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I WAS WRITING MY EXAM WHEN THE DAILY DOSE OF HEADACHE only college could offer started to destroy my confidence.

Fingertips gripping my pen roughly, I jotted down reasonable answers, all before lifting my head to catch a glimpse of the time. 11:52am. I had just eight minutes left to finish my paper, and at that moment, I couldn't seem to find my confidence. But, when I placed my pen down, I was surprised my brain hadn't imploded.

With a tired sigh, I hastily stood up, shoving my pencil case into my bag haphazardly. My heart thudded rapidly in my chest as I clutched the test papers in my hands, eyes darting towards the front of the room where my professor sat comfortably. Letting out another sigh, I bounced down the steps of the lecture hall, and I could feel everyone's gaze on me until I had stopped at my Criminal Justice professor's table. I placed my paper facedown on the ebony table, earning a nod of approval from the advanced man.

It was the second week of November, finals week. After the Halloween party, the entire school went into overdrive, studying for finals and finishing off assignments. Days were a blur nowadays, morning conflating into nights in a matter of seconds—or so it seemed.

It was when I had skimmed through the questions in my exam booklet that I realized that the professor was they type who would put most of the things you didn't read on the exam. And despite my endless studying since the beginning of the academic year, the exam—as expected—came to bite me in the ass.

When I stepped out of the hall, I found Valen lingering by the doorway, waiting for me so we could head to the cafe together. And judging by the smug smile that played on his lips, I had no doubt that he was enjoying the grimace that was visible on my visage.

"Hey," he greeted me with his famous grin. Dressed to the nines as per usual, Valen still managed to distract me while I was having difficulty in breathing. Underneath his black jacket, he donned a red polo, paired with black jeans, and a pair of pristine black oxfords.

I admired his sense of style watching as he shoved his hands into his pockets before nodding to the greeting some of the students gave him. It baffled me how he was so oblivious to the looks he received from both the female and male students.

I flashed him a subtle frown, rolling my eyes as I approached him. My eyes fleeted between the girls that stared and Valen, dropping my head to avoid their gazes. "What's up?"

"Nothing much, done with exams for today?"

I nodded and emitted a sigh, throwing my head back, before letting my eyes rest on him. "Yeah, and it feels like my GPA died! You?"

"I'm perfectly fine," he shrugged.

I rolled my eyes at him, however, his grin widened at the sight, fingers running through his hair. And upon stepping foot outside the building, the roar of car engines and noisy chatters from the street welcomed us warmly. I looked up, a soft smile playing at the corner of my lips as I took a moment to admire the scenery; the tall buildings and bright blue sky casting a glow over us.

My head snapped in Valen's direction, noticing that he also mimicked my previous position; head tilted back as his chest rose and fell in rhythm to his steady breathing. Strands of dark brown hair danced with the breeze, swooping and caressing his forehead; my fingers itched—seriously itched—to run in the soft texture, however, I refrained myself from that—only to lift my hand and flick his forehead.

I smiled at the sound of him grunting in annoyance, squinting my eyes up at him as my vision was disturbed by the rays of sunlight. When we eventually got to his car, he was quick to get me into the car, patting my head, only to slam the door right in my face. Wincing at the ringing sound, I waited for the idiot to get into the car.

"Could've shut it a bit quieter," I grumbled, folding my arms over my chest.

The cheeky dumbass snapped his head towards me, smugness outlining his chiseled features. "Where's the fun in that?"

I wanted to punch the smugness right off his stupid—yet beautiful—face.

Neither of us said anything else as he drove out of the campus, biceps flexing as he steered. And by the time we got to the café none of our friends were present and so we ordered our coffee to-go. Walking out of the café, I averted my gaze to Valen, taking a sip out of my milkshake.

Valen's palm brushed my lower back, his touch lingering on my skin as my legs kept up with his strides. "I was thinking of heading to the library."

"Me too," he responded, eyes straight ahead.

"Studying for finals, right?" The ridiculous question was already out of my mouth before I could stop them, and I had the urge to smack myself for how stupid the question sounded.

Valen turned to me with amusement, eyebrows raised, and lips twitched up in mocking smile. "What else would I be doing in a library, Frosty? Napping?"

The way my nickname rolled off his tongue in a timbre of warmth mesmerised me, but not too much to make forget to give him one of my famous eye rolls. "Yeah, stupid question."

