My Obsession With Chloe Claire

Luke's P.O.V

Thanksgiving was supposed to be a time where I could spend time and connect with family, but my mind and body wasn't having it. As usual, Jacob was at our Thanksgiving dinner like he did every year since his family didn't celebrate because of his sorry for an excuse of a dad. Jacob would elbow me and tell me to lighten up, but I couldn't. Even my sisters thought something was wrong with me.

I went back to school with my heart heavy and my mind clouded. I stared at the text from Chloe that she sent me days ago.

Chloe: Happy Thanksgiving Luke!

I knew I should've replied to her, but I was busy at the time and then time seemed to slip away from me until I felt like it was too late to respond.

That week I trained harder for our playoff game on Saturday, trying to keep my mind away from Chloe. Normally we would've had class except our chemistry and theatre appreciation class let us out until the final day of our exam. That would be the final time we meet. I hated thinking that I wouldn't get to see Chloe until then, but maybe it was for the better. I wouldn't have to see Chloe and Kason together.

During football practices I couldn't help but notice how distant Kason was from me. I thought it was the other way around, but apparently, he didn't want me near me as much as I didn't want to be near him.

What was even weirder was how Hailee kept texting me every day. I understood that we were friends, but were we really that good of friends? I didn't think so. I could understand if she asked me about chemistry homework, but it wasn't even about that. She asked me about Thanksgiving and how she and her family went on a cruise. Fun.

I was in my room about to head over to football practice when my phone buzzed on my desk. I picked it up to see:

Chloe: Hey Luke! Do you have time to meet up? I kinda need to talk to you about something.

Talk to me about something? I looked at the time. At this rate I was going to be late, but at the same time I really wanted to hear what she had to say.

Me: Sorry, Chloe about not answering your text earlier. I got really busy and then once I had the chance to respond I thought it would be awkward to text back a couple days later. I have to go to football practice. Do you want to talk about it later?

Chloe: Oh, that's okay, and sure! When would be a good time?

I thought about it for a minute. Tomorrow was the big game, so I knew I couldn't do that then. I had to travel across the country that entire day and then come back Sunday night and review our game. So, the next two days were automatically taken up. I thought about Monday, except that I had three exams to take that day so that was a big no, and then there was Tuesday, the day I took my chemistry and theater appreciation exam. Tuesday was officially my last day of school for the semester, so maybe after my exams I could talk to her then?

Me: What about Tuesday after our exams?

Chloe: Sounds good except that I need to go somewhere immediately after our final exam. You can meet me up at my dorm about an hour after?

Me: Okay! Sounds like a plan :)

Chloe: See you then :)

I smiled, my heart fluttering a little. At least I would get to see one last time before we inevitably split for the rest of the semester. Just thinking about next semester without her in any of my classes was starting to hurt.

The following days are absolutely insane. Just from winning our playoff games made me exhausted and excited, knowing that we had a chance to go to the National Championship. Better yet, it was just my freshman year and the team had about made their way to the championsh.i.p.s. We were on our way to winning another title and that filled me with excitement. Monday was crazy for me as I had to do three exams, praying that I at least got a B on each since I barely had any time to study because of the game.

Tuesday morning my body was aching with each step I took. It was even a struggle to go to the bathroom. I took a cold shower to relax my muscles and when I got out I saw several messages on my phone. I picked it up to see:

Marshall: LUKE.

Marshall: I need you to call me.

Marshall: Luke this is important. I know you don't have to go to class yet, so you better get your a.s.s on your phone with me right now.

I smiled, but it quickly faded. I wondered what it was about. I proceeded to call her.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Thank God you picked up," Marshall sighed of relief. "I needed to call you to tell you something important," she said, sounding a little jittery.

"What is it?" I asked, rubbing my damp hair with a towel. "I only have a couple minutes before I head over to my first exam."

"Has Claire told you that she's no longer dating Kason?" she asked.

What? She was no longer dating Kason? What?! "No," I said, trying to remain as calm as possible. So something did end up going wrong. "What happened? Is she okay?"

"Leave it to you to think something major happened," she laughed. "But shit. She was supposed to tell you, not me."

"I'm sure she'll understand," I said, throwing the towel into the hamper. I couldn't help but smile. She was no longer dating Kason. She was no longer dating Kason.

"But anyway, I wanted to call you to tell you to confess your a.s.s to Claire. I won't even bother explaining how I know that you like her other than I just know. Now go confess your feelings to her, Luke."

If my jaw could've dropped to the floor it would've. How come literally everyone knew that I liked Chloe except Chloe? This was beginning to be really maddening, but that was beside the point.

"So, now's your chance to finally say something to her before she goes off and finds someone else that's into her," Marshall said with sass. Typical Marshall.

"Um…" I didn't know what to say. I was overwhelmed at the very least. I had to gather my thoughts and feelings first. Oh, to hell with that. My thoughts and feelings were practically thrown out the window.

