The Mysterious Nerd

Chapter - 8: Of Penguins and Devil 2.0

As I stepped out of Noah's car and stood in front of my building, I found myself blurting out, "Do you, um, want some water or something?" I regretted it immediately. What was I thinking, inviting him up? But before I could take it back, Noah nodded, giving me that half-smirk of his. "Sure, why not?"

Great, just great.

I led him to the door, fumbling with my keys, and opened it, my mind racing with a thousand regrets. Maybe he'd just take the water and leave, no awkward conversations, no weird encounters. But of course, that's not how my life works.

The second the door opened, I heard Emily's voice from her room. "Al, did you teach the devil Leighton a good lesson and kick his ass? Or better yet, did you get a piece of his hair? We'll make that voodoo doll ASAP! I even found a YouTube tutorial on how to do it! He won't know what hit him!"

I froze, mortified. My entire face went red, and I could feel Noah's eyes on me, undoubtedly enjoying every second of my embarrassment. His laugh rang out, deep and amused, as Emily kept babbling from her room, completely unaware.

Emily walked out, still talking, her face lighting up when she saw me. "Please tell me it's someone else and not the devil 2.0 himself..."

I could barely breathe from embarrassment. "Emily, shut up. Now."

But Noah, ever the calm one, seemed thoroughly entertained. "Devil 2.0, huh? I think I could get used to that. But most people just call me Noah." He extended his hand to Emily, that damn smirk still in place. "And you are...?"

Emily blinked, still clearly shocked, but she shook his hand. "Emily Kent. Alana's roommate."

Noah smiled at her, and for once, I didn't have the strength to glare at him. Instead, I sank into the couch, hoping this nightmare would end soon. But, no, because Emily decided to turn this into a "let's embarrass Alana" session. She started recounting my most mortifying moments, from my bad haircut which I still think was very cool to the time I tripped and fell into a fountain on a work trip. Noah just sat there, laughing, clearly enjoying the show, while I wished the ground would swallow me whole.

As I sank into the couch, hoping to disappear into the fabric, Emily was already on a roll.

"Oh, Noah, you have no idea what you've gotten yourself into with this one." She shot me a wicked grin, and I groaned internally, knowing exactly where this was heading. "Okay, so—picture this—about three years ago, Al here was trying to impress this big-shot tech recruiter from a start-up that she was obsessed with."

I squeezed my eyes shut, already dreading what was coming next.

"She got this exclusive invite to one of their events. Fancy rooftop, cocktails, the whole deal. And Al—" Emily paused, clearly enjoying dragging out my misery—"decides that she's going to hack into their presentation to showcase her own 'improved' version of their security program."

Noah's brow raised, a smirk already playing on his lips as he glanced at me. "Oh, really? Sounds... bold."

"Yeah, bold's one word for it," Emily laughed. "So, she's there, blending in, acting all cool, right? And she's hidden her laptop behind one of the plants. Except halfway through the presentation, she accidentally runs the wrong program—and guess what pops up on the giant screen?"

I could feel my face burning, and I wished, prayed, that Emily would stop talking, but of course, she didn't.

"Her online shopping cart. Full of... what was it? Oh, yeah—those ridiculously oversized stuffed penguins. Like five of them, from three different stores. The whole room went silent, and she's standing there, completely mortified while everyone sees her obsession with giant penguins."

Noah's laughter exploded out of him, and I buried my face in my hands, groaning. "Emily, why do you hate me?"

But Emily was on a roll, and Noah was eating it up. "I don't hate you, Al. I'm just giving Noah here a taste of what he's in for."

When I finally dared to peek through my fingers, Noah was still grinning, his eyes sparkling with amusement. "Giant penguins, huh? That's a new one."

I shot Emily a glare, which only made her laugh harder. Noah, still chuckling, leaned back in his seat, clearly enjoying my embarrassment way too much. "I've got to admit, Alana, that's... impressive."

I groaned again, but Noah's laughter was surprisingly infectious, and before I knew it, a reluctant smile tugged at the corners of my mouth. As embarrassing as that story was, there was something oddly comforting about seeing him laugh like that—like he wasn't this impenetrable businessman, but someone who could actually find joy in the ridiculousness of life.

Emily, of course, was far too pleased with herself, but as the conversation shifted back to more casual topics, I couldn't help but feel a little lighter. Even if my secrets were slowly unraveling, maybe it wasn't the worst thing in the world.

Just... not the penguins. That should've stayed buried.

After what felt like an eternity, Emily finally looked at me with a smirk. "Hey, Al, why don't you go get ready for bed? I'll see Noah out."

I shot her a look that said, "Please, don't do anything stupid," but I was too tired to argue. I slipped away into my room, grateful for the break from the endless teasing. As I leaned against my bedroom door, though, I heard Emily's voice drop to a more serious tone.

"You seem nice," she told Noah. "And I really hope that if Alana keeps working for you, you'll treat her well. Because if not, I know people—bad people—who can make your life miserable."

I bit my lip, my heart tightening in my chest. Emily always had my back, and in moments like this, it hit me just how much she meant to me. She was more than just a friend or a roommate—she was my family. The only one I had.

Tears prickled at the corners of my eyes as I stood there, listening to her defend me. I didn't deserve her. I really didn't. But damn, I loved her so much for being in my corner, always.

After Noah left, I showered, trying to shake off the day's chaos. As the warm water hit my skin, I replayed everything in my head—Noah's laugh, Emily's protectiveness, the weird warmth that crept into my chest when I saw him smile. I couldn't tell what was more exhausting—working for Noah or pretending like none of this affected me.

By the time I crawled into bed, my mind was a jumble of thoughts. I hugged my pillow close and let out a long sigh, trying to push it all away. Tomorrow was another day, and I'd have to face Noah again. But tonight, I was just grateful for the one constant in my life—Emily.

She was my family. And I wasn't going to let anyone, not even Noah Leighton, mess with that.