Blocked
1014 Words
Clara
My heart stopped for a full second.
Then immediately started beating twice as fast.
I stared at the message on my phone like it personally offended me.
Rabbit.
I miss you.
Only one person called me rabbit.
Reig.
And somehow
even after years,
even after distance,
even after trying so hard to ignore him
my body still recognized him immediately.
I sat upright on my bed while staring at the unknown number suspiciously.
How did he even get my number?
And why was he texting me now after disappearing for days?
I frowned.
Actually no.
More importantly
Why was I smiling?
Disgusting.
Absolutely disgusting behavior.
I quickly wiped the smile off my face before throwing my phone beside me dramatically.
Ignore him.
Easy.
Very easy.
Five seconds later
I grabbed the phone again.
Because now that I was awake, sleep was impossible anyway.
“Thanks for ruining my sleep,” I typed angrily before hitting send.
The typing bubble appeared almost immediately.
Way too fast.
Meaning
this man was waiting.
I hated how warm that realization made me feel.
Sorry.
Thought you were still a night owl.
I rolled my eyes instantly.
No.
Absolutely not.
He was not allowed to remember things about me this casually.
I sleep early now.
Lie.
Very huge lie.
Another reply came quickly.
I’ll take note of that.
My cheeks immediately warmed.
Annoying.
Because Reig had always been like that.
He remembered everything.
The small things.
The useless things.
The things even I forgot about myself.
And somehow...
that always felt more dangerous than grand gestures.
Another message appeared.
Gym tomorrow?
I stared at the screen suspiciously.
Then narrowed my eyes.
Oh.
So this was his game now?
Disappear for one week.
Text me randomly at midnight.
Act casual.
Absolutely not.
Without replying
I blocked his number.
Serves him right.
Especially after that stupid tagged photo with that pretty flight attendant from New York.
He could emotionally disturb someone else.
Satisfied with my mature decision-making skills, I finally placed my phone down and forced myself to sleep.
***
The next morning, I headed to the gym like usual.
Normal routine.
Normal life.
No Reig.
Perfect.
I entered the gym while fixing my ponytail
Then immediately froze.
Because there
Near the weight section
Was Reig Miller.
Sweatpants hanging low on his hips.
Black compression shirt hugging his body so unfairly it honestly felt criminal.
His hair slightly messy from sweat while veins stretched visibly along his forearms as he adjusted weights casually.
And unfortunately
He looked ridiculously good.
I hated him immediately.
He glanced at me briefly.
Just briefly.
Then
Ignored me completely.
I blinked.
Excuse me?
He simply returned to his workout like I didn’t exist.
No teasing smile.
No “morning rabbit.”
Nothing.
I narrowed my eyes suspiciously before continuing toward the treadmill.
Fine.
Ignore me then.
See if I care.
Except somehow
him ignoring me felt worse.
The entire workout became torture afterward.
Because every few minutes
I accidentally noticed him,
accidentally looked at him,
accidentally became aware of how attractive he was.
Very annoying morning overall.
And somehow
he never approached me once.
Not even one glance after that first look.
Which only irritated me more.
After finishing my workout, I quickly grabbed my bag before leaving the gym.
Only to find
Reig standing near the exit door.
I paused briefly.
Oh.
So he was waiting for me.
The thought immediately made warmth spread through my chest.
Then
He walked past me.
Without looking.
Without speaking.
Without acknowledging me.
I stared at his back in disbelief.
What.
The.
Hell.
Annoyed, I left the gym immediately before deciding to stop by Sara’s café.
Maybe caffeine would save me from committing violence.
The café bell rang softly as I entered.
And once again
There he was.
Reig stood near the counter casually while scrolling through his phone.
This time wearing a plain white shirt with sleeves rolled slightly above his elbows and dark gray joggers. Simple.
But somehow the white shirt only made him look worse.
Or better.
Unfortunately.
The fabric stretched perfectly across his shoulders and chest every time he moved while his silver watch rested loosely around his wrist.
Even Sara looked impressed.
Traitor.
Before I could even process things
Reig suddenly stepped forward.
Directly cutting in front of me.
Then calmly ordered first.
Still ignoring me.
My eye twitched.
Sara looked between us nervously.
“…Should I be scared?”
“Yes,” I answered immediately.
“No,” Reig said at the same time.
Then he smirked slightly.
Oh.
OH.
So now he wanted to acknowledge my existence.
I folded my arms tightly.
“What exactly is your problem?”
Nothing.
He simply took his coffee from Sara.
Still ignoring me.
That somehow annoyed me more than if he actually argued back.
After placing my own order, I followed him toward the tables.
“You text me randomly at midnight then suddenly act like I don’t exist?”
Silence.
“Reig.”
Nothing.
Now I was genuinely angry.
“You know what? Fine.”
I slammed both palms lightly against the table.
Several customers immediately looked toward us.
Sara whispered:
“Finally.”
Traitor again.
Reig slowly looked up at me.
And finally
Smirked.
Slowly.
Dangerously.
“What?” I snapped.
He leaned back comfortably against his chair.
“You blocked me.”
“You deserved it.”
“For?”
I scoffed loudly.
“That girl.”
Reig blinked once.
Then suddenly
His smirk widened.
And somehow that made me nervous.
“What girl?”
“The one from New York.”
“The flight attendant?”
I crossed my arms tighter.
“See? You remember her.”
And unfortunately
Reig started looking way too entertained.
Then slowly...
very slowly...
he leaned closer.
Close enough that I could smell his perfume again.
Close enough that my heartbeat immediately betrayed me.
Then quietly
With the most shameless smile imaginable
He asked
“Rabbit…”
His eyes dropped briefly toward my lips before meeting my gaze again.
“…were you jealous?”
- Writer
