“I… I don’t know how to play pool,” Sophia whispered, her voice shaky.
I frowned, barely looking at her. “And why should I care?”
“I…”
She stammered, eyes filling with tears.
Before I could even respond, Xavier rushed over, stepping in front of her like some kind of shield. He glared at me. “Can you not be so rude?”
I rolled my eyes. “Psycho,” I muttered under my breath, trying to push past him.
But Xavier wasn’t having it. He blocked my path again.
Fed up, I decided to provoke him. “What’s the deal, Xavier? Playing hard to get? You want me to be your girlfriend or something?”
“Not in a million years,” he shot back, all cocky.
“Then don’t stand in my way,” I snapped.
Finally, I left without anyone stopping me.
Behind me, I heard Sophia panicking. “What should we do, Xavier? I don’t know how to play pool.”
Xavier’s voice softened as he reassured her, “Don’t worry. With me here, we won’t lose.”
I wasn’t interested in their little game.
That evening at dinner, my mom kept sighing, looking way too concerned. “I ran into Xavier’s mom today… she had bruises all over her arms. His dad really needs to back off…”
Then she asked, “Aria, why hasn’t Xavier come over for dinner lately? Did you two fight?”
“No,” I said, trying not to roll my eyes.
“That’s good. You should invite him over more often…”
I looked up, cutting her off. “We’re not friends anymore.”
“What? Why?” My mom sounded surprised.
I shrugged, taking a bite of my fish. “No reason. I just can’t stand blind people.”
My mom hesitated before asking, “Is Xavier seeing someone?”
I put a piece of fish in her bowl without looking at her. “Yeah. And they’re nauseatingly sweet.”
It’s like they’re living in some cheesy romance drama, dragging me along as an extra.
The next morning, I walked into class and immediately heard Sophia crying.
“What should I do, Xavier? It was in my backpack this morning, but now it’s gone!”
My deskmate leaned over, whispering, “The class fund that Sophia was in charge of vanished. Everyone’s looking for it.”
I barely glanced at her. “Why not just check the security footage?”
Sophia walked over, her eyes blazing with defense. “Aria, I might not have much, but I’m not stealing the class fund!”
I hadn’t even accused her, but she was already on the defensive.
Then Xavier appeared, his face stone-cold. “Apologize to her.”
I just dropped my backpack on the desk and sat down, not even bothering to respond.
But Xavier wasn’t done. He grabbed my backpack and threw it across the room, then flipped my desk over, scattering everything across the floor.
It was clear: Xavier was losing control again.
“Apologize to her, didn’t you hear me?” His voice was harsh.
The class went completely silent. Everyone looked away, too scared to intervene.
I bent down to fix my desk, but Xavier grabbed me by the neck, his fingers tightening.
His eyes were bloodshot, and he hissed through clenched teeth, “A-po-lo-gize.”
I couldn’t breathe. My neck burned under his grip, tears stinging my eyes.
Sophia rushed forward, yelling, “Xavier! Stop!”
But Xavier wasn’t listening. His gaze was locked on me, like he wasn’t even seeing me anymore.
It took a couple of teachers to pull him off me. They escorted me to the infirmary, but as I walked out, I could feel Xavier’s eyes still on me.
Sophia held him tightly, murmuring, “It’s okay, Xavier. I don’t care what anyone else thinks. As long as you trust me, that’s all that matters.”
Xavier buried his face in her shoulder, but his eyes never left me, dark and intense, even as I disappeared from view.
