Fire & Snow

Chapter 9

“Nev, babe,” Kylie shouted from across the hallway. “Wait up.”

Chance shook his head incredulously while Alex chuckled. “Talk about the devil and here she comes running,” Chance said as he continued walking. “I don’t get why you are friends with her in the first place.”

I elbowed him in the ribs and he moved away from me with a scowl on his face. “Don’t be rude, she is my roommate and happens to be one of the few people who can actually tolerate you and your annoying self,” I whispered as Kylie reached us.

“Hey Kys,” Alex said smiling as he slung his arm around her shoulders. “How are you? It’s been long since I last saw you.”

Kylie smiled back in return. “I’m okay. I was at my boyfriend’s place for the weekend catching up on all that I missed,” she said with a smirk.

Alex burst into laughter. “I guess that explains the s*x hair and wrinkled clothes.”

Kylie winked, “A lady never kisses and tells.”

Chance scoffed at that, “Yeah, maybe a proper lady would but you aren’t one,” he said.

I narrowed my eyes at him and moved further away from me. “Stop being so mean,” I said with a sigh. “What do you have against her anyway?”

“Yeah, I would like to know that as well Chancellor,” Kylie said with an evil smile when Chance glared daggers at her. “I mean all I have been to you is nice yet you always go out of your way to insult and ridicule me for something that I don’t know I did.”

If looks could kill, then I was definitely sure that Kylie would be dead as soon as those words left her mouth. If there was one person, in the entire school, that Chance did not get along with was Kylie but he would not tell neither Alex nor me why.

“Do you really want to go there Kylie? Do you?” Chance asked. He tucked his hands in his jean pockets as we walked to the third lecture of the day.

Kylie seemed to think it over before she finally answered. “Yep.”

“You really sure about that?”

“I said yes,” Kylie, cried in frustration. “Would you stop asking me if I am sure about it and just tell me already.”

Chance looked over at her and shook his head. “Nah, it’s a waste of my time. I can’t tell you something that you are pretending not to know.”

“Seriously Chance? That is how you plan on treating the girl?” Alex shook his head with a scowl. “That just isn’t cool man, it isn’t cool.”

“Shut up arsehole. This has nothing to do with you,” Chance said through narrowed eyes.

I had to intervene before things went too far and someone ended up getting angry and storming off. I stopped walking “Enough,” I said a bit louder than usual and they all looked at me with raised eyebrows as they stopped walking was well. “I don’t know what happened between the two of you but whatever it is, you need to resolve it soon and stop acting like kids. We are all adults here and we ought to act like it and not like some petty teenagers. I’m sure whatever is it that she did to you isn’t enough to warrant such treatment from you all the darn time.” I was breathing heavily as I finished saying all that.

“Wow, you cursed,” Chance, said.

“Seriously? That’s all you heard from everything I just said?” I asked with my eyebrow arched.

Chance shrugged, “Pretty much. Everything else sounded like rubbish.”

Alex, Kylie and I all shook our heads incredulously.

Kylie pulled away from Alex’s hold as we made a turn. “I will see you later,” she said to Alex and I then stared at Chance before she left.

“See, she did not even say goodbye to me,” Chance said with a sigh, “And you wonder why we don’t get along.”

“I don’t blame her,” Alex replied as we entered our class and took our seats in the middle row. “You were a jerk so it’s only fair that she treats you the way that you deserve.”

I laughed at that. “I agree with Alex on that,” I said still laughing. “You did and you always act like a jerk towards her so yes… you deserve the harsh treatment as well.”

Chance rolled his eye dramatically. “You all want to gang up on me. I see what you are doing and rest assured that I would get you both back for this. Mark my words.”

“It’s not our fault that you are an arse and people happen not to like you as much,” Alex replied with a casual then put on his headsets.

Chance narrowed his eyes at him and then turned to me. “You see what I have to go through every day?” he asked.

I opened my bag, grabbed my notebook and then stared at him blankly. “I don’t see whatever it is that you want me to see. All I see are people calling you out for how you tend to act at times, which if you asked me is kind of trashy and as though you are some stuck up rich kid from Beverly Hills,” I said and started scribbling in my notebook while waiting for the professor to make his appearance.

“So you are also siding with them over me?” Chance said sounding disappointed. “Cool, we’ll see who will help you get a job next time.”

“Are you threatening me?” I asked incredulously. “Because that’s just ridiculous. I do not understand why you always take things too personal when people say something but you are always the one who treats others as though they are the ones lucky to have you in their life. Why can’t you just admit that we all need each other?”

Chance’s eyes narrowed even more and he opened his mouth to say something but he was cut off when the professor entered class.

“This isn’t over,” Chance whispered in my ear.

                                                                        *********

The morning lectures went over smoothly and before I knew it, it was lunchtime and I was starving.

“Finally,” Chance sighed as we walked out of the lecture hall and towards the cafeteria. “I thought I was going to die of hunger while sitting there.

