The Badboy, the Catfish & Me

Sixteen

For the next two weeks, I didn't see Valentino during homeroom in the morning or after class. The empty seat beside mine left me feeling kind of lonely, but I cheered myself up—there was always Tireya to meet him online if I couldn't offline.

During that time, I refined my gaming schedule to ensure I wouldn't get another grade that could jeopardize my valedictorian title while still finding time with Valentino. I would come home, eat lunch if I hadn't bought any that day, pray around noon, do all my homework, pray in the afternoon, and then sit with my headphones and a snack to log into CrusadEon Online, knowing a certain Templar Knight was usually there to welcome me. I'd log off to pray after sunset, have dinner, study, and then get ready for bed by washing up and praying for the night. At least, that was the plan.

I bumped into Valentino the last week of May as I left the microwave line. Seeing him brought a smile to my face.

"Oh, hey!" I greeted him. "I haven't seen you around all that much."

"Yeah," Valentino smiled, but his gaze slid from mine. "I chose to take an extra class in the mornings instead of going to homeroom, and I think they've been helping with my grades. Need to keep it up before senioritis takes over."

"Oh, that's good. I haven't caught senioritis yet, so don't give it to me," I joked.

He chuckled lightly, and we stood awkwardly in the middle of the lunchroom, the loud chatter replacing what would have been silence between us. I bit the bottom of my lip. Were we always like this? No, I was sure he used to be bubbly and blur the lines of personal space.

I scanned the cafeteria. I didn't see the other soccer players he usually sat with at lunch. It seemed like we were stuck together. Which should have been the best thing ever. But right now, it didn't feel like it was.

Valentino hesitated before suggesting, "We should sit."

"Yeah," I agreed. I gestured to a table nearest to us. After we started to settle in, with hopeful eyes, I asked, "Lunch? I brought my dad's chicken curry."

He hesitated. "I have my own today. But thanks."

A rush of disappointment filled me as I watched him retrieve a wrapped sandwich from his bag and place it on the table before him. Why did it feel like we were strangers to each other? Was I doing something to give him that vibe? Did he find someone to go to prom with, and now I'm just a friend?

I finally broke the awkwardness to ask, "So, the websites I told you about—are they helping with citations? There's a history paper coming up."

"Yeah, they're easy to understand." He bit into his sandwich and munched for a bit. "I'm getting some outside help also, so don't worry about it."

I nodded, deflating. "You're still playing CrusadEon Online?" I prompted.

"Of course," he said. His eyes narrowed slightly, and he swallowed another bite. "Uh, did you want to watch me play?"

"Yes! Only if you want to, obviously," I caught myself.

"Well, I have my laptop with me, so I guess I can show you."

"Now? I thought the wi-fi wasn't too good here."

Valentino leaned in a little. "I saw some technician work around the other side of the school this morning, so I think the wi-fi in this place should've gotten fast enough to handle online games."

"I doubt that's why they upgraded the Wi-Fi here in the first place," I couldn't help but smile.

"Yeah, but it's too early for them to have built a proxy against it. It'd be a waste not to," he smirked in response.