Chapter 15
I found myself in the school's private restroom. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, but I chose to ignore it. I took my time washing my hands, relishing the moment before grabbing the last paper towel to dry them off.
When I finally opened the door, I was taken aback.
Zane stood there, his breath coming in quick bursts.
Those piercing eyes of his were almost too much to bear.
And then, in an unexpected move, he stepped closer, wrapped his left arm around my waist and gently cradled my neck with his right, pulling me back into the restroom.
His lips met mine with an urgency that felt like he was trying to draw the very essence from me. It was intoxicating… oh, my.
“Luna,” a soft voice called out. I lifted my head to see Emily looking at me with wide eyes.
“Did you fall asleep?” she asked, astonished.
My mouth fell open in realization. It was all just a dream—my third one this week.
“What's going on? Did you not sleep at all last night?” Emily murmured during our tedious math class.
“I did sleep, but I guess I didn't realize I was dozing off,” I replied, surprised by my own admission.
I felt like I was losing it. My mind was consumed with thoughts of Zane, even though he was entirely ignoring me, not even bothering to glance my way.
I couldn't understand why he was acting like that.
Yet, I kept telling myself it didn't matter.
I didn't care. I. DIDN'T. CARE. I needed to redirect my focus to something else, maybe school.
Lately, I had been struggling to keep up, and that wasn't a good sign. Jessica had been spending numerous afternoons at my place, which meant I had fallen behind on my assignments. Emily and I only saw each other at school and on the bus since she had been hanging out with Marco more.
Jessica mentioned the other day that Emily and Marco slept together. I thought I would handle it okay, but it hurt. I wasn't jealous, not in that way. It was his first time, and that was a big deal. I always imagined it would be me. But I made my choice, and I didn't choose him.
My mom was finally back at her studio full-time. There were no more trips to Rome. She was swamped with holiday family sessions, but she usually made it home for dinner. Lately, we had been more connected than ever.
I also had another dinner with my dad; he looked good, and I could tell how much he had missed being home, how much he had missed my mom and me, our family. I wished things could return to how they used to be. I hoped my parents could talk things through and figure it out.
The bell had rang, prompting me to start packing my belongings.
“Where are you going?” Emily asked, her voice laced with surprise.
“What do you mean? To history class?” I replied, rising from my seat. Emily beamed at me.
“We have a class assembly. You didn't know?”
“Oh, I must have forgotten.” Truth be told, I was completely unaware of what day it was or that we had scheduled this assembly two weeks prior. “So, are we staying here?” I glanced around at my classmates, who were still chatting and not moving. Emily nodded.
The assembly was meant to address issues that could eventually be brought up during this time, but no one seemed to care. It was just an excuse to skip class. Most of the time, I chatted with Emily, and if she wasn't around, I lost myself in a book.
“I need to use the restroom. Want to come with me?” I asked as I stood up.
“Sure, a little walk sounds nice,” Emily said with a smile as she followed me to the door.
The hallway was quiet as we made our way up three flights of stairs to our usual private bathroom, which was the cleanest. “Since you seem to have a memory lapse, I hope you haven't forgotten about the concert next week.” Emily teased.
“No, I remember that,” I chuckled. We had bought tickets months ago.
It was my favorite band, and Emily loved them too; Jessica was tagging along just because we were going.
The concert was in Rome, and Emily’s mom was supposed to drive us there—or at least that was what my mom believed.
Emily had told her mom that Jessica’s dad would be driving us.
In reality, we were going with Marco and his friend. We had made that decision a while ago, and even though things had shifted, I didn't want to disrupt our plan. We used to all be friends, and we needed to find a way to make this work, even if it felt awkward.
The bathroom was occupied, so we waited while discussing all the details about the upcoming concert. The door swung open, and Zane emerged, locking eyes with me for the first time in a while.
“I'll go first,” Emily said, stepping inside as if to give us some privacy. His gaze quickly dropped, and he began to walk away. I snorted, catching his attention. My heart raced when he turned back and approached me, stopping just a breath away.
This was no fantasy; it was real.
His eyes seemed to create an invisible bond that compelled me to look at him.
“Thank you,” Zane said in a low, deep voice.
