The dorm lobby was buzzing with life when we walked in.
Roslyn was telling us about some guy in her lecture, her voice as dramatic as always.
"I'm telling you, he definitely likes me," she insisted adamantly. "No one holds eye contact for that long unless they're interested."
"Roslyn," I deadpanned, "You guys held eye contact for half a second. Not a full 10-minute eye contest."
She shot me a glare, but I smiled faintly.
We were halfway to the stairs when loud laughter erupted from across the lobby.
Xander was standing there with his friends, lounging around the couches like they owned the place.
One of them elbowed him, another leaned in with a teasing grin.
Whatever they were saying made his face go pink a little. He shook his head, muttering something I couldn't catch.
He looked in my direction and hesitated before pushing off the wall and walking towards us. His friends exchanged smug looks behind him, like this was exactly what they had been waiting for.
Roslyn's eyes lit up instantly. "Well, well..."
"Don't start," I muttered, but she was already pulling Freya towards the stairs.
"Have fun!" She called back with a wink.
And just like that, they were gone. Leaving me there.
Alone.
With him.
"Andrea," Xander called out warmly.
"Hey again," I replied, really hoping that I sounded normal.
He gave me a small smile, then glanced towards the exit doors before looking back at me. "Want to take a walk? It's way too crowded here."
"Sure."
We walked outside, the cool evening air brushing against my skin. The campus grounds were nearly quiet, and the pathways glowed with soft pools of gold under the light of the streetlamps.
"I'm really craving ice cream," I announced suddenly.
"Me too," He said after a short pause, a wide grin appearing on his face instantly.
I laughed. "Since when did you start craving sweet stuff?"
"What?" He said innocently. "Can't a guy want ice cream anymore?"
I laughed even harder at his imitation of a child-like voice, "You can,"
He slung his arm around my shoulder. "Then let's get you some ice cream."
We walked to the ice-cream stand, not too far off from campus grounds. Once we reached the small stand, we both got ice cream, paid, thanked the vendor, and left.
There was a small park nearby, and I wanted to sit, so we went there. I was sitting on one of the benches licking my ice cream alongside Xander, who was sitting beside me.
"Happy with your Ice-cream?" He asked.
"Very," I replied, excited and content.
Crickets hummed in the distance, and above us, the stars twinkled brightly.
I lifted my head, taking in such beauty. "The stars are so clear tonight."
He followed my gaze, quiet for a moment. Then, almost too softly to hear, he murmured, "Yes, very beautiful," but his honey-like eyes were back on me.
My head snapped towards him, heat flooding my cheeks. "Xander–"
Before I could form words, his hand slipped into my palm, his fingers laced with mine.
I stared at him in surprise for a moment, my heart running up and down in my chest.
He said nothing at first, but when I stayed quiet, probably blushing like a fool, he glanced down and smirked slightly.
"You always go quiet when you're overthinking," he teased.
"I'm not–" I started, but he raised his brow knowingly.
I sighed, "Fine. Maybe I am."
"Then say something. Distract yourself," he urged, drawing slow circles on the back of my hand with his thumb.
I hesitated, then began rambling on about the book I was currently reading, about how the female lead was brave and strong enough to face deadly trials, but sometimes I'd wished to smack her to put some sense into her head with the types of decisions she made.
Xander listened without interrupting, his eyes steady on me. When I caught myself talking too fast, I stopped, embarrassed. "Sorry. I'm probably boring you."
"You're not," he said, "I love hearing your voice over and over again, even if it's about little things."
The words hung there, heavy and warm, and my face was as red as it could probably ever be.
We got up after some time, walking back to campus, still hand in hand, his thumb never ceasing its lazy patterns against my skin.
We found another bench in the courtyard of the campus and sat down, just wanting to enjoy the quiet and peaceful night.
His hand was still laced with mine the entire time, and not once did he tense or pull away.
Instead, he looked at me once we sat, eyes softening as he said gently. "You know, you make everything better when you're around."
My heart jumped, and I had to look away, certain that my face was red. "Pfft. Where is all this coming from?"
"It's true," he said, his tone steady, as though he meant every word.
I smiled faintly at him.
It wasn't until later, when we finally stood up to head back inside, that I caught sight of movement across the courtyard.
His friends.
A struggle of Jay's laughter could be heard, Luka could be seen disappearing into the shadows, and Dylan was running down the path.
"They– were they–" I stammered.
But Xander only squeezed my hand, unfazed. When his eyes lifted, looking directly in the direction they'd vanished, his expression made clear that he'd known the whole time.
Why didn't he say something or break the hold between our hands when he knew his friends were there? And he just had to go on and say all those things in front of them as well.
By the time we reached the dorms, Roslyn's voice was echoing somewhere upstairs, and only then did he reluctantly release me, like he was forcing himself to let go.
"Goodnight Daydream, don't stay up too late, ok." He said, after breaking the hold between our hands.
"Ok, bye," I said, turning to leave, but not before turning back once more to give a little wave.
He let out a quiet laugh, but waved back, walking a few steps backwards before turning around and heading towards his dorms.
Later that night, I laid in bed, staring at the ceiling.
My hands still tingled with the warmth of his, my mind was replaying every word, and every soft look he gave me.
Just then, I realised that Xander had not just been holding my hand.
He had not wanted to let go.