Chapter Five- Beginning of Secret Relationship

I walked inside the class and thudded the books on the table, taking a long sigh of irritation.

"Bastard's bitches!" I growled before I plumped on the seat.

With my head spinning like a roller roster with bitterness, I vacantly flipped the pages of one of the books that I just borrowed from the library.

Infuriated with Mary and her friends, I cursed Noah vehemently for being the root cause of whatever was happening.

But a sudden sense of sympathy and empathy for Mary overshadowed me.

How could I be hostile to a girl who was in the never-ending quest of her unrequited love for someone?

'She might be afraid that her love would be taken away from her just like I feel," I silently told myself, remembering how I had gotten jealous of my best friend earlier when Andy winked at her and she smiled like she was flattered by it.

"But she cannot threaten me!"

I squeezed my fist, struggling to take off filthy worms feasting my brain.

“Hey! Alone? Where are Sara and Ella?”

I instantly turned my head back to see Andy behind me, carrying his school bag.

Gosh! He freaked me out.

How didn't I see him in the class and what was he doing all alone in the back seat?

"I am sorry if I freaked you out," he chirped apologetically.

I looked at him in silence while the cells in me started to jostle with nervousness. The story he read in the English period caused an uproar in my heart.

"Aren't you going home?" he asked.

"I am waiting for Sar and Ella. They went to the restroom," I replied.

All that came to mind was the story he had written for the English subject.

I wanted to ask him whether it was a true story or just a lie but it was stuck in my throat, not having the nerves to come out.

“Can we talk for a while if you are free?"

"Sure, why not," I replied, looking into his light brown eyes.

He dragged a chair and sat facing me across the desk.

I was sweating and my palms were wet.

"I had been trying to tell you something but I don't know where to start…" he halted, looking at me like I am the best thing to stare at.

"What's that?" I asked him, trying to act normal but I could hear my heart beating louder and louder.

"Ummm...I...I…"

The door flung open and Ella and Sara entered, chattering and giggling.

"This book looks romantic," Andy said, picking a novel from the table.

"Amelia wants to read a romantic book for the first time," Ella said, chuckling.

"Can I borrow it for tonight?" he asked me.

"Of course," I replied with a smile while my heart was left with curiosity to know what he was about to tell me.

"Girls, I will see you tomorrow," Andy waved at us and walked out of the class.

We grabbed our bags and headed home but to my surprise, Andy was waiting for us outside the school gate.

"Who are you waiting for?" Ella asked him

“It’s better to walk with friends than to walk alone,” he replied smiling.

"Yes you are right,” Sara said.

In a second we were talking and laughing like crazy walking through the footpath along the highway like we had bought the path.

The first house to reach was Sara's.

We waved to Sara and continued the funny and silly conversation that made us burst into laughter.

When I reached my house, Andy said to me, "why don't we walk to her home so that I can come back with you."

"Where are you going?" Ella asked him.

"The thing is, I already passed by my house. Since I was so indulged in the conversation, I…"

"You are really so funny," Ella said laughing.

"But it's a plus point for me because I don't have to walk all alone for ten minutes," she added.

After Ella got to her house, Andy and I walked back in silence, not at all uttering a single word. Without Ella and Sara, I was like a sick hen who didn't have the nerves to chatter.

"What I was telling you earlier is that…" he said, breaking the silence but halted before he completed the sentence.

I stared at him for a while before I blurted out, "Your story was awesome."

"Don't you want to know who the girl in the story is?" he asked me with a smile.

Oh my god! He asked me the very question I had been wanting to ask him but I was afraid what if the girl wasn't me.

Honestly, the reason I brought up the topic of his story was that I wanted him to talk about it, whether it was real or just fiction.

"Who is she?" I asked him, with my heart accelerating.

He looked at me for a long time before he said, "it's you."

My heart stopped for a while and then it started to squeal with joy I have never felt before.

"I like you," he added when I didn't reply to him.

All I wanted to do at that moment was hug him tight and tell him that I liked him so much. I wanted to tell him that I was the happiest being in the world but my fantasy should remain as fantasy because he would have thought that I have gone crazy.

"I am sorry if I hurt or irritate…"

"No...you are just overthinking," I said but I couldn't tell him that I liked him too.

Damn me!

"What do you feel for me?" He asked, halting.

I looked at him, blushing pink for a while before I stammered, "The thing is that...I...I.."

"Are you seeing someone else?"

Shit! Can't he just wait for some time or doesn't he understand that I liked him too?

It was my first time trying to confess my love for someone, so I was struggling to confess how I felt and he wasn't giving me some time to compose myself.

"I like you too," I told him like someone was chasing me.

Complete nervousness overwhelmed me.

"Let's date, Amelia. I promise that I won't hurt you," he said, taking my hand in his and squeezing it.

I looked at him smiling shyly and I think he knew that I accepted his proposal.

When I realized, we had reached my home and it felt like a two-minute walk from Ella's home when it was a 10 minutes walk.

"I have my number on it," he said, giving me the book he borrowed earlier.

I grabbed the book and he looked at me with a gaze that conquered my heart.

"Bye...I will see you tomorrow," he said, pecking a kiss on my cheek.

I looked around to see if people were staring at us but there was no one around.

I was a little shy and uncomfortable as it was my first time being kissed by someone I fancied so much.

"Bye," I told him and turned to walk away when he said, "Don't tell anyone about it."

I instantly turned back to see him smiling.

"Why?" I asked him confused.

"Let's be secret lovers before we surprise them," he said.

"Secret lover?"

"Yeah, you will love it and it will be fun to surprise Ella, Sara, and everyone," he said, still smiling.

"Okay," I replied with a dubious smile.

He gestured to me with his hand to call him and shouted, "There is something for you in your satchel."