✅Edited: 2/7/21

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Walking up on a Wednesday morning was not what I had in mind. My fever was gone and although I was planning to milk my chances of being sick, my mother had other plans.

I still have a runny nose but it wasn't bad as before. My voice still sounded like a walrus but its not like it'll bother Eliki.

What I dreaded was seeing the name of the guy that cannot be mention, in short carrot.

I was not ready to see him nor did I want to talk to him. I was still mad, hurt, and in denial that he didn't want to be friends with me.

Eliki was waiting for me when I arrived at my locker, her face once again stuck at phone of her screen.

She's tweeting something and I couldn't but roll my eyes. As much as Eliki says not to bottle my emotions up, I prefer to let it all out by writing on my journal instead.

I'm a very private person and don't post much on social media because I like to keep it low key.

Facebook account? lol, I deleted it a few years ago because let's just say its a very toxic app.

I do have instagram and twitter but they're all private and only a few people I know at school were given the check sign to follow me and see my tweets and post.

After the smoothie episode at the kitchen, we spent the day by watching movies and somehow ended up talking about Tyrone and what really happened.

The look that Chica and Jax shared at the mention of Aron had me wondering what beef was between the two guys.

Chica had shared that Tyrone went to her house on Sunday evening with Jax. She didn't elaborate and I didn't bother asking how their conversation went.

"Hi ginger." She greets me, pecking my cheek."How are you feeling? Ready to see T-"

"No!" I exclaimed, glaring at her."That name is forbidden starting from now." Eliki's dark eyes flashing with mirth.

It took me a minute to realize that everyone was glancing at me from my sudden outburst.

Clearing my throat, I pulled my hand back, exposing the toothy grin on Eliki's lips.

"Fine but I'll have you know he cam-." I shushed her, shaking my head, peaks of laughter escaping her.

"Guess, I'll just see how this plays out ginger." She grin, both of us walking to homeroom.

"We're not gonna be partners anymore." I told her, earning a confused look."I'm planning to talk to Mr. John after class. Find an alternative." I explain, her expression turning giddy.

She patted my hair, grinning."Good luck with that ginger." Before I could ask her what she meant by that, we arrived at the room.

The carrot wasn't here yet and I thanked the female up there. I still have time to keep my wits in check.

Placing my bag on the ground, I took a hold of my chair and quickly dragged it away from his, making sure to have two meters distance between us.

A few students gave me a confused look, wondering why I was pushing all the chairs away. Eliki had pure joy on her face as she glanced at me.

Once it was done, I took a seat and did some breathing exercises. I'm calm, completely calm. Deep in Zoe, I thought.

Taking a hold of my phone, I click the camera app, turning it to front camera. Patting my hair to make sure there weren't any baby hairs flying away.

Focusing on my eyebrows, I pinched them together like the carrot would, pulling my lips in a straight line and mustering my best blank face look.

Eliki was holding back her laughter, clutching her sides. When I gave her a thumbs up, she blew me a flying kiss.

"Okay Zoe. Everything is set, you're now a carrot." I mumbled to myself. Completely hype up with my emotions in check.

As the time grew closer for our first period, students started piling in and when I caught sight of the carrot, my expression slipped for a brief moment before I held it in and stared straight unto the board.

I didn't notice the falter in his walk once he caught sight of me nor did I see the confusion in his eyes when he saw the obvious two meter distance between our chairs.

He took a seat, my whole body tensing despite having the obvious distance between us.

"Zoe." He started, annoyance fleeting in me.

I didn't turn around, chanting the word carrot in my head. I'm a bad bitch, I ain't gonna waste my time talking to the original carrot.

"I know you're ignoring me." He states, his voice clear against the chatter around us.

"It'll stay that way for the rest of the senior year." I snapped, not once turning to him.

Not a few seconds after my words, Mr. John came in, a smile on his face.

"Happy Hump Day Class!" He greets, a few jocks starting to twerk and kiss the air.

Laughter erupted around the room and if I weren't a carrot, I would have totally join in.

"Its been two weeks since you became puppy parents and today, you'll have to start working on tying the knot with your partners." Mr. John grinned, bringing a piece of paper up."Gonna have to fill up a marriage registration form!"

The classroom erupted with groans, probably not in ride with the fake marriage stuff but there were some who gave a high-five to their partners while me? Well, I was a carrot.

"Obviously this is fake but this project wishes to give you a grasp on what its like in the future. To teach you how to care for your future baby and what responsibilities comes with being married." Mr. John explains, the students quieting down.

I discreetly tried to glance at the original carrot, my heart choke slamming me when I saw his honey eyes already set on me.

My head turned so fast that I was surprise it was still intact with my neck and not rolling around the floor.

"After your video presentation, you'll be officially married with a marriage certificate, so make sure to look presentable and not looking like a zombie." Mr. John said, a few chuckles resonating in the room.

My heart dropped, of course, there's only one week left for the video presentation. We basically have to do a short video, portraying what it was like to take care of a puppy.

"The females would have to answer the bride portion while the males would have to answer the groom portion. You can both decide the place and date of your wedding." Mr. John proceeded to hand each partners a copy.

When he came up to us in the back, his eyebrows drew back at the obvious distance place in our chairs.

"Is everything okay?" Mr. John asks, his blue eyes staring back and forth between us.

"I'm sick." I sniffled to prove my point."He can't get sick." I explain, my voice hoarse.

I could feel the burning stare at the side of my head but I ignored it. Mr. John didn't seem convinced but he nodded, handing the paper to Tyrone.

