Love Rivals: The Day I Saw Your Tears

18. Unusual Care Isn't Casual

It had been a week since the field trip, and things were surprisingly going well with Sarah. We were getting along better.

That day, I decided to visit Vicky at his home. As he got absorbed in his video game, I took the opportunity to poke around his room.
As I continued to flip through Vicky's collection of photos, he suddenly asked, still glued to his game, "So, how are things with Sarah?"

I looked up from the photos and replied, "Actually, quite well. We've become friends now."

Then, my attention shifted to his camera lying nearby. I picked it up and scrolled through the images, pausing on a particularly odd one -- an unflattering shot of me mid-blink, looking utterly ridiculous.

I showed it to him and asked, "When did you even take this? You need to delete it."

His laughter erupted, "Oh, come on! Isn't it just the best?"

I tried to delete the photo, but he lunged for the camera, playfully trying to stop me. After a brief tug-of-war, I relented and said, "Fine, keep it."

As I scrolled through the images, I came across a series of carefully taken photos of Sarah. Each shot seemed to capture her in a different light -- simple, yet undeniably beautiful.

My curiosity grew as I noticed how many pictures of Sarah there were. Each one seemed to be framed with an unusual care.

I wondered, why were there so many pictures of her on Vicky's camera? And more importantly, why did he seem to focus so much on her?

I asked, "Why are there so many pictures of Sarah on your camera?"

He looked up, amused, and said, "Oh, those? Nothing much. I was just bored and.... and you know how boredom works. Boring people find each other. But honestly, taking her pictures made the time fly by."

I wasn't entirely convinced by his casual response. There was something in the way he spoke, or maybe in the number of photos, that didn't sit right with me.

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Before Vicky could respond, the door creaked open, and there she was -- Sarah. I quickly turned off the camera and forced a smile, greeting her casually. She smiled back, though her focus was clearly on Vicky. "Krystal got swamped with tasks, so she asked me to collect the pictures," she said, her voice calm as ever. She placed a check neatly on the table and added, "Here's the remaining balance."

Vicky shot me a quick look, almost as if he'd been caught in the middle of something, then turned to Sarah. "Give me a minute," he said, sounding slightly flustered as he moved to grab the pictures.

"Ryan! Ryan!" Nitya called out, sounding almost frantic.

I turned toward the door to see her waving me over urgently. "What's wrong?" I asked, stepping outside.

She grabbed my arm and pulled me toward a fallen scooter. "I knocked it over by mistake! Please, can you help me? I didn't mean to!" she said, her voice full of panic.

I bent down to examine the damage. The right mirror was completely shattered, and the body had a few scuffs and scratches. "It's not too bad. Don't worry, I'll cover the cost," I said, trying to calm her down.

"Wait here. I'll handle it," I reassured her, heading back inside the studio.

Vicky looked up from his camera. "What's going on?" he asked, sensing the tension in the air.

"Nitya accidentally knocked over a scooter parked outside. It's not heavily damaged, just a broken mirror," I explained.

Before I could say more, Sarah, who had been silently gathering her photos, suddenly rushed out of the studio with her bag.

Vicky and I exchanged glances and followed her.

Outside, Nitya was still anxiously pacing by the scooter. "Is it yours?" she asked, her voice filled with guilt as she looked at Sarah, but Sarah was too focused on assessing the damage to answer.

Nitya, looking even more apologetic, quickly blurted out, "I'm so sorry! It was a total accident. I didn't mean to knock it over, I swear!"

Sarah finally seemed to register the situation. She gave a small, forced smile and said, "I know it's not okay, but I have to say, 'it's no big deal.'"
She crouched down and checked the scooter for any other issues, then tried starting it. Luckily, the engine roared to life without a hitch.

As she prepared to leave, I quickly pulled out my wallet and offered her some cash to cover the damages. She looked at the money, her expression softening, but she shook her head. "No, it's fine," she said quietly before driving off.