"Xup, Rhea!" a dark-haired, broad-shouldered guy yelled across the lecture room, grinning widely, skipping across the aisle towards Rhea.
Rhea simply shook her head, not responding, as she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, turning back to her desk.
Why is he always so loud? She sighed inwardly. He's literally coming over here, so he didn't have to start yelling from the entrance. Typical Luke. Rhea scoffed softly.
The second he reached Rhea's row, he pulled the girl sitting close to her aside with a soft "excuse me," and slid into the seat. He put his bag on the desk, not taking his eyes off Rhea.
"How was your night?" he asked, turning slightly to face Rhea.
"Nothing special." She replied, eyes still glued to her textbook.
"And Tia?" Luke's eyes skimmed through the hall for Tia.
"Still at home."
"I bet she's definitely still sleeping." Luke chuckled, leaning backwards, his hands over his head.
Rhea giggled a little. "Do you want her to look like a soulless ghost, because her prince charming kissed her too early?"
"That will be terrifying." Luke chirped in, "For all I know, Tia will snap that prince's neck for waking her too early. Then look for another one," Luke added, tittering.
They were both laughing when the lecturer walked in.
"Class, settle down," a female lecturer said after entering the class and settling at the podium. "Since you all are aware that the semester exam is fast approaching, so are other extracurricular activities, which will take place after your examinations," she began. "So, form groups to participate in and assist various clubs for this activity. Do you all understand?" she added.
The class answered. As the lecture began.
Luke dropped his head on his desk, his eyes drifting not to the class proceeding but to Rhea's face.
"Quit staring, Luke," Rhea said, without looking at him. "You're starting to drill a hole in my face. And why aren't you paying attention to the class?"
He smiled wider, his gaze lingering on her a little longer before shifting it lazily to the podium, then to his tablet.
"Does it make your heart flutter?" he asked.
Rhea frowned, her eyes narrowed to a slit. Her head jerked back at his statement, then she turned to him sharply. "Are you okay, Mr. Man?"
"Whoa, relax." He threw his hand up in a playful surrender. "You don't have to eat me alive. I was joking."
Rhea shifted her gaze to him as he continued yapping, throwing his hands around, a smile on his face.
Luke has always been like this: casual and gentle but also caring. Some students see him in the opposite light, though: that he's difficult to talk to, never smiles, and easily brushes people off. Even rumours about him are nasty: that he's a womaniser, an opportunist, and all of that.
But that was not Rhea's experience. She didn't understand why they would say such things about him. And she never believed any of those things said concerning him, because the Luke she came to know since that day was different.
*
It was a rainy day. The thunder roared loudly across the clouds, the air was cold, and people hurried home for shelter, but a girl crouched under a street light, sobbing as the rain poured. Rain trailed down her cheeks, washing away the evidence of her tears as it fell. Her cries echoed so loudly they almost drowned out the clashing thunder and the heavy downpour.
She crouched there, embracing herself as her boyfriend had just broken up with her, barely a month after the death of her parents. On the same day, she'd hoped to celebrate her birthday with him in joy.
Zach who was the remaining anchor she desperately held onto, had abandoned her.
She'd believed she could stand again with him in her life—that at least she still had someone she thought loved her.
But it was all a lie, which caused her entire world to tilt. She clenched her chest tightly as her heart ached so much it threatened to rip open.
As she bathed in her despair, the sound of the clashing rain abruptly softened to a distant echo. The heavy drops stopped washing over her, replaced by the hovering warmth of a person.
She lifted her head, her gaze meeting the gentle stare of a guy holding an umbrella over her.
For a while, he said nothing. Only watched her.
She moved her head back down, then started wailing.
After some time, she calmed down, stopped crying, but remained in her crouched position.
"Are you okay, Ms?" he asked softly.
She said nothing. Suddenly, a warm material enveloped her skin. Looking at it, she noticed he had covered her with his jacket.
"Ms., you will get cold if you remain here for too long." He bent to her level. "Why don't we go over there for a moment, that's if you're okay with it." He pointed at a café across the street.
She nodded.
When they got there, he handed her a warm coffee, sat across from her, and watched her as she drank.
"Are you a little better now?" he asked.
She nodded.
"That's good." He smiled softly. "Then I'll be leaving." He added, picking up his grocery bag and a folded umbrella. "Make sure you finish that before leaving, okay." He walked away.
After the girl finished, she left.
The following morning, she prepared for her first module in the second semester of her second year. As she moved through her apartment, she noticed the jacket the stranger had given her.
"He forgot to take this," she said, picking it up from her reading desk chair. "I think I'll have to wash this and hope I see him another time to return it. And also thank him."
She tied her hair neatly, took her bag, and made her way to school.
The echoing sound of students' loud murmuring was what she first noticed, then the sheer magnitude of the vast number of students.
She walked through the aisle of the lecture hall, searching row by row for a seat. She then sat in the only empty space she found comforting.
Beside her was a guy with a hoodie over his head, his face buried in his arms, sleeping.
"Everyone settle down," the lecturer instructed as he entered. "Pass these files among yourselves and mark them. I'll be collecting them by the end of the class." He handed a file to the class coordinator.
"Hey!" The girl said to the still-sleeping guy beside her as the file sheet got to their row. "Excuse me!" She tapped him gently.
He stirred, stretching his arms. "What is it?" he asked, turning to her.