We stopped at the car with him opening the car door for me to get in—like the gentleman he is—before jogging around to get into the driver's seat.

"You know, I'm glad both Walter and Bella have finally regained their sights," he mused, fixing his attention on the road ahead as he began driving. With one hand on the steering wheel, and the other running through his luscious hair, he casted me a quick glance.

I stared at his side profile, unable to string together a coherent meaning behind his statement. "What do you mean?"

"Well, they've been blind all these while, I mean how could they not have seen they were crazy about each other?"

I chuckled and reached for the radio, turning up the volume until soft tunes filled up the space. I relaxed against the warm leather, turning my head to stare out the window and into the city.

"Can I tell you something, frosty?" He spoke.

The moment the question reached my ears, I shifted in my seat to turn my body in his direction. Left leg tucked under my right thigh, my lips twitched into a teasing smile. "You can, but getting an answer is another matter."

It was his turn to grin, briefly removing his gaze from the road ahead to pass me a wink. "I'll take the chance."

I nodded, flashing him a lopsided grin. "I love men who live dangerously."

"Anything for you." he grinned. His fingers remained firm on the steering wheel, muscles in his arms flexing as he drove, turning his head to glance at me briefly, he smiled. "I just wanted to let you know that I really enjoy your company, a lot," he said softly, "and I'm fucking lucky to have met you."

I wasn't expecting that.

I beamed up at him, gently biting on my lip. "I'm also really lucky to have met you, and for someone as annoying as you, you have a great personality," I teased.

He smiled and smoothly changed gears. "Fair enough—but nonetheless, thank you."

"Anytime, champ. Anytime." 

We eventually parked up in front of the uni's library, with Valen turning off the ignition. Nimble fingers wrapped around the straps of my bag, I managed to keep up with Valen's long strides, practically hopping just to catch up with him. Glare burning into his broad back, I watched as he held the door open, large palm propped against the surface.

We remained in a comfortable silence as we both slipped through the glass doors of the ten-storey building and into the foyer. Grabbing my student ID, I swiped it over the scanner and walked through the metal barriers. Valen had done the same and neither of us broke the silence as we walked

I led him to where I usually sat in the library, took my seat and pulled my backpack off, all before he sat across from me. I squirmed in my seat, setting my drink on the glossy wooden table all whilst ignoring his intense gaze. I took a sip from my drink whilst taking hold of my yellow highlighter, occupying myself with my textbook so as not to gawk at his insanely devilish looks.

Grabbing my milkshake again, I began to play with the straw as my brain tried to understand the words that were sprawled out in the book—only for my eyes fall on Valen whose eyes had dropped down to my lips that were wrapped around the plastic material.

His lips coiled in a lopsided smile as he glanced away to take a sip from his warm beverage—and my eyes lingered on his Adam's apple, staring as he swallowed thickly; not expecting to be caught in a heartbeat. With his gaze holding mine, he darted his tongue out and swiped it over his lips.

His fucking lips.

With his gaze still lingering, my cheeks grew warmer, and as soon as he noticed it—he sent me a wink. My heart thudded in my chest and the heat that fueled within me was concerning. I wrapped my hands around my cup, taking a long sip from it, eyes fleeting from him towards my sprawled out textbook.

A few minutes went by, the tickling sound from the digital clock and keys tapping penetrated my ears. Although I couldn't see Valen directly, from my eyelashes I could sense his seriousness as his fingers typed some words. Briefly, I looked up to see that he was focused on the text displayed on the screen of his laptop. Slight waves of hair dangled between his eyes, but it had gone in a jiffy by the motion of his fingers combing through his hair.

And just when I had decided to look away, his voice reached me. "Let's play twenty questions."

I rose an eyebrow, eyes narrowed at him. "But we're studying."

"Exactly, so I'll test you on some psych  terms and if you get it I'll ask a question ad if you don't I won't ask. You'll do the same for me." He said and leaned backwards in his chair, and all those while I was feeling pathetic for gawking at him.

It was either that he saw how I stared at him and let it slip away, or he was too busy skimming through the psychology textbook to notice—but fuck, I was blushing either way.

Valen had started asking questions. "What's Behaviourism?"

I let my mind think for a few seconds before giving the answer, "The study of observable behaviour."

"Correct." he grinned. "Favourite color?"

