The Cinnamon Girl

CHAPTER 2

...

After our first period in the morning, I walked to the cafeteria alone hoping I would find them immediately. It was great to be able to spend some time with them outside of our shared room.

As I approached the entrance, I saw Vabes standing outside, checking her phone. She smiled when she saw me and held the door open.

"Aceliegna,dito!" She exclaimed as I was walking on a hallway through the cafeteria.

I nodded and walked inside. The cafeteria was buzzing with students, all talking and laughing over their food. I scanned the room and luckily found them near the back corner.

We all sat down and they began to chat about thier morning classes. Lovely Maiden had just finished her first art class and was eager to show us her latest painting. Arlyn had a tough math test, but she was optimistic that she did well. Vabes and Khryslei were excited about thier biology lab, where they dissected a frog for the first time.

I listened intently to each of thier stories, then I also shared a brief experiences.

As I ate together with my roommates, I noticed Josh across the cafeteria with his group of friends. He caught my eye and grinned at me mischievously, causing me to feel a little uneasy. I looked behind me to see if he was really looking at someone else, but all I saw was a wall.

Confused and a little creeped out, I turned back to my food and tried to ignore him. But every time I peeked over at Josh's table, he was still looking at me and grinning. I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable.

My roommates must have noticed my unease because they asked if everything was okay. I told them about Josh's weird behavior and they immediately became concerned.

"Maybe he's just trying to be friendly," Arlyn offered. "Or maybe he's playing a joke on you."

I wasn't sure what to make of it all, but I knew that I wanted to put an end to it. So I decided to go talk to Josh and clear the air.

Leaving my roommates behind, I made my way over to Josh's table. His friends were laughing and joking around, but as soon as they saw me approaching, they grew quiet.

I walked up to Josh and asked, "Hey, Josh, is something wrong? You keep grinning at me."

Josh's smile faded and he looked confused. "what do you mean? "

"You know what I mean," I insisted. "You've been looking at me funny all lunch period."

Josh looked genuinely surprised. "I have? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. I was just lost in thought and didn't realize I was staring."

Relieved that it was all just a misunderstanding, I smiled sarcastically, "No problem. Just maybe try to be more aware of your staring in the future."

I heard his friends chuckled as he felt burnt down.

Josh nodded and we both went back to our respective tables. As I sat down with my roommates, I felt relieved that everything had been ironed out. But I also couldn't shake the feeling of Josh's strange behavior. I wondered what he had been lost in thought about and what was running through his mind.

After we finished our lunch, I grabbed my bag and headed out towards my class. Josh fell in step beside me, his head hung low and his hands fidgeting nervously in his pockets. It was the first time I saw him that way

As we walked, Josh cleared his throat and spoke up. "Hey, I'm sorry about earlier. I know I was acting like a creep and making you uncomfortable. Akala ko matatawa ka eh, mas nagmukha pa akong stalker Hahaha." He chuckled