Familiar Face,Hidden Feelings

Break came, but it didn’t feel like a relief to me. It felt like a stage where I was the main act and no one wanted to clap.

I stepped outside anyway. The sun was soft on my skin, and the breeze felt light and careless, like it had no idea how heavy the air around me actually was.

I was heading to the school canteen to grab snacks and water,just something to cool my head when I spotted a group of students gathered by the school wall. They were pointing at me, then turning back to look at something on the wall.

Before I could process what was happening, someone tapped my shoulder.

“Hey, Oli Baby. How’s it going?” Davis said, almost nonchalantly, throwing his arm around my shoulder. He was holding his football boots in his other hand, so I guessed he was on his way to the field.

I shoved his arm off in a not too harsh tone but with enough force to make a point. My face was already stern when I turned to him.

“Will you ever allow me to breathe for just one second in this school without showing up?”

I sounded a little too serious. I’d had enough. There was already too much on my plate, and I had no time for Davis and his playful nonsense.

Davis never cared if you were going through something. He would keep pestering you anyway.

“Oli,” he said dramatically, pressing his hand to his chest like I’d just wounded him, “If I let you breathe for even a second, wouldn’t I be dead by then?”

“Even people with heartbreaks can act better than you,” I muttered, almost smiling despite my mood.

We ended up walking to the canteen together. I picked out my snacks and water, and just as I was about to pay, I noticed Davis had already settled the bill.

I didn’t argue. I didn’t even try to toss any sarcastic words his way. Davis always had a way of doing his things that made it hard to push back.

Before I could thank him, he waved it off.

“This is for being a cutie pie,” he said, patting my hair like I was his little sister.

“Thanks, big brother,” I replied quickly as he turned to leave.

He paused. Then turned around slowly and called out to me with an unexpectedly serious tone.

“Olivia! What is wrong with you?”

For a second, I froze. I thought something had gone wrong.

Then he added, “Look, I’ve warned you to stop calling me your brother. Be careful with me, girl.”

I laughed quietly. I think I’d gotten under his skin this time.

As he kept pointing fingers at me and closing the distance like he wanted to lecture me some more, I playfully backed away toward the door. I threw my hands up in mock surrender and said, “Okay, okay, I’m sorry! I won’t call you my brother again.”

Then he turned and jogged off to the field to join his friends.

Davis and I weren’t even in the same section, though we were in the same grade. I still remember the first time he ever walked up to me,back in grade four.

---

FLASHBACK – GRADE FOUR

I was sitting under a tree with my friends when I saw a good-looking boy standing behind us.

“Excuse me,” he said, his voice steady. “I’m looking for Olivia George. I would like to have a brief personal conversation with her.”

I gave Lola and Andrew a knowing look. Then, they shifted aside.

Who was this guy and what did he want with me? I had never seen him before.

“My name’s Davis,” he said casually. “I’ve been hearing stories about a girly genius in our grade. I haven’t seen you around much, so I thought I should meet this popular nerd for myself.”

Who is this bold, witty boy? I thought, almost amused by his directness.

I giggled a little and hit him with a single-word response.

“And?”

He smiled without hesitation. “And judging by your charisma, you definitely live up to the nerd weird title. You’re cute.”

My face flushed. I won’t lie,my stomach did a little flip. But I couldn’t just melt into his flattery.

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” I said sharply, keeping a straight face. I don’t think I’d ever been that serious outside my study sessions.

He smiled again and this time in a strange, knowing way.

“See you around, Oli,” he said as he turned and walked away briskly.

Wait—Oli?

He didn’t even ask for permission. Who gave him the right to call me that? You don’t just go around giving people nicknames unless they mean something to you.

From where I sat, I saw him shaking hands with Andrew. Then I noticed him whisper something to Lola.

Lola started smiling like she’d just won a scholarship.

As she walked back toward me with her gleamy eyes,I knew exactly what was coming.

A thousand questions. The kind that even G****e may not be able to answer.