"Red," I smiled, bringing the straw of my drink between my teeth. "It brings to the mind the feelings of strength and power."

"You don't say," he began mindlessly, nimble fingers playing with the new ring adorning his finger, before proceeding. "I love red too, but I see it as an association with strength, love, warmth and comfort."

"I've not really had that much warmth and comfort," I said out loud, maybe too loud, because Valen's eyes were now searching mine—searching and searching—to find out what I was hiding. Clearing my throat, I gently bit on my lips, eyes skimming through the textbook. "What is humanistic psychology?"

With eyes trained on him, I didn't fail to notice his hesitation. "A psychological perspective that emphasizes the study of the whole person."

"Correct," I smiled. "What's your favorite food?"

"Buffalo wings." he replied. "What is developmental psychology?"

"The study of the social and mental development of children." I replied.

"Correct." he exclaimed. "Best movie."

"Blood on her name." I replied. "What is experimental psychology?"

"The use of experimental methods to study psychological issues."

"Correct." I said. "What is your definition of true love?"

His gaze held mine, not wavering in the slightest, leaving me hot and bothered to say the least. "It's looking past someone's flaws and putting up with fights and arguments because you deeply care about that person and want the relationship to last," his intense gaze deepened. "It's commitment to forgive, to accept and work with the other for going forward."

His deep, rich voice sent a cacophony of butterflies into my stomach and pulsating between my thighs, his tongue swiping over his pink, soft lips. At that moment, I'd completely forgotten how we were asking the questions, and with a shaky tone, I asked, "Your dreams?"

His lips twitched upwards, bringing his hand up to his chin, thinking deeply about my question. What was there to think about? "Well, to be the greatest boxer of all time, and to find my soulmate."

I bit my lips, nodding mindlessly, before he went ahead to ask his question. "Tea or coffee?"

"Coffee."

"Why if I may ask?"

Slowly turning my head, I shifted my gaze to my almost finished milkshake. The lump trapped in my throat walls remained fixed. It dangled around before finally traveling down after a huge gulp. "It helps you stay awake and it's what I need because sometimes, I'm scared to sleep—I know it's crazy but it's true, it feels like if I do, all energy is sucked up when I wake up the next morning, fear constantly playing tug of war with my heart."

Valen's mouth parted and I saw it—the dying need to know—but I wasn't ready and I was scared and before he could utter a word, I cut in. "What is your favorite sport?" I asked out of the blue and I knew damn well it was a stupid question.

His eyebrows raised by a fraction before muttering, "Boxing.What are your worse nightmares?"

My insides continued to crumble as a heartbreaking memory crashed before my eyes. An image I wouldn't ever want to see again—a memory that completely crushed my family, hitting us straight in the guts. "Memories."

I could feel the lump in my throat as I recalled the cries and the crimson color that greeted me, followed by my own ear-splitting scream. "Carla," Valen's voice whispered, reaching over to tuck a loose  strand of hair behind my ear and then looking straight into my soul. "I—"

"It's okay." I forced out a smile as my gaze shifted from his to my trembling hands. "Don't mind me—let's continue. What's the best thing about your life right now?" I finally fixed my gaze on him.

"That I get to see and spend most of my time with you," he oozed out with a deep sigh, looking at anything but me. He finally looked up, his eyes colliding with mine, pulling me in. "What quote do you live by?" he asked.

Cocking an eyebrow up, I intently gazed into his dusky eyes, "Life is rough so you gotta be tough." As a reflex, I winked. "Messy or clean?"

"Clean, obviously." He said as he rolled the sleeve of his shirt further up his arm. His tone dripped with cockiness, causing me to lift an eyebrow. "What are your fears?" he asked.

Letting my eyes shut close for a brief second, my fingers found themselves fiddling with my straw. I'd gotten enough—enough of how a simple question could trigger a lot of memories. "The past, being judged and—failure."

"It's normal to be scared of failure," he said, his thumb and index gripping my chin, the metal ring digging into my skin.

"I know," I sighed, drawing my lower lip into my mouth. "I just feel like I've failed so many people."

"Don't say that, frosty. You may feel that way, but trust me those people are so thankful that you're in their lives, okay?" His voice was tender. A shaky breath fell from my lips as I attempted to calm my racing heart before nodding, earning a smile from him. "So, favourite breakfast?" he asked.

"Pancakes. Birthday?"

"February 15."

