Chapter 4

Hannah

I couldn’t believe I’d been so afraid of Nikolai. He was actually kind of nice, once you got past the scowling and the yelling. Finally, this miserable, years-long nightmare would be over.

Nikolai’s expression could only be described as resigned, like how you look when you’ve been told you had to get your wisdom teeth removed. You know you had to do it, but it was going to suck. I wished I cared, but I didn’t. I was too relieved to care.

Nikolai’s gaze scanned me up and down like he was looking for something he could work with. "We have to handle this,” he said, gesturing his hand toward me, indicating my appearance.

I gave him a disgruntled look. God, did he have to keep bringing that up?

“Don't give me that look—I'm not being an asshole. I wasn't fucking around when I told you no one would buy that I was into you. You have to look a little more convincing.”

I sighed and could kind of see his point. I’ve seen the girls he normally hangs out with. Let’s just say the fact that we were all biologically female might be our only shared trait. I figured a makeover was a small price to pay for his help. "Okay, I'll go to the mall after school and get some new clothes."

Even thought I was happy for his help, the thought of going to the mall and slogging through all of those stores in order to look good enough for Nikolai Ivanov was starting to make me sweat. I bit my nail in panic at the idea of being fashionable considering I’d been dressing for three years in hopes of turning men off. Well, one man. The rest had just followed suit.

"You don't look too confident about your shopping skills," Nikolai deadpanned, no doubt after watching my increasing demonstrations of anxiety. He surveyed my outfit again. "I'm not confident about them either. We’re going to meet at the mall, and I'm going to pick out your shit. Actually," he pulled out his phone and started texting someone, “I’m going to have someone there to help us.”

“Wait, you can’t tell—”

Not even looking up from his phone, he dismissed my concerns. "Don't worry, Katya doesn't go to school here. She's an old friend, and she loves playing dress up." He smirked and mumbled something under his breath that I didn't catch.

Was he reminiscing? Was this Katya his former girlfriend? I felt an uncomfortable flash of embarrassment at the thought of his undoubtedly hot former girlfriend picking out clothes for me like I was some clueless dope.

"Was she your girlfriend?" I inquired, unable to control myself.

Nikolai’s eyebrows jumped up as he shot me a look, and then shook his head, smirking again. "No, I don't have any ex-girlfriends, remember? Jesus, you jealous already?” he asked in exasperation.

That brought me up short. Was I? No. Maybe?

"Okay, fine," I rushed out, ignoring his last question and eager to get us off the topic of this mystery woman. "So, we'll meet at the mall after school. I have to find out which bus I need to take, then I can tell you what time I'll be there."

Nikolai looked exasperated. “The bus? Jesus, you don't have a car?”

I started to tumble out a bunch of explanations, fearing he would reconsider the arrangement.

He held up his hand. “It doesn’t matter. I can’t do it today. There’s a party this Friday at Mark Cassidy’s on Friday night. We’ll get you clothes after school on Friday and go to the party together. That way the most amount of people will see us, probably even Connors himself, and we can get this whole thing over with.”

“Today is Tuesday—what about the rest of the week? What do I do about Jeff?”

Nikolai nodded his head. “I’ve got something in mind to take care of him today, then I’ll figure out how to deal with him, so you won’t have to worry for the rest of the week. I’m just sorry I can’t do it myself, but if I get suspended one more time, I probably won’t graduate. He won't bother you today, and by the time Monday rolls around, he’ll be too afraid to even look in your direction."

It felt uncomfortable trusting that Nikolai was going to take care of Jeff. I wanted details and explanations in order to feel safe. However, I had dragged Nikolai into my problems, so I was going to have to take a leap of faith and trust that he would. I didn’t have any choice.

Nikolai appeared to notice my hesitation. "I'll make sure of it." The same scary intensity that had been directed at me at the beginning of this conversation was now focused on Jeff. It made me feel better.

I took a deep breath, trying to release the anxiety that was burning my stomach like battery acid. “Okay.”

“Give me your phone." I handed him my phone, which he grabbed and inspected judgmentally. It was an older model, but it worked just fine, so why get a new one? He quickly dialed his number into my phone, then used it to call his own phone so he'd have my number.

"Okay, Friday we’re doing the makeover thing then going to the party to show off your new look and start acting like we're dating. As soon as Connors gets the fucking hint, we end this as soon as possible. Got it?" Nikolai recapped and pinned me with his glacial stare, making it as clear as possible that our situation is fake and for me not to get attached.

“So, no interaction in public before Friday?"

“No.”

With that, he walked out of the classroom.