Chapter 7: Embarrassment
1527 Words
More than two weeks had passed. Aivira hadn’t seen Liam once.
It seemed as though he was avoiding her, too—he hadn’t shown up even when she was with Sofia.
Wasn’t that exactly what she wanted?
Yet, somewhere deep inside, she still felt a faint ache. It was a light, quiet pain, as if something had been frozen in place.
Her period was late this time. It finally arrived today.
It just so happened to coincide with her afternoon elective class.
She had waited too long to register, and the only spot left was in aerobics. She was already uncoordinated, so this class was pure torture, but she had no other choice.
To make matters worse, she was wearing light gray pants today.
---
Class was in session in the dance studio. The teacher was demonstrating the moves up front, and row after row of girls followed along.
Aivira was tall and stood in the second-to-last row. She was so focused on memorizing the moves that she didn’t notice the change in her body.
A girl in the back row spotted it and whispered a warning to her.
Blood had stained her pants. The dark red stood out starkly against the gray background. Her face flushed instantly.
It was summer; no one was wearing a jacket. There was nothing to cover it with. She could only cover the spot with her hand, frozen in place, unsure of what to do.
The teacher noticed. Thinking she was slacking off, she tapped the microphone and snapped, “The girl in the second-to-last row—I’m working hard teaching up here. If you want to slack off, you can leave right now, and don’t come back.”
The microphone’s voice echoed throughout the classroom. Everyone turned to look at the commotion. Aivira wished the ground would split open so she could crawl inside.
She raised her hand, trembling, her voice as soft as a mosquito’s buzz: “Teacher, I’ve started my period.”
“Peri—” The teacher was about to lose her temper when she suddenly realized what was happening, and her tone softened. “Oh, your period, huh? Go on, go on. Did you bring a pad?”
“No,” she whispered, a wave of hurt washing over her.
“I have one!” a girl called out, walking over to hand her a pad.
She couldn’t stay there any longer. Aivira hurriedly thanked her and ran out.
---
Luckily, class was still in session, so the hallway was empty.
There are no restrooms on the first floor of this building; she has to go up to the second floor.
She felt a warm flow surging from below, and panic made sweat break out on her forehead. She ran up the stairs, taking two steps at a time.
Most of the second floor consists of classrooms used for club activities. She didn’t expect a door to suddenly swing open, and four boys—all boys—to walk out.
By the time she realized what was happening, it was too late—she had already collided with one of them.
“Aivira?”
The voice came from above her. Deep, crisp.
Aivira jerked her head up, meeting Liam’s piercing gaze. He raised an eyebrow slightly, looking at her with a mix of confusion and surprise.
What was he doing here?
The three boys behind him also crowded in curiously to get a look.
A wave of heat surged through her lower body. She remembered the bloodstain on her pants and didn’t have time to think. She needed someone to shield her—and Liam was the only person she recognized there. In a panic, she pulled him against the wall.
With her back pressed against the wall, she clenched her hands on either side of his waist and buried her face in his chest.
Liam visibly stiffened. The muscles in his waist tensed where she touched him. She heard her own faint voice say, “Help me.”
He reacted quickly. Bracing one arm against the wall, he shielded her completely. Just as the three men were about to crowd closer, he spoke up in time: “You guys go ahead.”
The three men stopped in their tracks, exchanged a glance, and tactfully walked away.
As they left, one of them teased, “Is it really appropriate to be all over your girlfriend like this in broad daylight?”
Once they were gone, the surroundings fell silent.
A warm sensation beneath her snapped her back to reality. She whispered, “I’m sorry,” quickly let go of him, and ran toward the restroom.
The sensation of her clothes being tugged vanished.
Liam remained frozen in his original position. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he turned his head—her figure had disappeared around the corner of the hallway.
He’d also caught a glimpse of the dark red stain on the back of her pants.
---
When Aivira came out after changing, she was washing her hands and looking in the mirror when she suddenly recalled what had just happened.
Her hand-washing motion froze. She stared blankly, thinking: Had she just run into Liam?
So what if she did? It wasn’t the first time she’d embarrassed herself in front of him. He must have left by now.
Drying her hands was one thing, but leaving the bathroom was another problem entirely.
No sooner had one problem been solved than another arose. She turned sideways to look at her pants in the mirror.
Two words echoed in her mind: It’s over.
That red stain was far too obvious. If she ran back to the dorm from here, she was bound to run into people along the way. With nothing to cover it, she was sure to be seen.
Desperate, she began rummaging through the bathroom for anything she could use.
Just then, a familiar male voice came from outside the door.
“How much longer are you going to be in there?”
Aivira tossed the broom she was holding against the door, her face contorted in frustration.
She’d already lost face once; she didn’t need to go through that again.
She cleared her throat. “I… I’ll be out in a minute.”
She asked, feeling a bit embarrassed, “Why haven’t you left yet?”
Liam stood at the entrance to the women’s restroom, risking being caught at any moment, his tone sounding a bit forced: “I haven’t left. You come out first.”
There was a moment of silence in the restroom. Then Aivira’s voice came from inside: “Oh, okay.”
Soft footsteps sounded behind him. Liam turned around, took two steps forward, and draped the black coat he was holding around her waist.
He bent down slightly, wrapping his arms around her in a sort of embrace.
The distance between them suddenly closed. Liam’s pleasant scent washed over her—like pine, like tobacco, like the crisp winter air. Avila froze, unable to move. Just for a moment, the scent receded, leaving only the warmth of the coat around her waist.
“All right.”
Liam tied the sleeves tight, straightened up, and fixed his gaze on her face.
Their eyes met. Something flickered in Liam’s eyes, and his expression darkened slightly.
Suddenly, the voices of two girls echoed from the far end of the hallway, sounding as though they were heading this way.
Aivira snapped back to her senses—if anyone saw Liam standing at the entrance to the women’s restroom, especially with her, it would be impossible to explain.
Panicked, she whispered, “Hide quickly.”
Liam frowned slightly, his gaze sweeping toward the men’s restroom next door. He’d checked when he arrived; it was empty.
He looked down at Aivira again.
---
Two minutes later—
Inside the men’s restroom. Aivira stood facing the door, her forehead pressed against the panel, her hands covering her face, refusing to look back no matter what.
She silently repeated to herself: Don’t look, don’t look.
Her mind was still a bit fuzzy. In a daze, she realized it was Liam who had dragged her right into the men’s restroom.
This was the first time in her life she’d been in a men’s restroom, and it was definitely not by choice!
Only when she heard the two girls laughing as they walked out of the women’s restroom next door, their voices gradually fading away, did she breathe a sigh of relief.
She remembered there was someone beside her. She slowly lowered her hands and turned her head.
A pair of almond-shaped eyes was looking at her with a half-smile.
In that moment, the two of them seemed to forget the subtle tension between them. It was as if they had gone back five years.
Aivira was still a little annoyed. She lowered her eyes and muttered softly, “It’s all your fault. You could’ve hidden on your own—why did you drag me in here?”
Liam turned around, leaning his back against the door, and relaxed completely. He chuckled softly, his tone lazy:
“Oh, I forgot.”
- Writer
