My First | Harry Styles

Chapter Nineteen

Tessa POV

Histoy class was going by impossibly slow. You know when you check the clock every minute or so to see if it had miraculously skipped thirty minutes ahead? That was me right now. My eyes were glued on the wall clock, sighing with every tick of its hand. 

"Now, with the person sitting next to you, discuss your opinions on the chapter we just read." Mr. Kinnings instructed as he continued whipping away his notes on the blackboard. 

My hand rose slightly.

"Yes, Tess?" He asked.

"I haven't got anyone sitting next to me." I informed, pointing at the empty chair at my side. 

Mr. Kinnings huffed, landing his hands on his hips as his eyes directed out towards the class. Not even seconds later he looked back at me and smiled.

"Percy," He called out. "Go sit with Tess since your partner isn't here either." 

The sound of a chair screeching against the floor followed Mr. Kinning's orders. A bang was then projected from that area and a gasp from the girl sitting behind him.

"Sorry." Percy said apologetically, but not getting a very friendly look from the girl who's desk he had run into yet again. 

I watched as he quickly scrambled up his books and made his way down the few aisles. He dropped them on the desk adjacent to mine, followed by his bum in the chair. I quickly noted how close our chairs were, resulting in me attempting to push it away.

He laughed lightly.

"What are you trying to do exactly?" He asked quietly, raising up his eyebrows as I looked at him. 

A light blush powdered my cheeks.

"Your chair..." My voice trailed away as I leaned back up, him tugging his chair further away from mine. 

I nodded at him appreciatively, tucking in my mine under neath my desk so I could prop my elbows on either ends of the corners. 

I kept my head bowed down to re-read the notes I had scribbled on my paper. Percy's gaze kept trying to meet mine every time I looked up, but I resisted. The colour of his eyes had shifted slightly, a bit darker than the usual shade but it was nice. It kind of reminded me a bit of how the sky looked on a rainy day, minus the grey clouds.  

My head nudged back up again, stupidly glancing over at Percy who was already focused in my direction. As I attempted to look away, I realised I had made it blatantly obvious I was avoiding his eye contact.

"Why can't you look at me?" Percy laughed as he forced his stare upon me harder. 

I shook my head.

"Is it my face?" He asked, sounding a little more worried. 

I laughed quietly over my hand covering my mouth, eyes crinkling around the edges.

"No," I reassured between giggles. "Well, actually, kind of."

"Kind of?" Percy anxiously repeated, widening his circular orbs as he leaned closer. I gently tapped his shoulder to get him to retreat. 

"Your eyes kind of intimidate me." I explained shyly, dropping my head back down to my lap. I noticed his worried expression fade and instead replace it with a smirk. 

He huffed as he leaned back into his chair.

"Well I hope over time this 'intimidation' I cause towards you goes away. I like to be able to look people in the eyes."