"Well, get well soon Ms. Smith. Can't have you looking like Chucky on your wedding day." He cheekily said, fighting the urge to walk up to him and smack my bag on his face.

He walked back to the front, a glare following him. Turning to Tyrone, it seems he was already done in filling up and was once again, staring at me.

"Where do you want to get married?" He asks, my heart fluttering at his voice.

I was about to reply, excited to share my dream wedding before I blinked and remembered.

I was a carrot.

"You don't have to worry." My voice came out blank."You won't have to fake marry me next week." I replied.

"What?" His thick eyebrows furrowing before I rolled my eyes, not wanting to explain.

I'm a carrot.

"Just give me the paper. I'll fill it up." I said, looking at it instead of him.

"Mr. John said that we both get to decide where and when to get married." He said, his eyes trying to meet mine.

I scoffed, brushing my hair back."Since when do you listen to his instructions?" The annoyance was evident in my tone.

Ignoring my remark, Tyrone stood up. My neck craning slightly as he took a hold of my chair and dragging it back to the original spot.

"What are you doing!" I hissed, trying to pull my chair away from his grasp.

"I call bullshit on not wanting me to get sick part." His lips twisting into a scowl."I have a strong immune system. I won't get sick."

"Stop," I growled, pulling my chair back from his grasp.

"Take a seat Ms. Smith and Mr. Adler. There's only fifteen minutes left." Mr. John called, his eyes looking at us in amusement.

Tyrone raise a brow, making his handsome features more prominent."Its either you come closer or I pull my chair next to you. Trust me, you don't have a choice on this one."

Glaring at him, I let him drag my seat back to the original position. A sound resonating around the soft chatter as I sat.

"La Almudena Cathedral." I snapped, crossing my arms across my chest.

Tyrone look back at me in surprise."You want to get married in Spain?"

Yes. A church wedding is something that I always dreamed about since I was a little kid. I wasn't that religious but I had enough faith to commit myself to my future husband in front of my savior.

I didn't answer though and instead glared at him. He sighed, turning to the paper and writing it down.

"When do you want to get married?" He asks, his teeth coming down to bite on his bottom lip.

"Fall season. You pick the date." I answered, starting to doodle on my notebook.

This is just a waste of time, I thought. We aren't even gonna get married anyway. I'll tell Mr. John that I'll do the single parent situation and go to the dog pound myself to choose a dog, although it saddens me that I won't be the one to take care of Grumpy.

Tyrone turned to me, handing the paper. I snatched it from him, not saying anything.

"Listen Zoe, I'm sorry about that n-" I brought a hand up to his face, not looking.

"I don't want to talk about it. You made your point clear and I get it now so stop wasting your time on me or I might become delusional again." I scowled, blinking back my tears.

The rest of the time was spent with silence between us. Tyrone didn't try talking to me again and I appreciated it.

When the bell rang, I took my time in packing my stuff as students filtered out of the room. Eliki gave a signal that she'll go first, earning a nod from.

Taking a shaky breath, I recollected myself before walking up to Mr. John that was fixing the papers.

"What seems to be the problem Ms. Smith?" He ask but from the way he looked at me, I think he had a grasp on it.

"I want to be a single parent." I breathed out.

"You want to work on your own?" He implied, leaning back.

"Yes, that's what I meant." I nodded, fiddling with my fingers."Don't worry, I had it all planned out. I can go at the dog pound on my own and th-"

"May I ask what's the reason for this?" He tilts his head, taking a seat on his desk.

I frowned, of course he's gonna ask. This is a school project after all. There's a high chance that he won't even agree but I have to try.

"Tyrone and I aren't just gonna work out sir. " I started, biting my lip."He doesn't want me to be his partner and has made that very clear to me." I explain.

"I've said it from the start Ms. Smith that no changing of partners." He said, my shoulders slumping."But I never said anything about working on it alone." Mr. John continues, my eyes widening.

"Y-you'll let me work on it alone?" I stuttered out, relieved that he would've agree.

"No."

My smile dropped. Mr. John looked confused for a moment before turning to look at the door.

Following his gaze, I realized the carrot was standing at the door and has been listening to our conversation.

"Mr. Adler." Mr. John glances at me briefly."I believe this is a conversation between Ms. Smith and I."

Tyrone stormed in front of us, a scowl on his handsome face."I have every right to partake in this conversation. She's my partner."

"No, I'm not." I bit back, growing angry at the way he's meddling with this.

Mr. John looked confused, glancing at the both of us."But you said he didn't want to be your partner Ms. Smith?"

He technically didn't want to be my friend sir but I guess we can say that this part was implied on what he meant, I thought.

"He doesn't sir." I gritted out. The same time Tyrone said."I didn't say shit."

"Stop butting in Tyrone." I demanded, throwing him a glare."This is me sharing your opinion. Wasn't it what you want from the start?" I hoarsely said, my throat drying up.

Coughing slightly and backing away. His brows furrowed, taking a step towards me but I glared at him, stopping him in his track.

"Okay," Mr. John said, standing up and moving between us."Being angry is not the solution to this."

"I'm not angry sir." I snapped.

"You totally are." He says."Making a decision when angry isn't good. I'll give you a few days to think about this."

I was about to answer but the warning bell rang. Math was coming up and the new teacher was strict.

"Fine," I agreed, not even acknowledging the carrot and storming out of the room.

If I wasn't so mad, I probably would have overheard what Mr. John to him.

"That few days is your chance Mr. Adler." He says, his blue eyes narrowed."You're an adult now, learn to handle your shit without hurting other people."