CARL'S POV.

His soft lips caressed mine gently, begging for consent and my lips willingly parted, letting him in. The warmth of his delicate lips engulfed mine as he kissed me. I didn't push him away even though the most sensible part of me was pleading with me to do so.

I knew that all of it was wrong and later I would regret but I didn't want him to stop. I didn't want to stop. So, I placed my hands at the back of his neck, deepening the kiss. Our lips moved in perfect sync. It felt like we had rehearsed for this.

He broke off the kiss, both of us breathing like athletes after running a marathon. His emerald eyes looked into mine, as though searching for something. I was lost in them, like an explorer lost in the Amazon. Thick, black and curly lashes adorned his eyes like flowers in a garden. It's criminal to have such beautiful eyes.

My gaze shifted to his moist lips, the very same lips that were glued to mine a while ago. Seeing his lips up close felt like watching my favourite movie in HD. They looked so unreal...so perfect and very inviting. My lips itched with desire to claim his lips once more. He had birthed a hunger inside me, one that only his kisses could satiate.

Are you out of your fucking mind Carl? He is the enemy! Your tormentor! So why are you even having these thoughts about him? Snap the hell out of it!

Like a patient out of coma, my senses rushed back to me. Making me realise the mistake I had just commited. I had allowed him to kiss me. The enemy.

What's worse is that this was my first kiss. The guy I hate so much is the very same one whom I had my first kiss with.

"Are you okay, now?" His question broke me out of the prison of thoughts that I was confined in.

"Y–es." I swiftly broke off the embrace. Being in his arms was dangerous because it sparked unwanted feelings in me.

Suddenly the bell rang, disrupting the awkward silence that had settled in the room.

"I–have Chemistry now. I should go."An awkward stammer left my mouth.

"Yeah...that's a good idea. I mean, me too." An equally awkward reply came from him.

"Cool. " Swiftly, I headed for the door and opened it.

"Carlito. Wait." He halted me.

"Yes." I stated, my back turned to him. I didn't have the strength to look at him.

"The kiss...it never happened. Nobody should know about it." He suggested.

Why didn't he want to recall the kiss? Was it that awful? I don't expect him to like it because it was never meant to happen. All of it was a mistake. The guy is straight as a pole. He would never enjoy kissing someone like me. The only reason he kissed me was to soothe my panic attack. So why am I affected by his suggestion to forget the kiss? What is wrong with me?

"Noted. The kiss never happened." The words slid through my dry throat before I exited the room.

****

"Today, we are going to perform an experiment about reactions of metals with acid. After which, you'll write chemical equations of the reactions and submit your results at the end of the experiment. I need you to be in groups of three." Mrs. Van Der Waal, the chemistry teacher announced. We were in the chemistry laboratory, that morning.

"The acids are in their respective bottles. The blue bottle contains concentrated sulfuric acid while the dark brown one contains concentrated nitric acid. Ensure that you handle the acids with care, to avoid any sort of accident."  She continued explaining the rules of the experiment.

"Now, get in groups of three and start the experiment. The procedure for carrying out the experiment is in your lab books, page 13. Incase of any questions, simply ask." She added.

"Carl, you'll do the experiment, I'll read you the procedure and write down the results." A red-headed boy with freckles declared. His name is Oliver and he's quite chatty. It's why most people avoid him.

"Umm..thanks." I fixed my goggles.

"By the way, I heard what happened with the video. I'm really sorry. Natasha shouldn't have done that." Oliver ranted.

"Could we talk about the experiment, please?" I cut him off.

"Okay. Umm..the first step is add potassium metal to the conical flask. " He read the manual.

Using a pair of forceps, I picked a piece of potassium and placed it in the conical flask.

"Have you heard that Natasha is getting suspended for 2 weeks? That bitch had it coming! She shouldn't have released that fake video." The guy loved gossip. He thrived in it.

"I didn't know that. Thank you for telling me, Oliver. Now can we please carry on with the experiment?"

"Sure sure. The next step is measure 10ml of nitric acid—"

"Gavin, you're such a naughty boy. " A banshee-like voice which I recognized as Madeline's,  assaulted my ears.

My attention was suddenly shifted to her. She was seated on his lap, and he was leaving pecks on her neck, causing her to giggle. Everyone seemed to be minding their own business...except me.

"Mads, we shouldn't be doing this in the lab." Gavin stated and Madeline giggled in return. The both of them didn't seem to care that they were in public. Instead of carrying out the chemistry experiment, they had left Clara, Gavin's desk mate to do everything.

Watching them made my stomach to twist and knot...with something other than disgust. It was envy. Yes, I was jealous of her. I hated that she could sit on his lap and he could kiss her in public. He wasn't ashamed of kissing her...he didn't hide it like he chose to forget our kiss.

God! What the fuck is wrong with me? Why am I feeling this way about a guy I loathe so much?

