Page 50 of Pages of Amber

He had been a jerk sure, but a bully? Never. That had never been his intention. Not when he was obsessed with everything about her. Amber had arrested him from the moment he laid eyes on her. She had lured him in with her smile, held him spell bound with her presence and she hadn’t even said a word to him. He could still remember the first time he had seen her like it was yesterday.

Noah walked into school hesitantly at the chaos that greeted him. It had only been a few weeks since he had begun freshman year. The hustle and bustle in the huge hallways would take some getting used to. His brother had said so. But that morning, something else caught his attention. The halls of Redmington were crowded with students starting their day but today, an audience gathered at one of the lockers. Noah had barely squeezed through to the other side of the commotion when Emmett appeared at his side.

They had bumped into each other at the orientation programme at the start of the year and after introductions, including meeting Evelyn, Emmett’s twin, they’d hung out for a bit and sat together at lunch every day since. Noah had adjusted to their company. He had always been a bit quiet and with his brother being a few years older, he had learned to keep to himself. Emmett and Evelyn were a loud, lively and quirky pair but Noah appreciated their friendship. The grin on Emmett’s face puzzled him though. Who was that happy on a Monday?

“You almost missed the show.” He nudged Noah.

“Show?”

“Yeah. A new girl started today. I was at my locker when she came in. You should have seen the way they swarmed her. I heard she won a competition sponsored by a huge ballet theatre and a lot of students were there.”

“So she’s famous?”

“I guess. She’s pretty, Noah. Like crazy pretty. I saw her smile and it was like sunshine flooded the halls.” At Noah’s dubious stare, Emmett turned pink and stuttered, “I’m not kidding, okay? It was some next level sh–”

“Hi, guys.” Evelyn cut off her brother with a squeal, her grip tight as she grabbed onto their jacket sleeves. “Have you seen the new girl yet? She’s so pretty. Her name is Amber Coleman and she has the cutest bow in hair, plus her boots are lace-up leather Jimmy Choo! I heard she won a competition at the Fleur Elysian. I enrolled last week. I might get to share a class with her. Doesn’t that sound amazing?”

Her voice had gotten higher with every word, yanking Noah and Emmett to her height.

“See. She agrees. Do you believe me now?” Emmett rose a cheeky brow.

“Nope. The both of you are basically one person.” A sharp gasp left the twins. “I think I’ll wait and see what all the fuss is about for myself.”

Evelyn scoffed, finally releasing them. “The only thing I share with this one is blood. I’m smarter, funnier, prettier…”

“Well, I’m handsomer. I beat you there.”

“Handsomer isn’t a word, idiot. Point proven.”

“I’ll show you a point proven.”

Noah stifled a laugh at the chaos he had caused. He took a glance at the crowd at the lockers. Who was this girl? And as though in answer to his question, the crowd parted and he saw her.

Amber Coleman.

Hair like spun gold.

Eyes like the deepest sea, calling seamen to their doom.

She smiled and Noah knew Emmett had been right. A smile with the warmth of the sun. A smile that got him tongue tied. A smile that brought him to his knees.

He’d opened his big mouth and ruined any chance at friendship back then, but it was inevitable that he would be pulled into Amber. Every one of their arguments had made him more intrigued with her wit, every mention of her name made his chest thump. Over the past few weeks, they had gotten closer than he had ever dreamed possible. In all of those dreams, not once had he thought he would get to kiss Amber. Noah could barely believe it had happened and he had been there as she kissed him. Or he kissed her. He wasn’t sure who had done what. Honestly, he didn’t care. That impossible dream had come true by some miracle, but he feared that it would never happen again. That it had only been a one-time thing.

Alone in that study before Amber had joined him, Noah had wondered for a split second if this would crumble the fragile friendship they had built. Amber could decide to push him out. She could cut him out of her life without looking back. He wouldn’t be the same if she did. Not after the hope of a chance with her. He had endured years of standing on the opposing side. For all the banter and arguments, Noah had found himself looking forward to it and even purposely instigating a lot of them. If that was the only way he could have her, he would. He hadn’t minded that it came with being on the receiving end of her scowls, her sharp words, her claws.

On the contrary, it made him happy. Everyone saw the perfect, sunshine-y Amber. He saw the fierce and outspoken Amber. He had a part of her no one had seen before. A part no one else was privy to. Of course, he was helpless to do anything but fall for it.

He watched as Amber spread that warmth to the sophomores she was talking to. She laughed, tipping her head back and his feet dragged towards her so he could hear the enchanting sound.

“I can’t believe you made Noah do an interview with the press club. It totally changed the way everyone saw him! When I first came here, I thought he hated everyone and could kill with his glare if you even looked at him wrong.” It was still a hot topic that Amber had turned him from a scowling, scary monster.

“Yeah, I thought you two argued all the time.”

“Me too! It was definitely a surprise seeing you two on the interview but so sweet too.”

“I’m glad everything worked out.” Amber shrugged. “Turns out Noah wasn’t as much of a pain to work with as I thought.”

His lips quirked. “We make a good team, m’lady.”

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