Chapter 1

I lost a bet to Ezra Knight, the school heartthrob, and now I had no choice but to do whatever he asked.

The whole school was laughing at me, waiting for me to make a fool of myself.

Ezra cornered me. I asked helplessly what he wanted.

He pointed to his crew a few feet away, looking totally chill. "They said you gotta court me, or else I lose."

I froze.

Ezra pulled out his phone, waved it at his friends, and grinned.

"You guys hear me?" he called out.

"Don't make things awkward for my bros, alright? Just play along," he said to me.

The next second, his whole crew bowed at me in perfect sync and shouted in unison, "Hey, Boss's girl!"

*****

I blushed instantly. Then I shot Ezra a glare.

But he just stood there, hands in his pockets, tilting his head at me as if nothing had happened.

"What, not happy?" he teased.

I took a deep breath and forced a smile. "Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

Just court him. Not a big deal.

The next morning, I got up early and bought a sandwich and some milk.

I waited outside Ezra's dorm and handed him the breakfast.

He raised an eyebrow and hadn't even spoken yet.

But before he could, a gentle female voice came from the side.

"Ezra, your stomach can't handle cold milk in the morning," the girl said.

I turned and saw a girl holding a fancy thermos.

It was Clara Reed, the music department's campus belle and Ezra's so-called muse.

She gave me an innocent smile.

"Sorry, Hazel. I'm used to preparing breakfast for Ezra," she said.

While speaking, she naturally opened the thermos, and a delicious smell drifted out.

"I made him some oatmeal porridge. It's good for his stomach," she said.

The surrounding students started whispering and pointing, watching the drama unfold.

"Look, the real queen is here," someone snickered.

"Hazel's really got guts. As if she could ever land Ezra," another scoffed.

The sandwich and milk in my hands suddenly felt totally ridiculous.

Ezra looked back and forth between my breakfast and Clara's thermos.

Instead of taking Clara's porridge, he grabbed the cold milk right out of my hand.

"Thanks," he said to me.

He tipped it back and drank it right in front of Clara.

Clara's face went ashen.

Her eyes went red, voice shaky. "Ezra, your stomach is..."

Ezra chucked the empty bottle straight into the trash can, cutting Clara off.

He looked at me, a teasing smile on his lips.

"Weren't you supposed to be courting me? Is that it? Try something new tomorrow."

With that, he turned and walked away, leaving me and Clara standing there, her face going from ashen to red and back again.

The mission to court him was still going strong.

I kept switching things up, bringing Ezra a new breakfast every day. But most of the time, he'd just give it a lazy look and mutter, "Nothing creative."

Clara was there like clockwork every morning, always showing up with something even more delicate and intimate.

She brought everything from oatmeal porridge that was good for his stomach to his favorite treats, and even a scarf she knitted herself.

Ezra never made his thoughts clear.

He never accepted Clara's stuff, nor did he stop her.

Friday afternoon, we had a big open class in our department, and everyone needed a super rare reference book. The library only had one copy.

I'd booked it a week ahead.

But when I showed up, the librarian told me someone had just checked it out.

I was disappointed. "Who took it?" I asked.

The librarian glanced at the records and replied, "Clara Reed."

I spun around and went straight to find her.

I found her in the music room, practicing piano.

She wasn't even surprised to see me, just stopped playing and looked up.

"Hazel, how can I help you?" she said.

"Did you grab the 'Phenomenology of Architecture' from the library?" I cut right to the chase.

Clara smiled, stood up, and took the book out of her bag.

"Yeah, what a coincidence, I need it too," she said.

"But I booked it first," I said, barely keeping my temper in check.

"I know," she said, flipping through the pages slowly as ever. "But I told the librarian that Ezra needed it ASAP, so she handed it over."

I stared at her and said coldly, "So, are you finished? Can I have it now?"

Clara clutched the book, looking all troubled.

"But... Ezra hasn't read it yet. He said he's coming over to my place tonight to pick it up," she said.

She really stressed the whole "my place" thing.

I was so pissed that I actually laughed.