The furry carpet had never felt more comforting as I stretched out on it, my gaze fixed on the ceiling. Sunlight streamed through the windows, casting intricate patterns of light and shadow that danced across the room. It was mesmerizing—hypnotic, even—but my thoughts drifted far beyond this world. Possibly to Pluto.
The Valentine's craze. Silvia's involvement. And then... him.
Sighing, I reached for my phone, telling myself not to look disappointed when I saw no new messages from Nick. When I got home, he wasn't there. I hadn't seen him. And, pathetically, I missed him. Another sigh. My fingers idly navigated to the school's dating app.
As adventurous and fun as online dating might be, this particular app had been created by my nemesis. I wouldn't put it past Silvia to have laid some kind of trap for me in there.
But that didn't stop me from scrolling.
Profiles filled the screen—some familiar faces from campus, others complete strangers. A few had bios that made me cringe.
"Looking for my forever Valentine ❤️."
"Swipe right if you love long walks to the cafeteria."
I rolled my eyes but kept scrolling.
My blissful relaxation was rudely interrupted by the persistent chime of the doorbell.
At first, I pretended not to hear it, hoping whoever was out there would give up after a few tries. But no—this one was determined. With a frustrated groan, I peeled myself off the carpet, dragging my feet like a reluctant zombie toward the door.
Seriously, was uninterrupted laziness too much to ask for?
I yanked the door open, my eyes bored and angry at he same time
"What?!" I snapped but froze when I came face to face with Nick. He was standing there, eyes wide and one hand mid air as if he was about to ring the bell again.
Oh crap.
An awkward smile tugged at my lips as I scrambled to smooth my expression.
"Nick," I blurted. Slightly breathy like I have run a marathon.
"Not a good time?" he teased, his brow quirking in amusement.
"No... yes...I mean..." I internally grimaced at how utterly incapable I sounded. " I wasn't expecting you." I added.
"Oh, coz I have this feeling that you've been avoiding me. Are you?" out of nowhere he asked, and my brain fried for couple of seconds, wondering how I was supposed to answer that.
"What? Avoiding you? Pfft, why would I do that? Should I be avoiding you? Wait, did you do something? If you did, I definitely don't know about it. Not that there's anything to know. Because obviously, there's nothing. So... what were we talking about again?"
Nick just stared at me, one brow still arched, his lips twitching like he was trying very hard not to laugh at my ramblings.
"Did you see my texts?" he asked, after a while.
"I did! I replied," I said, nodding a little too enthusiastically. Nick seemed unimpressed by my answer as he crossed his arms, making them bulge even-
"Funny. Because the only thing I saw was you dodging your duties and throwing an innocent bystander into the mix."
Wait—what?
"Uh, I did mention that I'm super busy. You know, school, projects, the crushing weight of academic expectations..." I moved to lean casually against the doorframe only to miss it entirely and nearly topple over if not for my quick reflexes. Like seriously, did my body motor tends to malfunction when Nick was around!
Nick sighed, unfolding his arms. "And Jay? Your conveniently appointed replacement tour guide? and you are saying that you're not avoiding me."
I scoffed. "Please. If I were avoiding you, you wouldn't even know it. I'd be a ghost."
He raised an eyebrow. "Mandy, you are grasping," It was the first time he used my name and that had me tongue tied. I didn't know if I was capable of coming up with new excuses. Especially when he smirked as if he knew he'd got me good.
"You are relentless." I groaned.
"And you are a terrible liar." he bit back
We stared at each other, each one of us not wanting to back down from this ridiculous banter and when I couldn't handle the heat of his gaze, I gave in.
"Fine," I huffed.
"Would you... like to come inside?" I offered. To hell with playing cat and mouse.
Nick hesitated for a moment, clearly caught off guard by the invitation, but nodded, nonetheless. I stepped aside, opening the door wider for him to enter.
"Your house is beautiful," he remarked as I closed the door behind him.
"It ought to be," I replied, unable to resist a bit of bragging. "The girls and I worked really hard to create this place." I smiled, my mind momentarily going back to those days.
"A drink?" I asked, gesturing toward the living room.
"Oh, no, that's not necessary," Nick quickly declined.
"Well, I do enjoy a good glass of a soft drink, and surely it would be a tragedy for a lady to sip alone in the presence of a gentleman, wouldn't you agree, Sir Nick?" I said, dramatically slipping into my best (which was really not the best) British accent as I poured the colored drink for both of us.
Nick raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. "Actually, I don't see the tragedy in it at all. But if it pleases the lady, I shall graciously accept a glass," he replied—his British accent so flawless it put mine to shame.
I gasped, placing a hand over my chest. "You never cease to amaze me, Nick. That accent was wow!"
He chuckled, taking the glass from me. "Thanks. My little sister is obsessed with British accents, so she forces the entire house to speak like this. It's basically a second language at this point."
