Page 37 of Didn't See That Coming

What the hell? I stare at him. There’s so much wrong with his statement I don’t even know where to begin. Have I zonedout so much over the past few days that I’ve completely missed all the stupid crap Jonas has been up to?

“Hang on, what illustrator?” I say. “Are we even supposed to hire professional illustrators? Doesn’t that kind of go against the whole point of a school project?”

Jonas rolls his eyes and keeps talking, as though I haven’t said anything. “He costs quite a bit, like three thousand US dollars, but it’s fine, guys, don’t worry about it, I’ve got it covered.”

“Actually,” Liam says, straightening up in his seat, “Kiki made a good point. First off, I don’t think we’re supposed to be hiring anyone. We’re supposed to do everything ourselves.”

“Dude,” Jonas groans. “Come on, this is gonna count toward our final grades. It’s not the time to be all virtuous and shit, okay?”

“Who’s the artist?” Peishan says.

Jonas brightens up and turns on his iPad. “You guys are gonna freak out when you see his work. He did the concept art for the latestTomb Raider,andMetal Gear Solid,and…”

The more he talks, the more I want to groan, because I know the character designs for these games, and the female characters are known for—

“See?” Jonas says, holding up his iPad. And yep, just as I thought, it’s a collage of illustrations of female characters with melon-sized boobs and tiny waists, dressed in outfits so tight that I wonder how they move without everything squeaking.

I can’t help snorting. “Seriously, Jonas? I mean, this is worse even than what I was expecting, and trust me, my expectations were already at rock bottom.”

“Gamers have a very specific art style, okay, Crazy Kiki?” Jonas snaps. “Just because you don’t understand it—”

“Um, actually, I don’t like them either,” Liam says. “They’re too…I don’t think the school would approve. And can we cool it with the whole ‘Crazy Kiki’ thing?”

Golden light floods my chest, flowing all the way down my arms, warming my cheeks. I thought that I didn’t need anyone standing up for me. And I don’t; I’m more than able to stand up for myself. But still, when Liam tells Jonas to back off from the “Crazy Kiki” thing, I feel as though he’s just reached down into a very dark tunnel and pulled me out. I try not to stare at Liam, but I’ll admit it, it’s a challenge.

“Obviously, we would ask him to tone it down for our project, make it more school-appropriate,” Jonas says slowly, as though we’re particularly stupid, completely ignoring the “Crazy Kiki” comment.

“Why not just do it ourselves to begin with, so we don’t have to mess around with this…this mess?” I say.

Jonas narrows his eyes at me. “Oh, you can draw this well, can you?”

Admittedly, ignoring the humongous boobs and hyper-arched backs, this artist is gifted. His drawings are well-rendered, light and shadow painted on meaningfully to bring them to life. I mean, he’s a pro. There’s no way I would be able to draw as well as he does.

“That’s the point: none of us are pros,” Liam says. “What you’re proposing is actually cheating, and I’m not prepared to risk flunking the whole project because you don’t want to do the work.”

Oooh, snap.

“Yeah, I don’t really wanna cheat either,” Peishan mutters. “Sorry, but if anyone ever found out, we’d be expelled.”

“They won’t find out unless one of you squeals,” Jonas hisses.

“Oh, shut up, Jonas. And your design sucks, okay? All of this?” I gesture at the collage of cartoon women. “It’s all really sexist, and I’m over it. Vote to scrap it all and start over?”

“Aye,” Liam says immediately, raising his hand. “Agreed, it’s sexist and I have faith we can come up with something better.”

There’s a moment of shocked silence. Everything inside me is fighting against meeting Peishan’s eye, but when I finally do, I see that there’s some sort of internal battle raging behind her placid features. Liam looks at her and nods, and Peishan’s features soften. Sighing, she nods. “Aye. I agree, I’d like us to come up with something that’s less…booby.”

Oh my god. I can’t believe it. It’s as though golden light is spearing down into me, bringing everything back to life. I smirk at Jonas. “The ayes have it. We’re starting over.”

Okay, so maybe that was somewhat obnoxious, but hey, can anyone blame me?

Jonas snaps his mouth shut and looks like he’s grinding his teeth for a moment. Then he forces a smile. “Sure, okay. Whatever you guys want. I’m a team player.” Like hell he is. In school and onWarfront Heroes,I know he’s the opposite of a team player. But it doesn’t even matter, because there are three of us and only one of him.

When the recess bell goes off, I automatically start headingfor the library. A few steps outside of the classroom, I sense a presence next to me. I look up and do a double take, because Liam is walking beside me. He smiles at me and my insides go all gooey. God, I thought Liam was cute before, but after what just happened in class, he’s gone from cute to absolutely edible, and I’m not prepared to deal with it.

“This is not the way to the canteen,” I say.

Liam nods slowly. “Believe it or not, after spending the last ten years here, I’m aware of that.”

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