Something Happened To My Heart

03

𝑨𝑹𝑨𝑩𝑬𝑳𝑳𝑨 𝑬𝑽𝑨𝑵𝑺

"Okay. What's your problem?"

I ask, stopping in the middle of the hallway, disrupting everyone else walking around us. The students navigate around him and me as if we were a mud puddle. He stops walking and turns around, staring at me, forehead furrowed. He doesn't say anything, just keeps looking at me, his hands running through his hair messing it up. I take a deep breath, rolling my eyes heavily, and stare at the bars of the wall.

"Are you just going to stand there staring at me and not going to say anything?" I gesture with my hands.

He reacts, smiling.

"You told me not to talk to you anymore." He pauses briefly, his eyes moving upwards thoughtfully. "I was waiting for you to allow me." he finishes, pursing his lips.

"I meant I didn't want you to show up in front of me anymore." My tone of voice is as if the situation and what I wanted weren't obvious enough.

It was extremely obvious. He just wanted to provoke me.

"You should have been more specific, Bella." he says in false lament.

"Great, I want you to disappear from my sight, never appear in front of me again, never talk to me again, never breathe near me again!" I exclaim and take two steps forward.

"Was I specifically specific for you?" I arch an eyebrow, illustrating my question when he looks me in the eyes, waiting for him to answer.

The laughter that sounds between his lips is the most provocative mockery.

"I'm deaf, sorry." he winks, running his tongue over his lips still smiling.

The jerk approaches, I step back, he keeps approaching, cornering me against the wall of the deserted hallway. I try to pretend not to be nervous and maintain our eye contact, he raises his hand and moves it closer to my lips, and I think I forgot how to breathe.

"I didn't see you yesterday."

"Were you looking for me?" I smile, not so subtly.

"You told me I could call you whenever I want to talk, remember?" He smiles as if he's thinking of a good memory, then scratches his eyebrow and looks at me.

"Oh, yeah. We're doing that now." I roll my eyes.

"I don't want a half-assed conversation in hurried steps, doll." He stops talking and bites his lower lip, then looks at me. He seems to be thinking about what to say. "I want to sit down, look at you, and talk. Even if it's through a damn phone."

"That's not going to happen." I pat his shoulder and then start walking again, this time slowly as he keeps up with me.

"I'm amazed at how easily you get irritated, this is going to make our lives a lot more fun."

"Seriously! What do you want, Gray?" I ask, looking into his eyes.

"I liked you." He shrugs, showing no shame in admitting it. "When you backed away, I knew I wanted to see you again."

"Insufferable." A laugh escapes me, but it's out of pure indignation! "We've talked, you got the answers you wanted. Now you can go."

"Who said I only intend to talk to you once, beautiful?"

"Are you going to stop calling me 'beautiful'?" I ask, flustered.

"No. You're beautiful, I don't need to keep reminding you." He holds a strand of my hair between his index finger and thumb, moving it away from my face, tucking it behind my ear, and touching my skin near my cheek. "Damn, you're so beautiful."