Alex and I smiled. We were all hungry and for the first time in a long while, we actually agreed with Chance.

“Same here man. I could eat a whole elephant and still be hungry,” Alex said.

“Please, you can’t eat a whole elephant and who would let you kill an elephant in the first place?” I scoffed. “That’s just ridiculous.”

Alex went for a laugh but it came out sounding as those he was being strangled.

“He is just being ridiculous. Kindly ignore him and his weirdness,” Chance said as we entered the cafeteria.

We stood by the double doors and watched the long line of student.

“Are we ever going to get any food?” Chance asked with his mouth hung open. “This is a ridiculously long line and lunch just started,” he began whining whilst staring at the lunch line.

“That would be because it’s lasagne and dumplings day,” a voice said from behind.

Alex, Chance and I spun around and I stared up at Aydan. He was dressed in black ripped jeans with a grey hoodie whose sleeves were rolled up. In short, he looked hot.

“Aydan dude,” Chance said and they fist bumped each other. “What’s up? Heard you dominated Landon and his team.”

“Of course, they got what they deserved,” Aydan replied with a shrug but there was a pleased smile and twinkle in his eyes as he said that. “He thought they could come to our school and show us up, well they had another thing coming.”

Chance and Aydan started talking about football while Alex and I stood there awkwardly contemplating if we should leave them and join the line or just continue standing there awkwardly while they talked.

Alex asked me the same thing I was just thinking. I shrugged in response. Alex slowly began to walk away and I followed suit.

“Where are you two going?” Aydan asked.

Alex and I froze mid-step and looked at each other. Sighing, I turned around and faced Aydan and Chance who were staring at us with raised eyebrows.

“Um…. We were going to,” I pointed at the long lunch line and silently prayed in my head that Alex would step in and say something but he did not.

“Where?” Aydan had an amused smile and twinkle in his eyes as he asked me that. I could feel the amusement and I wanted to smack that look from his face but I was not the violent type.

I turned to Alex but he was mute. Guess I was the one who was going to do all the explaining. Thanks a lot Alex, I said in my head. “We were going to join the line before all the good food finished and we were left with what everyone doesn’t like,” I finally replied.

Aydan chuckled softly and shook his head. “Don’t worry Nev, I got you all,” he said then gestured with his head for us to follow him.

Alex gave me a what the hell look to which I just shrugged. I was as surprised as he was at the fact that Aydan had called me by my nickname and I had no idea how he knew about it because I do not remember telling him anything about myself.

As we walked, all the people kept congratulating Aydan for their win and whatnot, everything that was all irrelevant and pointless to me. I was hungry and all I wanted was food and not to be a part of an entourage for the school’s football captain.

“You were awesome,” a red-haired guy shouted from across the cafeteria.

“Thanks man,” Aydan said back with a genuine smile. I figured he would be cocky over the fact that he won and everyone was giving them their attention but oddly enough, he was not and that surprised me even more.

A blonde girl grabbed Aydan’s hand and stopped him. She batted her eyes in a weird way and I thought there was something wrong with them. “How about you and I leave this place and go do something really fun,” she said seductively.

I almost gagged, one from the hunger and two from the fact that she was trying very hard. I was hungry and about to pass out while this girl was trying to take the one person who was going to help me get said food.

“Maybe some other time, my friends and I are hungry,” Aydan replied as he pulled his hand away from the girl’s hold and resumed walking.

I looked at the table where the girl was sat and they were all staring daggers at me. I quickly moved closer to Chance.

As Aydan drew closer to the long lunch line, the people in the line parted letting us go ahead of them. This was something I could get used to. We bought our food and Aydan turned to look at me.

“You look like you are going to pass out, Chance make sure Neva eats her food,” he said and then left.

I was speechless and all that was going through my head was wow.

Chance slung his hand on my shoulder. “Come on.”

We walked to where Kylie was sat and joined her.

“You were just with thee Aydan Winters, hottest and most popular guy in the entire college,” was the first thing that Kylie said. “You are so lucky, I wish I was you.”

“And he even told Chance to make sure she eats,” Alex added. “Talk about wow.”

“No freaking way,” Kylie exclaimed loudly, which earned her a few stares. “I can’t believe this. I totally ship you two together,” she squealed.

“Stop being dramatic,” Chance said with an eye roll. “As far as I have heard, Aydan doesn’t date and has never had a girlfriend, like ever.”

I rolled my eyes. “Stop getting these weird fantasies in your head. Nothing will ever happen and I am still an aromantic asexual if I remember correctly,” l replied and then dug into my lasagne.

“See, he doesn’t date and so don’t you. It is destiny,” Kylie replied smugly and turned to Alex. “Am I not correct?”

“Nothing is going to happen,” I said once more. “Stop getting weird fantasies, this is real life and not one of your romance novels.”

“You never know with these things. Love just happens,” Alex replied.