Believe Me, I'm Lying [New & Improved]

Chapter Ten

Hey everyone, I'm so sorry about the delay. I did the worst thing you could ever possibly do as an author.....delete your entire file. And I didn't JUST delete the rewritten BMIL's file I deleted the what I'd done for APR and FLIACS and LALS and basically every other rewrite I started. I have the backed up files but they haven't been updated for awhile... I hope most are up to date. I checked BMIL first because I totally forgot I was posting it (lol sorry about that too) and it seems ok.... but as always let me know if anything looks weird. At worst the last edit didn't go through. Hopefully. Fingers crossed. 

________________________

About halfway through lunch, Melissa popped into my classroom, winging the door open and scaring the crap out of me. "Hey Ms. Allen! Just wanted to check up on you."

"Melissa, you gave me a heart attack," I told her, putting a hand over my frantic heart. "Things seem to be going okay though. Do you think Oliver will tell?"

She raised her eyebrow; setting down the milk carton she had been just about to drink from. "Oli? No, I don't think he will. He may be a jerk, but he's not that much of a jerk."

"Really?"

Melissa hesitated, making me sigh again. I turned back to my tray of food, mashing my mashed potatoes flat with my fork and then scooping some up into my mouth. They weren't half bad for school food.

"It's kind of hard to believe you're my age," Melissa whispered, leaning closer to me. "You definitely look it, but I believed you when you said you were twenty-two too. But I have a question..."

"What?"

"How can you be a teacher?" she asked. "You're way too young to know anything."

"I worked in a bakery for about a year," I told her, "so I know how to cook. About getting hired, well I definitely had some help."

Melissa nodded, accepting my vague answer. "Makes sense. What about school?"

"I'm home-schooled."

"Oh, you must be one busy person then."

"You don't even know," I told her with a sigh, swirling my fork around in the mashed potatoes again. "Will is very helpful though."

"Who's Will?"

"Um, my neighbor."

"Is he old or young?"

I raised an eyebrow. "He's in his twenties, why?"

"Just wondering," Melissa responded, shrugging her shoulders. "Is he cute?"

I laughed. "He's okay. But he's also very fatherly."

"What about your real father?"

My eyes dropped to the floor and I bit my lip. Did I want to tell Melissa? She seemed really nice and all, but my stomach twisted uncomfortably. It wasn't even that big of a deal. I should just be able to say it!

"My father... um...." I began to pick at the hem of my shirt, trying to decide how to say it. "He's..."

"Harley, are you going to eat your apple?"

I looked up at Melissa in confusion. "No, do you want it?"

"Yes."

"Okay... here," I said, handing the apple over to her.

"Thank you. So how are you liking the school?" she asked, putting the apple on her tray.

I stared at her. Wasn't she just asking about my father? Why the sudden change in topic? Melissa raised an eyebrow at me, waiting for an answer. Then I realized she purposely changed the subject.