DARK SIDE

"You seem different."

I was stupefied. His hazel eyes sparkled like azure pools in the morning sunlight , intriguing me. This guy was clearly challenging me, but all I could see was his stunning beauty. It was impossible not to be fascinated by those bewitching, gleaming eyes.

" What's with you?" I exclaimed and pulled myself back reluctantly. He smirked, which made me feel inclined to hit him. And that's what I tried to do.

He dodged swiftly, without much effort, which was highly unusual. He is one of very few people who can dodge my attack. Since childhood I had always wanted to learn fighting. When I was twelve, I started combat training. My trainer always used to say that my combat abilities are likely to be inborn, as I learned various skills at ease.

I tried to give him a flying kick, but he managed to dodge that one easily again.

Seeing this guy dodge my attacks at ease baffled me. "It is really fascinating to see a woman so strong and skilfull. You are really interesting" , he smirked again. "But what I do not understand is why you lose your cool so easily over such small things."

That was true. I am a person with inadequate patience. I lose my temper too easily and attack people in order to punish them. I always feel that it is my dark side. I had once started meditating to control my temper, but that attempt failed too. I have often beaten up people when they have pissed me off. I had once beaten the shit out of a man just because he placed his hand on my shoulder. I never saw him after that.

The entire class was watching us intently. Students from other class had gathered to watch the commotion too.

I withdrew and took my seat to avoid the humiliating situation. Liam followed me after a while.

It was time for P.E class. I decided to ignore Liam and went towards the basketball court. I was good at basketball and secured the position of captain in the previous year. I wanted to retain the position this year. Sophie and Emma were in my team too.

"I'm gonna grab my shoes, Em. I will be back soon", I said and hurried to get my shoes.

As I was walking, I heard a loud cry.

"WATCH OUT!"

I turned and saw Liam beside me, a football in hand.

"You are too reckless. This football was gonna smash your tiny head", he said panting. It seems that he ran at high speed to save me from the ball.

I was surprised. Why did he save me? Did he not hate me? His behaviour is really unpredictable.

He caught me staring at him. "What? No thank you for saving your life?", he said.

"Well, we are even now."

"And how is that exactly?", he sounded confused.

"You pissed me off this afternoon, didn't you?", I said irritably.

"You still hold a grudge against me for that? Well, I apologize" , said Liam sincerely.

Am I dreaming or is he actually apologizing? Why would he apologize to me now?

"You owe me another apology."

He raised an eyebrow. "And what's that for?"

"You misbehaved with me on the first day, accusing me that I was into you."

He grinned and leaned in closer. "Well, aren't you?"

My heart started thumping so loudly that I was worried whether he was able to hear it. "You truly are a narcissist. Don't be so full of yourself. I will never fall for you", I said confidently.

He raised an eyebrow again. "Are you sure?"

"Yup. Frigging sure", I said fiercely.

I returned to my locker room to get my shoes. What's with him? Why is he acting so weird? I went back to the basketball court.

"St Mary's has won the championship for three years consecutively and this year should be no different. I will conduct a practice match now to decide the captain. The game starts now", the coach roared and blew his whistle.

The opponents' defense was not quite good, they were beating themselves off the dribble repeatedly. On offense, they kept throwing their ball out of bounds. Soph passed me the ball and I tried to make the shot. This time the defense was tight, I had no way of making the shot by going further, so I decided to take the risk.

The three pointer was a success. Em patted my back and coach gave a thumbs up. I can hear many people cheering me with zest, "Rock the game, our golden girl." When I looked sideways, I was stunned.

Liam was gazing at me with an impressed look. I felt my heart flutter at that.

"Where's your attention, Hayley?", Amelia, my teammate, yelled.

The first game ended and we where on lead. The opponent team looked frustrated.

The second game began. I did many no-look and behind-the-back passes, which helped our team do frequent shots. I pulled up two defenders ahead of me and pulled up from about 15 feet away, fading to the right. The ball hit the front of the rim and I caught it, my momentum carrying me backward. I raced forward and did a slam dunk.

All the spectators roared with enthusiasm. I could see Liam giving me a shocked and appreciating look.

"Are you really human? That slam dunk was really awesome. You are on fire today, Hayley", praised Emma.

After the game, the coach assembled us and announced the result.

"I hereby declare that Ms Hayley Brown will lead the team in the tournament this year."

This was followed by a huge round of applause and roar. I glanced and noticed Liam applauding too. I felt my cheeks burn.

"Are you alright? Your cheeks are flushed" said Sophie. She had noticed the whole thing and was clearly teasing me.

"I'm fine, Soph. Jeez, did you really have to say that out loud?" I complained.

Both Sophie and Emma giggled. Was I being too obvious? I wondered.

When I went to get some rest, I saw Liam heading towards me. "Your leaps are inhuman, you know?" he teased, handing me a bottle of water.

"When did you become so kind?" I asked, surprised at his gesture.

He chuckled. Seeing his lips quirk upward in a joyous smile was one of the most beautiful things I have seen. It was a really dazzling sight.

"What? Do you finally find me charming?" asked Liam with a grin.

"Don't kid yourself, moron. Your narcissism knows no bounds. Did you join any team?" I asked.

"Yeah. Football. So when are you coming over to cheer?" he teased.

I felt a thump. I imagined Liam playing football vigorously, his body drenched in sweat. I felt my cheeks burn again.

I overheard Edward and Sophie muttering to each other at a distance. "Don't you think that they have a thing?" asked Edward.

"Two days ago I would have refused to agree to that. But now it really seems that they have a thing ", grinned Sophie.

Do I really have a thing for him? Or is it just admiration? Why is this feeling so strange? Why can't I figure out my feelings?

"In your dreams, Smith" , I replied to Liam.