Description: Normally Lucas would try to avoid her, but this time he stayed. What changed?
Gina was having a bad day. To start with, her alarm didn't go off so she literally had only ten minutes to get ready for school. She raced out of her house in a mad rush and sped towards the school. It was only when she reached the gates that she realised she'd left her homework at home.
"Oh no," she groaned. "I'm definitely going to be late now." The way she saw it, she had two choices: she could go to school and get a detention for not bringing her homework or she could go back and get it, but end up with a detention for being late. Either way, it was a lose-lose situation.
Quickly deciding, she turned on her heel and started to run, only to crash headlong into someone. Picking herself up off the ground, she saw that she had crashed into Lucas. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to run into you like that."
He smiled at her, "That's okay, I'm not hurt! Why were you rushing anyway?" So she told him everything about how badly her day had started. Lucas found Gina's company pleasant. Normally her over-the-top behavior frustrated him to no end because he didn't understand why she acted like that around him, despite his friends trying to explain.
"Anyway," she said awkwardly. "I'd better get a move on because I don't want to be too late!" She waved at him, before speeding off towards her house. Lucas stood, staring after her.
"Bye," he whispered, not understanding why he suddenly felt oddly lonely. He always left Gina and never felt bad about it. So what had changed?
Later that day
In the lesson, Gina mused to herself. Lucas had stayed with her, instead of making some excuse to leave. Could it be possible that-that he liked her? She didn't have a clue what to think.
Jessica nudged her. "Something on your mind?" Gina looked at her in shock; was it really that obvious?
"N-Not really..." Gina began, then stopped when Jessica gave her questioning gaze. She knew there'd be no point in lying so she said, "Okay, so I was going to be late so I was rushing. I got to the gates, realised I'd left my homework and went to get it. But, before I could, I crashed into-into Lucas!"
Jessica looked at her. "So that's what this is about? Oh, Gina..." she regarded her friend sympathetically.
"You don't understand!" Gina said frantically. "He never stays with me. He always leaves. I'd gotten used to it, but now... What's changed?"
"You have," Jessica responded. "You've changed the way you act around him so that he actually enjoys your company rather than dreading it. By acting normally, you're showing him what a great person you are, and soon enough, he'll like you for who you are."
Gina looked thoughtful. Could Jessica be right? Did Lucas really see her differently all because she hadn't acted like a girl with a major crush? She continued to mull this over in her thoughts as the lesson continued.
Lucas stared down at his exercise book. He couldn't concentrate on the lesson at all. In fact, he wasn't even sure what the lesson was about. His mind had been elsewhere ever since the encounter with Gina.
"Are you okay?" He looked up to see Nick and Toby staring at him in concern. Realising that it was Nick who had spoken, he nodded. The two brothers gave him a look that said, "you'd better come up with something better than that because we're not buying it." He sighed, knowing they weren't going to drop it.
"Alright, don't laugh or anything but..." He told them, before explaining everything that had happened earlier that day. They both stayed quiet as he spoke, only moving when he burst out, "So what's wrong with me? I've never felt this way about her before... What's changed?"
"You've changed..." Nick began and Toby nodded in agreement.
"Nick's right. You stayed long enough to see Gina for who she really is, rather than the person she acts like whenever you get within a 2 metre radius. There's nothing wrong with you at all..."
"You just prefer her company when she's not all over you and acting like a girl obsessed. You like her for her because you know how good it feels to hang out with her when she's just being herself" Nick finished wisely.
Lucas frowned. Could what they were saying be true? Did he like Gina because she hadn't acted the way she did when she was normally near him, which meant that he actually liked her company. He had to admit, hanging out with Gina was a lot more fun when she acted like herself.
It would take them a good few months, until the school dance (to be precise), to realise their love for each other. It was then that they knew that they hadn't changed, their feelings had.
They walked hand-in-hand, simply enjoying each other's company. As long as they had each other, there was no need for them to change. They were absolutely sure that their feelings would never change; they would love each other until the day they died.