WINNING HIS HEART AGAIN

Chapter 13: Caught Red Handed

Avery POV.

A month had passed since Ashkent and Sandara's breakup. He was trying his best to play it cool, but it was obvious he was still heartbroken. I sighed heavily, watching him from across the cafeteria table. Sofia and Freya were with me, but Ashkent was nowhere to be found.

"Guys…" Freya suddenly spoke up.

"Hmm?" I asked nonchalantly, continuing to chew my food.

"I already said yes," she said, her voice shy. Sofia and I immediately dropped our spoons, our eyes widening in surprise.

"Gurl, what do you mean?" Sofia asked, her voice laced with excitement.

"Drake and I are an item now," she said, her cheeks flushing as she grabbed her glass and took a sip of cold water. It was clear she was a first-timer when it came to dating.

Sofia and I immediately congratulated her. Freya's face turned a bright shade of red, her happiness radiating.

I smirked, continuing to eat.

"So that means, you’re the only one without a boyfriend, my dear Avery," Sofia said, her voice laced with a playful teasing tone. I just rolled my eyes.

"Come on, you still haven’t said yes to Darren, huh?" she asked. Great, I had forgotten to tell them the news.

"Nah, I already rejected him," I said, my voice blunt and honest. Their jaws dropped.

"Wait, what?" they both exclaimed in unison, their voices filled with disbelief. My eardrums.

"Seryoso ka, girl?" Freya asked, her voice laced with disbelief.

I just nodded.

"Ay waeyo?" Sofia pressed, her curiosity piqued.

I rolled my eyes and continued eating.

"Be honest, bitch. What reason did you give him? It’s impossible for him to just give up on you, noh!" Freya exclaimed, her voice laced with a mixture of disbelief and amusement.

Gosh, why were they so nosy?

"Okay, fine! I said I’m already in love with someone else. And you both know who it is. Just don’t dare to mention his name to anyone, got it?" I said, my voice laced with a mixture of honesty and a warning. They were speechless for a few minutes.

"Holy shit! I knew it!" Sofia exclaimed, her voice laced with a mixture of excitement and disbelief.

"Damn. I didn’t know you had the guts to admit it now," Freya added, and I gave them a stern look. They always had to make a big deal out of everything.

"The question is, did he know about it already?" Sofia asked, her curiosity piqued.

I shrugged. "How can I tell him when he’s still heartbroken, duh!" I said, my voice laced with a hint of annoyance.

"Oh, right. I forgot about that part," Sofia said, returning to her food.

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The next day, I was walking down the hallway towards the cafeteria for breakfast when I overheard a conversation from the storage room. Were they crazy? Were they not afraid of getting caught by a professor making out in the storage room? That was bizarre!

I was about to continue walking when I saw someone familiar. The woman with her eyes closed in pleasure was none other than Sandara, Ashkent's ex-girlfriend. And what made everything even more shocking was the guy she was with. It was Darren.  What the hell was going on? Was I seeing things?

I gulped, trying to make sure it was really them. But there was no doubt. It was them. How was this possible?

I immediately headed to Ashkent's dorm. I needed to know something. Did he know? Did he see this? Was that why he had reacted so strangely?

I knocked on the door furiously. After a few minutes, he opened the door, clearly just waking up.

I walked in, ignoring his protest, and locked the door in anger.

"Did you know?" I asked, my voice laced with frustration.

"Know about what?" he asked, his voice sleepy as he rubbed his eyes, as if nothing had happened.

"About Sandara and Darren’s affair!" I said, my voice laced with annoyance.

He smirked. "That’s old news, Avery. Didn’t you know those two are ex-lovers?" he said nonchalantly, walking to the fridge to grab some cold water.

I was dumbfounded. "Wait, what?"

"You heard it right, silly," he said nonchalantly.

"Ex-lovers? Did you know it from the first day you and Sandara got together?" I asked.

He nodded. "Of course. Since day one, I knew from the start that I would never win her heart. But I took a chance. I thought eventually she would learn to love me. But I was wrong." His voice was nonchalant, but I could tell he was just playing it cool.

"Wait, are you saying you let Sandara use you as a shield just to make Darren jealous?" I asked, my voice laced with disbelief.

"Don’t put it that way, silly. She’s not bad, okay? She just loved him, just like I did," he said, and I rolled my eyes in disbelief.

"Do you love her so much that you’re even defending her right now? Ashkent, are you crazy!" I exclaimed, my voice rising with frustration.

"Stop worrying about me, Avery. I knew what I was getting into. I just didn’t see it coming that I would eventually learn to love her. Honestly, I was just trying to help them both reconcile. That’s all," he said nonchalantly, starting to cook his breakfast.

"So you’re admitting you still love her, noh?" I said, trying to sound cool, but the words hurt as they left my lips.

He smirked again. "I loved her. I used to. But I’ve moved on. Or let’s say, I’m moving on right now. I can tell she’s happy with Darren, and as long as Darren doesn’t hurt her again, I’ll be fine," he said nonchalantly, flipping an egg in the pan.

I smirked, my disbelief growing.
Was he even for real?

"Ganyan ka ba talaga magmahal?" I asked, my voice laced with disbelief.

"What do you mean?" he asked, glancing at me before returning his attention to the pan.

"Selfless. No reservations. You give everything," I said sadly, my voice laced with a hint of pain and regret.

He just smirked again as he continued cooking another egg.