Page 4 of Unmasking You (Hidden Hearts #1)

Chapter 3

Jamie

Ten years ago

First day at school sucks.

It sucks because you’re the new person starting in a new school. It sucks because you had to leave all your friends behind. And it sucks because everyone here is rich and you’re the only outsider. When you live on a council estate and not in a Victorian house worth more than what my dad will make in his entire working life, then you’re the odd man out.

Feeling out of place is an understatement. The king of understatements in my case.

I adjust the shoulder straps to give myself courage to enter the building, and then, with a fortifying breath, I take the first step into my new school life.

I enter the classroom, and all eyes land on me. I’m a couple of minutes late because I had to report to reception before being shown how to get to my form room. I’m like a koala in a zoo, some kind of rare species everyone can’t take their eyes off.

“Mr Wilson, welcome.”

I turn towards the voice, and a smiling face welcomes me. At that, some of the tension leaves my body, and I smile back. The teacher has salt-and-pepper hair, none of which is out of place, and the rest of her shouts money.

I take in the room, and I’m not surprised by how clean everything is. The walls are as white as snow, curtains as yellow as the sun, and even the air I’m breathing smells of money. The desks, evenly spaced, are pristine, as if they were just delivered. No scratches, no names, and no bad words in capital letters. It’s as if it’s their first day.

“Mr Wilson?” Mrs Brown’s voice brings my attention back to her.

“Yes?”

Her face scrunches, probably from my lack of manners. I’m probably too low class for her taste.

“Mr Campbell.”

As I turn, I nearly swallow my tongue. The boy she’s talking to resembles one of those models you see in magazines. He’s gorgeous.

Maybe I should stop staring.

“Madam.”

His voice is deep and melodic, and I don’t totally understand why my skin is so sensitive to it.

I focus my attention back to what’s happening in the room. Even a clueless guy like me can understand how important it is for me to understand the dynamics and the correct way to present myself and act. I already stick out like a sore thumb because I don’t act all high and mighty like they do. I don’t smell of money, and I don’t speak posh.

That’s the way I should address her. If I could only pull it off, like Mr Campbell just did.

“Can you please show Mr Wilson around for a few days?”

It’s posed as a question, but it’s clear she is not expecting a no.

“Happy to, Mrs Brown.”

I must look like a rabbit caught in the headlights. My eyes have a mind of their own and insist on staring at him.

“Mr Wilson, you can take a seat next to Mr Campbell.”

“Yes madam.”

The smile she sends my way gives me a little breather. I can do this. I must do this. The well-being of my family depends on this.

I walk towards my guide. He’s not mine. And what the fuck am I saying? Internally, I shake my head, hoping to make it work properly.

“Hi,” Mr Campbell greets me as soon as I’m close enough. “I’m Shane,” he continues, and then smiles, and I blink a few times, blinded by how beautiful it is. How beautiful he is.

Dark brown hair and captivating ocean-blue eyes. The more I look into them, the more I want to fall into the ocean they so resemble. His smiling mouth shows his teeth, and they’re so straight, just like those actors you see on TV. He could actually be one. Or a model. His face is still kid-like, but he exudes an air of manhood. I could probably never compare to him. His skin looks so pale in comparison with his hair, and his body is filled in all the right places. I’m sure he has a flock of girls around him all the time trying to date him.

“Hi,” I say, but my voice is all broken, so I try again after taking a deep breath. “Hi, I’m Jamie,” I say, and like him I smile, but knowing—because I look at myself in the mirror every day—mine is nothing close to his.

“Good morning, everyone.”

“Good morning, Mrs Brown.”

“Now that we’re all here, we can start.”

I zone out, too busy checking out everything without being too obvious; I don’t want to be told off on my first day. The class is bigger, but there are fewer students. The fortune they pay here must allow them to have smaller classes. I like it, and I can’t wait to see my timetable. I hope I have computer science. I really hope it’s better than the public school.

Programming, algorithms, writing code in Payton—that’s my jam. That stuff I understand. Being social? Being sought after? That’s not me. I’m more like a silent shadow or the person who stands in a corner looking out of place. I don’t do small talk. I don’t even know what small talk is. People say I talk like an encyclopaedia, and my small talk is discussing a code issue. So while normal people talk about TV programs and music, I talk about sequence and symbols.

“Jamie,” comes a whisper that gets all my attention, and then a hand lands on my forearm. My body vibrates like my phone does when I put it on to charge. A zing spreads through me and sets panic off inside me.

