"Lucian's the best coder here! He's gotta be in my group!" Emma Thompson shot up from her desk, her voice cutting through the noise.
"I called dibs on Lucian first! I'm the one who asked him yesterday!" Alex protested, half-standing with his hand raised like a child in kindergarten.
Across the room, the battle was just as fierce.
"I'm pairing with Sylvia," someone declared. "She's the smartest in the class. I'm not messing around."
"No way! Sylvia's gonna be in my group," came another voice, a group of students almost clamoring for her attention.
Lucian was trying to ignore it all, focused on his notes, but the buzz in the room was relentless. He'd always hated these group projects—he liked to work alone. He didn't need help. And now? Everyone was trying to fight for a spot on his team.
It wasn't just any group project, either. This was the final project of the year, the one that would determine the top spot in the class. And with the deadline in two months, it was a big deal.
His eyes flicked to the front of the room, where Sylvia Duval sat. Effortlessly poised, her gaze flickering between the students who were all clamoring to partner with her. She wore that perfect, indifferent smile, like she couldn't care less about the battle happening around her.
"Enough!" Mrs. Carter, the teacher, finally barked, slamming her hand down on the desk to silence the room.
The sudden quiet was almost deafening.
Lucian sighed, sinking lower in his chair. He had expected this. As always, his and Sylvia's names were at the center of the chaos. It was like a magnet of competition, and no one seemed to care that it had been this way since they were kids.
Mrs. Carter raised an eyebrow, her patience thin. "This is getting ridiculous," she muttered, glancing around the room. "We're not in middle school anymore, people. You can't fight over partners like this. We're all adults here, or at least you should be."
The students exchanged uncomfortable glances, suddenly aware that their attempts to claim Lucian or Sylvia had crossed a line.
Mrs. Carter's gaze landed on the two of them—Lucian, the quiet, focused genius, and Sylvia, the effortlessly perfect, popular girl who never seemed to break a sweat.
"I've had enough of this nonsense," she said, her voice calm but firm. "Lucian Sinclair and Sylvia Duval, you're partners."
A stunned silence followed her words.
Lucian's stomach dropped. He wasn't sure if he was relieved or horrified. Everyone knew that the two of them, rivals since childhood, would never mesh well together. Their competition was legendary, and now, they were being forced to team up.
Sylvia didn't even blink. She looked at Lucian with that usual smirk of hers, as though this was just another normal day.
"Well, looks like we're stuck with each other," she said, her voice light but carrying an edge.
Lucian didn't answer, his mind racing. He'd had enough of this competition. He didn't care about the social game. He never did. But now—now, he was being forced to work with her, the one person who seemed to get under his skin more than anyone else.
"Don't worry," Sylvia added, her voice still too calm. "I'll take care of the hard parts. You can handle the technical stuff."
Lucian clenched his jaw, but he held his tongue. He didn't have time for games. He had a project to finish, and this… this wasn't going to be as simple as she thought.
With a flick of her hair, Sylvia grabbed her things and moved to the desk beside him. The tension between them was palpable. Lucian couldn't decide if he was angry or anxious—or maybe it was both.
Two months. That's how long they had to complete the project—a compatibility testing app for the class. The idea was simple enough, but the real question was: could they make it work? Could they build something together when all they had ever done was tear each other down?
Lucian tried to ignore the spark of something unfamiliar, something he couldn't quite place, that flared between them as Sylvia sat down next to him. He focused on the task at hand. He had always done better working alone, and he was determined to make sure this project didn't fall apart.
But as the clock ticked down to the final months of high school, one thing became clear: this time, Lucian wasn't just competing with Sylvia. This time, they were forced to face each other—and themselves.
And maybe, just maybe, this rivalry would turn out to be more complicated than either of them ever imagined.