Chapter Ten
1381 Words
“I'm still super excited that you're actually willing to do this,” Katie said for like the umpteenth time.
I wasn't sure if I'd ever be able to understand why she was so excited about it all.
She should not forget that I was just dating him because of my book and nothing else.
The car came to a halt, so we both got out.
The duplex stood before us, its modern exterior was a mix of sleek glass and weathered wood.
The shared wall between the two units was painted a crisp white, while the trim and doors were a deep, rich brown. Each unit had its own private entrance, with a small porch and a few steps leading up to the front door.
“Wow,” the awe was evident in my tone, “it's bigger than I'd expected.
She giggled, placing a hand on my shoulder, “you should go in,”
“You're not coming in with me?” I asked in surprise as I'd thought she'd have tagged along and started her teasing.
“Nah, I don't want to keep Kelvin waiting,” she opened the driver's seat of her car, entering it, then after a wave, started the car, zooming off.
It was only after she'd left that I realized I didn't have a way to get back home.
Would she come pick me up? Hopefully she would.
Deciding to not think about that, I started towards the door of the building, still in awe at how beautiful it all was.
Climbing up the stairs, I pushed the doorbell once I'd reached it.
The door opened a few seconds later, revealing a handsome Austin in a dark blue tee shirt with a black trousers.
His hair had been left to fall over his forehead, popping out the beauty of his face.
Standing this close to him, I felt extremely short and couldn't help wondering what his height really was.
I could guess he was six foot three or six foot four, because that'd be the explanation on how he towered over everyone.
“Come in,” he said, looking as uninterested as ever, making way for me to walk in, which I did.
Inside, the interior was bright and airy, with large windows that let in plenty of natural light. The furniture was minimalist, with clean lines and a neutral color palette.
Contrary to outside, it was warm so I could actually take off my coat, which I dropped on the coat rack I sighted beside the door.
He closed the door behind him, walking past me with an expression I couldn't make out what it meant.
I took a seat on the L-shaped sofa that could seat possibly six people.
He appeared from wherever he'd disappeared to, taking a seat on an accent chair beside the sofa I was sitting on.
“Now, we should set up a date when I'd be available to teach you,” his tone was stern, I had to furrow my brows.
“Okay?”
“When's the deadline?” He asked, leaning back against the chair while he rested his hand on its armrest.
“January thirteen,” I replied, dropping my bag beside me.
“I'm taking over my dad's company next weekend, which means I'll be very busy so I'll only have time for you once a week.”
“What do you mean?”
“I'll only be available on Sundays which is the only time I'd actually give you a lesson,” he said like it was nothing.
My brain did a quick calculation on how many Sundays I had till January 13.
“There's no way I'll be able to know everything about basketball in just the seven days you'd be available.”
“Did you just calculate it?” Although there was a slight surprise in his tone, it wasn't evident in his expression.
But that wasn't important, and I wrinkled my forehead letting him know that, “I'll be dating you for one f*****g year and you just want to spend seven days teaching me something.”
His expression didn't change, which irritated me enough to continue, “I hate sports and know nothing about it and you expect me to actually just learn what I hate in seven days!”
“As I said, I'm busy and will only teach you within that short period of time,” he said, not seeming to care about me.
“I can't learn in seven f*****g days,”
“I'll teach you and you'll grab it all in seven days,” he sounded so certain that I found myself unable to argue further.
“You don't know how bad of a student I am,” I warned, because he hadn't gone to high school with me and didn't see all the D's I'd gotten.
A side of his lips hitched upwards a little. Just a little, “and you don't know how great of a teacher I am.”
I found a smile appearing on my lips, “if you say so,”
He checked the time on his wrist watch, “it's eleven thirteen so I'll just teach you for thirty minutes, tell you the basics and then you can get going.”
“Alright,” I reached for my bag, retrieving a notepad and a pen.
He rose to his feet, gesturing for me to do the same which I did. “Let's go to the study,”
He started towards a particular direction, so I picked up my bag and trailed behind him.
Soon, we were inside a library.
It was probably a combination of an office and a library because of the office desk by the wall opposite the door with computers and files on it.
The other walls were surrounded by shelves that held books of different types.
History books, autobiography books, basketball books, current affairs. Novels even.
A smile appeared on my lips as I headed towards the shelves, my fingers running through the books that were there, searching for my novels.
But I didn't find any.
“Don't you read romance?” I asked, a little annoyed that he didn't have even one of my books.
“I do, once in a while.” He said from behind me.
“But I don't see any of my novels here,” I said, still scanning in case I'd see any.
“I guess I don't have it.”
A gasp left me when I sighted ‘Dream Kill by Susan Kurt’. “You have Su—”
“Let's start the lesson already, would we?”
I huffed, annoyed he had my rival's novel, but not even one of mine.
So frustrating.
Pivoting, I noticed he'd taken a seat on the brown reading sofa, so I went to sit beside him.
Soon, he started teaching me the basics about basketball.
It was extremely boring at first, but once he started talking about teams and games, I realized I had a pinch of interest.
After about forty five minutes, I sent a message to Katie asking if she'd be able to come pick me up, but she replied that she was having too great a time with Kelvin and couldn't.
“Thanks for the lesson,” I retrieved my coat from the coat rack, not sure if to tell him I didn't have a ride back home.
It's not like he should care. And I could just order a ride. It was that easy.
“E—” The doorbell filled the house, cutting him off.
While I wore my coat, he headed to the door, opening it.
“Austin!” A voice I was far too familiar with called, pushing the door open further, revealing the last person I'd expected to see.
Suzy turned to me in surprise, “Kim? What're you doing here?”
The irritation I always felt whenever I saw her, rose again.
That explained why he had her novel and not mine.
Suddenly, I felt the need to frustrate her as much as her presence frustrated me.
And what better way to do so, than walk to stand beside him, “I'm in my boyfriend's house. What are you doing here?”
- Writer