What’s happening to me?

“Hey, Jamie.”

I turn toward Shane, trying to look natural and not like I’m having a meltdown because I’m hot and bothered by a guy on my first day of school. And the way he says my name, oh my, if my prick didn’t react a little.

“Yeah,” I whisper back, discreetly wiggling in my chair to make space while using my jacket to cover my arousal. I count numbers inside my head to push it away. I can’t get caught like this or I’ll be in trouble.

His happy smirk at my lack of manners makes me believe I could really fit in.

“You should listen, because Mrs Brown is going to ask questions.”

I go into panic mode because between drifting off into La-La Land, and then having my brain scattered by his touch, I haven’t listened to anything.

Shane’s snort has the class turning to us, and I freeze like a movie when someone presses pause. I bet I have one of those funny distorted faces that makes me look stupid.

“Is there a problem, Mr Campbell?”

“Apologies, madam. I was explaining to Mr Wilson where to find the restrooms.” His smile is apologetic, but with the undertone of command that comes from money.

“Thank you, Mr Campbell. If it’s that urgent, could you please show him where to go?”

Shane’s up before I can say anything. What a start to the day.

He looks at me, and I’m up and following him outside the room.

“What are we doing?” I ask as soon as we’re out of Mrs Brown’s view.

“We’re getting acquainted.”

“Couldn’t we have done this during the break?”

“Nope. People don’t leave me alone during break, and I wanted to get to know the new boy in school.”

I’m sure Shane Campbell is going to give me a lot of trouble. He’s wild and clearly does what he wants, but in a way that makes people feel like they’re the ones deciding.

“Do you always get things your way?” A shadow passes over his face, but it’s gone as quickly as it appeared.

“Most of the time.”

It sounds like a lie, but I don’t really know him so I keep my mouth shut.

“So, who are you, Mr Wilson?”

“Jamie. Don’t make me feel like my dad, at least when it’s just us.”

Shane snorts and makes me giggle. I’d never been funny before, and I’m proud of it. I love seeing the prince smile. I wonder how he would react if I called him that.

Shane keeps walking, and I follow, not really paying attention to where we’re going. In the meantime, he keeps asking questions. He really wants to get to know me, and that makes me happy. Maybe I’ll have made a friend before the day is gone.

He opens a door, and I follow without really paying attention until the stalls and the sinks finally give me a sign of where we are. He really showed me where the toilets were. Shame I wasn’t looking where I was going.

“Why are you here?”

“I won a scholarship.”

“Oh, you’re that guy.”

“What does that mean?” And why does his thinking I’m some kind of lowlife hurt so much?

“We were expecting some kind of genius, but you seem normal to me.”

It’s my time to snort, and I like it when his eyes sparkle.

“What were you expecting?”

“Not you.” The way he says it seems to have another meaning, but I don’t want to look stupid so I keep my mouth shut.

“Which school were you at before?”

I reply, opening like a flower under the sun. He fires one question after another, eager to know more.

I, on the other hand, the one always in the shadows, am now basking in the spotlight. And the way Shane seems to hang on to my every word makes me want to share more, keeping all his attention on me forever. The thought scares me because it has implications I don’t want to think about.

The more we talk, the more we lean towards each other. It’s like we’re two planets who have entered the same orbit, and now we’re close to colliding.

Time seems to catch up with me, and afraid of having problems on my first day, I move things along.

“How long do we stay here?” I ask him.

“Why? Are you a coward?”

What kind of question is that?

“Do you always act like a spoiled child?” I ask, annoyed by his behaviour. What the hell?

“No, you’re not,” he says with a smile that seems filled with pride. “I like you,” he continues, before throwing an arm around my shoulders and pulling me towards him.

His bigger body is hugging mine, enveloping me like a blanket and touching me like no one ever has before. The beat of my heart is so loud that everything else around us is silent. I pull away, afraid he can hear it and will realise what his touch is doing to me, even if I don’t fully understand myself.

His grip tightened a bit at first, but then he let me go.

Was it my imagination, or did his hand linger on me?

I leave that thought behind in the toilets and focus on surviving my first day. I’m glad today is all about giving us information for exams, timetables, deadlines, and revision.

One thing I can’t shake off, though, probably because it’s sitting next to me, is Shane.

I’m sure I made a friend today, and things are going to be amazing here.