Joseph took a long drag from his cigarette, allowing the white smoke to fade away. He sat on the marble ledge in the courtyard as he zoned out.

He didn't want to go home, not yet at least.

He was still getting used to his eyepatch that was given to him temporarily. At least to Jean, he looked cool. He felt an absence when he covered up his eye.

It was only fresh after school, so crowds of people ran to get back home. Sometimes he felt like the only person who stayed longer.

Y/n suddenly strolled past him, giggling and smiling with Michèle and Simone. She didn't even turn her head to acknowledge his existence.

Joseph felt a slight twinge of jealousy about everything she had. That annoying girl made him lose his eye, and she gets no repercussions.

It was almost like Y/n had this magic ability to shake off anything, but Joseph's mind would linger on the same issues for days on end.

They were just two different people, but he had no grasp of it.

Joseph closed his eyes, drifting off. Once he opened them, a mix of orange and yellow took up the sky as the sun shone brightly. He had accidentally overslept, and he needed to get home soon.

He unlocked his motorbike chain and began to ride down the empty suburban streets. The street lights faded into a light amber color as he rode through the town.

His brown hair began to flow in the wind. Joseph had grown it out recently to impress girls, but he was unsure now because of his eyepatch.

Joseph began to pass the essential stores in town until he saw Y/n emerging from the butcher shop.

He gaped as he quickly slowed down, stopping almost fifteen feet away from her.

"Y/n!" he exclaimed, almost too excited to see her for someone he hates. She glanced back at him but kept her eyes to the front.

He ran up to her, walking with his bike directly beside her. "Why are you out alone? It's dangerous around this time." He uttered quickly, to make it seem like he didn't care.

"I thought you didn't like girls like me, so why are you bothering me?" she replied quickly, leaving him speechless.

They walked silently until Y/n decided to answer his question from earlier.

"I was missing the meat for dinner. My parents are working and my house is nearby, so I thought I'd just grab it quickly." Y/n spoke calmly as she focused on the road ahead of her.

"You should always have someone with you, what if something happened?" Joseph scolded her, but she shrugged his advice off.

This was the guy who apparently 'hated' her.

As she walked, her feet were killing her. The heels she wore injured the back of her feet and made her ankles weak when she had them on for too long.

"I should've chosen something more comfortable before going out." She muttered while walking.

There was nothing she could do until she got back home.

"Get on, and don't make me regret it." Joseph had gotten onto his motorbike and offered his helmet after hearing her complaint.

"Why should I get on a bike with some guy who hates me? Maybe you'll drive me off a cliff!" She retorted quickly.

He let out a sigh as he spoke, "You'll hurt yourself if you keep walking. Just get on." She grabbed the helmet with exasperation, hopping onto the back of the motorbike.

Joseph drove a little slower so he wouldn't scare her off. Her hands wrapped around his torso, inching them closer together.

"You can just go straight, I'll tell you when we're nearby." She mumbled as she held onto him tighter.

Joseph's face began to flush as he gripped harder on the bike's handles. Why did he feel like this?

He was doing this because she shouldn't walk home in the dark, not for any other reason.

Y/n's head rested near the crevice of his neck. He smelt of tobacco and dark chocolate, and she couldn't get tired of it.

She almost felt annoyed at how good he smelled.

He could be sweet sometimes, but then he'd have an immense hatred for her. Y/n couldn't help but hate him.

He erased all of his good actions with his bad actions. He could offer her a ride on his bike today and then steal her bag the next day.

As Joseph drove through the tranquil streets, the sun began to set, allowing amber rays to shine over their faces.

Y/n turned her head to admire the landscape as they passed by forest-like areas and flower fields.

The town was relatively small, and tourists only came around because they were enamored with life in France.

Y/n's parents had moved there because of cheap housing, and it became too expensive to live in the city.

Her parents commuted to the city which led to her being left alone the majority of the time. She knew her parents cared about her, but she wanted to talk to them outside of letters.

She grew to be self-reliant and found it difficult to ask for help.

Joseph's family felt like the opposite, as his mother coddled him at every turn. His father was out of the picture, but he had grown up in that situation.

He didn't enjoy talking about family, so he avoided the topic at all costs.

The silence became awkward since the two refused to talk until the other made the first move.

"How-"

"Why'd-"

They had spoken at the same time and became speechless. Y/n motioned for him to go first and he happily obliged.

"Why'd you attend school here and not an all-girls academy?" Joseph asked straightforwardly.

"My family didn't have the time or money to send me abroad or to private school. We saw that the tuition was almost free for the first co-ed school, so I didn't mind going." She spoke honestly, feeling no need to lie to him about her situation.

"How long have you lived here? Any childhood friends?" Y/n asked with curiosity since she barely knew anything about him.

"My family moved from France when I was about five years old. I started grade school and met my friend, Jean. You'd know him as Dupin, the one who has a crush on you." He snickered, thinking about how his friend would react to what he said.

Shyness overcame Y/n, as she covered her mouth with her hand. She picked up that he liked her, but not a full-blown crush. The two became breathless from laughing, all the way to her house.

They talked about everything, from hobbies to the people in their classes. Joseph wasn't as bad as she thought once she spoke to him, but she wasn't sure if he'd keep up this facade at school.

"I wish they had a ceramics class at school. They barely have any options there!" She whined about the lack of electives.

Joseph hummed in agreeance. "I'd like a cooking class so I could experiment with food combinations, like caramel and chocolate."

"Let's hope you won't burn down the kitchen!" She spoke jokingly, causing him to huff.

They had far more in common than they thought, but they never seemed to talk to each other about anything.

"My house is right here!" She spoke fast as he had almost passed by. The quaint house was an aged daffodil color, decorated with flowers and a stone walkway.

Y/n jumped off the motorbike and proceeded to stroll up her walkway. She waved goodbye at him with a radiant smile as his face lit up.

Maybe they had gotten off the wrong foot, and things could still be fixed. During his drive home, Joseph felt unusually warm inside.

A smile inched on his face as he tried to push it away.