Elaine kept looking up at him in silence, her cries had quieted, though tears still lingered in her eyes.
She was utterly confused.
“This isn’t normal,” he concluded, tilting his head to the side, unbothered by the rain pouring heavily on both of them.
Elaine, still seated on the ground, was speechless.
She simply stared at him until he suddenly bent down to her eye level, as though assessing her, before grabbing her arms and pulling her effortlessly to her feet.
He held her wrists firmly, guiding her toward a shaded area.
She followed like a broken doll, letting him lead as though her mind wasn’t fully there.
They entered the nearest building and settled in an empty classroom.
Pausing in his steps, Allan walked ahead and sat on one of the chairs, as though he had completely forgotten about her.
Elaine remained standing, looking around the dark classroom.
“Do you plan to keep standing?” he asked, a light frown on his face.
“I… I…” Elaine tried to speak, but the words didn’t seem to come out.
As though gathering the patience, he stood back up and walked toward her.
Looking down at her, he gently sat her on one of the chairs.
This time, he leaned casually against a desk, arms folded across his chest, his back to her as he faced the board.
They remained quiet, listening to the heavy pitter-patter of the rain.
Minutes passed, and slowly Elaine’s eyes cleared.
The feeling from earlier was gone without a trace.
To be clear, it felt like a dream she had just woken up from and already forgotten.
She only felt abnormally weak.
“Why was I crying?” she scolded herself internally, embarrassed and confused.
She twisted her fingers nervously, her eyes darting between Allan and the door.
Should I just stand up and leave?
she thought, lifting herself slightly from the chair.
At that same moment, Allan turned his head, his eyes meeting hers.
There was something about the way he looked at her that made her purse her lips awkwardly.
Offering him a faint smile, she sat back down.
This is awkward, she thought.
“I… I’m okay now,” she said loud enough for him to hear.
“I don’t remember asking,” he replied, still staring at the board.
His tone only added to her discomfort, along with the cold wetness of her soaked clothes.
Tilting her head slightly, she looked at the board he seemed so focused on.
She instantly cringed.
Fuck you, meet me tonight at my dorm.
Jones has a small dick.
Elaine quickly adverted her gaze, not daring to read more.
This was definitely the handiwork of the students.
I should leave now, she thought.
“Allan, I just meant that… you can leave now. Thanks,” she added quickly, gaining his attention.
“Leave to where?” he asked, turning to face her completely.
“Uh?” She hesitated, but he held her gaze, waiting.
“I meant you could go back to whatever you were doing… or wherever you were going before you, you um—”
“Before I saw a baby crying in the rain,” he finished, making her blush.
“I wasn’t really crying,” she murmured, looking down and biting her lip.
And I’m not a baby.
“Yeah, you weren’t,” he said, turning back to the board and letting out a soft, almost inaudible sigh.
“Well… thank you,” she said sincerely.
“I’m leaving now.”
She was halfway up from the chair when his voice stopped her again.
“What made you cry?”
Again, she froze mid-motion.
“Uh…?” She looked at him silently, asking him to repeat himself.
He didn’t, and she realized he didn’t like saying things twice.
“It was nothing,” she answered slowly.
It wasn’t exactly a lie.
Personally, she couldn’t tell what had made her cry.
It had just happened.
“That’s not an answer. One doesn’t just decide to cry in the rain out of the blue.”
“Why do you care?” she asked quietly.
Turning to face her, he tilted his head slightly.
“I don’t know.”
Was that even an answer?
she thought.
Not pushing further, she finally replied, “I just thought about something I missed so much, and I got emotional.”
It was better than nothing.
But the way he looked at her made it clear he knew she wasn’t telling the truth.
He walked toward her and pulled a chair over for himself, sitting directly in front of her.
Abruptly, he turned her chair so they were fully facing each other, their knees between the other’s, touching.
Then he pulled his wet hoodie off his head, leaving only the black shirt underneath.
“What are yo—” she started before trailing off, taking him in.
This was the first time she had seen him without his hoodie, and she would be lying if she said he wasn’t hot as fuck.
He should take it off more often, she thought, struggling to keep a straight face as heat rapidly spread across her cheeks.
She had no idea what was going on, but fuck, she liked it.
“Stay still.”
His voice was low and deep, meant only for her ears, as though he didn’t want anyone else hearing, even though they were the only two people in the block. This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
Elaine furrowed her brows as she stared at him.
Her breathing turned shallow as he lifted his hands toward her head.
Finally finding her voice, she asked softly, “Allan, what are you doing?”
She hadn’t meant for her voice to come out low and breathy.
She blushed harder as she watched a smirk grow across his face.
Still, he didn’t answer.
Instead, he gently peeled the soaked bandage off her forehead, it was dripping with blood mixed with water.
It was disgusting.
“Oh…”
She stared at the ruined bandage in embarrassment.
“Thanks,” she chuckled awkwardly.
What had she even thought he was going to do?
She had completely forgotten about her injury.
Picking up his hoodie, Allan carefully cleaned the blood from her forehead.
Satisfied with his work, he smiled faintly.
His other hand moved subconsciously to her face, holding her still.
Elaine already felt nervous enough being this close to him.
Then his expression changed.
It was calm.
Too calm.
Calm enough to border on happiness.
And suddenly, a memory she had tried to bury resurfaced.
It was the exact same expression he had worn while watching that boy bleed on the gym floor.
Her hands instantly turned cold.
Subconsciously, she flinched away from his touch.
Blinking rapidly, she looked at him.
“What?” he asked, tilting his head slightly as he took in her terrified expression.
“It’s nothing,” she answered quickly, her breathing uneven with fear and trepidation.
“Thanks. I’m leaving now.”
Without waiting another second, she dashed out of the classroom.
Thankfully, the rain had already subsided into a light drizzle.
Allan leaned back in the chair, a faint smile playing on his lips as he watched her leave.
“Elaine Randolph,” he murmured to himself, remembering the feel of her skin against his hand.
Her olive-toned skin, long delicate lashes, round lips, and soft face.
He smiled faintly at the memory.