Chapter 3 · My Secret Novels: Caught By The Male Protagonist Himself

And as for why Daphne kept saying I would dream about Declan again tonight, it was simple.

I'd had a crush on Declan for the longest time, but I always kept it buried deep inside, never told a soul.

That was, until one night when Daphne got up to use the bathroom and happened to walk past my bed, only to hear me mumbling in my sleep.

Apparently, I was calling Declan's name out loud.

After that, none of them ever spilled the beans. They all kept it quiet for me, but whenever we ran into Declan on campus, they'd quietly tip me off if he was around.

I rushed back to my bed, clutching my laptop and covering my face.

The girls' teasing just got even louder.

I swear, I had done every embarrassing thing imaginable at this point.

Just then, my phone chimed with a WhatsApp message. It was Isaac Beaumont, the president of the literary association.

Isaac: [Bella, the freshmen just sent over the event summary. Can you check if there are any issues?]

I shot back a quick reply: [Got it.]

Honestly, the only time I could stop thinking about Declan was when I was buried in work.

I downloaded the file and opened it on my laptop.

Just as I was about to log into WhatsApp, my screen flickered, and suddenly, a different image popped up.

It was that familiar wooden bed and those deep blue sheets.

Oh my god, that was Declan's bed.

Why did his webcam suddenly turn on?

But I didn't touch anything.

Just as I was about to react, Declan appeared on the screen.

He looked like he'd just stepped out of the shower, shirtless, with nothing on but a pair of light blue basketball shorts that clung to him in all the right places.

A towel was draped over his shoulder, his short hair still wet, droplets trickling down his toned chest and pooling onto the deep blue sheets.

When I saw this full-on hunk fresh out of the shower, my brain just went haywire.

Who on earth could handle this?

Declan stared straight at the screen, locking eyes with me, both of us frozen in shock for a few seconds.

First, he looked totally stunned, then pressed his lips together nervously, a blush slowly blooming across his cheeks.

He carefully tugged the towel up, clutching it to his chest, and gave me a shy look.

"W-Why are you peeking at me again?" Declan stammered, flustered.

I was stunned.

What did he mean by that?

Peeking at him again?

I just lay here, and suddenly drama dropped out of the sky. Seriously?

I glanced at my bed curtain. My roommates were still chatting away, totally oblivious to what was happening on my side.

"Peeking at you? I literally just opened my laptop. You're the one who hacked me. If anything, I caught you red-handed," I shot back.

Declan shifted nervously, tugging the towel tighter around his chest, looking all shy and awkward.

"Why would a sweet girl like you be into this kind of thing?" he mumbled.

What the hell was that supposed to mean?

Seriously, this was way out of line.

Before I could get a word in, Declan hugged himself protectively, blocking my view like I was some kind of threat.

His chest was so ripped that just a little flex made a deep, defined ridge pop right between his pecs.

"If I wasn't wearing pants, you would've seen it all," he grumbled.

I nearly jumped out of bed, about to lose it and yell at him through the screen.

But before I could get a word out, the screen went black with a loud snap, flickered twice, and then switched back to my wallpaper.

Seriously? He just bailed?

He didn't even give me a chance to explain.

And now I had been labeled as a perv.

I was pretty sure he did this on purpose.

No way I was letting this slide.

I was worried he might spill the beans about my spicy stories.

I needed to confront him.

Still riding high on adrenaline, I grabbed my phone and hit up my school network until I got Declan's class schedule.

The next morning, I camped out right outside Declan's classroom.

Way before class even started, I was pacing around the door, zeroing in on exactly where he was sitting.

Declan noticed me too, kept sneaking glances my way, his face all red and awkward.

Oh, please, was he still acting all innocent?

The second the bell rang, the whole class swarmed out, all pushing and shoving to get out.

I had to hug the wall just to avoid getting trampled.

Declan was still in the classroom, taking his sweet time packing up his books.

Chapter 3

And as for why Daphne kept saying I would dream about Declan again tonight, it was simple.

I'd had a crush on Declan for the longest time, but I always kept it buried deep inside, never told a soul.

That was, until one night when Daphne got up to use the bathroom and happened to walk past my bed, only to hear me mumbling in my sleep.

Apparently, I was calling Declan's name out loud.

After that, none of them ever spilled the beans. They all kept it quiet for me, but whenever we ran into Declan on campus, they'd quietly tip me off if he was around.

I rushed back to my bed, clutching my laptop and covering my face.

The girls' teasing just got even louder.

I swear, I had done every embarrassing thing imaginable at this point.

Just then, my phone chimed with a WhatsApp message. It was Isaac Beaumont, the president of the literary association.

Isaac: [Bella, the freshmen just sent over the event summary. Can you check if there are any issues?]

I shot back a quick reply: [Got it.]

Honestly, the only time I could stop thinking about Declan was when I was buried in work.

I downloaded the file and opened it on my laptop.

Just as I was about to log into WhatsApp, my screen flickered, and suddenly, a different image popped up.

It was that familiar wooden bed and those deep blue sheets.

Oh my god, that was Declan's bed.

Why did his webcam suddenly turn on?

But I didn't touch anything.

Just as I was about to react, Declan appeared on the screen.

He looked like he'd just stepped out of the shower, shirtless, with nothing on but a pair of light blue basketball shorts that clung to him in all the right places.

A towel was draped over his shoulder, his short hair still wet, droplets trickling down his toned chest and pooling onto the deep blue sheets.

When I saw this full-on hunk fresh out of the shower, my brain just went haywire.

Who on earth could handle this?

Declan stared straight at the screen, locking eyes with me, both of us frozen in shock for a few seconds.

First, he looked totally stunned, then pressed his lips together nervously, a blush slowly blooming across his cheeks.

He carefully tugged the towel up, clutching it to his chest, and gave me a shy look.

"W-Why are you peeking at me again?" Declan stammered, flustered.

I was stunned.

What did he mean by that?

Peeking at him again?

I just lay here, and suddenly drama dropped out of the sky. Seriously?

I glanced at my bed curtain. My roommates were still chatting away, totally oblivious to what was happening on my side.

"Peeking at you? I literally just opened my laptop. You're the one who hacked me. If anything, I caught you red-handed," I shot back.

Declan shifted nervously, tugging the towel tighter around his chest, looking all shy and awkward.

"Why would a sweet girl like you be into this kind of thing?" he mumbled.

What the hell was that supposed to mean?

Seriously, this was way out of line.

Before I could get a word in, Declan hugged himself protectively, blocking my view like I was some kind of threat.

His chest was so ripped that just a little flex made a deep, defined ridge pop right between his pecs.

"If I wasn't wearing pants, you would've seen it all," he grumbled.

I nearly jumped out of bed, about to lose it and yell at him through the screen.

But before I could get a word out, the screen went black with a loud snap, flickered twice, and then switched back to my wallpaper.

Seriously? He just bailed?

He didn't even give me a chance to explain.

And now I had been labeled as a perv.

I was pretty sure he did this on purpose.

No way I was letting this slide.

I was worried he might spill the beans about my spicy stories.

I needed to confront him.

Still riding high on adrenaline, I grabbed my phone and hit up my school network until I got Declan's class schedule.

The next morning, I camped out right outside Declan's classroom.

Way before class even started, I was pacing around the door, zeroing in on exactly where he was sitting.

Declan noticed me too, kept sneaking glances my way, his face all red and awkward.

Oh, please, was he still acting all innocent?

The second the bell rang, the whole class swarmed out, all pushing and shoving to get out.

I had to hug the wall just to avoid getting trampled.

Declan was still in the classroom, taking his sweet time packing up his books.