📘 CHAPTER 4 — TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT
854 Words
Later that afternoon—
Matteo sat with his friends, barely listening to the conversation around him.
His attention kept drifting.
Back to her.
Annoying.
Unnecessary.
Unwanted.
“You’re distracted,” Enzo said.
“I’m not.”
“You are.”
Matteo leaned back slightly, exhaling.
“I just don’t like people who talk too much.”
Enzo smirked. “So… her.”
Matteo didn’t answer.
But his silence said enough.
Because the truth was—
He wasn’t just noticing Isabella Moretti anymore.
He was thinking about her.
And that was worse.
🔥 TEASER FOR CHAPTER 5:
Matteo starts noticing who Isabella talks to… and for the first time, something unfamiliar creeps in — jealousy.
By the next lecture, the campus had gone quiet again.
Not peaceful.
Just… watchful.
Monteverdi had a way of pretending things were over when they weren’t. Conversations moved on, but attention didn’t. It lingered. Shifted. Waited.
Isabella Moretti walked into class without hesitation.
Head high. Expression calm.
Untouched.
At least on the outside.
She didn’t look for him.
She didn’t need to.
She felt him.
Matteo De Luca was already there.
Sitting near the back this time, relaxed, one arm stretched across the empty seat beside him like he was reserving it without saying it out loud.
Her eyes flickered in that direction for half a second.
Then she looked away.
She chose a seat three rows ahead.
Far enough.
Intentional.
Controlled.
The lecture began.
Pens moved. Pages flipped. The professor talked.
Everything felt normal.
Until—
A chair scraped.
Behind her.
Isabella’s hand paused slightly over her notebook.
Then continued.
Footsteps followed.
Slow.
Unhurried.
Confident.
She didn’t turn.
Didn’t react.
But when the chair beside her shifted—
She wasn’t surprised.
Matteo sat down like it was nothing.
Like he hadn’t crossed the room just to sit next to her.
“You moved,” he said quietly.
Isabella kept writing.
“So did you.”
A pause.
Then a faint breath left him. Not quite a laugh.
“You think distance helps?”
“I think silence does.”
That almost amused him.
Almost.
Matteo leaned back slightly, but not fully. Not enough to give her space.
“You walked away yesterday,” he said.
“You noticed?”
“I don’t like unfinished things.”
Isabella finally turned her head slightly.
“There was nothing to finish.”
“There is now.”
She looked at him.
Really looked this time.
Steady.
Unimpressed.
Then turned back to her notebook.
“No.”
That should’ve ended it.
It didn’t.
Matteo leaned just a little closer.
Enough for his presence to be felt without crossing the line.
“That won’t last,” he said.
Her pen slowed.
“Confidence isn’t certainty.”
“And silence isn’t indifference.”
That made her pause.
Brief.
Subtle.
But real.
She turned her head again, this time fully.
Their faces closer now.
Not enough to draw attention.
Enough to matter.
“You’re assuming things,” she said.
“I’m observing.”
A beat passed between them.
Then—
“Mr. De Luca.”
The professor’s voice cut through the moment.
Matteo didn’t move immediately.
“Yes?”
“Would you like to participate, or continue distracting others?”
A few quiet laughs.
Matteo leaned back slightly, finally breaking the tension.
“I’m listening.”
“Then act like it.”
The lecture resumed.
But the shift remained.
Because now—
This wasn’t just rivalry.
It was awareness.
And neither of them could ignore it.
When class ended, Isabella stood immediately.
No hesitation.
No lingering.
She packed her things quickly.
Ready to leave before—
“Leaving again?”
She stopped.
Just for a second.
Then turned.
Matteo was already standing.
Closer than expected.
Too close.
“I don’t stay where I’m not interested,” she said.
That should’ve been enough.
But Matteo stepped slightly closer.
Now there was no space to pretend.
“You’re interested,” he said.
Isabella didn’t react.
“You’re persistent.”
“That’s not a denial.”
“It’s not an answer.”
A pause.
Students moved around them, voices filling the room again.
But the space between them stayed still.
Focused.
Matteo studied her like he was trying to figure something out.
Something that didn’t make sense.
“You don’t react the way people should,” he said.
“And you expect them to?”
“Yes.”
“Then that’s your mistake.”
Another pause.
Then—
He smiled slightly.
Not mocking.
Not sharp.
Different.
“You’re going to be a problem,” he said.
Isabella raised a brow.
“No,” she replied calmly. “I already am.”
That held.
For a second longer than necessary.
Then she stepped back.
Creating space again.
Control.
“I’m not here for you,” she added.
Matteo didn’t move.
“I didn’t say you were.”
“Good.”
She turned and walked away.
This time—
He didn’t stop her.
Didn’t follow.
But his eyes stayed on her.
Tracking.
Thinking.
And that was new.
Because Matteo De Luca didn’t think twice about people.
But now—
He was.
- Writer