My lips stretched ever so slightly at the revelation. "Does that have to do with your name?"

He grinned. "Quite frankly."

"Your relationship with your parents." I asked.

"My relationship with my mom is amazing, we are tight and my dad. . .we are close, I guess." He spoke softly, however at the mere sentence a frown fell on my face and Valen took notice."I know you're overthinking the situation, frosty. There's nothing to be worried about."

Valen was quick to disregard the issue, and it only made me wonder if he reacted the same way to all his problems. And sometimes it frustrated me that he was a closed book; it was difficult to pinpoint what was going on in his mind. No matter what you were going through it was important and sure, maybe he was struggling too.

Look at me trying to solve someone else's problem when I can't even open up on my own.

Yet, that didn't stop me from pressing on when he looked away, refusing to meet my gaze. "Nothing to be worried about? It can't be nothing, Valen. . .because believe it or not, I care too much about you."

We all tended to forget that even though Valen had the world in his palms, he was just as ordinary as every other guy in the world—one with dreams, and one with emotions and feelings that could be hurt by insults and criticism; he was just like the rest of us.

I placed my hand over his, resting it on the table. Palm splayed against the top of my hand, he curled his fingers into my palm, swallowing it whole. The cool metal of his ring pressing against my soft skin provided some comfort, and with my squeeze of reassurance, he gave me a thankful smile.

"My dad's just been breathing down my neck," he sighed, fingers caressing mine. "And I've tried to be really successful even though my dad wants me to exceed normal expectations," he murmured, clenching his teeth in frustration. "All my life I've been dedicated to boxing, but still."

I frowned immediately the words left his lips. I could only imagine him having his childhood ripped away from him, spending all his childhood years—days upon days—training to be what he was now.

I sighed. "Personally, I think your father expects way too much from you."

He hummed. "I guess. It gets tiring trying so hard to be that best and frankly, I hate the pressure and I most certainly hate the attention."

"That's exactly why you shouldn't abide by your father's every command if it doesn't make you happy," I emphasized, only for me to point my index at him, poking it into his chest with my next words, "You're a man, you're free to do whatever you want, so, don't let him dictate how you live your life."

His mouth went agape for a reason unknown to me, only for his shoulder to shake in mirth, corner of his lips tugging into an amused smirk. "From all these time I've known you, I think that's the only helpful thing you've said."

And it's back to square one.

"Fuck you."

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"FOXY, EVERYTHING ALRIGHT?"

My chuckle was light, and laced with a hum of amusement at the question. "Yes, you dummy," my mouth formulated, another chuckle escaping my lips. "But, just wanted to let you guys know I'll be coming home in four days—for Thanksgiving you know?"

"So are you coming home or should dad come pick you up?"

I smiled. "No need, I'll be coming home myself."

"Alright, just be careful and avoid troubles," Ally's giggles echoed in my ears, making me roll my eyes at no one in particular.

"Whatever, take care of yourself, mom and uncle, alright?"

"Of course, we can't wait to see you again."

"Me too, bye."

I hung up before tucking my phone into my pocket and whilst I did that my brain ran miles because back in my room, I had left a lot of work for the night—studying for the upcoming midterm exam was a major one, and getting everything ready for break was another thing I had to do. My mind fleetingly rolled back to the conversation I had with Valen in the library—

And then I bumped into someone slightly.

Shit. My mind wasn't focused today, and it was evident how the person I collided with seemed to be annoyed. I picked up the phone that I'd managed to knock off their hand, and shock graced my features when I was met with those same familiar pair of brown eyes—after I'd returned the phone.

Evan Johnson.

Memories of our past flooded my mind like a tidal wave, threatening to engulf me. I recalled the laughter, the late-night conversations, and the trust we had shared. But most of all, I remembered the pain and betrayal he had inflicted upon me. The heavy sentiments weighed heavily on my pounding organ, my lungs having difficulty in circulating fresh air around my quivering body. "Evan," my mouth had managed to formulate, fingers digging harshly into my palms.

For the second that I met his chocolaty eyes, I forgot how close we used to be—I used to know this guy, and he was my best friend, but all I felt for him since it happened was pure hatred. He was a part of my past that I didn't want following me, and unfortunately he had crashed with me and my present. "Carla? What are you doing here?"

