LOVE? NEVER | ✓

Chapter Eight

"They told me that to make her fall in love, I had to make her laugh. But every time she laughs, I'm the one who falls in love."

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"Thank you for letting them leave me," she said, and I took all the time I had to examine her face.

Her eyes were soft and full of passion and something else that I couldn't read, her long, curled lashes were protecting her gray gems. I let my face tilt to the side as I watch her ramble about something.

My whole body was caught in how beautiful she looked in the lavender blouse she was wearing, and how much it complemented her fair skin.

My stomach would twitch each time she'd smile.

When her pink lips curved to the sides, a small part of me screams like it had never saw something that beautiful.

She ran her fingers through her silky hair nervously, a hint of blush crawled up her cheeks when she noticed that I was looking at her.

"You're beautiful," I voiced my throats, not regretting it.

"T-Thank you, Ethen."

I saw it when she pronounced my name so smoothly. I shivered as she spelt every letter.

Was it normal that I was that affected?

Who cares?

She's gorgeous!

"So what do you want to eat?" I questioned, examining how her lips moved when she read the menu silently.

"I don't know," she didn't raise her eyes off the menu. "The words are not in English, right?"

"Right," I nodded with a grin.

"Can you order for me?"

"What if I get something that you didn't like?"

"It's fine," she assured.

I called a waitress and ordered two strawberry shortcakes, and two extra large coffee mugs.

I would've ordered real dinner, but Rose insisted that she was already full and it'll be wonderful if I only ordered desserts.

"You said I'm beautiful..." she started after the waitress walked away, and I nodded. "Are you saying the truth?"

"Why would I lie to you, Rose?"

She smiled.

Rose, stop smiling, you're killing me.

"People say the opposite," she stated. "It's weird because they never saw me."

She giggled, and I winced.

"Why do they say that?"

"That I'm ugly?"

Don't say you're ugly, Rose, your beauty is something that can be shamelessly described as eye-candy.

"Yeah."

"Because my father thinks so," she said, and my eyes widened in shock. "And because I have a...um...some sort of a...disease, he always jokes about how I look so people wouldn't see me."

"Was does your disease has to do with how you look?"

"He's ashamed that I carry a disease that my mother carried."

"Did that mean that she healed?"

"No," she frowned. "She died."

A tear escaped her eye and she covered her face with her hands. I saw her shoulders shaking and all I wanted to do, is to engulf her into a bear hug so she wouldn't tear at all.