But…”
“Stone.” I’d never heard him so stern with anyone but me.
Charlotte made a huffing noise and crossed her arms over her chest.
It was easy to ignore the fact that Mr. Hill thought I didn’t belong here. And that Charlotte was somehow trying to ruin my life in a new and odd way. Because all I could focus on was the fact that I was in Matt’s group. I was supposed to be avoiding him.
“Now split up into your groups and start brainstorming what your business is going to be.”
Chairs squeaked as everyone started moving their desks around. But I didn’t have to move. Matt sat right in front of me. Rob to the left of him.
Rob turned around with another easy smile. “I wonder why Charlotte wanted you in her group. I thought she hated you.”
I looked over at Charlotte who was staring daggers in our direction. “She probably just wanted to torture me.”
Rob laughed and then hit Matt’s shoulder. “Turn around, man, we have to start talking about our business.”
He was probably as mortified to talk to me as I was to talk to him. I’d molested his face on Friday night. He’d seen me drunk. I wouldn’t want to talk to me either.
“One sec,” Matt said. He stood up and walked over to Charlotte who was beckoning him over. They started discussing something, but I couldn’t hear them over the chatter around me. Neither looked particularly happy.
Matt said he wasn’t dating Isabella. Was he dating Charlotte instead? That would explain why he didn’t defend me in class when she was berating me. It would explain why she kept looking over here like she wanted to throw me out the window. It would explain everything.
“What’s up with them?” I asked Rob.
