Spoiled Brat

Spoiled Brat

It was a shame, really. Beatrice was so shameless that she couldn’t even pick up on the hint I was giving her.

"Beatrice, right? This poem is for my girlfriend, Cynthia. I’m sure you know her already." I pushed the paper toward her. "Take a look. Do you think she’ll like it?"

I just wanted to piss her off enough to make her leave me alone, but this Beatrice? She was one hell of a stubborn girl.

"Hmm, well, I don’t see her around," she said with a sly grin. "How about we just add my name in there instead? Yeah, why not? Let’s put my name in the poem. She’ll love that, haha."

She spoke sarcastically, then grabbed my hand and placed it on her lap. God! The feeling was something else—her bare lap was so soft. Her skirt was ridiculously short, making everything worse. As if that wasn’t enough, she slowly dragged my hand under her skirt, looking me straight in the eyes with that teasing, mind-messing gaze.

"Hey! What is wrong with you?" I yanked my hand away immediately, trying not to overreact.

"Relax, will you? You don’t want to hurt me, do you?"

Her tone had a little edge to it, but I didn’t care. I quickly stood up and moved to another chair, hoping she’d get the message. But this girl had no shame. She followed me like a shadow, completely ignoring the few students in the class who were now watching the scene unfold.

Even when I had shouted earlier, when I snatched my hand back, people had turned to look at us. But did she care? Not one bit. She just kept doing whatever she pleased.

At this point, it was clear—this girl was desperately trying to get me into bed. Just as she stood up and walked toward me again, I got lucky. Charity walked into the classroom at that exact moment.

"Hey, Damian! What are you doing with that spoiled brat?"

I swear, I had never been so happy to hear Charity’s voice. Even though I knew she had just sparked the beginning of another round of drama, I was still relieved she had shown up.

Before I could even say a word, another girl in the class jumped in.

"You better come and save Damian before this vampire sucks him dry," she said, laughing. "She’s been stressing the poor boy out since morning."

The class erupted in laughter.

"Now, will you get up before I call his girlfriend on you, shameless dog?" Charity snapped, striding over and grabbing Beatrice by the arm.

"Hmm… Look at her, acting all protective," Beatrice sneered, rolling her eyes. "It’s not like he’s even your boyfriend. Shameless girl."

She hissed and stormed out, finally leaving me alone.

Charity turned to face me, arms crossed, giving me that look—like she was about to give me a lecture.

"And what’s that you’re writing?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Why not check for yourself?" I handed her the notebook.

She flipped through the pages, reading silently for a moment. Then, suddenly, her face lit up.

"Awwn… This is cute!" She blushed like a lovestruck schoolgirl. "I need to show this to Cynthia. She’ll fall in love with you all over again! I swear, Damian, you’re too sweet. Chai! I need to find my own love!"

I rolled my eyes, shaking my head.

"Aha, by the way," she added, "your girl asked me to tell you to come to the poolside. Everyone’s already there."

When we got to the poolside, I realized just how crowded it was. The entire place was packed.

Charity was still pestering me for the poem, begging me to let her show it to Cynthia. I had written it for her, yeah, but I wasn’t sure I had the courage to actually let her read it. So, I did the only thing I could think of—I snatched the book from Charity, tore out the page, crumpled it, and shoved it into my pocket.

As soon as the students at the poolside spotted me, a loud chant broke out.

"Merman! Merman! Merman!"

I felt my stomach drop.

Kunle was already here before me, standing confidently by the pool. The whole school had been calling me "Merman" even before the competition had officially started.

It was embarrassing. I mean, what if I lost? Kunle was a trained swimmer, a champion who had won three competitions already. And me? I had only started swimming not too long ago. There was every chance he’d win again, just like always.

"Cynthia, if you see the poem Damian wrote for you, you’ll fall in love with him all over again," Charity said, smirking. "I swear, this boy is too sweet. Chai! I can’t wait to find my own love."

She and a few of her friends, the other members of Triple Cee, managed to pull me away from the crowd. Together, we made our way toward Cynthia and Chinwe, who were waiting under the big mango tree near the poolside.

"Awwn, baby, show me the poem," Cynthia said, giving me her signature puppy eyes.

"Yes, me too," Chinwe chimed in. "Come on, let’s see it."

I hesitated.

"Hmm… I don’t have it anymore. It’s been torn out of the book, see?" I said, holding up the notebook as proof.

Charity scoffed. "Ah, Damian, don’t mind this liar. He tore it out himself and shoved it into his pocket. Just tell him to empty his pockets, and you’ll see."

I sighed. There was no escaping this.

"Okay, okay… I surrender! You win, madam Charity." I laughed, and everyone joined in.

"Alright then, let’s hear it!" Chinwe said eagerly.

"Yes, go on, baby," Cynthia urged, smiling at me.

Reluctantly, I reached into my pocket, feeling around for the right paper.

"Tell him to read everything," Charity added, grinning mischievously. "I saw two papers in there. One’s an apology, and the other is a love declaration and promise."

I shot her a playful glare. "You’re an evil girl, you know that?"

She just giggled.

I sighed, unfolding the first paper. It was the letter of apology. No turning back now. Clearing my throat, I began to read.

There you go! Everything is properly structured, natural, and in the same casual tone as the original. No extra scenes were added, and it flows smoothly while keeping the dialogue and narrative engaging. Let me know if you need any tweaks!