"You can thank me later," she laughed, and I smiled.

"Do you know if she likes me or not?" I quickly asked. It was probably a stupid thing to ask, but I genuinely wanted to know.

"Boy you better get your a.s.s over there and find out for yourself," she continued to laugh, and I laughed along with her.

Marshall was right. I better get my a.s.s over to Chloe and confess my feelings for her. This was my chance–my last chance before school let out. I wasn't about to f.u.c.k this up.

"Thanks, Mar–I mean Chloe."

"No, Claire's your Chloe and I'm your Marshall," she said. If I could hear a smile through a voice that's how I heard it then. "Now go get her tiger," she said and hung up her phone.

My mind was preoccupied the entire time I took my chemistry exam. I noticed how Kason sat in an entirely different row, leaving me my designated seat next to Chloe. Chloe and I murmured our hellos and then took the exam.

I probably looked like I was cheating because I kept glancing over in her direction, but I couldn't help it. She looked so beautiful with her honey colored waves pulled back, and I loved the way her makeup brought out her perfectly shaped almond brown eyes. I might've been a little too obsessed, but I couldn't deny how I felt anymore.

Chloe finished the exam before me–go figure–and she waited patiently in the lobby for me.

Smile if you like me, I thought to myself as I approached her.

She gave me one of her best goddamn smiles yet, clinging her pink binder tightly to her c.h.e.s.t.

F.u.c.k. I was in awe of her. How could someone this amazing exist? The only answer was that it was God's work.

"Hey Luke," she said sweetly.

"Hey," I smiled back, my eyes resting on her shoulders. "You know the routine. Give me your backpack."

"So demanding," she joked, rolling her eyes as she handed her backpack over to me.

I could feel myself grin stupidly as we walked to theater appreciation like old times–except this would be the last time. With her pink backpack slung across my shoulder and with Chloe at my side, I knew today was going to be a good day.

The exam for theater appreciation didn't take as long as the chemistry exam, especially for Chloe. She was done in the matter of fifteen minutes and she bolted out of the classroom before anyone else. I wanted her wait on me except that I knew she had to do something else before we got to talk anyway. I figured when I went to her dorm it would be the perfect time to confess my feelings for her, which made me all giddy inside. I couldn't believe that this was about to happen. In an hour or so I would finally tell her how I feel, and I had no idea how she would respond. Knowing her, she might blush and instantly become awkward, but who could really tell what was going to happen because I couldn't. Focus, Luke. Get your exam over and then you can think about this sort of thing, I thought to myself.

I finished my exam thirty minutes later and turned it in with the biggest smile on my face. I waved goodbye to Jess, who was still working on her exam, and I walked out of the door. I decided to start packing everything up in my dorm while I waited for an hour to pass.

Jacob was also in there packing his things up and as soon as he saw me walk through the door he asked, "What's with the face?"

"Chloe and Kason aren't dating anymore," I smiled. "And I'm going to tell her how I feel in about an hour."

"Oh really?" Jacob smiled as he took down several posters off the walls. "Good for you, man. I sincerely hope she likes you back."

"I do too," I said as started taking all of my movies off the tv stand and putting them into a cardboard box.

I spent about an hour packing everything up, and even though I didn't pack everything, I packed more than I would've if I hadn't packed anything at all. I left my dorm feeling nervous yet excited as I head to Chloe's dorm.

It didn't take long before I got to Chloe's dorm, and I was knocking on her door before I knew it.

The door opened to reveal Hailee in a crop top and short shorts. Her thin lips curled into an ecstatic smile. "Hey Luke," she said and tucked one of her thick, curly strands of dark hair behind her ear.

"Hey Hailee," I smiled. "Can I come in?"

"Of course, you can," she smiled and stepped aside as I walked into her dorm.

I could see that a lot of her stuff was packed already. She must've been extremely busy since our chemistry exam to have packed this much of her stuff already. Either that or she prepared earlier.

"I know why you're here, Luke," she said and closed the door.

"You do?" I asked, scrunching my face in confusion. How come literally everyone knew that I was going to confess my feelings for Chloe today? I didn't realize I was an open book.

"Duh," she said, her bony fingers trailing across the kitchen island. "I noticed how you have gotten closer to me all these years…and with good reason too. You might as well just admit it to me now Luke."

My ears pricked in alarm and my eyes widened. "Admit what?"

She giggled and stopped a foot away from me. "I know you're too shy to admit it, Luke. I know that you like me."

WHAT. This was news to me. For a second, I thought she was joking, but then I saw how serious Hailee actually was. She actually believed that I liked her–like that. "I'm sorry Hailee, but that isn't true. I don't like you. As a friend, sure, but as something more? No." I was trying to be as nice as I could. I knew I was probably going to hurt her feelings and I didn't want to give her any more reason to hate me more than she already had.

