ANYTHING BUT ENEMIES

25. compromise

"SO THE ALIENS come down from their home planet, okay? And I think, since the main character is human, that he should try to bond with the alien before anyone else finds out about him."

With as much exasperation as I put into my blink at Nick, I'm surprised he doesn't disintegrate on the spot.

"Come on, Cleo. You've got to work with me here. I thought you wanted this to be a group effort."

"One, this is the plot of E.T. Two, group effort takes the opinion of more than one person. And, three, if we're talking about group effort, then I'm frankly not a fan of this idea."

"Not a fan?"

"Yeah, anyway, why are you over here?"

I'd been one of the first people in the conference room today interestingly enough—a first for me. Unfortunately, Nick had also ended up being in the early crowd, meaning he felt it necessary to make a beeline toward the seat next to me the second he entered the room.

He gapes for a second like he can't believe what he's hearing. "Am I the only one who cares about this project?"

"No, but class is about to start, and I think we need to rework the entire framework. We can start later."

His eyes drift to the folder I have in front of me, black with my name traced over in neon pink pen. The piece that might actually land me above Dane on the leaderboard this time.

"Oh, look there's Ruby! Guess it's time for you to go." I wave my roommate over violently while his attention is occupied, a pointed expression flashing over at Nick.

She picks up on the cue as she passes through the doorway, almost sprinting to lean up against the back of her chair. "Hi, Nick, I actually think this is my spot."

He shoots her a withering glare that quickly morphs into what I think is supposed to be a friendly smile before standing up from the seat. "My bad. I'll talk to you closer to the end of class, Cleo."

"Okay, sounds good. Oh god no." I mouth the last part to Ruby when he turns around.

She quickly takes her seat before making a face at the back of Nick's head and turning back toward me. "He's so...ugh."

"Right. No sense of boundaries whatsoever." I sigh, massaging my temples before my head shoots back up. "Oh, by the way, what did you end up writing about?"

She pulls a piece of copy paper from her bag, holding a finger up to her lips. "That's a secret I'll never tell."

"Okay, Gossip Girl, we're literally reading them today."

She raises an eyebrow. And?

"And I already know your prompt is beauty."

"So? I want it to be a surprise."

"Okay, fine. I'll wait," I say melodramatically, and she leans back in her chair.

"Well, well, well. Would you look at that—it's ranking day." Frances strolls inside like a goddess, flowy blue pants following her movement like an ocean. "Are you guys ready?"

The room's dead silent before Nick decides to launch into a speech. "I'm ready. I feel like I was able to craft my piece the exact way I wanted it, so I hope that comes through when you're all reading it."

"That's great, Nick. Anyone else want to share their thoughts?"

The room is silent again, but this time I wholeheartedly believe it's because no one wants to talk after Nick.