"Watch out Carl! "Oliver's voice drew me back to reality and soon after, a painful sensation shot through my hand. It was the nitric acid that had spilled on my hand. The acid was scalding my flesh, resulting in excruciating agony. A painful hiss tore from my throat as I tried to rinse the corrosive chemical off using the tap water.

"Mrs. Van Der Waal! Help! Carl is hurt!" Oliver yelled, thus drawing everyone's attention including the chemistry teacher's.

"Oh no." She rushed to our table. "First aid kit, now!" She commanded her assistant technician.

The cold tap water was helping reduce toxicity of the acid but it couldn't soothe the pain on my skin. The affected part had turned yellow.

"Carl, everything is going to be fine." Mrs. Van Der Waal assured, then reached out for my burnt hand. She took out a cream from the first aid kit and gently applied it on the scalded part. The cream was able to soothe the irritation and I felt better.

"Thank you, Mrs. Van Der Waal." I stated.

"Be careful next time young man. I don't want your mom to kill me for negligence." She warned. "The rest of you, carry on with the experiment. Everything is fine. No need for panic." She addressed the students whose attention was on me.

The rest of the experiment session carried on smoothly. We managed to complete and submit our work. The bell rang, indicating the end of the chemistry lesson.

"Make sure to rinse your hands well before leaving the laboratory." The chemistry teacher announced to the few students who were left behind, since most of them left as soon as the bell sounded.

"Hey, I wanna invite you to a party at my place tonight. Are you in?" Oliver whose presence I had forgotten, spoke. I was rinsing the dirty apparatus. Didn't like leaving my workspace messy.

"I'm sorry but I can't do it. I have a very busy evening." I answered.

"Oh. Okay. But what about tomorrow? Will you be free?"

"No. I'll be held up the whole of this week.. I'm sorry." I replied.

"No problem. It's fine. Another day, then." He sighed in disappointment.

"But...on the weekend, I'll be free. I could attend." I tried to soothe his hurt.

"Yay!I would love that." His face lit up. "See you then, Carl." He concluded then exited the lab.

I was rinsing the conical flask when I felt a presence behind me. A familiar cologne rushed through my nostrils. It was him.

"Did you know that it's creepy, standing behind someone like that?" I voiced.

"Then I guess, I'm a creep." His breath fanned my neck, causing goosebumps to crawl all over my skin.

"What do you want, Gavin?" I inquired, arranging the test tubes on a rack.

"I–umm..wanted to see if you're okay. I mean, your hand." His statement caused my brows to furrow with confusion.

"Why? I'm sure you have better things to do with Madeline." I blurted.

"Are you jealous?" He chuckled.

"No. I'm not! Why would I be jealous?" I blabbered nervously, a blush roasting my cheeks. "You haven't answered my question. Why are you suddenly concerned about me? First it was the panic attack and now my hand."

"I'm not concerned about you. We are enemies, remember. " His reply was a reminder of what I already knew.

"Good. It better stay that way. " I turned off the tap.

"Yes. It's better if we remain enemies and nothing more. " He breathed the words. He was so close that I could feel the heat emanating from his body. My back was pressed against his chest...feeling the landscape of muscle underneath. His warm breath caressed the skin of my neck, seducing me. I knew that the best course of action was to walk away but my feet remained glued to the spot.

His finger brushed the shell of my ear, compelling the pace of my already thumping heart to hasten. I hated the way my body reacted to his touch.

"Wh–at are you doing?" I managed to form a sentence.

"Do you want me to stop? Just say the words." His whispers seduced my ear, as his index brushed my neck...so sensually. It felt so good.

"Tell me Carlito, do you want me to stop?" His voice came out as raspy and...sexy. My breath was quickening with each second. I was a mess because of him. Thank God that nobody else was in vicinity. It was just the two of us.

"No. Don't stop." Were the words that left my lips and immediately, his lips found my neck...nibbling and kissing as his tongue licked my sensitive skin. My eyes automatically shut as his tongue explored my neck. My chest rose and fell as pants gushed from my mouth. I felt his teeth graze my neck...resulting in a painfully sweet sensation. A moan escaped my parted lips.

"Fuck Carlito. What are you doing to me?" He breathed against my neck when my ass grinded on his front. I could feel him...he was getting hard. I was turning him on. I didn't imagine I was capable of doing that to him. I mean he is straight as a pole, right?

"Am I interrupting something?" Mrs. Van Der Waal whom I didn't hear walk back to the lab, inquired. Swiftly, we broke apart.

"No. Nothing." Awkwardly, I grabbed my books and rushed out of the lab, not daring to look back. Because I knew as soon as I looked back, I would be tempted to go back to him. To let him touch and kiss me.

Which is all shades of wrong because for crying out loud, I hate the guy.

I hate him.

I hate him.

I hate him.

My hatred for him is tattooed in my brain.

Then why does my heart say something else?