Sweetheart VS Heartthrob

Ice and Chocolates

The morning was a disaster. I wasn't woken up by the gentle rays of the sun, but by Wendy hitting a vocal frequency that could shatter industrial glass.

"You lazy girl! Get up now!" she screamed, hovering over my bed like a vengeful spirit. "This is the last time! I won't wake you up anymore! It's already 07:30 and I am not being late because of you!"

"7:30?!" I scrambled out of the duvet, tangling my legs in the sheets and nearly doing a face-plant. "Ugh, damn it!"

The next twenty minutes were a blur of me washing my face at warp speed and shoving my limbs into my uniform. I had hardly managed to pass a comb through my hair before Wendy was dragging me out the door of our suite. Outside, the air was sweet with the scent of spring, and pink cherry blossom petals were swirling across the paths as we sprinted toward the main school building.

"We are both going to be late if you keep making up," Wendy grumbled, ignoring my protests as she hauled me along.

We skidded into our seats on the second floor just as the bell finished its final ring, heaving a sigh of relief that echoed through the silent classroom. We sat through the first period, the sunlight streaming through the windows and illuminating the dust motes dancing in the air.

"We couldn't even meet up with Phil because of you!" Wendy whispered, punctuating her point with a sharp smack to the back of my head.

"I'm sorry!" I pouted, rubbing the spot.

The day dragged on in a haze of lectures until lunch finally arrived. As we walked into the cafeteria, I began scanning the room like a hawk. My eyes hopped over the groups of chattering students until they landed on the corner table, the one surrounded by a self-imposed vacuum of space.

"What are you looking for?" Philip asked, noticing my wandering eyes.

"Just someone!"

I grabbed my tray, a mischievous grin spreading across my face. "You guys continue eating," I told my stunned friends. "I'll accompany someone else for today."

I didn't wait for an answer. I marched across the room and dropped my tray onto the table directly across from Owen. He didn't look up, but the air at the table instantly felt about twenty degrees colder.

"Can I accompany you?" I asked, leaning in with a cheeky smile.

Owen didn't even pause his chopsticks. "No."

The bluntness of it felt like a door slamming in my face. I scoffed, my competitive streak sparking to life. I pulled out the chair and sat down anyway, folding my arms on the table. I watched him, the way he didn't even acknowledge that I had ignored his no, and felt an evil little smile tug at my lips.

"You accompanied me yesterday even though I said you didn't have to," I said with a careless shrug. "Hence, I'm going to accompany you today, Mr. Owen. In this way, Peterson won't be able to bully you again for being alone. Think of me as your human shield."

Owen actually placed his chopsticks down then. He looked at me, his eyes searching my face for a punchline that wasn't there. He let out a dry, short scoff, the kind of sound that said he couldn't decide if I was brave or just incredibly annoying.

"Why aren't you eating? Come on, eat!" I pointed at him with my own chopsticks.

With a heavy, long-suffering sigh, he picked his chopsticks back up and resumed eating. He was silent, but it wasn't a peaceful silence; it was the silence of someone who had realized I wasn't going to leave.

I reached into my bag and pulled out my ultimate peace offering: a box of chocolates. I pushed it toward him. "Would you like some?"

He glanced at it and shook his head.

"How can you say no?" I gasped, looking truly offended. "I don't share my chocolates with anyone. You should feel lucky that I’m even offering, Mr. Owen."

He looked at the box, then back at my insistent face. He sighed again, and I was starting to think I was the cause of ninety percent of his daily carbon emissions, and took a single chocolate. He muttered a small thank you before eating it. I grinned, feeling like I’d just tamed a wild animal, and immediately pushed the box toward him again.

"Would you like some more?"

Before he could breathe a no, I narrowed my eyes. "And I won't take no for an answer!"

With a look of total defeat, he reached out and took another one.

"So," I said, leaning my chin on my palm and watching him eat. "Don't you have friends?"

"I have," he replied patiently, still not looking up.

"Then why are you sitting here alone? Did you guys fight? Give me the tea."

"One is sick," Owen said, his tone as flat as a dial tone. "The other is on a family trip."

I blinked, letting out a sharp, huffed laugh. "Wow. One is out of commission and the other just left you behind? How unlucky can one person get? I'm starting to think your bad luck is contagious, Mr. Owen."

I gave him a cheeky look. "Or did they just need a break from the sub-zero temperatures at this table?"

Owen didn't answer. He just kept eating, his expression unreadable, as if he were waiting for me to run out of batteries.

"What happened to the sick one, anyway?" I pushed. "Was it a terminal case of boredom from hanging out with you?"

Owen’s eyes finally snapped to mine. There was a spark of genuine annoyance there, a tiny crack in the ice.

"Pneumonia," he said curtly.

"Oh." My smile faltered instantly. "Well. That’s actually terrible. I’ll shut up now."

The silence returned, but it was heavier now. I was about to reach for another chocolate to fill the awkward gap when a shadow fell across the table.

I looked up, and for a second, my breath caught.