His Silent Intention

"What I wanted to say is... I'm breaking up with you."

Blair crossed her arms, her lips forming a tight line. Clearly, her boyfriend was off his rocker to even ponder saying something like this. "Have you been smoking recently?"

It was a genuine question. She wouldn't think him stupid enough to leave her, especially at a time like this.

Logan blinked, astounded at her response. "What? No, Blair, I'm not under any kind of influence. I'm sincerely breaking up with you."

Blair clucked her tongue. "Is it because I dyed my hair black? I can put it back to that blonde color you liked. You only had to ask."

He sighed, placing a hand on his forehead. "It has nothing to do with your hair. You're a beautiful girl, you know that. I just feel we're not compatible."

Blair approached him and wrapped her arms around him, bringing his head down. Those shoulders—strong and powerful from hours of daily workouts—were familiar. "You poor thing. Football must really have you stressed. It's okay, I'll give you a shoulder massage after school."

Logan disentangled her limbs and pulled her arms to her sides. In the quiet of the hallway, he fixed her with an impatient expression. Behind him, the lockers mirrored his agitation. His blonde hair, which was usually perfectly styled, had been in disarray since this morning, like he had wrestled with this since last night. Finally, he spoke, "Look at me."

Undaunted, she faced his baby-blue eyes—eyes that had lost their affection as the school year went by. "What?"

"I don't have feelings for you anymore. I... I think we should open up to other options. I didn't want to tell you this to save your feelings, but it looks like you need the truth."

Her hands closed into tight fists. "You want to see other options?" The last word came out sour and demented.

Of all the previous times he'd broken up with her, this phrasing was fresh. Usually, his break-ups went along the lines of needing a "break" or "fresh air"—any synonymous sentence that let her know he would be coming back. This didn't sound the same.

"Yes, I feel suffocated," he said.

She rolled her eyes. "You're always checking my phone. Tracking my location. Nitpicking every little thing. I'm tired of it."

"You're tired of it?" Blair laughed. If he was tired, how did she think she felt?

They'd been together since freshman year, and for a long time, their relationship had been seamless—enough that they became the golden couple of their school.

But ever since junior year, when his name started appearing in national rankings, their perfect relationship had started to crumble. Girls who had respected their relationship no longer did. They'd send DMs under the pretext of congratulations when really they just wanted to get closer to him. And he entertained it, saying it was rude to ignore messages even though it was obvious they had bad intentions.

Junior year had been rocky, but during the summer, they'd patched things up. At least she'd thought so, until senior year slapped them back to reality. ESPN ranked him #192 nationally, and in their state of Concordia, he was #13. Logan was winning, all his football dreams were falling into place, but it seemed the higher he rose, the more he questioned his feelings for her.

The weight of it flattened her mouth into a serious line. "Listen, now is not the time to play games. You said this year would be different and that we wouldn't take any breaks. Nominations for best couple are next week; a break-up this fresh is enough to make us lose."

"I'm not asking for a break. I want us to break up. Officially. All my buddies have dated at least two or three girls. You're the only one I've been with."

"So what? You're the only one I've been with, too! Obviously, you're just stressed right now." She reached for him again and drew their foreheads together, breathing him in. The heady scent of his cologne—the one she'd bought him—already made her weak. "We can overcome this. Just stick with me."

Logan shook his head. "I can't." He rolled his shoulders back, pulling away from her, looking resolute for the first time. "I'm not changing my mind."

Her arms fell to her sides like dead weight, a jagged bitterness swirling in her stomach.

She had seen the warning signs, yet her mind had forced her to dismiss them, especially with him already on her case about being overly jealous. She didn't want to suspect the nerd who had never made a move on him, but her gut had told her otherwise.

"It's that girl, isn't it?" Blair accused.

His wince told her he knew who she was referencing.

It was that mousy, nerdy girl, Annabelle Somers. Blair only knew her name because the mouse had come up in conversation a handful of times. Her close friend Ana had also spoken of her. She was Logan's partner in some school project that lasted half the year.

"Belle has nothing to do with this, she—"

"Belle?" Blair almost laughed at the nickname. "So she had nothing to do with why you're breaking up with me?"

Logan's lips clamped shut. She had her answer. The shorter phone calls. The way he rarely brought her over to his house anymore. How he would always need to be "working on that project" with the nerd. It all pointed to this, yet it still took her by surprise.

Perhaps because she'd truly convinced herself it was innocent. Annabelle became his tutor in junior year. She'd never made a move, never texted him at inappropriate times, and always kept things professional. But after they were partnered for a project, they seemed to grow closer. It was a threat she had let bypass her intuition.

Yet a deeper emotion weighed heavily over Blair. "What makes her better than me?"

Logan shifted his weight to the opposite foot. "I told you. We're just incompatible—"

"Answer my question! What makes me the lesser option between me and that witch!"

"Enough. I came to this decision on my own. Annabelle has nothing to do with this."

"Clearly she does! Because you're leaving me for her!"

"I am not leaving you to be with anyone."

"Bullshit. You think she's gonna put up with all the crap you put me through? She has no idea what she's getting into."

"At least she doesn't constantly make me feel like I'm doing something wrong! The whole time she's been nothing but sweet and caring—"

"Really? So I wasn't sweet? I wasn't caring?" She shoved him backwards. "Screw you!"

