CHAPTER TWENTY - SEVEN

NICK WALKER ©

Whatever happened yesterday was never going to happen again. It was already in the past, and last night ended whatever I had with him.

“Are you okay? You don’t look fine,” Mira said as I quietly combed her hair.

“I’m fine,” I said with a forced smile.

“Well, you don’t look like you're fine,” she said, turning to face me.

I let out a small sigh.

“Sit still and let me finish your hair,” I said and she groaned.

“You’ve spent so much time doing my hair. If you’re not okay, I can always do it myself,” she said but I ignored her and kept fixing it.

“Finally,” she said the moment I finished.

She jumped to her feet and stretched.

“At least I’m glad I don’t have to see Avery this morning,” she said before rushing off to finish the pasta I made for breakfast.

Avery had already texted me. She woke up late and said she would wait for me by the school gate instead.

“Come on, grab your bag. We need to go,” I said as I checked the time.

“And stop rushing your food,” I warned and she nodded while still eating too fast.

I sighed and picked up my bag.

“Aren’t you eating?” she asked between bites. For a second, I barely caught what she said.

“Mira, manners,” I softly said. “And no, I’m not hungry.”

She nodded and kept eating.

She quickly dropped her plate in the sink and grabbed her bag. I lightly messed up her hair, and she groaned before fixing it right away.

A few minutes later, we left for her school.

I stood outside and watched her walk inside her school with other students while she kept waving at me.

I sighed and rubbed my eyes.

Then I headed to the bus stop. A few people were already there, waiting for the bus. I stood with them, but my mind drifted somewhere else.

“What? Isn’t this about money? You’ve been nagging about it since I got here.” Enzo’s words kept playing in my head over and over again.

I shut my eyes and clenched my fist, trying to calm the anger building inside me.

Just then, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out to check who it was.

Avery:

I’m waiting by the entrance. Are you almost here?

I wanted to reply to her text, but before I could type a word, the bus pulled up in front of us with a loud stop.

People moved fast toward it, and I slipped my phone back into my pocket.

I climbed in, paid my fare, and looked for an empty seat near the window. I sat down and rested my hands on my thighs.

Without thinking, I rubbed my palms against my trousers again and again. My chest still felt tight.

I stared out the window as the bus slowly moved.

I felt so insulted. His words would not leave my head.

Money.

Was that really what he thought of me?

That I wanted to blackmail him?

I bit my thumbnail hard and shut my eyes for a second.

The anger inside me only grew. And now I could not even look at him.

Because if I saw his face, I felt like I might lose my temper and throw the first thing my hands come in contact with at him.

I let out another long sigh and leaned back in my seat.

What even made us close in the first place?

I sighed again for what felt like the hundredth time and rubbed a hand over my face.

“Hmm. Then why does it feel like you want to be closer?” Avery’s words suddenly played in my head.

I let out a sharp scoff. “Me?” I muttered to myself.

Suddenly, the bus came to a sudden stop. I blinked and looked outside.

Right. My stop.

I stood up quickly and got down with a few other people. I started walking toward the school gate, my thoughts still all over the place.

Then Avery suddenly stepped in front of me.

Oh! I forgot she said she was waiting for me.

“What happened to you?” Avery asked and I shook my head.

“Then why didn’t you reply to my text?” she asked.

That was when I remembered. I had forgotten to reply.

“Oh… sorry. It slipped my mind,” I said and turned to walk away.

She hurried to walk beside me and kept looking at my face.

“Is there something on my face?” I asked, avoiding her eyes.

“Well…” she said, trying not to smile. “I think there is.”

I quickly rubbed my face.

“That’s not what I meant,” she said and I let out a small sigh.

“What I mean is… you look gloomy,” Avery added. “So, what’s wrong? What’s bothering you?”

The moment I thought about what Enzo had said, annoyance rushed through me again. Just remembering his words made me mad.

“It’s nothing. I’m fine,” I said.

“I just didn’t sleep well,” I added.

She looked at me for a second, then nodded.

Just then, Enzo’s car pulled into the parking lot and came to a stop. He got out with Professor Douglas, and the two of them walked side by side. Few people nearby stopped to stare.

The moment I saw him, anger hit me again. I bit down on my bottom lip without thinking. My chest felt tight, and my heart started to beat faster as I watched him walk away with her.

“That motherfucker,” I muttered under my breath.

“Nick, what’s wrong? Your lip is bleeding,” Avery said.

I blinked and touched my mouth. I had been so lost in thought that I didn’t even notice.

“I’m fine. Let’s just get to class,” I said, wiping the blood from my lip with my thumb and head to class.