*January*
"Why are you staring at me?" she asked, exasperated, when she felt his gaze on her.
"I'm people-watching," he replied, his tone playfully condescending, like he was talking to a child.
He always said the most ridiculous things to draw her attention back to him on the bus. Like that time he claimed fish were astronauts of the ocean, floating in water just like humans drift through space.
Or he’d point out the strangest scenes—like the couple arguing outside a cake shop. "They should just get a chocolate cake and go home. It’s the best one," he’d said with a dramatic nod. She silently agreed, though she’d kept quiet to avoid the likely tangent on chocolate, its origins, and its universal supremacy.
Once, he even pointed out a Complan ad with the tagline, "taller, stronger, and sharper." She knew exactly why he did it—he sat up straighter, looking smug, and she’d promptly whacked his arm.
"I’m sure it’s watching people and not the other way around," she said without looking up, eyes still skimming her book.
"Tsk..." He booped her nose, but she didn’t look up, already accustomed to his antics. "I knew you wouldn’t know."
That had her looking up. "Know what?" she asked, narrowing her eyes. She prided herself on knowing everything.
"Nothing. It’s just that you live more in fiction than reality, so it makes sense you wouldn’t know. It’s fine," he said with his usual cheeky grin, setting her blood simmering.
"Get to the point, or you’ll find the tip of my pen in your neck," she muttered, glaring openly now. Others looked on with mild amusement, clearly enjoying the scene.
"Ohhh, I see, Leo." He chuckled softly. She used to hate that name, but it had somehow grown on her. "Well, I was talking about this song by Conan Gray called People Watching. Clearly, you haven’t heard of it." There was that smirk again.
"Oh." She shrugged, going back to her book. "Not interested." Of course, she listened to it the moment she got home. And, annoyingly, she liked it.
He’d known she would, just as she knew he’d read the books she couldn’t stop talking about.
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*February*
"No, not today, please. I really want to finish this in peace," she sighed, trying to fend him off as he approached her park bench with his usual swagger. "You’ve disturbed me enough at school."
"I won’t disturb you, I promise. Go on, read," he said, all innocence. She eyed him suspiciously but let him stay.
Could he stop himself, though?
No.
Five minutes later, he was poking her and when she finally spat out an agitated "What?!" he just shrugged and giggled.
Oh, he has the audacity to giggle!? She stood up, storming out of the park, and he, of course, trailed behind.
"What do you think you’re doing?" she demanded, throwing him a sharp look.
"Walking," he replied, flashing that dimpled smile she loathed to love.
"To where?" Her voice was strained from the effort it took to avoid yelling at his infuriatingly handsome face.
'What is wrong with me!?' she thought, stopping dead in her tracks. 'No, no way in hell. At this point, I should be in hell. No, why me? He’s the one who should be there. Idiot.'
YOU ARE READING
Guitar Boy
KurzgeschichtenShort story, 3rd person pov If someone were to tell her that she'll like a boy from her school, let alone fall in love with him, she would laugh at their face and probably throw a physics book at their head. This out of syllabus hassle was so not on...
