“Uh…yeah. I didn’t expect that to happen,” I admit lamely.
“Oh, my God!” Samantha links her arm with mine. “You need to tell me everything in English!”
We head to the back of the school as the bell rings. My heart eases a little at the idea of prolonging my visit with Andy. What Conner said about him being my bodyguard bothers me more than it should.
When I see Andy next, I want to prove Conner wrong.
He won’t freak out after I tell him Conner gave me a lift to school.
Samantha writesnotes to me in class. I keep my answers brief enough to know that they will suffice. I have never seen her this excited, and either she is projecting, or she really is enthusiastic about Conner driving me to school.
However, as soon as I leave the class, whispers move around the school quickly. Most students who were unaware of my existence look at me—watching.
Recess comes by quickly. Since I don’t have any friends in Ancient History (Dylan and Samantha didn’t choose that as their elective), I dawdle to the back of the building, to where the smokers squat.
Andy is with Wylan, and Dylan and Samantha are leaning against the building, sharing a cigarette. She calls me over, which causes Andy to turn at the mention of my name.
My focus darts away from me, and I sit on my heels, my back resting against the wall as I overlook the cars driving past.
“Hey,” Andy says.
As I look up, Andy’s towering over me. His brown hair falls forward, and those blue eyes narrow. I can read him like a book.He has that “I’m going to interrogate you” look, and I’m not ready for that.
“Hey,” I reply.
“So,” Andy begins with a grunt as he crouches beside me, “Samantha told me Conner drove you to school.”
I pick up a twig from beside me and poke it into the dirt between the cracks of the path. “And?”
“I don’t know. You tell me, Noya. I didn’t think you and Conner were that close. It looked like he was bothering you in Creative Arts.”
“He has no boundaries,” I agree. “But he’s harmless.”
“You’ve spoken to him for, like, what? A day? How do you know he’s harmless?”
I murmur, “I know what bad people look like.”
The pressure on the twig snaps. With a sigh, I slump further to the ground and glare at the sky. “I’m spending lunch with him and his friends.”
“You’re bailing on us already?”
“It’s just lunch, Andy.”
“Do you like him?”
“What?” My brows furrow for a second before I shake my head and rise. “I’m leaving.”
“Noya, stop.” He grabs my arm, and his grip makes me turn rigid. “I’m sorry. It’s just weird seeing you two together. Forget I said anything. Just chill with us.”
“Okay,” I mumble.
Andy’s grip relaxes, and he lets go of my arm. I follow him to where Samantha, Wylan, and Dylan are smoking. As I somewhat listen to their conversation, my thoughts drift as I rub my arm where Andy grabbed.
He has never shown that side of himself before. He has never held onto me harshly enough without realising it.
But I doubt he knew what he was doing. So, I will brush it off for now.
Still, he scared me. Enough for me to suppress expressing my feelings to him because now I’m afraid of his reaction if I tell him that grabbing my arm makes me uncomfortable and scared.