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"It’s not that kind"

"Go ahead, then"

"Are you getting a lot of strange looks today, by any chance?"

He pulls his notebook out of his backpack, takes off his outer button-down shirt, leaving on a loose, white T-shirt He folds the button-down haphazardly, sets it on top of his backpack, scoots his chair back, and lays his head on the shirt His newly muscular arms reach around this makeshift pillow

"I hadn’t noticed," he says He takes off his glasses and sets thehtfully "I see So…you don’t knohat classes you have, you don’t know your GPA, you don’t notice all the girls drooling over your new look--"

"That’s bullshit," he says, closing his eyes

"So what do you pay attention to?"

He opens his eyes Lifts his head fro time His eyes are silky brown She’s never noticed them before

For a split second, Janie thinks she sees soone

"Pfft You wouldn’t believe me if I told you," he says

Janie flashes a crooked s warm "Try me"

Cabel raises a skeptical eyebrow

"You know…sometime," she says finally She picks up his shirt and refolds it so the buttons turn in "So you don’t get a button impression on your face," she says

"Thank you," he says His eyes don’t leave hers He’s searching thehtly "So, uh, shall I break the news to Carrie that you’re not a new guy?"

Cabel blinks "What?"

"Half the girls in the school think you’re a new student Cabel, come on You look a lot different froue and they sound wrong

He gives her a confused look

"What did you call me?"

Janie’s sto "Who do you think I am?"

Maybe she’s in somebody’s weird dream and she doesn’t know it

She panics

"Oh, God, no," she whispers She stands up abruptly and tries to get past him He catches her arm