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"Wait a minute, hold up you're telling me you've never been on a date before?" Enzo asked Thea incredulously.
He sat at her desk, catching the tennis ball she tossed him. Her friend from earlier had long left the two alone, leaving them to spend the last few hours getting to know one another even more than they had already.
Although Enzo knew there was a bonfire tonight for the freshman, he wasn't all that inclined to go, half of the reason being he liked talking to Thea and the other half was because the Lions baseball team had a scrimmage the next day, and he really didn't feel like having to battle a hangover and the ego of Damon Sims at once.
Thea frowned lightly, focusing her attention on picking at the neon green fuzz of the tennis ball. She was self-conscious about her lack of experience compared to others her age and was embarrassed by Lorenzo's reaction, feeling like he was judging her.
Not that she'd admit that out loud.
"I'm sorry, I ain't mean to sound like that," Enzo apologized softly, noticing how the tennis star didn't respond and her deflated body language, "I was just surprised."
Thea scoffed, wrapping her arms around herself for security. The tennis ball rolled off the bed, forgotten, "And why is that Lorenzo?"
Enzo stared at her quizzically, brown eyes analyzing her figure. Had she really just asked that? "You forreal? Aside from being insane on the court, you're smart and beautiful, and no matter how much you try to have this tough, "no bullshit" mean exterior, you are very kind-hearted and I know you're caring. You're telling me dudes don't be falling at your feet? That's hard to believe."
The tennis powerhouse sat silently, processing his praised words. No one has ever talked about her the way Lorenzo had. While she had been called pretty and beautiful plenty of times, most people thought of Thea as being cold and supercilious. No one dared to get to really know her, not that she let them. But no one tried to get to know her like Lorenzo has.
Almost shyly, Thea met Enzo's stare with gentle eyes, feeling a new sense of vulnerability that made her fidget with her fingernails. The feeling made her uncomfortable yet she trusted Enzo, "Believe it or not, most people don't see me that way. I don't allow them to, I'm surprised you're able to see it honestly."
"I pay attention," Enzo said, leveling his stare into an attentive gaze, "I know you're a good person, Thea, I see you."
Not that she'd admit it out loud but Thea felt like she could cry. She actually felt like she had a friend. Someone that actually liked her and didn't want to be close to her because of her tennis stature. It felt weird, but more importantly, it felt good.
"Thank–" A series of rapid knocks sounded on the door, startling the two teens and effectively cutting Thea off.
"Enzo!" Keisha's voice called through the door followed by more prompt knocks.
