TWICE GIVEN, TWICE LOVED

HIS PARTNER?

"...So, you all need to complete this assignment within two weeks before your winter vacation begins. Pair up with any one of your seniors and complete it by the deadline. This project will be added to your final credits. Any questions?" The teacher asked, pushing his glasses further up his nose bridge with his index finger. It had already been a few months since our college started, and I had become a certain someone's driver. The end of the semester approached with the snow covering every student's life in the form of exams.

Time surely flies fast.

One student raised her hand. She was a pretty brunette with striking grey eyes. Unfortunately, she didn’t have any friends, often opting to sit alone. One might assume it was because she was bullied, but that wasn’t the case at all. She simply didn’t want to forge new friendships. A few past friendships from her previous school had left her emotionally scarred, making her wary of human interactions altogether. How did I know so much about her? Well, she confided in me. No matter how much a person tries to isolate themselves, they need an outlet to express their feelings without judgment—like a wall with ears. I guess I was that wall for her.

"Yes?" the teacher asked, acknowledging her raised hand.

"Can we do it alone?" she inquired, a question that was expected given the circumstances.

"No, you can't. This assignment is important for your seniors' credits as well. Besides, you cannot study human behavior patterns without engaging in human interaction." Laughter erupted among the students as the teacher dismissed her question. After all, this was a journalism assignment, and journalism without connections to people simply made no sense.

I was enrolled in a dual-degree program, majoring in Business Administration and minoring in Journalism. My parents wanted me to focus on business studies, anticipating that I would one day manage their company as their sole heir. On the other hand, Crystal encouraged me to pursue journalism, hoping it would help ease her transition through college.

The bell rang, signaling the end of class, and just like that, the din of chatter filled the room as the teacher exited.

"You know, at that party, he kissed her, and her boyfriend completely lost it. It turned into a huge mess, and even the cops got called in. Poor Luciana, her birthday party was completely ruined," Crystal lamented mockingly, as she popped a drumstick onto her plate. She was updating me about a party from the past weekend that I couldn’t attend.

"I see. But why did he kiss her if he already knew she had a boyfriend?" I asked, intrigued.

"Everyone knows how Luciana is. She loves keeping boys wrapped around her little finger—they're like trophies to her. The more boys like her, the more conquests she has on display. She thought she could get away with it, not realizing her new boyfriend was the obsessive kinda guy who kept a close eye on her," Crystal explained. I raised my eyebrows, nodding in understanding, reflecting on how oddly complex human relationships could be.

"Ah! That must be devastating for her." Luciana was my classmate in high school, and we had shared a few classes together. Let’s just say that she wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed.

I took my usual seat beside Nicholas, resigned that after the first day, our seating arrangement seemed to have become fixed. Whether I liked it or not, I had to sit with him.

"Hey, Principessa!" he greeted, still glued to his phone, typing intensely. I figured he must have been very busy with something important. I valued my privacy and preferred not to pry into someone else's affairs until they chose to share them with me.

"Hey, everyone!" I said, settling into the uncomfortable cafeteria chair.

"Amelia, we missed you at the party this weekend," a guy at the table said, receiving nods and murmurs of agreement from the others.

My lips formed a straight line as I shrugged my shoulders. "Sorry, guys. I had some work. I’ll definitely attend the next one." The truth was, I was not a party person and rarely found myself at these social gatherings.

I flinched and clenched my fists when someone placed their hand on my shoulder from behind. My body had a strong aversion to physical touch. I could tolerate it only when someone I trusted—like a close friend—touched me.

"Just like Nicholas," Sofia teased, giggling as I rolled my eyes at her. Her fascination with Nicholas was on another level; I couldn’t understand what she saw in him that she didn’t in other guys.

"Remove your hands right now," a low, threatening voice sliced through the air. It was Nicholas, finally looking up from his phone.

