Against the Odds: When the Quality is Bad But I Am

III

-2 days later-

Devon didn't talk to Sae much after their first encounter. Well, actually, they didn't talk at all, but that was ok. They had glanced at each other a lot during this time, something that Devon wanted to do on Sae's first day. And it seemed like it was the farthest they were going to get for the time being.

In these days of exclusive eye contact, the class had taken a miniature unit test that would be ranked among their peers, and today, they would find out the results. Devon didn't think about it too much because he figured he'd be ranked one like always.

He walked up to the board where everyone was gathering around; everyone was talking to their friends, which Devon was envious of. Yes, he was among the most popular kids at school, but that didn't mean he had any genuine relationships with the other kids. They would always praise him like some sort of celebrity when, in truth, he was just a regular kid...that's rich...and maybe a little spoiled...nevertheless, he still had feelings and wants connections like any other ordinary person.

He sighed and waltzed to the board, only to find out he placed second. At first, he thought his eyes were off, but when he confirmed at a second glance, he felt a hole in his stomach. Second place wasn't that bad, but his competitive nature didn't like it. He peered up to see Sae took the first place. Devon knew he was good at school because of the advanced placement classes he took, but really? He would've never guessed he could place higher than him, as egotistical as that might sound. Again though, it wasn't the end of the world, and he would be damned if this ruined his day. And look, the timing couldn't be any better, being that Sae came to look at the board. He came to stand next to him at a reasonable distance away. He looked at the board briefly and then glanced back at Devon.

"Shit... I guess I'm smarter too." Sae said as if there was more to what he said.

Devon continued to stare at the board and then at Sae. He needed to take in everything that had happened and what he had said.

"... You were thinking about me."

It should've been asked like a question, but the way Devon said it was more of a statement. Sae shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly and kept his gaze focused on the board in front of him.

"It depends."

Devon didn't spend much time pondering what Sae said. He didn't care enough to take it how Sae meant it. Instead, he used it to get a reaction out of him.

Devon gently pushed Sae's shoulder in a rather playful manner.

"So you have been thinking about me a lot then."

He was teasing Sae, but it didn't draw out his desired reaction. Sae only wrinkled his nose from the touch. Devon decided to keep trying.

"Don't worry. I'm pretty sure a lot of people dream about me, too. I'm not disgusted by it anymore, so you don't have to worry." Devon said while letting the ends of his mouth crinkle up into a teasing smirk. Sae's expression turned into one of disgust in a matter of milliseconds. Since Sae was playing the silent game, Devon took this as another opportunity to add to the joke.

"Why are you looking at me like I'm the one committing a heinous act? You're the one dreaming about people you barely even know! And don't even get me started about what you were dreaming ab—"

"That's not what I meant, and you know that."

Sae said with haste and disgust. His eyes were vicious, almost warning the latter to stop playing around. Devon decided to follow the warning and not push it; besides, Devon really couldn't be bothered to keep the joke going.