Frankly My Dear, All's Fair in Love and War

14: Bigger is (not) Better

Tristan was waiting in front Cassie's latest class, which was AP Spanish.

She wasn't sure if she liked the sentiment. "How do you know my schedule?"

"I ask around, like any good boyfriend," he said the last word with extra panache. "Anyway, what's in your bag?"

Cassie recoiled defensively. She didn't like anyone rummaging through her stuff. Mostly because there was nothing of significance there. The things inside her bag wasn't cool or trendy and it didn't deserve to be featured in articles like 'Things I keep in my bag' and the likes.

Mostly, it consisted of printed fanfictions and stationery. And not even the cute kind. She didn't mind Tristan seeing the full glory of her geekery, but she didn't want it happening in front of the rest of the students.

"Don't open my bag," Cassie demanded.

"Easy. I'm just noticing that it looks heavy," Tristan frowned. His hand hovered near her bag, but that was as far as it went. "Anyway, I'm hungry."

"You're not going to take my bag?" Cassie asked.

"You don't look like you want me to."

Cassie shrugged. "I told you not to open my bag, but it's okay if you want to bring it to me."

"Cassandra," there was a hint of enthusiastic surprise on Tristan's tone. "Are you doing what I think you're doing?"

"Which is?"

"Taking full advantage of a boy who's hell bent on getting into your good grace!" Tristan swung his hand, taking Cassandra's bag and slinging it across his shoulder. "I never would have thought that this day will come!"

"You look at my bag like you look at freshly grilled sausage," Cassie joked. "I was afraid that you'll salivate on it so I just let you take it for your own sake."

Tristan laughed. He moved closer to Cassie and kissed the top of her head, making her blush right to her toes. The people around her started to stare, and Cassie could even see a couple of girls thrusting their bags to their respective boyfriends.

"I heard that they're having so much sex the girl can't hardly walk," someone whispered, and not so discreetly.

"Ssh! She's Tyra's new girl friend. Her name is-" the other girl started a tirade about Cassie's supposedly made-up background about her proficiency at tennis and other sports she had never touched.

"I think I saw them walk out an empty classroom last week!" another totally false statement started to circulate.

Cassie's ears heated as more people stared and talked about them. It had started happening about a month ago, and the normal human being had 21 days before they got used to something. But standing right under the limelight had never really been a comfortable experience for her. She started worrying about her posture and the frizz on her hair or if her skin was shiny because of daylight oil bonanza.

Suddenly she was warm. Tristan shielded much of her body and view, and started shouting right in the hallway.

"My room. Her room. And somewhere called What The Fuck is Wrong with You Guys. There you go, those are the places where we've been together. Are you happy?"

The amount of jaws dropping was crazy high.

Of course Tristan was so not close to be done. "And this girl is amazing in every literal sense. But what we do in our private time is supposed to be private, so please just mind your damn business and don't let me hear you talking about us again!"