Chapter 2
I was full of hope, thinking that after years of crushing on Xavier, maybe that day would finally be my moment.
But Xavier just pushed me away, his face all cold and serious, and said, "Margaret, can you not be so casual about this?"
After that, I couldn't even look Xavier in the eye for ages.
It wasn't until I saw that video on his Instagram—him kissing Alayna like he meant it—that I finally got it. She was the one he really wanted.
As for me, I was just lucky enough to know him before anyone else.
"How long has it been?" Xavier's voice came from behind me.
I was taken aback, didn't get it at first. "What?"
His eyes were shadowed by the smoke, unreadable. "I'm asking, how long have you been living with that guy?"
The autumn breeze was chilly.
Xavier instinctively took off his pricey cashmere scarf and moved to wrap it around my neck.
I stepped back, widening the distance between us.
"Three months," I replied.
Back then, I was job hunting and had fallen two months behind on rent. My landlord saw I was struggling and just moved someone in to share the place with me.
I didn't really have any grounds to refuse.
When the new roommate showed up, I realized he was a guy.
Xavier lifted the cigarette to his lips and took a deep drag. "So, how did you two meet?"
"He's my student's brother," I replied.
That was actually true.
I usually tutor junior high kids on the side.
But right now, Xavier clearly misunderstood what was going on.
I didn't explain, and honestly, I just didn't care enough to clear things up.
Xavier lifted his eyes, his gaze settling on my face.
He said, "Margaret, I shouldn't have said what I did back then. We were just kids, and I..."
"It's fine. That's all behind us now," I said, giving him a small smile.
He stood there, frozen.
After a few seconds of silence, he finally spoke again.
"I'll take you home," he said.
"No need. I've already ordered a ride," I replied.
He stubbed out his cigarette on the trash can. "When did we start acting so polite with each other?"
His expression turned cold, and he grabbed my wrist, marching straight toward the parking lot.
After a few steps, a red sports car pulled up in front of us.
The window rolled down slowly.
A blond man leaned out and shot me a cheeky grin.
"Get in," he said.
It was Theodore Wilson, my trust fund roommate.
Seeing me hesitate by the curb, he just pulled me into the passenger seat.
"Why are you dragging your feet?" he said.
Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Xavier staring at us, looking lost in thought.
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
"Just passing by," he said, spinning the wheel with a laid-back tone. "My brother messaged me and said you were skipping class tonight to meet someone here, so I figured I'd swing by and give you a lift."
I blinked, surprised.
"He sure is eager to help," I said.
Theodore and I both graduated from Ardellis University.
He was in finance, and I was in foreign languages. We never really crossed paths.
Later, when I went to tutor a student at their place, I ran into Theodore lounging on the couch, gaming.
I was always polite with him. After all, I was half in the real world now, and it never hurt to stay on good terms with someone with connections like him.
Maybe he could even help me land some tutoring gigs.
Since I was a few months older, he used to cheat me like his senior at first.
It felt weird at first, but by the time I finally got used to it, he stopped treating me that way altogether.
He was not a bad guy, just kind of a snark with a sharp tongue.
According to Elliott, Theodore's mouth had scared off plenty of girls. He got receipts to prove it.
He had some drama with his family a while back and ended up moving out.
I asked him why a trust fund kid like him would even bother with roommates.
He just said he was planning to start a business and wanted to see what it was like living like a regular person.
As the car turned onto the main road, Theodore furrowed his brow a bit and glanced over at me.
"Who was that guy back there?" he asked.
"Just a classmate," I replied.
"A classmate?" He paused. "With that look on your face, it's like you just came back from a funeral, not a class reunion."
I didn't say anything, just turned my head to look out the window.
After a while, his lazy voice drifted over again. "Grab my jacket from the back seat and put it on. If you catch a cold, who's going to take the blame?"
I looked down and realized I'd been clutching my thin cardigan this whole time.
He turned up the heat in the car by a couple more degrees.
"Do you like him?" Theodore blurted out.
I was at a loss, totally thrown by his random question.
"I went after him, but he just wasn't into me," I admitted.
"Chased after him? Girl, your taste in guys is so bad, you should get your eyes checked," he said, giving me a look and then smirking. "He's not even as handsome as me."
Honestly, Xavier and Theodore are nothing alike.
Xavier got that cool, distant vibe about him.