The Heartbroken - S01 E89

Story 2 years ago

The Heartbroken - S01 E89

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 89

It wasn’t that I wasn’t

interested. I just

wasn’t sure because I

didn’t feel like I was

actually good. Maybe it

was only Ms. Adams

who thought that way.

I wasn’t confident

about the whole thing

at all. Still reeling from

the shock at having

been singled out this

way, I couldn’t quite

make out the details of

the contest even as I

stared at the flyer.

Deciding to be honest, I

said, “I’m not—I don’t

—I really don’t think

I’m that good.”

“Why is that?”

“Um, I’m not much of a

writer,” I admitted.

“Everyone’s a writer.

Your whole life is a

story. The choices you

make each day define

what kind of story it

is,” she said without

missing a beat. “Some

people are just better

at using words than

others. I am deeply

fascinated by your

work, Kyla.”

I wasn’t ever really

that good at anything. I

wasn’t like Hail, who

was an artist. I wasn’t

like Cedric, with his

passion for music. I

didn’t have anything I

was especially good at

and I was fine with

that.

My thoughts whirred to

a stop as the word

registered to my mind.

Fine. And I shouldn’t

settle for “just

fine.”Thinking back to

Seth’s words, a

newfound confidence

made me look up at Ms.

Adams. “Um, can I—is

it—is it okay if I think

about it?”

She looked relieved, to

say the least. “Yes. Yes,

please do. I’d be

delighted if you decide

to join.”

“Will I be representing

the school or is it,

umm.” I quickly looked

down at the flyer,

scanning it for the

details, telling my brain

to work, but all I could

make out was that the

flyer was rectangular in

shape. I fought the urge

to slap myself to

somehow shake my

brain to make it work.

“No, no, no. It’s

individual. There is,

however, a preliminary

elimination where you

have to send a sample

of your work. The

details are on the flyer.”

She straightened up and

started to fix her

things. “Tell me when

you’ve decided. I’d be

glad to help you.”

“I will.” I folded the

flyer, careful not to ruin

it. I wondered if she

could see that my

hands were trembling.

“I’ll let you know.

Thanks, Miss Adams.”

As I hurried out of the

classroom, I almost

expected her to take it

back. Or to burst out

“Just kidding! As if you’d

win a contest like that!”

But she didn’t. A grin

slowly spread across

my face. I must have

looked like an idiot,

walking along the

corridor grinning like a

crazy person, but I

couldn’t bring myself to

care.

Only when I spotted

Seth patiently waiting

by my locker, leaning

against it with his arms

crossed over his chest,

did I snap out of the

dream-like trance I’d

fallen into after the

conversation with Ms.

Adams and

remembered my earlier

predicament.

“Hey,” I said, opening

my locker to deposit my

stuff. “Sorry to make

you wait. Miss Adams

—she—umm—she

asked me to stay

behind.”

He pushed himself off

the locker. “No problem.

Is everything okay?”

I unlocked my locker,

getting the combination

wrong the first time

(my mind was still

reeling from the initial

shock of talking to Ms.

Adams). “Um, she

asked me to do this…

thing,” I replied.

The corner of his lips

twitched up. “Gee, Kyla,

I’ve certainly never

heard of such specific

details before.” He rolled

his eyes and smirked.

“Aside from that, you

do realize that sounded

vaguely pornographic,

right? I mean, this

thing? Seriously?”

I could feel my cheeks

heat up. “That’s only

because you have a

dirty mind.” I slammed

my locker shut with

more force than I

intended.