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I couldn’t haveasked for a better first date. At least, I was calling it a first date. Whether Una would say the same was up in the air, but that was alright. I thought about it all weekend.
Shesmiled. She left looking happy. Until I surprised her with that cheek kiss. Then she turned back into normal Una, but the scowl was mixed with a sly grin as she drove off.
Convincing someone who had a deep-rooted hatred for love to be vulnerable and let a stranger in was hard work. But I was up for the task.
Besides, I had one thing on my side—her scrunchie. I’d been holding onto it ever since I found it in the restaurant, keeping it in my pocket or sometimes even on my wrist when no one was around. I had it in my pocket last night, ready to give back to her, but I didn’t. After she left, I had slipped my hands back in my pockets and found it.
That’s when it became my lucky charm. Getting Una to open up to me wouldn’t be easy. But as long as I stayed true to the course, I knew I could do it.
Though I would take all the help, or lucky charms, I could get.
Today, I was on a high. Happier than normal, which meant everyone was going to get to be happy with me. We all needed to start this Monday morning with a smile.
The girls, at least.
On the way to school, I swung by the grocery store, where Miss Melody had her flower cart parked outside. She had just stocked it with dozens of roses, so I took advantage of that, grabbing three dozen of the most gorgeous, velvety, crimson roses I saw.
She was shocked, telling me she had never sold so many flowers to a teenage boy before. I laughed and said I would try to change that soon.
That wasn’t my mission, though.
As soon as I stepped through the front doors of Fairy Tale High, I jumped into action.
“Good morning, ladies,” I said, throwing on my best charming smile as I approached a group of girls. “These are for you.” I plucked out four roses, handing each one of them a stem.
They giggled behind their hands, their cheeks turning pink as they whispered their thanks.
Rose after rose, I handed one to every girl I came across. I was down to my last dozen by the time I made it to the far hall, closer to my locker.
I whistled a happy tune as I strolled through the halls, but came to a halt when I saw her.
Una, sitting with Malia, Ali, and Aria, at the end of the hallway on the benches. They normally sat there, usually without Aria, which meant I shouldn’t have been surprised.
But every time I saw her, she took my breath away. She had no idea how gorgeous I thought she was, and that wasn’t even my favorite thing about her.
She hadn’t noticed me yet, so I took a second to appreciate her, admiring the way she sat, appearing peaceful, while also self-assured and majestic. There was an air about her that screamed leadership without being snotty or rude like the Queens used to be.
Amelie and her group had walked around as if they owned the place and everyone should bow down to them. For literally no reason whatsoever.
Jessa Hatem had been different. She knew that respect was earned, and tried to be nice to everyone, the Teller kids included. Maybe that was why she outlasted the rest of the Queens and was still respected, even after everything that had happened recently. Fairy Tale High turned their back on Amelie, and I didn’t care where Willow or Sierra stood anymore. I stopped trying to stay in the loop on all of that.
But Una. She didn’t care what other people thought about her. She didn’t want to be put on a pedestal. She genuinely helped others, with or without deals. If she felt it in her heart, she took action. She stood up for what was right and didn’t back down when challenged.
Thatwas what I liked most about her. Her inner strength. Her desire to do the best, even when no one was looking.
Still whistling, I wandered toward them. Malia saw me first, her eyes narrowing, her ruby red lips pursed, throwing off major ‘stay away or else’ vibes.
But I didn’t stop. I was on a mission, after all.
Una and Malia jumped to their feet as I approached, Ali sat back with a laugh, as if telling me I was on my own with those two.
Which was totally fine by me. I knew eventually, if I wanted Una and me to work out, I would have to get on Malia’s good side.
To start that relationship, I plucked out a rose, took a step back, and fell into a bow. “A rose for the lady,” I proclaimed, lifting my eyes as I extended the flower to Malia.
Her brows popped in surprise, the corner of her lip smiling. She shot a quick look at Una, but accepted the rose before Una could say anything.
“Charlie. Nickname of Charles. Derived from Old English, meaning free man,” Malia said as I stood up.