"You're to sign thi—" Her words caught in her throat.
"Cat got your tongue?" the boy asked, turning to her.
"It's you!" Her voice echoed through the hall, causing her to duck, her face turning crimson.
The boy chuckled. "Nice seeing you here. You don't seem to be crying today." He smiled, noticing she was avoiding his gaze—a detail he found strangely cute. "Hope you're fine now?" he asked, resting his head on his fisted hand.
"Yes, I'm fine. And thank you for yesterday, I truly appreciate it." She smiled at him.
"It's okay; we all have our rough days." He tucked his hands into the pocket of his hoodie, leaning onto the chair. "I'm Luke, by the way."
She passed the sheet to him, looked at him. "I'm Rhea." She said with a sweet smile.
That even she never thought she still had inside her.
End of Flashback
"Have you been able to complete that essay?" Luke inquired, lounging in his seat.
"I didn't last night, but I'll be submitting it today," Rhea answered.
"Want me to tag along?" Luke asked, one hand holding his backpack straps, the other in his front pocket.
Rhea glanced up at him, holding his gaze for a while. Luke following me? For some reason, I don't want to say no. I want him closer instead. But why?
"If you're not busy, I'd like that," Rhea replied, before returning her gaze to the hallway, her vision seeming to stare into the distance.
"I would definitely love to," Luke added.
Rhea and Luke stepped into Zeenare's office after Rhea's knock.
The moment Rhea stepped into the office, she felt the air shift. Her body kept telling her to make Luke stop what he was doing right now. But she didn't pay mind to it.
Not until her eyes trailed towards Zeenare.
Zeenare glanced up from his desk. His eyes locked on Luke's hand on Rhea's shoulder.
Zeenare's jaw hardened, his fist clenched, so hard to the extent his knuckles turned white.
Zeenare's eyes burned into Luke's fingers that touched Rhea, his gaze boring a hole into Luke's face for smiling at Rhea.
His blood boiled, and the office shook. He wanted to strangle Luke in that moment.
He wanted to send that male close to his woman into the abyss.
His eyes were blood red, as the veins in his head threatened to snap.
"Was that an earth tremor?" Luke instinctively pulled Rhea close, shielding her with his arm in a protective hug, his hand wrapping around her waist. "You alright?" he whispered, eyes flicking to Zeenare—his calm beginning to crack. He didn't like the look in that man's eyes. At all.
Zeenare stood abruptly, walking towards Rhea and Luke, each step causing the office to tremble.
"Luke Malti, you should leave!" Zeenare said in a rough voice, his eyes on Luke's hands that were still on Rhea.
"Sir, I'm sorry, but I'm here—"
"Leave!" Zeenare said, cutting him off.
"Luke, I think you should wait for me outside," Rhea told Luke, noticing something in Zeenare's eyes.
"But—"
"Fucking waiting outside!" Rhea exclaimed, gently pushing Luke to go outside. Her gaze dared not look away from Zeenare.
She felt as if, if she dared look away, something bad would happen in a flash.
With hesitation, Luke took a step but shared a look with Rhea before walking out.
Immediately the door shut, Zeenare swiftly turned to Rhea.
His gaze, not fading, locked onto the parts of her body Luke's hands had touched.
Rhea swallowed hard, her eyes fixed on Zeenare's face, her heart pounding in her throat, her palms sweaty.
"Sir, I'm here to submit my essay," she said in a whisper.
Zeenare said nothing, his silver eyes holding every inch of her, his gaze eating her up. He took a step forward as Rhea stepped back.
He took another, and she backed away again until her back hit the wall.
Rhea wanted to run, to scream at him, or push him away.
But she had promised herself never to fear him again, never to be threatened by him. So she swallowed her fear, standing her ground.
Zeenare leaned his head on the wall, his hands resting on both sides of her head, clenched tightly. Growling softly.
Rhea's breath hitched as his chest nearly grazed hers. The air between them grew heavy, like the world paused just to listen to his breathing.
He leaned in, his lips inches from her ears, his body a mere millimetre from pressing against her.
"Ah!" he sighed as he tilted his head up, sniffing in and exhaling sharply.
"Leave!" he said.
Rhea blinked back, not grasping what that was.
"Leave, Rhea! Or you might not be able to walk for a week, let alone allow someone else to touch you," he said in a rough, thick, deep voice.
Rhea slid from the little space between them and sprinted for the door, her heart almost in her mouth.
Her heart skipped a beat with every step she took, because the voice she heard did not match the way it felt.
As Rhea slammed the door after her, Zeenare stood still his back still arched.
"Rhea I don't think I can keep the promise of going slow with you. That would be extremely difficult for me. Not with that pest by your side, whom you were smiling at."
"What happened inside?" Luke asked Rhea immediately after she stepped out of the office.
"Nothing," Rhea answered in a hurried, scattered manner, as she looked away from him.
"Rhea, what is it? You look scared." Luke asked in a worried tone, grabbing her by the shoulders.
"No. It... nothing." She replied, giving him a little smile.
"You—" Luke began, but stopped himself. When he noticed the hesitation in her eyes. Backing off, the rest of his sentence dissolving on his tongue.
What was that? Why did his voice sound like that? Rhea pondered.
As the voice she heard from Zeenare's lip when he told her to leave sounded different — like a wave vibration.
Maybe I heard it wrong. She glanced back at the hallway.