Ava

By lunch on Wednesday, I was officially paranoid.

Not normal paranoid.

Advanced paranoid.

The kind where every laugh sounded suspicious.

The kind where every whispered conversation felt like it was somehow about me.

The kind where I convinced myself that every time someone looked in my direction, they were secretly discussing my impending public humiliation.

Which was ridiculous.

Probably.

Hopefully.

I adjusted my backpack higher on my shoulder and stepped into the cafeteria.

Immediately, my stomach sank.

People were staring.

Not openly.

Not enough for me to call them out.

Just enough to make me uncomfortable.

A group of seniors looked up from their table.

One of them whispered something.

The others laughed.

Wonderful.

Absolutely wonderful.

I contemplated turning around and spending lunch hiding in the library.

Again.

Honestly, the fantasy section had never betrayed me.

"Ava!"

Too late.

I spotted Riley waving both arms over her head from our usual table near the windows.

Like she was trying to direct an airplane.

I sighed.

There went my escape plan.

Sliding into the chair across from her, I dropped my backpack to the floor.

"What now?" I asked.

Riley's grin immediately widened.

That was never a good sign.

"What do you mean, what now?"

"You have that look."

"What look?"

"The look that means you're about to ruin my day."

Riley pressed a hand dramatically against her chest.

"I would never."

I stared.

She stared back.

Neither of us blinked.

Finally, she cracked first.

"Okay, maybe a little."

"I knew it."

"Ava."

"No."

"You don't even know what I'm going to say."

"I know enough."

Riley laughed.

Then she leaned forward.

"A rumor is spreading."

My stomach dropped.

Of course it was.

"Why are those always your favorite words?"

"Because they're interesting."

"They're terrifying."

"Same thing."

I groaned.

"What rumor?"

Riley bit her lip.

Which somehow made everything worse.

"What?"

She pointed across the cafeteria.

"Apparently half the senior class thinks Hudson Blake is going to bid on you at the auction."

For a second, my brain completely shut down.

Then I laughed.

A real laugh.

Because that was genuinely the dumbest thing I'd ever heard.

"No."

"It's true."

"No."

"It is."

"No."

Riley snorted.

"Compelling argument."

I grabbed my juice box.

"Riley, Hudson Blake doesn't even know I exist."

Her eyebrows shot up.

"He literally said your name."

"One time."

"He smiled at you."

"He's polite."

"He remembered your name."

"Lots of people know my name."

"You've spent the last three years actively avoiding people."

"That's not true."

Riley folded her arms.

"You once hid in a supply closet to avoid giving a class presentation."

I pointed a finger at her.

"That was one time."

"It was twice."

"That's not the point."

"It kind of is."

I hated it when she had evidence.

Across the cafeteria, a burst of laughter erupted from the football team's table.

Against my better judgment, I glanced over.

Big mistake.

Hudson Blake was there.

Of course he was.

Surrounded by teammates.

Laughing at something.

Looking entirely too comfortable being the center of attention.

Like always.

Then, as if he could somehow feel me looking, his head turned.

Our eyes met.

My heart immediately forgot how to function.

Wonderful.

Fantastic.

Exactly what I needed.

For a second, neither of us looked away.

Then Hudson's expression softened.

One corner of his mouth lifted.

Not a huge smile.

Just enough.

Just enough to make my pulse stumble.

I immediately looked down at my lunch.

Absolutely not.

Not doing this.

Not participating.

Nope.

"Ava."

I groaned. "What?"

"You're blushing."

"I'm not."

"You are."

"I'm warm."

"It's sixty-three degrees."

"I'm emotionally warm."

Riley stared at me.

Then burst out laughing.

"What does that even mean?"

"It made sense in my head."

"It absolutely did not."

I buried my face in my hands.

"This is the worst day of my life."

"You are so dramatic."

"I learned from the best."

Riley looked suspiciously proud of that.

Which was concerning.

The rest of lunch passed with only minimal emotional damage.

Unfortunately, the school day wasn't over.

By the seventh period, the rumors had somehow gotten worse.

Everywhere I went, I caught people glancing at me.

Whispering.

Smirking.

At one point, a sophomore actually gave me a thumbs-up.

I still didn't know what that meant.

When the final bell rang, I practically sprinted toward my locker.

Freedom.

Sweet freedom.

I just needed to survive the parking lot.

Then I could go home.

Read a book.

Pretend none of this existed.

Easy.

Or at least it would have been.

"Ava."

I froze.

Slowly.

Painfully.

Because I recognized that voice.

Turning around, I found Hudson standing a few feet away.

Alone.

No teammates.

No audience.

Just him.

For a moment, neither of us moved.

The hallway buzzed with students rushing toward the exits.

Lockers slammed.

Teachers said goodbye.

But somehow everything felt quieter around us.

Hudson shifted his backpack higher on one shoulder.

"I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

My brain took a second to reboot.

"No."

"Good."

More silence.

Fantastic.

We were both awkward.

That was somehow comforting.

Finally, I cleared my throat.

"What do you need?"

One of his eyebrows lifted.

Direct.

Great.

Now I sounded rude.

To my surprise, Hudson laughed.

Not mockingly.

Genuinely.

"Fair question."

I waited.

He rubbed the back of his neck.

"I wanted to apologize."

Confusion immediately replaced panic.

"For what?"

His expression tightened.

"The auction thing."

A knot formed in my stomach.

"What auction thing?"

Hudson looked genuinely surprised.

"You don't know?"

A terrible feeling settled over me.

"Know what?"

He exhaled heavily.

"Some of the guys on the team started a rumor."

I already hated where this was going.

"What rumor?"

For the first time since I'd met him, Hudson actually looked embarrassed.

"They've been telling people I'm planning to bid on you."

My soul briefly left my body.

Then returned.

"What?"

"I know."

"What?"

"I KNOW."

His frustration sounded so genuine that I almost laughed.

Almost.

Instead, I stared.

Hudson groaned.

"They're idiots."

"That's one word for it."

A reluctant smile tugged at his mouth.

"Trust me. I've got several worse ones."

Despite everything, I laughed.

A real laugh.

And something shifted.

Just a little.

For the first time, Hudson Blake didn't feel like the untouchable football captain everyone worshipped.

He just felt like a guy.

A surprisingly funny guy.

A surprisingly normal guy.

And somehow, that realization was far more dangerous than any rumor.

This style reads much closer to a published YA romance novel while avoiding repetitive "said" tags and using actions, expressions, and character movement to identify speakers.