His lips were soft at first, before a roughness took over and he pressed his body to mine. My hands instantly go to his hair as he cups my cheek with his hand as the other turns into a fist next to my head.
A sigh leaves his mouth, like this is som...
"Two souls are sometimes created together and in love before they're even born." -F. Scott Fitzgerald
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Ashraf sits opposite me, holding his coffee in one hand and a folder in the other. I already know why we were here and what he was going to say.
"What's going on with you?" He asks, taking a sip of his coffee.
"Me? No, nothing." I say nonchalantly, leaning back in my chair and crossing my arms across my chest.
"That's not convincing, Preece." Ashraf lifts an eyebrow and takes another sip of his coffee.
"Yes it is, it came out of my mouth. I can decide if it's convincing or not."
"What?"
"See? I understood what I just said but you didn't."
"What you just said didn't even make sense."
"It made sense to me." I smile smugly at him even though I know damn well he's right.
Me and Ashraf met a couple of months ago and we've been inseparable ever since. He's been by my side whenever I've needed and I know I can count on him whenever I need something. I'm closer to him than ever been with anyone else and I'm glad that he decided to stay by my side no matter how many fucked up situations I've ever been in.
Ashraf is silent for a while and when he finally looks at me, I see confusion in his eyes.
"You know you can trust me, right?" He asks, leaning forward.
"Yeah, of course." I laugh before my attention is driven to the front of the cafe.
Leona walks in, her friend trailing behind her. I suddenly found myself captivated by her presence, like it was choking me. Her entire essence suffocated me and took control of my body.
"Oh, I know what this is about." Ashraf says and when I look at him, there's a smile on his face.
"What?" I look from him to Leona and back again.
"You got a thing for her, don't you? Isn't that the girl that you're tutoring?"
My eyes snap to him and I look at him with shock written all over my face.
"What are you talking about? I don't have a thing for her, I just think she's very attractive." I snatch his coffee and take a big gulp of it.
"Of course. You didn't look at every other attractive girl in this place like you just looked at her." Ashraf grins at me, a suspicious glint in his eye. "You practically told that other girl to fuck right off but in a politer way."
"I told her that coz I'm not in the mood to flirt." I mumble.
When he tries to take his coffee, I hold it away from him. He's not getting this back.
"Sure you did."
"Man, what the hell do you know? You've never been in a relationship."
"That's because the girls don't see what an amazing guy I am."
"No, they just see the dumbass part of you."
"There isn't a dumbass part of me." Ashraf looks at me and I look at him. Then we burst out into laughter.
***
I place the textbooks on the table, sorting through the worksheets for today. I'm not scared to see Leona or confront her, I understand that it is awkward between us but I'm willing to put in the work. It's up to her now.
Leona arrives fifteen minutes late. I had sat at the table, scrolling through my phone when she barged in, flops onto the chair opposite mine and drops her backpack onto the ground. Her arms cross against her chest and her eyes stare daggers at the desk.
"Hey." I say to her, but I get no reply. "We're gonna carry on with fuel cells so that you know it properly before we move on." Leona rolls her eyes and huffs but she doesn't make a move to run out of the classroom at top speed.
"Can you give me a brief overview of what we went through on wednesday?" I ask, opening the chemistry textbook in front of me. Thankfully, Leona begins to speak.
I never noticed this before but her voice has an angelic side to it. He was elegant in the way she spoke, a euphonious, beautiful sound that hits the core whenever I hear her.
"Fuel cells work like batteries, but they don't need recharging. As long as the fuel is supplied, they produce heat and electricity."
"What two electrodes do they consist of?"
"Cathode and anode." She answers dryly, still not meeting my eyes.
I nod my head, turning the page of the textbook.
"That's good. Did you do the homework Mr. Grey assigned you?" Leona huffs in annoyance and opens her bag. She pulls out two sheets that were incomplete.
"Can I do it now? I... I didn't know what to do." She says quietly, clearing her throat.
I stopped myself from giving a snarky comment because she looked upset and she was already mad at me... I think.
"Not that I care, but are you still mad at me?" Leona's eyes finally meet mine in a glare and I instantly regret saying anything.
In all honesty, Leona was scary. It may not seem like it, despite her height and cuteness, she was definitely capable of murder. And the first kill on her list was me.
"Of course I'm still mad at you, Prick. Why wouldn't I be?"
"I thought you'd cooled down since then." I say, cautiously.
"That's something you've yet to learn about me: I can hold onto a grudge like there's no tomorrow." Well... that thought scared me slightly.
As much as Leona is nobody to me, I weirdly seek her approval. I don't even know what for, I just want her to see me and not think I'm a dick or anything like that. Or a prick, like she constantly makes a point of reminding me of.
"I'd prefer it if there was a tomorrow because there's no way we can get through these tutor sessions if you hate me."
Leona raises her eyebrow at me and she crosses her arms, tilting her head to the side.
"Are you saying that the feeling isn't mutual, Logan?"
"Oh, of course it's mutual. I'm just not making it obvious as you are."
"Shall I make it more obvious? You're too annoying to be around." My eyes flicker to her ear as she rubs it slightly.
"I-" She's doing it again. She's distracting me. A smirk traces her face when she sees my reaction and I huff in annoyance. "Your distraction skills make up for the lack of chemistry knowledge."
"See what I mean? You're always insulting me, no wonder I hate you." Leona tries to fight the smile on her face but one look at my face and she's bursting into laughter.
Her smile is rare. This is the first time I've seen her smile and it was elegant yet simple. Her laughter made the rest of the room feel alive. A certain innocence surrounded her when she relaxed and there was a joy and happy aroma around her and I find myself hoping that she doesn't stop smiling.
