“I seriously can’t believe you got yourself into so much trouble on your first day, at that,” June exclaimed, laughing loudly.
Elaine was too upset to say much, so she simply stuffed her mouth with food as they sat in the dining hall.
The loud chatter of the students made it hard to hear anyone clearly.
Luckily, Vanessa wasn’t there.
Elaine was grateful; she wasn’t ready for another June-and-Vanessa showdown.
So much for making a good impression.
From almost getting into a fight with a girl she didn’t know to getting punished, and now standing a chance of repeating the class, everything was going downhill.
Mom would be so disappointed, she thought.
This was Kyle’s fault.
She concluded firmly.
“What were you two talking about?” June asked, breaking her train of thought.
“Both of who?” Elaine replied.
“You and Kyle, of course,” June said, giving her a suspicious look.
“It was nothing,” Elaine answered disinterestedly, still stuffing herself with food.
“That’s a lie. I know it was something. Tell me,” June pressed.
Elaine sighed loudly before answering.
“He was just asking why I was sleeping in class.”
“Well, that’s still something. But you have to admit, he’s handsome, right?” June stated.
“What does that have to do with me?” Elaine asked, a strange expression crossing her face.
Then she remembered him whispering his name into her ear.
Oh.
She felt weird just thinking about it.
Quickly, she shook her head before she started imagining things she wasn’t supposed to.
“Because you’re sitting next to him. You’re getting a firsthand view of that fucking handsome face,” June said dramatically, gesturing around her own face for emphasis.
Elaine immediately facepalmed at June’s comment.
From Allan, now Kyle too, she thought tiredly.
“He’s handsome, right?” June pressed again.
“You’ve already said it yourself. Why do you still want to hear it from me?”
“Just say it.”
“Fine. He is,” Elaine admitted, hoping June would finally let it go.
Though she couldn’t deny it was true.
“If you cared so much about his face, why didn’t you sit with him?” Elaine asked.
“I don’t know… maybe because he didn’t seem very welcoming,” June answered nonchalantly.
“But I guess I was wrong. He didn’t seem to mind you sitting with him,” she added thoughtfully.
“Maybe he likes you,” June suddenly said, already lost in her own imagination.
“What?” Elaine exclaimed, staring at her.
Sighing deeply, she shook her head.
“June, I really don’t know how your brain works, and I don’t want to. But please, keep your thoughts realistic. We’re just seatmates, not even friends, okay?”
“Well, people always start from somewhere,” June muttered.
Elaine heard it clearly, making her grind her teeth.
The rest of their break was spent listening to June bring up several completely irrelevant topics until it was finally time for afternoon classes.
The moment Elaine reached the classroom door, she stopped in her tracks.
Her eyes landed on the person seated directly behind her.
It was Allan.
He rested his head on the desk, his hoodie pulled slightly forward to block out the sunlight.
Elaine simply stood there staring at him.
How—
For some reason, it felt like it had been forever since she last saw him.
Composing herself quickly, she frowned.
What is wrong with me?
He’s just someone you met once by chance.
You’re basically strangers.
“Stop standing there gawking like a fool.”
A sharp voice sounded behind her.
“I wasn’t,” Elaine replied quickly before turning around.
“Oh.”
Kyle.
She instantly felt stupid.
Her lips pursed awkwardly as she stared at him.
Without another word, he casually walked past her and took his seat.
“I seriously need to stop staring like that,” she muttered to herself, lightly slapping her forehead before entering the classroom.
The rest of the classes went smoothly.
She tried not to get distracted this time, though she still couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that Allan and Gwen were seatmates and neither of them had attended class before break.
she wondered.
Unable to wait until classes ended to ask June, Elaine decided to ask Kyle instead.
“Um… Kyle,” she whispered, trying to get his attention.
“You really can’t pay attention in class, can you?” he asked, clearly annoyed at being disturbed.
“Sorry. I just wanted to ask you something.”
He didn’t respond, but she took his silence as permission to continue.
“Are students allowed to stay back at the dorm during learning hours?”
“And what does that have to do with what we’re learning right now?” he asked, finally turning toward her.
“Nothing. I was just curious.”
“Are you asking because of Allan?” he suddenly asked.
“Uh… no! It isn’t because of Allan. It’s because of someone else,” she answered quickly, eyes widening.
“Who?”
This guy seriously likes knowing everything, she thought.
“Gwen,” she finally admitted.
“Allan’s seat partner?” he confirmed.
“Yes,” Elaine replied, still confused about why he kept bringing Allan up.
“Well, students are allowed to stay at the dorm during learning hours,” he answered, eyes returning to the board.
“Okay… but wouldn’t that make them lazy?”
“Maybe,” he replied nonchalantly, “but students like that are usually already prepared for failure.”
Elaine frowned.
Was that supposed to be funny?
Before she could respond, Kyle suddenly placed a finger against her lips.
“Back to class.”
That small, unexpected gesture left her speechless.
Was it proper to touch someone else’s lips like that?
Her cheeks immediately flushed red.
She only hoped nobody had noticed.
Then she remembered Allan and Gwen were sitting directly behind her.
By the end of the class, Elaine was exhausted.
She quickly packed her bag and informed June that she was heading back to the dorm.
June had already decided to stay behind with Gwen for a while, so she wouldn’t be accompanying her.