𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐙𝐄𝐃 | 𝟏𝟖+

nineteen; tears

A U R O R A

"If I can't have you, is love completely off the table? Do I sit this one out and wait for the next life? Am I too cold, am I not nice?"

. . .

Trying to be cold towards Riccardo is harder than I thought. The way he looks at me is just impossible to resist, but I have to keep strong.

He has been friendly to me after I made a fool out of myself, which I'm grateful for. He didn't scold me, nor did he make me feel like an embarrassment.

But after his rejection, I realized that I'd be useless to try and keep flirting with him. He has made himself clear and told me that he doesn't desire me.

Even though I have some questions, I decided to respect his boundaries and not try it again. He has a girlfriend and is happy. Maybe I should get over my crush – or whatever this is turning into – and just forget about him.

Because I've grown to like him. Really like him.

I'm snapped out of my thoughts as I hear the ping of the elevator. I step out and greet Riccardo's secretary before making my way towards his office. I hear deep voices come from it as I stand outside his door and I knock twice.

When I hear him tell me that I can come in, I open the door but as I do so, my eyes meet a pair of green ones.

My throat runs dry once I lay eyes on the guy I made out with in the restroom. His eyes have widened in surprise as well, and he clears his throat.

"Hello, Aurora," Riccardo says once he looks up. I send him a tight smile and feel my heart starting to beat faster in my chest.

"This is Tyler and as you can probably guess, he's a lawyer that works here," he introduces. I nod and walk forward, placing my bag down the chair before sending Tyler my best fake smile.

"Nice to meet you," I bring out. "Likewise," he replies, an awkward silence stretching over us as he extends his hand. I quickly shake it before dropping it and letting out a little sigh.

We keep making eye-contact, before awkwardly looking away. I take a seat and fidget with my fingers, not knowing what to do.

I sometimes feel his eyes on me, but try my best to ignore them.

"I'll be on my way, then. Thank you, Mr. Silvestro," Tyler says and with a fake smile sent in my direction, he exits Riccardo's office.

Said man's eyes settle themselves on me. "Are you okay?" he asks, catching me off guard. I nod with a little frown.

"Yeah, why?"

"You seemed to tense up when you saw Tyler. Did he ever bother you around the office?"

I hate that he notices everything.

All I can do is shake my head. "No, don't worry about it," I tell him and wave it away. We quickly get on with it, and he goes through my books and explains everything to me, asking me questions and asking me to give some definitions.

Tyler quickly leaves my mind and I focus on my textbooks.

Riccardo had planned our session later than usual. He asked me to come around an hour before he usually leaves.

Time flies by where Riccardo talks. Even though I don't want to admit it, I'm still mesmerized by his deep voice, the way his lips move when he speaks, or his eyes. Or the way I can see the veins in his forearms since the sleeves of his shirt are rolled up.