"You have a younger sister?" I asked, intrigued. This was the first time he'd mentioned his family, and my curiosity instantly doubled.
"Yep. She's turning twelve this year," he said, settling onto the couch.
"Well, since we're sharing bits about ourselves," I said, settling onto the couch beside him, "I've got an older sister—married with a kid—and a younger brother who's fourteen."
"Huh. And here I thought you were the baby of the family." Nick raised an eyebrow, as if surprised by the information.
"Oh? And what exactly gave you that impression?" I leaned back, taking a sip. I waited as he placed the glass on the table and turned towards me.
"Well, for starters, you've got that effortless charm..." he started.
"Go on." I smirked, enjoying where this was going.
"And" he grinned mischievously, "there's a playfulness about you—classic youngest child behavior. Not to mention... a tiny bit spoiled."
I gasped, dramatically placing my drink on the table. "Wow! And here I thought you were a man of great insight. You've known me for, what? And you already label me a spoiled brat?"
Nick laughed, clearly enjoying himself. "Last-born love attention. It's a fact."
I huffed, folding my arms. "Excuse you, I do not seek attention."
"Of course not," he said, still chuckling. Then, after a beat, he added smoothly, "I'm the one seeking your attention."
Oh.
I felt my face heat up instantly, but I fought to reign it in.
Nope. Not happening.
I refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing me flustered. So, I took a very long, very unnecessary sip of my drink—strategically turning my face away in case a stupid smile decided to betray me.
"Cute," I had him mummer.
"I'm sorry I've been avoiding you. Truthfully, I've just been busy. We all have." I confessed, half-truth, half lie. It was true that I was busy, but not too busy for him.
"That's a relief. For a moment I thought I did something." heat crept up my neck at how true his assumption was. "So, is there some big event going on?"
"Oh, yeah," I shifted on my seat. "The entire school is in full-blown Valentine's Day prep mode."
Nick raised an eyebrow. "Is it really that big of a deal?"
"You think so too?" I asked, scooting closer to him. "Do you think it's a total waste of time?" I leaned forward, hoping that he too was thinking the same thing. Nick's lip twitched at my expectant look before answering.
"I think it depends on who you ask. Some people love it, others think it's completely overhyped." I nodded agreement. Though not the answer I was looking for.
"Personally, I think it's way over the top." Nick head tilted at my comment.
"You're not a Valentine's Day fan, are you?" It was more of a statement than a question. I deep sigh slip past my lip as tried to figure how to answer that question.
"I am not." I shrugged, taking a sip on my drink. "I just think the whole thing is way too commercialized. There's so much pressure to participate, and honestly, it kind of takes away from the real meaning of the holiday."
"So... you hate Valentine's Day." My eyes raised to meet his and an awkward smile made it's way on my lips when his amused ones.
"Fine. I despise Valentine's Day."
His expression shifted slightly. "Bad memory?" my grip on the glass tightened as I tried to shove memories from the past back to the vault.
"Something like that," Nick must have sensed that I did not want to talk more about the subject so he veered it back to the campus.
"But why is it so important to be involved in school events?" placing my glass back on the table, I turn to face his way.
"Some genius at the university decided that Valentine's Day wasn't enough, so they turned it into a fourteen-day extravaganza. Somehow, they pitched the idea to the dean and boom—instant school-wide event."
Nick leaned forward slightly, interest piqued. "Fourteen days? That's..new. Go on."
"Every faculty needs to find a way and a role to participate in. It's mandatory and will be tied to our grades. Take for example, the marketing graphic design department creates all the promo materials, the designers do their thing for the big day. Basically, everyone gets to contribute something based on their strengths." I finished with a shrug.
"That was actually kind of genius of you dean." Nick's grinning got me confused.
"How so?"
"All he did was trade in seasonal depression for school spirit and you guys fell for it. Moreso you're doing it with a smile" a breathy sound escaped me, half amused about how Nick's works made sense.
I had dismissed the whole thing as an overblown, unnecessary spectacle, but now thinking about it, it made even more sense. Even though the students were elated, at the end of the day Dean was the one benefiting much. The joy he must be in to see the students work on their assignments with vigor and in the process helping us apply our knowledge in practical ways.
My eyes drifted back to Nick, who was already looking at me like he could read my thoughts. It was almost like he wanted me to see things differently—like there was more to it than I'd first thought. Kind of like Christmas, really. A lot of people don't believe in its true meaning, but they still celebrate it as a time for people to come together.
A smile bloomed on my face, spreading a gentle wave of warmth through me. And it made me wonder why I was even avoiding him. Talking to him was pleasant; yes, I embarrass myself most of the times, but we got to know each other a little more. And even better, we both had a passion for cooking!
Maybe that's how we ended up in the kitchen. In his house...