Xandra stiffened, her heart rate increasing. So they had noticed her interaction with Riki. She had hoped to fly under the radar, at least for a while. "They...noticed?" she asked, her voice betraying her nervousness.
"Oh, please," Scar rolled her eyes, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Those guys are notorious for keeping tabs on every new student. Especially girls." She glanced back at them, her gaze turning calculating. "And Riki in particular.”
"He's always...like that?" she asked, the memory of his cocky smile and the way his eyes had roamed over her making her cheeks warm. Despite his arrogance, there was something about him that intrigued her, even though she knew it was foolishness.
"Oh, definitely," Scar confirmed, nodding. "He's got this whole bad boy persona he loves to play up. But I can tell you, under all that leather and attitude, he's not that different from the rest of us.”
"Really?" Xandra found herself asking, her skepticism not quite hidden. The way Riki had carried himself, the way he had looked at her... She wasn't sure she believed Scar's assertion that he was like everyone else.
"Really," Scar said with a laugh. "He's just good at putting up a front. Trust me, he's not as cool and tough as he wants everyone to believe." She glanced over at the small group of students again, her eyes narrowed. "And I wouldn't get too close to him if I were you. That's just asking for trouble.”
Xandra felt a pang of disappointment, both at Scar's words and the realization that she should be heeding them. Riki was exactly the kind of person she should avoid—the kind of person she was supposed to stay away from. She tried to push his smile, his voice, the way he had looked at her, out of her mind. But it was easier said than done.
-♡-
Later that day, lunch hour rolled around. Students filled the cafeteria, their chatter creating a hum throughout the large room. Xandra navigated her way to the lunch line, lost in her thoughts. Her conversation with Scar had confirmed what she already knew—she should stay away from Riki and the group he ran with.
Once she had gotten her lunch, she looked around for an empty table. Spotting one near the back, she made her way over, not noticing the set of eyes that followed her every movement.
She sat down and was about to open her lunch box when she heard a familiar voice. "Hey, princess." Startled, she looked up, her stomach clenching as she saw Riki standing over her, a smirk on his face.
He casually straddled the chair across from her, his lunch tray in hand. He leaned back, the picture of nonchalance, as if it was the most natural thing in the world for him to join her.
"What...what are you doing here?" Xandra sputtered, her heart rate quickening. Her earlier determination to stay away from him had flown out the window the moment she saw his smug smile.
Xandra felt a flutter in her stomach at his proximity, his casual arrogance. She couldn't help but notice the way the sunlight streaming through the nearby window caught the silver of his earring, making it gleam. Damn him for being so attractive.
"I was fine by myself," she retorted, trying desperately to keep her voice steady. The way he was looking at her, like he knew what she was thinking, made her feel exposed.
"Oh, really?" Riki drawled, his eyes roaming over her face, down to her lunch untouched in front of her. "Then why aren't you eating?" His gaze flicked back up to meet hers, a challenge in them.
Xandra felt a flash of irritation mixed with frustration. He was just too damn observant. And he knew it. She picked up her fork and began to absently stab at her food, trying to ignore the way her skin tingled under his gaze.
"There we go," Riki teased, obviously enjoying the fact that he was getting a rise out of her. "You really should eat something. You look too delicate, you know. I'd hate for you to faint on me.”
Xandra bristled at his words. She knew he was just trying to get a reaction out of her, but it was working. Every time he spoke, his deep voice seemed to send a shiver down her spine. "I'm not delicate," she retorted, her words lacking the force she intended.
Riki smirked, his eyes gleaming with mischief. He reached out with deceptive gentleness, grabbing her chair and pulling it towards him. Xandra gasped as she was yanked forward, suddenly much closer to him than she was before. She could practically feel the heat radiating off him, the scent of his cologne.
Riki leaned even closer, his breath warm against her ear. "Really, princess?" he whispered, his voice a low, taunting rumble. His hand, which had been on the back of her chair, slid down to rest on her shoulder, the weight of it both possessive and enticing. "Because from where I'm sitting, I'd say you're pretty damn delicate.”
Xandra's breath hitched at his proximity, his touch sending a shockwave of electricity through her. She was caught between irritation at his audacity and a strange, fluttery feeling in her chest. "I'm not some porcelain doll," she managed to retort, her voice shaking slightly. "I can handle myself just fine.”
Riki's smirk deepened, his eyes roaming over her face, lingering on her lips. "Oh, I have no doubt you can handle yourself," he murmured, his fingers tracing a lazy pattern on her shoulder. "But there's something about you that just screams 'fragility'. It makes me want to shatter that veneer of innocence you wear so well.”
Xandra's heart thumped wildly in her chest. There was something about his words, his touch, that was simultaneously frightening and exhilarating. He was dangerous, a storm on the horizon, and she should be trying to get away, not leaning into his touch the way she was. But she found herself unable to move, his gaze captivating her, his hands setting her skin ablaze.
"You're not denying it," Riki whispered, his voice a tantalizing rumble. His fingers continued to move idly on her shoulder, a maddening trail of contact that was both soothing and maddening. "Admit it, princess. There's a part of you that craves a little danger, isn't there? A part of you that wants to break free from this good-girl persona you've got going on."
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I SHOULD ADD DRAMA👀
