Defender's Heartbeat 2

Chapter 43

Manuel

I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Enzo, casually strolling out of the school gate with his shirt slung over his shoulder. He glistened with sweat, as if he had just finished a workout or something.

Earlier, Pedro had called me, saying the principal had been in touch about Enzo getting into trouble again. I swear, that kid couldn't seem to stay out of hot water for more than a day.

As Enzo approached, I couldn't help but confront him. "Why do you have to be like this?" I asked, my frustration evident in my tone.

He just shrugged, looking at me like I was making a big deal out of nothing. "They made us clean up the garden, so I got all sweaty. I had to take my shirt off. I can't keep wearing it when it's soaked through."

I sighed, trying to make him see reason. "Sometimes you just have to deal with a little discomfort, Enzo. It's not the end of the world."

But he wasn't having it. "Well, I don't want to. Do I have a spare shirt in the car?" he asked, already moving on to his next concern.

Shaking my head, I opened the car door and rummaged around until I found a clean white t-shirt. I tossed it to him, watching as he caught it easily.

"Awesome! You've got extra clothes in the car!" Enzo said, sounding super excited.

"Well, I thought I should have some backup stuff since I'm pretty much looking after a big baby," I joked. But he didn't seem to care what I said and just put on the t-shirt.

"Got any pants in there too?" he asked.

"Nah, just the t-shirt," I told him. "So, what kind of trouble did you get into today?" I asked, getting serious.

Enzo's smile faded a bit, and he started looking at the ground, avoiding my eyes. "Oh, you know. Nothing major. Same old, same old."

I let out a sigh, knowing that what he thought was no big deal could range from a silly prank to a total catastrophe. But I also knew that if I pushed him too much, he'd just shut down and refuse to talk at all.

"Okay, son. But you know how this goes. If it's something really bad, we're gonna have to talk about it sooner or later."

"I'm way too beat to talk about that stuff right now. Plus, I really wanna get home and take a shower," Enzo said as he hopped into the car.

I didn't bother asking him what exactly he did. Usually, Pedro fills me in if Enzo has gotten into some serious trouble, and the principal lets him know. But this time, he hadn't said anything. My guess was that he was just exhausted from dealing with Enzo's constant misbehavior. Honestly, I wasn't really in the mood to hear about whatever dumb thing Enzo did today either. I was so tired of his crazy stunts—beyond tired.

Mia

It had been a few days, and Enzo hadn't said a word to me. I didn't know how he managed to keep this silent treatment going for so long. He got busted for smoking and drinking with his buddies, and he had even gotten into fights with some other guys more than once in the past few days. It was pretty clear that the principal wasn't going to suspend them, not even for a single day. The thing was, he treated the richest kids at school differently. To be honest, I had no clue just how rich Enzo really was. I always figured he was well-off, but apparently, he was on a whole other level.

I had been feeling down these past few days because Enzo was totally ghosting me. He hadn't even tried to reach out or anything. It was like I was losing my mind. I couldn't function without talking to him. I felt like I was going crazy, and I had been crying my eyes out non-stop. I couldn't even focus on studying, which was really messing me up. Enzo was always on my mind, no matter what I did. Sometimes I started freaking out, thinking maybe he had found himself a new girlfriend since we weren't talking anymore. But he was supposed to be mine, you know? I barely slept or ate these days; I was such a mess. This was not me. I had never behaved like this before. I had never felt this much pain before. I didn't know what to do. I never knew love could hurt this much. It felt like a really bad wound.