The Best Mistakes

11. Nolan

Holy Shit!

"Holy shit!" I glared at the guy who was gawking at Kayra from the moment she got in. He flinched, when he saw me and uncomfortably sat back in his place. Everyone knew better, not to mess with me.

If it weren't for the hot cup I was holding, I would've been certain that I was dreaming. How could the person walking in be Kayra Mehta? The girl, who prioritizes comfort over fashion, covers herself in every piece of clothing even in scorching heat, never does makeup because it's a waste of time, money and labor, was coming in looking like that.

If just yesterday, someone would've told me that I'd see her wearing a fucking mini skirt and full face of makeup, I would've definitely laughed at them. She was barely covered in the dead of cold. What was she thinking?

Was she insane to dress like this in the middle of winter? She even looked uncomfortable, constantly pulling her skirt down when she sat. I huffed out a breath. What was she trying to pull?

She sat on the chair beside me as other ones were already occupied. Her lips curved upwards in a smile and blush crept up on her cheeks, but the look of discomfort wasn't totally invisible on her face. "What the hell are you wearing? You look uncomfortable," I whispered near her ear. The close proximity between us gave me a better view of her face and she definitely looked prettier.

"What's it to you? Mind your own business," she side eyed me which fucked my nerves. She wasn't even sparing me a proper glance. So, I was about to retort when a guy appeared out of nowhere and started flirting with her.

His nerves. Hell, every guy's nerves who was eyeing her like she was a goddamn meal. They were like bees swarming around a flower. Not that I consider Kayra a flower.

I waited for Kayra to send the guy back but to my shock she never did. In fact, she was flirting back, laughing and giggling at his shittiest jokes. She never did that before, so why now? She hated it when guys approached her but she was smiling now, when she used to frown.

Something was wrong with her and I had to know what. So, I excused myself and her from there before she could forward her number to that bastard. I didn't care if everyone was staring at us or if she was taken aback by my actions.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" She pulled her wrist back when I stopped in the front alley of the cafeteria. There were still people passing by us but they wouldn't be able to hear anything. Some guys were still checking her out, turning their heads again and again. My fists clenched at the thought of punching everyone who laid their filthy eyes on her.

"What do you think you're doing?" My voice was calm, contrary to the chaos inside me.

But she seemed visibly irritated. "You're the one who dragged me here." Her breathing was shallow and her body visibly shivered. Something within me said that it wasn't because of the cold.

"Do you want to die in this cold?" I said, keeping my cool. "Why are you wearing such a small skirt?"

Her eyes threw daggers on me and her voice intensified further. "It's my choice. Whatever I wear, whenever and wherever the fuck I want."

She seemed to be more on edge, today. Unlike the other days, she was reacting emotionally. I exhaled a deep breath and softened my tone. "Of course it is. But don't do something, if it makes you uncomfortable. You're not like that," I said defeated, not wanting to make her condition worse.

But my thoughtfulness backfired on me. "Stop acting like you know me,” she looked dead in my eyes. I felt like I rubbed salt on her wound, which I didn't know was there. She trembled but it was hard to know if it was because of cold, anger or sorrow. Now that I was looking in her eyes, they looked gloomy.

At this rate, we might fight. So, I just took off my jacket and stepped towards her. She eyed my every move like I was some kind of despicable being. But I ignored her hate and continued doing what I had to do. I bent and covered her legs by tying my jacket around her waist and left past her, before she could say anything.

I exhaled sharply as soon as I stepped inside. My breath was caught up in my chest from the moment I bent and my eyes fell on her exposed thighs. My heart thrummed and blood rushed to my cheeks. Fuck. Those legs could be the death of me. I cursed myself for thinking like a pervert. I must really be losing it.

I didn't realize when Kayra came back inside and stood beside me.

She shoved the jacket on my chest. "I wanted to look beautiful once but you had to go ahead and ruin it," she said  detested and stomped off to the table.

I stared at her back as she walked away from me, holding the jacket close to my chest. Her scent lingered on my jacket faintly and my chest tightened. Her words echoed in my mind and unconsciously, unexpectedly I muttered under my breath, “But you always look beautiful, no matter what you do.”

I've definitely lost it.

Kayra

I plastered a smile on my face, burying the strange emotions from earlier. I sat back on my seat, and shook my head to assure Amy that nothing was wrong. Soon, Nolan also followed and sat beside me. He hadn't worn his jacket back yet. It was kept on the table on my side. What does he think? I'll wear it? I internally scoffed.

But to be honest, I had a strong urge and needed to put his jacket on because I was freezing. It didn't feel as cold at home but after coming out, I realized just how wrong the idea of wearing short clothes in this weather was. I couldn't think straight because of my anger before and now it'd be embarrassing to take his jacket back.

I closed my eyes, frustrated at myself and pained by the condition I was in. It's fine. Hang in there. I can endure this much.

"You can't." My head turned to Nolan. It was like he heard my thoughts. Was I making it obvious?

I felt a warm tug on the side of my thighs. My legs were no longer cold. He put the jacket on my legs again but I didn't resist this time. I couldn't because all I could feel at the moment was the light, feather-like graze of his fingers against my thighs. It was just for a split second, when he was withdrawing his hands. But that small touch left the spot burning and me, with heavy breaths.

Was I being hyper aware of him? Maybe. From the moment he pulled my waist with his jacket and tugged on it, I felt something crumbling. The walls inside me, but I can't let them.

I dismissed all the irrelevant thoughts concerning Nolan and blamed everything on the cold. Burning sensation, warm touch and hazy mind.

I wasn't used to wearing short clothes. Despite my repetitive arguments, Ruby made me wear this irritably short skirt. But thankfully she let me wear the turtleneck or else I would've died by now because of hypothermia.

I also felt like the makeup was out of  place but Ruby said that it's all in my mind. To be honest, the whole look looked out of place to me. I felt like I wasn't made to look sexy or hot. But I guess, the guys here didn't think so. I've had four guys hitting on me since morning. Take that, Nolan. I am also being asked for my number.

Though I felt both uncomfortable and odd because of this sudden change in my life, I wanted to do it. That's why I was here, looking like this. And I would be lying if I said I didn't like the attention even a little bit.