My eyes regarded the guy standing before me as flames of unsettling pain coursed through me. His own eyes—the same brown eyes that had once sparkled with warmth and friendship now seemed dull and clouded with guilt of what he did years ago. The stinging wounds he caused were still opened and I wasn't sure there were any bandages that could smother the painful surface.

"Why did you do it?!" I asked, my voice laced with venom.

Evan's eyes disregarded me, as he stared at the ground. "I. . . I was pushed."

"You broke my trust, our friendship and me—without any reason or any form of apology—and left me bleeding all alone when you flew out of the country."

Evan's eyes softened at my shaky tone coated with venom, however said nothing as I poured all frustration out. "Not only did you hurt me, you completely forgot about me and blocked me on all social network. What was the excent of that? You weren't the one that was hurt!"

My hands trembled from the weight of the memory—an epitome of glistening agony—describing the storm swarming within me. "Do you know—" my voice trembled from the pain, but I forced the words out of my drying throat. "Do you know how hard it was to acknowledge the fact that there was no one else to stand for me, the fact that you left me just like that, knowing fully well that you were the only friend I had."

"And because of you, I disliked all guys."

"Look Carla, I'm sorry, really sorry, I couldn't face you, I didn't have the courage to, that's why I ran away." he spluttered. "Please forgive me."

"You didn't have the courage to face me? You didn't have the decency to apologize? Do you think it's easy to forgive you, Evan?!" I spattered out with the feeble force that was gradually wearing out, solely because the flames of the past was burning me. "It's never going to be easy, there's a lot of damage."

My ex-best-friend just regarded me with unreadable eyes, hands laying by his hands, equally trembling like mine, and his lips found it difficult to formulate his next words. "So you're just going to forget about everything we built in highschool?" he croaked in soft tone.

My arm was still clenching and quivering from the venom that was flowing through my veins, and the apologetic look in his eyes was doing nothing to change my mind from any decisions I'd taken. I swallowed the lump in my throat, eyes boring straight into his. "What we built years ago has already been destroyed—by you."

"We can reconstruct it, I'm sorry."

Pungent tears rested on the brim of my stinging eyes as my fists clenched and unclenched repeatedly. "Reconstrustion is never easy, Evan." My heart hammered hard in my chest, shoulders dropping in defeat whilst my cheeks bloomed scarlet in pain and anger.

Evan reached over to grab my hand, fingers circling around my wrist. "I'm so sorry, I regret hurting you that way, I shouldn't have broken your trust only to run away in the end. I'm sorry, Carla, I've been leaving with the guilt for years now, please."

However, I wasn't in the mood to hear any of his bullshit. Freeing myself from his grip, I slowly took steps backwards—fleeing away from the one I once called best friend—whilst tearing my gaze away from his glossy ones. "You're making everything worse just by trying to fix this."

With those uttered, I tried to walk away, only for Evan to grab my wrist again. "I'm sorry, I was pushed."

A groan threatened to travel out of my throat, almost escaping my lips. "Let go."

He was adamant. "Please."

"Let go, Evan!" I shouted this time, choking down the irritation crippling inside me.

"Hey! The lady said let go."

The voice of my savior echoed around the campus premises. Evan's glossy eyes diverted from me, meeting the eyes of the man who's presence I felt behind me. And as Valen's arms wrapped around my waist, Evan's hand left my wrist all before I was pulled flush against a chest.

"What. . .do you want?!"

Evan's eyes widened—dilating and dilating—as he glanced back at me. "I made a big mistake, please forgive me." His eyes left mine and found Valen's again. "I'll leave, sorry."

And then—he was gone.

Everything crumbled once again as I fell to my knees, the tears I had tried to hold flowing down my cheeks. However, a wave of dawn followed by cool, serene waters welcomed me as Valen wrapped his arms around me. His fingers combed through my hair in a gentle manner, giving me the time I needed. And as minutes went by, my racing heart beat slowed down.

"That was Evan—the guy that almost took advantage of me."

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AUTHOR'S NOTE:-

Hey lovelies! It's your girl :) I don't really have excuses to be updating this late except that school has been eating up my ass, lmao. .

but, on the bright side. . .

we've finally met with the mysterious guy, Evan. I've been looking for the right scene to bring him in fully and I found it. What did you think of him?

Spoiler alert: next chapter would be in your one and only Valen's point of view. Who's excited to meet him??

Stay beautiful everyone, all the love from me❤️