TBBM XLI. Sad But Arrogant

He slid his right arm under my head. I could question his motive for doing so. But I chose to simply enjoy it. This spot, right next to him, felt very warm and safe.

Dub dub. Dub dub.

Dub dub. Dub dub.

"Stay here with me, until my discharge, Hicks," he ordered, eyes closed. "And, Stephie… I'll forget about her. She's getting married."

When he said that, it seemed as though a swell of happy hormones flooded my bloodstream. He said it casually like a coin toss between the past and the present. He was sad but arrogant enough not to succumb to his gloom. I realised, I liked him like that.

His father arrived with one of their maids at around seven in the morning. I wasn't aware that Red had asked them to bring clothes for me. For once, he was thoughtful. I went with Red's father to the Accounting to settle the bills while Red got a pre-discharge check-up.

"Mateo!" the senior nurse from yesterday hugged him. "Are you here to pick up your son?"

"Antonette! It's nice to see you," Mr. McIntyre hugged her back. "Thank you for looking after my son."

I took two steps back. They knew each other. It was a relief we didn't really talk back to her yesterday while she accused us of doing things.

"Well, your kid has been a bit naughty. But I didn't know he had a strange taste in girls," she threw me a piercing stare.

"Yes," Mr. McIntyre fixed his glasses. "My son can be a handful. It's great his classmate's here---"

"Oh, yes!" she looked at me again. "The aggressive girlfriend."

"G-girlfriend?" Mr. McIntyre looked at me, confused but smiling.

I put my hands out in the air, telling him that she got it all wrong. But he didn't seem all fazed.

We waited for Red and the their maid in the car at the parking lot soon after we settled the bill. I and Red already had breakfast so I politely refused him when he offered. Plus, I didn't like James to know that I stayed out late this morning even after he was discharged.

"So," Mr. McIntyre broached. "You and my son have taken it to the next level?"

"Oh, no!" I stopped him before he could form even more assumptions. "It's really not like that. I'm just me. I mean, your son wouldn't like somebody like me. Don't worry."

"No," his dad furthered, fixing his glasses. "I've no judgments. I would actually like it better if he can like someone else rather than continue being beat up with his old love, you know?"

I fake-smiled. Red and me, was very far from reality. He wanted me around allot. But that was only because he felt sad and lonely and he wanted a friend around. That was all.

"You know that I'm grateful for all you do for my son, don't you?" his dad looked at me from the rear-view mirror. "My son has been having a pretty rough adolescence. But your presence makes him better. So, if it ever came to you and him---"

"Sir, we're really not---"

"But if you did become someday," he smiled. "I'll welcome you in the family."

Suddenly, the air felt hot. I was getting nervous. But his words were reassuring, somehow. I wished I could thank him.

Red and his attendant arrived half a second later. His face shone brightly. The medicines they gave him must have helped him a great deal. He wore his hair down again, brushed to the side. He looked really harmless.

The maid opened the door to the seat next to me at the back.

"Mary," he prevented the door from closing. "Take the front seat. I'll sit with Hicks."

"Sir, are you sure---"

"Just do it. It's fine," he convinced her, smiling.

He looked really handsome when he smiled. He carried with him a small paperbag that smelled like burgers. He got in next to me and gave his father and Mary one each. There was only one left.

"Here you go, Beaut," he halved the remaining burger and handed a half to me.

"What did you just call me?" I was fazed by my new nickname.

"I call you ugly and you cry. Now, I call you beauty and you hesitate?" he spoke as if his father and Mary couldn't hear us.

I shook my head, trying to make him stop.

"Burger?" he offered. He had already started on his half.

"Are you sure you can eat now?" I took the other half.

"It doesn't have anything but double patties and catsup," he laid his head on my shoulder. "I won't get sick again. Don't worry."

He moved freely, without hesitations. He rested his head on my shoulders casually, like I was really his girlfriend. I didn't want his father to get the wrong impression of us but Red seemed really comfortable like that.

They dropped me home. It was the first time Red saw where I lived. I got off as fast as I could, before he even thought of strange things like the possibility of coming over.

+++

It was the Midterms and as I have missed classes on several occasions this semester, I had allot of catching up to do. I was lucky enough to have Roma and Betty lend me their notes for me to copy.

We were so busy studying that each of us barely had the time to really have life outside of our review materials. Most of the classes leading upto the exam week were dedicated for review. I only normally attended them when I really found the topics difficult. But in most cases, I often just stayed in the library to self-study. Roma usually did the same but we didn't necessarily talked.

