Read Captivated (An Affliction Novel) for Free Online

Shakespeare.” Mrs. Le read the cover out loud. “Now, can anyone tell me a little bit about him?” she asked. No one raised their hand. “Well, since no one in this class knows about him, I’ll let you all read the entire packet.”
    The class awed in disapproval but I was ok on the idea. It wouldn’t hurt to read; it could’ve been worse.
    “Since you’re all so excited about it, we can also have a quiz at the end of class,” Mrs. Le more than threatened, “Ok, let’s get started. Thank you.” she sang out.
    The sound of papers shuffling filled the room. The packet was about twenty pages thick and I was already bored. Regretting the fact that I was okay with that at first, I began to skim through it. I was almost half-way through when my eyes began to get heavy. To prevent myself from falling asleep in my seat, I lifted my head and looked around the room. Most everyone in the class had their faces buried in their packets. One person had her head down and I desperately wanted to do the same. Time was really dragging. When I began to read again, I did so without really taking in any information.
    Flashes of Dean and Shane’s confrontation started running through my mind. Was Shane someone from Dean’s past? He looked new to me. Brand spanking new. Maybe they had a run-in before. Maybe one of them stole the other’s girlfriend in the past? No. Dean hadn’t had any and he seemed to be the one that hated Shane, not the other way around. I wondered if the girls standing next to them heard what they had said.
    The pencil I was absent-mindedly playing with accidentally slipped out of my hands and landed on the floor between Dean and me. Without looking, I lowered my hand and felt around for it. There was a hand already down there. I directed my attention to it and as I glanced up the muscular arm, an uncomfortable chill ran through me. There I was, face to face with Dean. My eyes landed on his, and they were penetrating mine with extreme intensity. His lagoon green eyes were dark and widening as if he was witnessing something spectacular. I couldn’t look away from him. I had never seen him with any expression on his face other than coldness. My eyes traveled across his face in examination. Yup…freckles, but they were faint. I saw that he had a large scar on his cheekbone, the kind of scar that didn’t even remotely diminish his appearance. In my opinion, it made him more attractive. His eyes sparkled and were somehow a brighter shade of green. I felt a tide of joy wash over me. An electrifying force surged through me and it wasn’t painful at all. In fact, it felt amazing! Like nothing I had ever experienced before. But, why? I tore my eyes from his and looked down at my hand. It was set on top of his. He had left it there, touching mine, and it made my heart soar.
    The bell rang. I quickly grabbed my pencil from beneath Dean’s hand and slipped it in my book bag. I still felt his eyes boring into me. I hesitated to look as I stood up and headed towards the door. But from the corner of my eye, I saw him staring at me still. Summoning up some bravery, I turned my face completely at him to let him know I was aware. Usually, guys turned away quickly when caught, but not Dean. His face was etched in desperation.
    I met up with Markus at the door. Once again, I glanced back. Dean was standing that time, still looking my way and his eyes were pleading as if he didn’t want me to leave.
    What was more unbelievable to me, was that the second I moved my hand away from his…an emptiness had crept inside me.

 
     
     
     
     

     
     
    he week went by fast and it was now Friday, Tanya and I walked into first hour just as the bell sounded. Mr. Shapiro had switched everyone’s desk around to avoid as much chatter as possible, as a result, putting me towards the back.
    “Good morning.” Mr. Shapiro stood in front of the class with his hands inside his pant pockets. He glanced over at the time and looked at the door.