Stumbling Over Love | ✓

Chapter 3

_Chapter 3~ Leading Him Home_

"Sorry?"

The words slipped from my mouth easier than I would've wanted and in a question. The delinquent named Ryu Iwasaki glared at me a bit more before leaning back. My tensed nerves and muscles relaxed instantly.

Did he not remember who I was? Good. I did not want to deal with him. Let me just go home...

"Wait," he called out just before I could make a beeline to the bus stop.

I halted, frozen. I robotically moved my head back.

He stood there, and even though he had such a menacing scowl on his face before, his countenance right then looked a little lost. "Um," he began, holding up a map, "I'm trying to get to the northside but I don't know what bus to take."

On the outside, I made sure to keep up my unaffected expression. On the inside, I was a panicking mess. The northside? B-but that was where I lived...

"Uh..." I started, clearing my throat. "Don't know."

"Really?" he said, "but you seemed to know what bus to take before."

Before...? My lips caved in.

"You're the bitch I shoved to the floor, right?" he went on, simply ambling forward, closing the distance and pointing to a portion of the sheet. "I live around here."

There were many things wrong with this picture. First, because he had identified me pretty easily and still had the audacity to call me both a bitch and admit he shoved me to the ground on purpose. And second, I lived exactly where he was indicating on that map, too.

My eyes averted his serious gaze. "A-are you sure? Never seen you."

"Do you have short term memory, then?" he spat, his look darkening.

"N-no," I stuttered. "Wh-who are you, I really don't know."

"Did I knock your head that hard?" he snorted, outstretching the map further. "Whatever. I don't care if you remember me or not. Show me the way there."

My eyes were on my boots. "I-I don't take the bus—"

When he grasped the hood of my jacket and began dragging me towards the bus stop, I began squirming.

"Hey!" I shouted, trying to get free.

The glare he shot me shut me right up. My heart began hammering in my chest as I snuck glances around in hopes of seeing somebody who could save me. This was kidnapping! What the hell was this guy's problem? Couldn't anyone else have done this?

To my horror, nobody was around. The streets were abadnoned, only filling me up with many horrid thoughts. He was going to kill me. Wait, the police station's right there! I'd just call—

"If you know what's good for you, you won't touch your phone."

His words jolted me and my fingers stopped creeping to my coat pocket. I cursed, biting my lip.

"A bus is coming," he said, nudging me in the direction of the incoming light. "Is it a bus I can take?"

Seeing the approaching number, I lied easily. "Yes, it'll take you straight there!"

"Okay."

He nodded, digging into his pocket and getting his pass ready. I smirked as the bus came to a halt.

Good, this'll get rid of him. The bus took you to southside, not north. Hah, this was payback. It was a surprise he even wanted to take the bus despite what happened earlier on—I'd have assumed he'd have already made it home by now—but, whatever. I didn't care what happened to him.