My New Neighbour

Chapter nine

Thanks for reading, voting and commenting, guys, it means a lot. And just like I promised, this chapter is dedicated to baby_kay1 as she was the first one who answered on the previous chapter.

Instragram: Sneha_rah19

Enjoy ^^

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I shrugged off the foreign feeling and headed towards the racks in the back of the library, leaving Max to choose his materials for school.

I got a basket off the nearby racks to keep all the things that I would buy in it.

After spending a while walking around the shelves looking for some stuffs, my feet started to hurt. I glanced at Max who was busy in choosing between a red pen and a blue pen. I bit my lower lip to stop the smile which was fighting it's way to make an appearance while studying his furrowed brows. He kept the blue pen back and clutched the red one in his right hand but after some time of debating, he picked the blue one up and left the red one there, then he picked both off the shelf and frowned. I couldn't help but smile at his childish behavior.

I approached him and coughed to get his attention. He turned and looked at me.

"What's wrong? Do you need help?", I asked and smiled at him. When he smiled back, my smile faltered as I felt my heartbeat skipped a beat. It was a genuine smile playing on his lips. For a moment, I was mesmerized but once he lifted his two hands, holding the two pens separately, I tried to feign another smile before he could notice my gawking face. 

"Which one?", he asked and waited for my reply.

My eyes darted between the two pens and then settled on the red one.

"The red one", I held the red pen up and checked it.

"By the way, where did you get this pen", I shook the red pen and looked at him.

"You like it?", he asked and took it in his hand. He had dropped the blue one back on the rack. I hummed in response.

"Wait, I will find one for you", he winked and started digging through the rack. I smiled. He sure was a sweetheart. He looked so focused in searching for another one that he did not notice me staring at him. His eyebrows furrowed once again in concentration with his lips in a pout which was barely visible. He looked kinda cute right now that I wished time would stopped. I guess Max is not that bad when you see past his whole bad boy façade but, the fact that he has a player and bad boy mask on would make me hesitate in even considering him as a friend.

"Here", he pulled another one similar to the one in his hand and handed it to me. I snapped back from my little stare off and blushed slightly.

"Thank you", I smiled gratefully and put the red pen in my basket. He did not notice my cheeks on fire. Wait a minute. Did I just say that he's cute? Max Jackson and cute? Max is everything but cute! He is a player for god sake and he is surely bad or worst like a monster but not cute and sweet, right? I frowned at my judgement. What's wrong with me?

"Are you done?", he asked and held out his hand to carry my basket for me.

"Yeah.", I handed him my basket while thanking him. We made our way to the cash register and  waited in line. The place was pretty full with people and when our turn to pay arrived, I gasped when Max grabbed my arm and pulled me back.

"What's wrong?", I scowled at his behavior but frowned when I noticed his tensed posture.

"Nothing", he answered a bit too quickly and put his hoodie on completely avoiding me. He was acting like a weirdo. What's the matter with him? He hurriedly paid for his materials and began tapping his right foot repeatedly while waiting for me. He looked nervous.

Max Jackson and nervous. Wow! Max has been full of surprises since we came here. Firstly, he apologized for yesterday and for what he did today in the car. Secondly, he acted sweet and helped me find a pen. And now, he was nervous.

Just when the old lady handed my credit card back, Max wasted no time in grabbing my things and wrapping an arm around my waist, pulling me out of the library. He was rushing outside and I was trying my best to keep up with him.

"Wait! What's wrong?", I removed his hand from around my waist because it was weird letting him hold me somewhere so intimate and stopped him in the middle of the shopping mall where people was sashaying around like mosquitoes.

"Come on Shelly, we don't have time for this", he tried to get me out but I remained like a statue. Now, I'm pretty sure there is definitely something wrong. He used my name again. Something is off about him.

"Shelly!", he exclaimed and I jumped at his alarming voice. A shiver rolled up my spine. The way he said my name was still something I was getting used to. But, something was definitely wrong otherwise he wouldn't have used my name.

"Max, tell me what's wrong?", I fired back and used the same tone with him.

He opened his mouth to argue back but his eyes widened with shock when he saw something from behind me. I was about to turn back to see at what he was looking at but he stopped me by pulling me in for a hug and buried his head in the crook of my neck.

Something fluttered in my belly. My breathe was caught up in my throat. Little butterflies were churning in my stomach. He pulled back and stared at me as if he was looking right through me. I shivered when he gazed at me.

"What are you doing?", I managed to ask him quietly as my legs weakened. What he did then, shocked me. I was left speechless.

My answer was a kiss, a kiss that was tenderly pressed against my lips and made my head spin. I didn't back away as I was so caught up in the moment. His lips were soft and plump. I felt a wet and warm tongue glide against my bottom lip before he bit it down delicately. I couldn't stop myself from kissing back. My cheeks flushed even more deeply and my heart revved with adrenaline. I moved my hands up to rest on his cheeks. I felt his arms tightening around my waist. My mind was becoming fuzzy with all the feelings that were suddenly blooming inside me. I was getting my first kiss in the middle of a shopping mall with people walking around.

When he pulled back, my eyes were still closed, digesting this unknown feeling. My lips still warm from the kiss. I felt a bit dizzy but this felt good. Our bodies were still pressed together, with my hands clasped on his shoulders and his on each side of my waist, still holding me to him.

As he was tall, my eyes were fixed on his jawline, so, I looked up to find him already staring back at me. We kept looking at each other, deep in our thoughts.

I could tell that at this point, I was red like a tomato. I just lost my first kiss to Max and I remember making a promise that I would never let myself be associated with this player but what was weird is that I didn't mind him kissing me. I never stopped him and it was the best feeling ever. 

"Well, well, well, look who we have here, Max with his cute little girlfriend.", someone sneered from behind. Max went stiff for a while but then pulled me more in his arms, hiding my face in his chest.

It was a guy and his voice sounded frightening. My heart was beating rapidly. I felt an eerie kind of feeling. I gripped Max's shoulders more tightly and he held me securely in his arms. I felt safe with him but I couldn't help from wondering why did I feel safe in his arms? 

Who was this guy?

Maybe a friend of Max joking around but with Max's reaction, I could easily tell that this guy could not be his friend.

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What do you think so far about the story? Who is this guy?

And not to forget our little game. So, another question for you guys :-

Your hobbies?

Remember; the one who comment his/her answers first, the next chapter will be dedicated to him/her.