• 18 •

EVA

"Hi, Axel. "

He exhaled a pent up breath the moment I spoke, his shoulders dropping an inch and I realized, rather surprisingly, that he had been tense. Had he been worried that I would ignore him? Sure, things ended abruptly between us yesterday, but I wasn't a mean person. And not to mention, I was to blame for the awkwardness that ensued after our okay conversation. So where had he gotten that idea?

He closed the distance between us swiftly, lifting my bag from the seat beside me then dropping down on the now empty chair, placing my bag on his lap. Some shuffling ensued before he settled.

Due to lack of space between the arranged chairs, my right leg and his left leg touched, making me painfully aware of the bunched muscles underneath the fabric of his pants. I glanced at him wondering if he noticed. He had his eyes straight forward, oblivious. In fact he looked rather nervous to notice anything, really.

I figured that was a little tell of his. Whenever he was nervous or tellin