Part 3The Side Character's Study Guide to Love

Ethan and Chloe were officially a couple.

They were starting their decade-long romance saga.

Sure, they would fight, break up, and make up. But the book said: Ethan never stopped loving Chloe, and Chloe’s heart always belonged to Ethan.

A beautiful sentence for them. A sentence of execution for me.

I wasn't the only one suffering. Jax, the bad boy Second Lead, was losing his mind.

After the leads got together, Jax would cause all sorts of trouble because he couldn't have Chloe.

Originally, I was supposed to be his henchman in causing drama. But honestly, I was more worried about my midterm grades.

When the teacher beamed and told me I ranked second in the grade, I finally felt a little better.

From bottom of the class to second place.

My effort wasn't wasted.

Seating was assigned by rank.

Ethan was immovable at number one. I was assigned the seat right next to him.

Desk mates!

In any other romance novel, this is where the magic happens.

In reality? Nothing happened.

We sat inches apart, but we didn't speak for days.

He was naturally cold. I was terrified of exposing my feelings.

The only sentence he spoke to me was:

"Mara, your water bottle is leaking."

I wiped up the water and couldn't help correcting him. "My name is Maya..."

Ha.

He didn't even know my name.

We coexisted in silence until Chloe stormed in and started an argument with Ethan right in front of me.

She asked why he didn't tell her he was sitting next to me.

Ethan frowned, genuinely confused.

"Is that important?"

Since the start of the semester, he’d had several desk mates.

But Chloe seemed specifically threatened by me.

She looked at me, then at him, and ran off crying without saying another word.

Maybe it was because I was someone she knew. Imagine your boyfriend sitting next to your ex-friend and not mentioning it. It probably felt like a betrayal.

After lunch, I went to find Chloe to apologize.

"Chloe..."

I called her name, but she acted like I was invisible, laughing with her new friends.

"Omg, I watched that movie you mentioned, I almost died laughing..."

I stood there awkwardly for two seconds and decided not to push my luck.

I barely knew Chloe anymore. Bringing up the seating chart would just make it weird.

As for Ethan, he and I were truly strangers.

He would explain it to her.

Thinking about drama was exhausting. I stopped caring.

Two days later, someone blocked my path on the way home.

"You're Maya, right?"

It was Jax.

I had my headphones in, listening to an English lecture, so I didn't hear him at first.

I walked right past him.

He jumped in front of me, furious, and yanked my headphones off.

"..."

I frowned. "Can I help you?"

My face probably looked like stone.

Jax faltered for a second before finding his "tough guy" expression.

"Listen to me!"

He snarled, "I don't like Ethan, but I will not allow you to hurt Chloe or ruin their relationship."

What a weird thing to say.

I processed it for a moment. "How am I ruining their relationship?"

"Stop acting. You're shameless," Jax crossed his arms. "You're the one seducing Ethan, aren't you? Hmph. You’ve got guts, but you can't compare to a single hair on Chloe's head."

Me? Seducing Ethan?

How did I miss such a major life event?

"Do you have evidence?" I asked.

"Of course!" He said self-righteously. "The evidence is that you're sitting next to him!"

"...Do you not know seats are assigned by GPA?" I thought for a second. "Oh, you mean I should fail my exams on purpose so I don't have to sit next to him?"

"Exactly."

Jax smiled, satisfied that I understood.

Usually, I ignore people like him.

But he was rude, speaking nonsense, and insulting my academic integrity. That’s my red line.

"Unfortunately," I sneered, "I'm not like you. I didn't buy my way into this school. I don't treat my education like a joke."

Jax was a rich kid, forced in by his parents. He believed money could solve everything.

He had the capital to play games with life. I didn't.

Sitting next to Ethan was nice.

But even if he wasn't there, I deserved that seat.

I deserved to sit in his seat.

Jax was enraged and threatened to make me pay.

In the book, that was his character. Impulsive, but not evil. He was lashing out because he couldn't have the girl he loved.

I didn't take him seriously.

Until the next monthly exam.

I was caught cheating.