The guy recoiled, quickly retracting his hand from my shoulder. "I-I’m sorry," he stammered, nervously clenching and unclenching his hands. I recognized him as my senior; we had never really interacted before.

"It's okay. Just don't do it again. I don't like people touching me," I replied, my voice crisp and distant.

He nodded repeatedly, and I must admit, he was cute, just not my type. He rubbed the back of his neck, unsure of what to say next. "I wanted to ask if you could be my partner for the new assignment Mr. Lockwood assigned us."

My lips parted in an attempt to respond, but I was abruptly interrupted by a certain someone. "No, she can’t. She’s my partner." Nicholas moved to place his hand on the back of my chair as he leaned back, stretching his legs under the table. He sure knew how to intimidate the poor guy.

My eyes narrowed as I glared at Nicholas. When had that decision been made?

"I-I see. Sorry for bothering you guys. Goodbye," the senior mumbled, practically sprinting away.

"When did I become your partner?" I asked once the coast was clear, relieved to avoid further awkwardness.

Nicholas continued looking at his phone and typing. "Since today." This was getting ridiculous. He couldn’t keep making decisions for me. We weren’t even friends!

"When did I even agree to that?"

He sighed, looking up to meet my eyes with an intense gaze. "You don’t have to agree. We live in the same place, and we both need partners for this assignment anyway. It’s only logical that we team up, saving us the trouble of finding separate partners and commuting back and forth."

"If making others look dumb was an art, you would be a master," I retorted, unimpressed by his reasoning. "There’s no need for that. I can deal with the commuting hassle if I’m not working with you."

He smirked, setting his phone down and grabbing one of his untouched drumsticks, placing it on my plate. "Eat this. You’re getting skinnier by the day." What did he just say? I wasn't skinny at all. My hourglass figure was something I really took pride in.

"You-"

"Eat, Principessa, or we’ll miss our break. We can discuss this later." He waved his hand dismissively, focusing on his meal.

The ride back to our home was filled with silence. For the first half, Nicholas was glued to his phone, and for the second half, he dozed off like a baby. Not having the heart to disturb him, I waited in the car for thirty minutes until he finally woke up on his own.

"Why didn’t you wake me up?" he asked as we entered the elevator together.

I shrugged, avoiding his gaze. "You looked too tired. Being the nice person that I am, I thought I’d let you sleep a little longer. It's the least I could do since you’re paying me a million." I duly received my money on the first of every month, making me a lot richer now.

He chuckled, shaking his head. "Thanks."

"No need," I replied, frowning as my phone pinged with a notification from my bank. One million transferred from Nicholas Rossi.

Exiting the elevator, I turned to him in confusion. "What the hell is this for?" He had already paid the money for that month.

"For being my partner," he replied, slipping his hands into his pockets. Being rich has its own perks.

My brows furrowed. "Are you trying to buy me?"

"Is it working?" he teased.

"I don’t know. Maybe." I would have to complete the assignment with someone regardless, and the fact that he was willing to pay so much for it was tempting, especially since he was a straight-A student. I didn’t see any downside to this arrangement. I had a knack for justifying others’ actions until they became too extreme. But—

"But why only me? You could get anyone for free." My confusion was clearly written all over my face; it felt like a bad deal for him. Not that I really cared, but the offer was too good to be true. What did he get in return?

He shrugged again. "Because I only want you." Excuse me? "I mean, I don’t usually interact with freshmen, and I don’t want to deal with the extra hassle of traveling to some stranger's place or allowing a complete unknown into my home."

I nodded in understanding; his points were quite valid. "Okay, as you wish. I’ll be your partner from now on."

His intense gaze deepened as he looked at me. "I hope you don’t make such deals with someone else. I want you to be loyal to me while we work together." I didn’t quite understand what he meant or why he was saying this, but whatever.

"Don’t worry. I’m a professional." I saluted him jokingly before turning to head to my apartment.

"Definitely my partner," he murmured to himself, unaware that I had heard him.

What did he mean by that?