11. The Ride. The Lies.
1150 Words
Enya’s Point of View
I froze, staring at the two people staring at me.
My breath caught, my mind going blank as panic rose in my chest. I didn’t even realize that I should leave as soon as possible, before they understood that I had been listening to them.
My fingers loosened in nervousness, and my phone slipped from my hand.
It hit the floor with a thud. Fortunately, the floor was carpeted.
I had made a fool of myself in front of them!
Before I could bend down to pick it up, Raphael was already there.
I had no idea how he moved that fast. He stepped directly in front of me, the distance between us only a few centimeters. He quickly bent down and picked up my phone.
Raphael turned it over slowly, checking the screen, the edges, the back, carefully. He checked it a little too long. It had fallen on the carpet, so there shouldn’t have been any damage.
He straightened and held it out to me.
“Be careful,” he said in a low, deep voice.
The way he said it, I couldn’t understand whether he meant my phone or something else.
I took the phone from him. My fingers brushed against his.
My whole body trembled with the mere touch.
I didn’t like it. I really didn’t like the effect this man had on me.
Just then, Noah approached us.
He stood in front of us, his expression unreadable at first. Then a faint chuckle escaped him as he glanced at Raphael.
“Too suffocating inside?” Noah asked gently.
I took a deep breath to calm myself and forced a smile. If they were acting as if nothing had happened, I should play along.
“It… it was just a little too loud.”
Noah smiled as if he understood. “We felt the same, didn’t we?” he said, looking at Raphael again.
Raphael didn’t reply. He didn’t even look at him. His eyes were fixed on me.
“Let’s go in. Everyone must be waiting for us,” Noah said gently, turning and gesturing for me to walk with him.
I had no intention of going back inside. I just wanted to be somewhere I could think alone. But I had no way of refusing a professor.
I walked with Noah.
Raphael followed us.
We returned to our seats at the table.
Noah slipped effortlessly back into conversation, smiling and talking like the kind professor he pretended to be. He acted perfectly normal, as if nothing abnormal had happened outside.
Raphael, however, was not the same.
His expression was gloomier than before, his presence heavy, his silence deliberate. He barely spoke. When someone asked him a direct question, he gave the shortest answer possible, leaving no room for further questions.
I clearly saw how his hand wrapped tightly around his glass, his knuckles pale, as if he were restraining something.
I sighed inwardly, wondering how fate had bound me to them again when I had done my best to avoid meeting them in this life. I couldn’t even understand how all three of us had made the same choice and ended up at Western University.
What a cruel and ridiculous joke fate was playing on me.
The rest of the evening felt like torture.
I wanted nothing more than to escape, go back to my room, lie on my bed, hug my pillow, and drown in my thoughts.
I waited desperately for everyone to finish and finally get up.
At last, it was over.
We walked outside, and I sighed in relief.
Now I can go home and escape all of this, I thought.
God, I was so wrong.
“I’m heading toward Delft,” Noah announced casually. “If anyone lives that way, you’re welcome to ride with me.”
Two girls immediately agreed.
I lived that way too, but I had no intention of riding in his car, so I stayed silent, praying to be invisible.
Unfortunately, my best friend was too concerned about me and had no idea what I was going through.
“You can go with them too,” Rose said suddenly, turning toward me.
I looked at her in panic and was about to ask her to stay quiet, but it was too late.
Noah had already noticed.
“Do you live in Delft as well?” he asked directly.
How could I lie?
“Yes,” I said.
“Perfect,” Noah replied, already smiling.
“I’m coming with you, too,” a deep voice said suddenly behind me.
Raphael.
Sandy looked surprised. “But you drove here. What about your car?”
“I’m a little too drunk,” Raphael said nonchalantly. “I shouldn’t drive. I’ll get my car tomorrow.”
I couldn’t help scoffing inwardly.
Maybe no one else noticed, but I had been watching him all night. He had barely touched any alcohol. He was too busy being angry and grumpy.
No one questioned him, not even Noah.
Noah simply accepted Raphael joining his car with a light chuckle. It felt deliberate, as though Noah had expected this outcome.
So we all ended up in the same car.
Noah drove, Raphael sat beside him, and the girls and I sat in the back. Noah kept talking, his gaze following me through the rearview mirror from time to time. Every time he did, I saw Raphael glance at him with unmistakable hostility.
I wished I understood what this hostility between them was, and how I had become part of it. In my last life,it was never like this.
The first girl got dropped off.
Then the second.
And then it was just me, Raphael, and Noah.
I was so nervous that even the air inside the car felt suffocating. I honestly wanted to get out and walk the rest of the distance.
“So…” Noah spoke again. “Why did you choose Western?” His eyes met mine through the rearview mirror.
I swallowed hard. “Um… I thought Western’s computer science program was very good, Professor.”
Noah chuckled softly. “Really? I always thought Queen’s had the best program for computer science.”
He said it to me, but his glance shifted briefly to Raphael.
“Maybe,” I replied. “But I personally like Western.”
The rest of the ride stretched endlessly. Noah kept making small talk, and I was forced to respond. It was unbearable.
When we finally reached my place, I felt overwhelming relief.
“Thank you, Professor. Good night,” I said as quickly as possible, reaching for the door.
But before I could open it,
“I’ll get out of here too.”
Raphael was already opening his door.
“I need some fresh air,” he added.
My mouth fell open in shock.
What is he going to do now?
- Writer