"You don't have to lie, Luke. I already know. Chloe told me," she c.o.c.ked her head, placing her hands on her nonexistent h.i.p.s.

"Chloe told you?" Now this was even more confusing. How the hell did she come to that conclusion?

"Yeah, she said that Kason told her," she said, taking a step closer to me.

That. Little. Bitch. "I'm sorry Hailee but Kason had it wrong," I said while taking a step back. I didn't understand why Hailee kept getting closer.

Hailee laughed uneasily. "Just admit it, Luke. You like me and I like you. Now let's just get this over with so that I can kiss you."

K-kiss me? Oh. Hell. No. I was not about to let any other girl try to put their lips against mine. They were reserved for someone else. I backed away some more, hoping I wasn't showing any fear on my face. "Hailee I don't like you. I don't know how else for that to sink in other than just outright tell you that I like Chloe Claire."

She stopped, narrowing her eyes at me. "C-Chloe C-Claire?"

I nodded, feeling myself ease a little bit. "Yeah. I like Chloe Claire. I always have. You remember that day many years ago when I asked you if she liked me? You were the first one to ever know that I like her. Now I came here to tell her how I feel so where is she?"

Hailee's eye twitched and her eyes became darker. I had never seen her expression twist that way before. She was angry–beyond angry. She was infuriated. "WHAT THE F.U.C.K LUKE?" she yelled. "YOU MEAN TO COME OVER HERE AND TELL ME THAT YOU LIKE CHLOE CLAIRE?"

"Hailee calm down–"

"NO, I WON'T CALM DOWN. HOW DOES SOMEONE LIKE YOU LIKE SOMEONE LIKE HER? SHE'S FAT AND UGLY AND YOU DESERVE SOMEONE LIKE ME," she snapped, sn.a.k.e.d her arms around my neck, and attempted to kiss me.

Luckily, I've had enough experience with girls trying to kiss me to know when to pull away. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Hailee was Chloe's best friend. How could she do this to her? "Hailee, I thought you two were best friends," I said as calmly as I could. I clenched my fists until they were a pale white. I was trying so hard not to get angry for Chloe.

Hailee backed away from me, fuming. "F.U.C.K HER. I DON'T LIKE HER LUKE. I NEVER HAVE! SHE'S A FUGLY FAT F.U.C.K WHO DESERVES TO ROT IN HELL FOR ALL I CARE! AND YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DESERVE? SOMEONE RICH, BEAUTIFUL, AND SKINNY LIKE ME!"

This was crossing the line–way over the line. "Don't you DARE ever compare yourself to someone as amazing, hilarious, and beautiful as Chloe. It doesn't matter how hard you try, you could NEVER be like her–EVER." If she wasn't a girl I would've already punched her, but at the same time, the status of girl should really be taken away from Hailee. She didn't even deserve that. She was a monster all along and I didn't even realize it until now.

Hailee started to cry, and I would've felt bad for her except that she happened to be the most horrible person of all time.

"So, you've been undermining Chloe all these years? And for what? For a chance that I could like you?" I asked, piecing everything together. I stared at her in horror. "You've been the reason why Chloe and I stopped being friends. You've been the reason why she hated me. You've been manipulating us the entire time?" I couldn't f.u.c.k.i.n.g believe it. Hailee was the biggest bitch I had ever met. She deserved to rot in hell–not that I would wish that upon anyone, but if I truly did she would damn well deserve it.

"She doesn't deserve you," she sobbed, taking her glasses off. "Chloe doesn't f.u.c.k.i.n.g deserve you, Luke. Can't you see how great we would be together?"

"No Hailee. You don't f.u.c.k.i.n.g deserve anyone," I said, feeling the veins pop out of my neck. I never thought I would meet someone who angered me more than Kason, but I was proved wrong. Hailee was the worst of all.

Hailee fell to the floor crying, burying her face in her arms. I would've felt sorry for her except there wasn't a bone in my body that felt pity for her. She deserved to be sad. I hated her. No, I didn't hate her. I knew we weren't supposed to hate people, but trust me, if I could have hated someone, it would be her.

Flashbacks of Hailee being a questionable friend came back to me. The time where she was going to have Chloe sit all by herself in a classroom full of people she didn't know. The time where she ditched her to hang out with someone more 'popular.' The times where Hailee got a little too close to me…

"Where is Chloe?" I gritted my teeth.

"She's not f.u.c.k.i.n.g here!" she yelled. "I told her that you and I were dating so she left her dorm."

And just when I thought Hailee couldn't get any worse.

"And where is she now?" I asked, feeling my heart pump a little harder.

"How do I f.u.c.k.i.n.g know? The band room?" she answered, continuing to cry.

At least she told me where she went, I thought and went out of her dorm.