“For what?” I asked, genuinely puzzled. His smirk revealed those dimples that made my heart flutter.
“It's been a while, and I'm still here, which means you didn't report me to the principal after all.” His smile widened. My cheeks flushed. I needed a moment to gather my thoughts.
“I didn't see the need. No one asked any further questions, so there was no point,” I replied, trying to maintain my composure.
“Or maybe you did it to protect me?” he said with a hint of arrogance.
“Protect you? Why would I want to do that?” I shot back, feeling irritated.
“I don't know, perhaps…” he trailed off, waiting for me to finish his thought.
“There's no maybe. I told you, there was no point.” I rolled my eyes. Another smirk crossed his face as he leaned in closer, as if that invisible string was drawing him toward me. My heart pounded in the silence, praying he didn't notice.
“Are you okay? Is your heart thundering for me?” he whispered, glancing down at my chest. Oh no, he noticed.
I pulled back angrily and started to walk away, leaving Emily behind—who was probably eavesdropping behind the door.
“I'm flattered, truly. That's exactly what I wanted,” Zane said, following me.
I stopped, frustration coursing through me as I struggled to find words.
“Why? Why would you want that?” I demanded, curious about his answer.
“You're really a dummy,” he said with a grin, tilting his head.
“Don't call me that. I don't like it,” I snapped.
“Well, it seems to have stuck with you. Sorry about that,” he said, stepping closer.
“You still haven't answered my question,” I insisted.
“I already did, didn't I? Do I need to repeat myself?” he challenged me, but I remained silent. “Because I like you, dummy,” he whispered, leaning closer to my ear. My anger flared, reflecting my inner turmoil.
“Oh yeah? So liking someone means ignoring them and refusing to look their way?” I retorted, trying to catch his gaze.
“Well, that's what you did, isn't it? I'm giving you space. Or
do you want me to pursue you the day after I broke up with your best friend?” He met my eyes so intensely that I felt as if his soul was intertwining with mine.
“I guess not,” I stammered.
“Good. Because once I decide to pursue you, you will be mine,” Zane whispered, leaning into my other ear, sending a shiver down my spine.
My mind spun, and I felt as if I might faint, desperately needing something to lean against. “See you around, dummy,” he smirked, leaving me standing there in shock.
Emily slowly opened the door and hurried toward me.
“Are you okay? What happened? I didn't hear anything, but I cracked the door open and saw he was… so close,” she said, concern etched on her face.
“Please pinch me,” I requested, trying to steady my breath.
“Why?” she asked, smiling.
“To make sure this isn't a dream,” I mumbled, lowering my head. Emily grabbed my arm and actually pinched me.
“Come on, let's go. We need to bring you back to reality,” she said, pulling me away from the wall. We started walking toward class, and I completely forgot why I was there. I was ecstatic; nothing else mattered.
The rest of the day felt like I was just going through the motions.
Inside, I was battling a conflict between my feelings for Zane and my sense of guilt toward Jessica.
Part of me wondered if my guilt could ever overpower my desire or if I was simply trying to comfort myself with the notion that I had tried.
Deep down, I understood that my guilt stood no chance because my craving for Zane was overwhelming and escalating rapidly. I was already his, yet I had to play along, pretending that I wasn't.
On my way home, I missed my stop and opted to head into town to visit my mom.
She had mentioned she'd be working late tonight and would order pizza for me. I hopped off at the stop right in front of Elias’s store, where I spotted him outside, taking a drag from his cigarette. I couldn't resist saying hello.
“You know that smoking will kill you?” I quipped playfully as I approached.
“Just like accidents, diseases, and a million other things,” he replied, grinning.
“Hey there.”
“Hey! Come here,” he said, spreading his arms wide for a hug. “How's it going, little scholar?” he continued.
“Little? I'm not little anymore!” I feigned offense, nudging him with my shoulder to see how we measured up.
“I can see that,” he said, giving me a once-over that made me blush.
“When are you going to quit smoking?” I asked.
“When are you going to marry me?” he shot back teasingly.
“Never!” I laughed, my jaw dropping in mock shock.
“Well, there's your answer,” he said, taking another puff of his cigarette. I playfully nudged him again, and we both chuckled. “What are you doing here? Need anything?” he inquired.