I just started high school a few weeks ago. I’m still so adjusted to middle school so all of this just seems off. I have an exam coming up and I’ve been studying like no other but I’m confident in it, after all I was top student in all of middle school, why would I go down now?

Tomorrow’s the day of the exam. It’s just to test my knowledge and prepare me for the upcoming year, you know the typical exam, but I still want to do better than everyone else on it. Its now nearly 12am and I hear a knock on my door. “Can I come in?” I recognize my mothers calming yet worried tone. “Yes.” I respond, not even looking up from my books and pencils. She comes in and sits beside me. “Aren’t you tired Olivia? Its late and you have your exams tomorrow..” “Thats exactly what I’m preparing for mom. I want to ace those exams.” I tell her, using an irritated tone. I feel bad for using it, after all she’s just looking out for me, but I just want to be left alone. The mere thought of someone passing me academically made my blood boil and I wasn’t going to let a small conversation with my mother ruin my streak of never losing.

I woke up the next morning with pure excitement. I put on my gray and blue uniform and tie my dirty blonde hair up into a ponytail before rushing out of the house. My brother, Tyler, just watched me in confusion wondering why I’m so jumpy and excited since he’s well aware exams are today. When I get to school we are given our exams and are warned these will be more difficult considered these are to test our knowledge and whatnot, but the second I look at those questions I know exactly what I’m doing. I take my time with each question and look through it over and over just to be sure despite knowing that my selected answers are correct. After a while of working I finish, raising my hand to notify the teacher but before I do another student had already called her attention. I watch in confusion as this young boy, who seemed quite arrogant and full of himself turned in the exam with a smile. “How did he finish before me?” Is all I thought to myself. I raise my hand and turn it in to the teacher telling myself he was probably the type of kid to rush through exams. That was the only logical explanation since I’m the best one here of course.

As the weeks went by I noticed this kid more and more around my school. He was loud and obnoxious and never put his tie on correctly. That made me more upset than it should’ve. I never noticed him before... that was until he submitted that damn exam before me. Suddenly I found myself looking for him in class, the cafeteria, outside, and even the library. I always expected and got the same outcome of him being irritating, but what I did notice was that he was good at everything. Me and him indirectly competed with answering questions first in class, playing sports, submitting quizzes, and even eating. I not once learned his name but we would glance at each other clearly competing.

Finally the exam scores were released. I rushed to the scoreboard shoving through mumbling crowds in excitement before pausing in shock at the sight of the score board. My name was first as always, but someone els was also first. Me and an Alexander Payne had the exact same score. I don’t recognize the name so I look around until my eyes land on the same obnoxious boy from the previous weeks who looks just as surprised as me. Could he be this “Alexander Payne”?

...I look at him with confusion in my eyes and his expression only mirrors mine. I look back at the board as I can’t believe my eyes before glancing back at him. The frustration I feel makes me feel the need to approach him. I have no shame as I walk up to him shoving through students. “Are you Alexander Payne?!” I yell slightly irritated as he looks at me, almost at eye level. Is he short or am I tall... “Are you Olivia Lane?!” He asks back mimicking my tone of shock and confusion. “Yes!” Is all I can manage to respond with. I don’t know what to say anymore. Hey why are you at the same level as me I should be the smartest here? No. feel the regret sink in and the confusion leave my body. ...

...He looks at me as I can see the shock leave his expression as well. “You’re the girl who looked at me weird the day we did exams.” He says as realization clearly fills him. ...

...“What does that have to do with anything?!” I yell back honesty just wondering what that means. Is he claiming this is my fault?...

... “You’ve been looking at me weird ever since. What is your deal?” This kid is more confrontational than me! ...

...“That doesn’t matter right now. What matters is how you got the same score as me. Same exact score!” I say as he just looks at me with a look of frustration I watch in anger as he rubs his temples. Seeing him this annoyed makes me more annoyed. ...

...“Go ask a teacher this makes no sense. There had to be a mistake along the way.” I say, crossing my arms and rolling my eyes before hearing his cocky response. ...

...“Yeah the chances of someone like you having the same score as me is insane.” He says before walking off. His words caught me too off guard to even form a response. Alexander Payne. I repeat his name in my mind making sure it sticks. The next day I sit next to him in first period intentionally. I usually always pay attention to the teacher but this time I was too focused on this jerk. I sat beside him with the intention of talking about what happened but I couldn’t bring myself to say anything. While lost in thought I hear his annoying voice. “Can I help you?” He asks as if I just sat here even though It had been well over twenty minutes. “Whatever happened with the teachers. You asked didn’t you? What did they say.” ...

...His gaze hardens as he grows visibly irritated. “All they said was that it was a very slim chance but it happened. Both me and you got the same score on the exam hence we both got the top grade. Whatever it may be I handed my test in first so let’s go based off that. I beat you.”...

...I tilt my head in confusion at his words. Was he that competitive? “That’s not how this works. Its a score based off how well we did on the exam not who handed it in first. Listen I was Top student in middle school I can assure you that whatever mistake they may have made it was on your end, not mine.” ...

...He scoffs and before he can respond the teacher calls on him asking him to repeat the sentence she just read in the textbook to see if he had been paying attention. Due to our bickering he couldn’t provide her with an answer and was embarrassed in front of the class which caused me to laugh a little. The teacher than asks me due to dumb giggles and of course I don’t know the answer either so now we’re both getting told off and embarrassed in class. This kid is not my friend. ...

Its now been a few months. Its an endless cycle of competeing between me and Alex. Today we had a pop quiz in history. Despite being so mean to one another we couldn’t help but talk to each other. We used the excuse of “showing off or work”. “Aleeeeex” I walk up to him with my quiz in hand, with a 100 percent, ready to run it in his face. I turn the exam to face him and smile. “Beat that.” He just glared at me and turns his paper. 97 percent. I laugh at him and he grows more irritated. “You’re so damn arrogant. Shut up it was one stupid pop quiz.” I roll my eyes and glare at him. Last time you did better than me you ranted about it for three weeks. I’m not letting this go anytime soon.

Later that same day I continued to rub my aces quiz in his face. I did that all day until seventh period where he actually snapped. I don’t know what made him so mad since we do this all the time but he yelled at me which caught me really off guard. “Enough with you’re stupid pop quiz! It was one f*cking pop quiz! It means nothing! Just shut up about it and let it go!” I stood back with my mouth agape not knowing how to respond. He just glared at me as if waiting for a response. “Are you crazy? What is your deal today?! We always fight like this what made you so pissy today?!” I finally respond. That little incident turned into a full blown argument. I didn’t know but that day I discovered we both had anger issues and nearly got physical with one another. He grabbed me by my collar after yelling at me and I yelled back. Right then and there a teacher turned the corner and separated us before dragging us to the office. We were lectured for some time before the principle finally decide to give us detention for 3 days. Neither of us had ever gotten detention before and I was shocked and I could tell he was too, but all I could think is “Its all his fault.”

We go to detention and sit down. There’s another student there who is visibly surprised at the sight of both me and him walking in since we had a reputation of being goody two shoes. I sit down and he sits in the opposite side of the room crossing his arms and pouting like a child. I scoffed at his immature behavior and faced forward as I sit there in boredom and slight frustration. Finally the hour goes by and as we’re leaving I rush out just like the other two students who were desperate to leave that hellhole but of course just my luck I bump into Alex, falling to the ground. This was no kdrama moment. The kid looked at me and laughed at me before walking off. God I hated him.