Days pass

                                    

                                          
Days passed, each one almost just like the one before. Enjoying my spot as Class Captain, but still trying to avoid Tedros despite enjoying Beatrix's judgy glares across the room.
"He's mine. Witch," she often said as she bumped into me on purpose whenever we passed eachother. Once in a while, I'd place something gross on her in return. Rotten flesh, animal manure or even a mild curse to make her stink.
But even with her feeble attempts at straying Tedros away from me, he still managed to get to me. 
"Here," he once said, handing me a hot pink rose. I drew in its stench. "Did you bathe this in your cologne?" I asked him. He had shrugged in reply and walked way to his friends who were still judging him off of his taste in women.
I had burned the rose later that day.
What could I do to keep him away and give me some peace? I tried applying fake warts and bathing my face is mud, but nothing worked. He had kept telling me that I was a princess over and over again, and not being able to stray him away or change my appearance for the worst got me thinking he might be right. Of course, I burned this mindset away with the horrendous rose he gifted me.
As I watched it burn, a note had slipped under my door. None of my peers were in our dorm room that moment. I picked the note up. Hort again.
Don't try to change your appearance. Keep neglecting him, and he'll go away. -H.H
He had been gifting me all sorts of cruel things lately. More withered roses, putrid snacks, a jar of beetles and even live snakes. The first couple of days he had been doing this, I had nearly puked and given it away to my roomates for them to do whatever they wanted with, but as he kept insisting and not giving up, his friendly actions grew on me.
I started smiling whenever I'd recieve something from him. I was more open to him hanging out with us, and even had a couple of conversations with him from time to time.
Of course, everyone in the group noticed my change of actions and wouldn't stop harrassing me with questions. "Do you like him?", "Are you really going soft?", "Oh my god, are you in love?" These were the questions most frequently asked. I often rolled my eyes judgingly in reply to them in an attempt to seem uninterested, but in reality, I was falling in love.
I was in love with his smile, laughter, dumb jokes, accent, everything. And I wanted him to love me too. Was I really that different from my mother?
People had of course begun gossiping and spreading rumours about Tedros' feelings for a Never, but this thankfully (for him) blew over as soon as the Trial by Tale was announced. A Trial by Tale is when the 10th top ranked Nevers and Evers are chosen to survive a whole night in the Blue Forest to see who survives the longest. We'll have to face attacks from othe other students and the School Master's traps. Survival of the fittest.
Days kept going like this, and all was swell.. but. But I had a feeling that I was being watched. Every move I made was being carefully observed by someone. Someone with a higher power. Someone I could not see.