Since last year, she'd stuck with him through his questionable deeds, even when it tore away at her self-esteem. Through it all, she stayed loyal, even while he messed around. All the effort and work she had placed in the relationship, and it was like he didn't appreciate it at all!

A vein popped on Logan's neck. "Let's just leave it at this. I don't want to end things on bad terms."

"Oh, please." Blair couldn't care less what terms they ended on. Good, bad, ugly. In the end, they still wouldn't be together. But there was one thing she needed to know. "Tell me—did you cheat on me with her?"

Logan gulped. The shame that filled his eyes was undeniable. He opened his mouth to speak, but she held her hand up.

"Save it." She gave him a derisive, sneering smile. "Guess she's not as 'sweet' and 'innocent' as everyone says she is."

With that, Blair whipped away from him, the clicks of her high heels belying a fierceness she didn't quite feel.

He had not only cheated, but left her. Blair Mercer. The prettiest and most popular girl in school. To think that she lost her varsity star of a boyfriend to a random girl felt like a nightmare. The past times they separated, it was never to join with someone else, only to have a little fun before running back to her like a needy puppy.

There had never been any competition.

The hurt of betrayal clawed at her so fiercely she felt her eyes well with tears. Immediately, she forced the feeling down. She refused to do anything stupid like cry. Girls like her didn't cry. She bore the pain through its harshness and buried it deep inside.

Already she wanted nothing more than to go back to him. He was everything she was used to. Perhaps... perhaps this was just a phase. Maybe he was a little bored and wanted to try something new. If that was the case, then by next week, she could expect him to beg for forgiveness.

All men went through a wild phase; she'd witnessed it firsthand through nearly all of her aunts. Men explored for a season, but they always came back to the woman they loved. By the end of the month, she could expect Logan to beg for forgiveness. He always did.

Blair checked Logan's Instagram and nearly regretted it. He had already removed all their pictures. No doubt the whole school would know by next period that they weren't together, and by lunch, all the bets would be up on how many days before they got back together. She knew their on-and-off habits were toxic, but it was them.

I still want him.

Logan wasn't an evil man. He bought her things, always paid for her meals, and drove her wherever she needed to go. He hugged her, kissed her, and took her out with his friends. He was everything a boyfriend should be—except his ego got in the way at times. The problem with this case was that this nerd was a bigger threat than that.

That mousy girl must've put a spell on him or woven an intricate doll to make him fall for her. The remainder of this week would be a good indicator of how seriously Logan considered her.

Her musings had Blair so distracted that she missed the sudden incline of the hallway, making her lose her balance in her six-inch heels. She cursed as she lost her equilibrium. Her papers fell with her, flying around in disarray like snowflakes from the sky. Thankfully, her fall wasn't too harsh. The floor wasn't as hard and unforgiving as she'd thought it would be.

She sighed, staying in place as she regained her bearings. As cute as these heels were, perhaps it would be better to stay away from anything higher than four inches while in school.

"Hey, um... are you okay?"

The voice pulled her from her musings. She looked up, only to see there was no one there. Where on earth did this voice come from?

"Down here."

Her eyes went to her seating level, but still, no one was there. She pressed her ear to the locker behind her. Was someone stuck in there?

"Lower."

Confused, she looked to the lowest place she could—the ground. It was then she realized she was never on the ground to begin with, but on an actual body.

That explained why the floor wasn't—well, very floor-like. This boy under her had cushioned her fall.

"Oh," she said, slightly taken aback.

He was blushing, his fingers twitching with nerves and anxiety. A pair of thin, metal-rimmed glasses hung haphazardly over his nose. The impact of her fall must have made them slip out of place.

Blair coordinated her limbs to get herself upright. As she stood, she felt a little wobbly, but the moment she was fully straight, her balance returned. If there was anyone who could pull off high heels and walk in them well, it would be her.

Once she was off him, the guy underneath her stood as well. He was a gangly thing, with long legs and limbs that seemed to awkwardly hang from his body. His shirt was too big for his regular stature—which, come to think of it, meant he was actually on the skinny side—and his pants were so long they covered his shoes. The boy wasn't wearing his clothes; it would be better to say the clothes wore him. They practically drowned him.

"You should watch where you're going," she snapped. It wasn't hard to see this whole incident was her fault, but she was already in a sour mood.

"S-Sorry about that! I hope you're okay, Blair."

He looked down, the perfect picture of embarrassment and shame. Blair crossed her arms, unsurprised that he knew her name. Everyone knew her name. He was so... genuine about the apology that she kind of felt bad.

Kind of.

"I forgive you. Now get me my papers." She tapped her foot impatiently, waiting for him to do her bidding.

The scrawny boy went into action, wordlessly picking up the mess and arranging her papers in an orderly fashion.

"Here you go," he said kindly, giving her a smile.

Blair noted that although he wasn't necessarily awe-inspiring or handsome, at least he had a nice smile. Gathering her things, she sauntered off to class without so much as a thank you.

Author's Note:

Welcome to my new story! I've been wanting to work on a book from the "mean girl's" perspective for so long, and I'm so excited to finally share Blair's journey with you all.

For those wondering—yes, Blair will go through major character development as the story unfolds (and she won't be the only one!). But tell me, what are your first impressions of Blair and Logan?

Drop your thoughts in the comments below and let's chat! I read every single comment! 💬✨