I reached the class early the next day again, and this time I didn't feel nervous.
I saw him smiling at me,
I sat beside him like it was normal now.
"Hey, pretty".
I looked at him.
"hey"
"You're getting used to me," he said
"I just sit here."
"Yeah, with me," he smirked.
I rolled my eyes at him.
I turned my attention towards the board to concentrate, and I didn't understand shit.
I saw Ethan taking down notes, and before I could ask him,
I heard a voice- "Ethan."
I turned around,
A girl stood there
perfect hair, perfect makeup, and a perfect smile ....... a perfect fake smile
She glanced at me for a second,
not even properly,
She looked at him, "Ethan, can you help me with this?
Ethan leaned back. "Yeah, sure."
He got up, and she smiled, not at him,
At ME.
like she won something.
She did that on purpose.
I looked down at my notebook.
Why do I even care? I've known the guy for 2 days.
I tried to focus, but I could hear her,
laughing a little too much, the occasional glances, the way she kept touching his arms lightly- "Oh Ethan, you explain things so well." She smiled at him.
I saw them cracking jokes and laughing loudly. He wasn't like that with me,
With me, he was quieter, softer,
With her, he was easygoing.
That bothered me more than it should.
Something tightened in my chest,
This is stupid.
After a while, he came back and sat as if nothing had happened.
"You understood that topic?"
I didn't look at him.
"Yeah"
"You sure?"
"I said yes," I said, not wanting to continue the conversation with him.
Then-
"Are you mad?"
I looked at him, " No."
"You're lying," he smirked.
"I'm not."
"You stopped talking to me."
"I don't talk much anyway."
He leaned closer, "You were talking to me."
"That doesn't mean anything."
"Good," he said, smiling.
"What?" I frowned.
He leaned back again. "I was checking."
I was confused, "Checking what?"
"to see if you'd react."
My stomach dropped. "You were testing me?"
He shrugged, "Just wanted to see if you care."
I didn't answer.
This is so weird. Why is he testing me? Was he trying to make me jealous?
The class ended.
I packed my bag quickly.
"Ivy"
I ignored him.
"Ivy"
I turned around, annoyed, "What?"
He stepped closer.
not too close.
just enough.
"You don't like her."
I blinked. "That's not true."
He tilted his head slightly.
"She doesn't like you either."
That caught me off guard.
"What?"
He smirked.
"Didn't you see the way she looked at you?"
I froze for a second.
I did.
And I hated that he noticed.
"Why are you even telling me this?" I asked.
"Because I want you to notice things too," he looked at me.
I stood there confused.
"Isn't it 4:15? Your bus leaves in 15 mins, come on, I'll go with you." he changed the topic.
I let him walk me till the bus stop,
at the bus stop, I stood a little away,
"You're still thinking about it," he said.
"No, I'm not"
"You are"
I snapped my eyes at him, "Why does it matter to you?"
He stepped closer, "because I like it when you care."
My breath hitched slightly.
"That's not fair."
"Nothing is," he said calmly.
The bus arrived.
I got in without saying anything.
But as I looked outside—
He was still there.
Watching me.
And this time—
I wasn't sure if I liked it.
And suddenly remembered our conversation from before-
I never told him about my bus timings. How does he know?