On top of our review, we also had to submit tons of requirements for subjects. Red was smart so he wasn't bothered by the lectures. He was more bothered by the said requirements. He often messaged me to ask about them. Oddly, it actually seemed that he already knew what he was asking and he was only doing so to annoy me. I tried to ignore him as much as I could because I didn't want his parents or anyone, to be honest, to think that there was something going on between us. Practically, I ignored him, too, to save myself from further disappointing James.

I only had three exams this midterms as my other papers for other subjects were satisfactory enough to merit me exemptions.

"Hicks," I heard Red calling me.

"Hmmmm?" I faced him. His hair was back to his usually loose brush up.

"You done with the instructional video?"

"I'm not telling you," I teased.

"What?" he ran to my front. "What did I do again?"

"Nothing," I breathed. "Don't you think we're maybe, too close?"

"Too close?" he stepped back.

"No," I couldn't hide my smile for he was funny. "I mean, people might think we're too close to each other..."

"My parents wanted you to come over," he looked away awkwardly.

"Come-me?"

That conversation with him was making me nervous so I escaped him and reported for duty instead.

Tiring day. Even when it was the exam week, I had tons of newsletters to deliver to different departments. My goal was to deliver as many as I could, and leave the rest---our University was several hectares big---to the institutional messenger.

I wanted to be able to finish everything as fast as possibly imaginable so I could use my spare time listening to the stories of Madamme Jing, one of the senior staff. She always told us life stories on our free time. I loved her.

"I'm back," I announced, soon as I entered the office again. "I've only a few left."

My eyes rounded at what I saw next. The staff were speaking to a guest by the table.

"R-Red!?" I blurted out.

He sat there comfortably, even speaking to our Director.

"That one," he pointed to me.

I found whatever they were discussing heavily suspicious so I came forward. I tried to listen in but I still really wanted to have some spare time for Madamme Jing. So I hurried back to the secretary and grabbed the remaining newsletters.

I aimed for the stairs and soon, was out of the chapel. I took the hidden way to the Liberal Arts building as I was carrying an armful of magazines.

"Hicks," Red grabbed half of it---no, actually, he took more newsletters than what I had, left in my arms. "Only because I'm nice today."

"What are you doing?" I asked, puzzled.

"You had better be thankful. Other girls wanted to walk with me but here I am walking with you. Don't ever try to run from me again."

"Boasty," I gibed. "If other girls wanted you that bad, then why are you here with me?"

"You have four hours of work this afternoon, haven't you?" he cleared his throat.

"Yeah," I nodded. "What were you telling them about, by the way?"

"I asked them to free you two hours earlier," he winked. "In exchange of me helping you. Isn't that cool?"

"Huh!?" I almost choked. "No. You didn't! I need four hours credit this afternoon!"

"You're welcome," he rubbed his finger against his nose bridge again, like he used to. "You'll still get four. I'm giving you my hour credit."

"W-Why!?" I stopped walking. It helped that we were alone in that alley. "What are you thinking again?"

"Help me," he scratched his head, hesitant.

"What?" I cackled. "You never asked help before."

"Stay with me tonight," he declared; his face was plain as a clean sheet of paper. "I'm lonely. My parents are leaving again today. and I need someone to take my instructional video."

"Nope," I shook my head dismissively. "Not coming."

"Are you turning me down? I'm your master, remember?"

"What am I? Your entertainer? Just go watch movies or comedy flicks. You can have Mary or the others take your video."

"No. That'd be bloody uncomfortable."

"What's it differ with me?" I gasped.

"Well, you saw me naked. And I read your letters---"

"Hey, I didn't really see you naked, naked," I clarified. "You only didn't have tops."

"Oh! That disappoints you. I see," he teased.

"No. Hard no. You can't tease me into bending to your will!" I rolled me eyes.

"Hard. Bend," he licked his lips. "Be careful with your vocabs, Miss."

I paused to think. I didn't quite pick up on it.

He smiled even more.

"You're disgusting!" I screamed and walked away---fast so he couldn't catch up on me.

"My father bought you a lappy---"

"Huh?" I stopped and turned around.

"I told him about you waiting in line in the PC room, wasting your time until it's the turn of the clock. I told him how much you fancied my device when you did your assignment---"

"Whoa! That's a questionable addition. I didn't fancy your device!"

"Oh yeah!" he giggled. "You only fancied me."

"How can you be so arrogant?" I ran back, bumping myself to his side. "Let's go."

"That didn't too much," he shook his head, amazed at how fast my mind changed.