The Illusion of Us

Chapter 4

The swollen purple eye and busted knuckles that Khalil came sporting to school the next day continued to add fuel to the blazing fire of rumors still circulating around the school about him and his 'troublesome' past. But Mina couldn't find herself any less interested in the petty gossip and rumors that echoed through the halls of Palm Valley Prep and she readily defended his very existence to anyone who would listen, which wasn't very many people. Most of them entertained her and smiled politely, pretending to listen with wide eyes and wry smiles, but she knew that every single one of them went right back to gossiping when she was out of earshot.

Asher's friends never strayed from their inappropriate and condescending jokes and, though Noah never made fun of Khalil aloud she never failed to laugh along with the rest of the table when his name arose in the conversation.

They were all so disgustingly immature.

"Baby?" Asher's soft voice tickled the skin of her neck, his lips intimately brushing against her earlobe as he whispered against her. His arms wrapped themselves tighter around her waist, his body pressed firmly against her backside.

Standing in the middle of the busy hall all of Asher's friends' eyes were glued to her as if waiting for a response to an unspoken question, or rather an unheard question.

Mina folded her hands over Asher's, plastering what she hoped was a convincing smile on her face as she nodded her head consensually. She had no idea what she had just agreed with but, whatever it was, it seemed to satisfy the group. Chris and the others took up conversation again without a second thought, but Asher's attention was still focused on his silent girlfriend wrapped between his arms.

Mina could feel his eyes boring into the side of her head questioningly, and she turned her body sideways to give him a thin-lipped smile and a small peck to his lips.

She could feel him smile underneath her touch.

"Should I empty up a classroom for the two of you?" laughter rose around the group as Chris's voice boomed through the hall and Mina quickly pulled back from Asher's lips at his friend's comment. She looked up at him, expecting him to reprimand Chris for the debilitating comment, but a wide grin was spread across his face.

Mina feigned a tight uncomfortable smile and was thankful for the distraction of the brass clanging bell overhead.

Asher bade goodbye to all his friends, letting go of Mina's waist to instead grasp her hand tightly in his and she had to resist the overpowering urge to snatch her own hand away.

Being with Asher was supposed to be easy, especially considering the way his words themself mader her feel incredible, but that was when they were alone, that was when they were away from his friends, that was when they were away from Chris.

But when they were in public-

God! She couldn't stand Asher when they were in public, the way he treated her like a pet instead of a girlfriend.

"See you at lunch?" Noah beamed, pulling Mina from her contemplation. She quickly nodded in response, watching as Noah blew her a curt kiss before following the sea of students scurrying down the adjacent hall.

Mina watched her friend's figure until she had completely disappeared, jumping at the sound of a sigh blowing through the air before she realized that the sound had come from her.

Asher's eyes immediately traveled to her in uncertainty and he raised their intertwined fingers and placed a wet kiss on the back of her hand.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked. His eyes carefully scanned her face as they began to walk, still intertwined with one another, down the opposite hall towards their second period.