Page 26 of Obsession

As I went back to my drawing, muttering curses in my head, I noticed him trying not to laugh. I turned my face to him and realized I was frowning, looking like a fussy child mindlessly doodling in a notebook. I paused and bit my lip, feeling defeated, but that small gesture had elicited a different reaction from him.

I could have sworn I saw his Adam’s apple bob up and down as he swallowed, tempting me to bite my lip again to see if it had the same effect, but I managed to control myself. I didn’t want to mess with him anymore. We weren’t playing that particular game.

I looked at him closely, and he seemed unaffected by the fight earlier, which meant that Joshua was once again the only one injured. Harris’ clothes looked dirty and rumpled, while he kept trying to tame his hair by running his fingers through it, and I noticed that there were a few curls scattered throughout his dark locks. Big ones, pushed back, but his efforts were to no avail as those strands remained disheveled. All in all, it was almost illegal for an unkempt person to look this good.

What had he done last night? The fatigue was evident on his face; his eyes were bloodshot as he blinked constantly and inhaled deeply, as if he was actively trying not to fall asleep. He didn’t strike me as the type to mind skipping class, so what was he doing at school when he clearly needed to rest?

The bell rang as the weight lifted off my chest. His gaze had gone from wry to serious and curious, as if he had discovered the secrets of the universe engraved on my body. He kept frowning and turning his head in a different direction while biting his lips nervously. It seemed as if his own curiosity was bothering him, but unfortunately his eyes kept wandering back to me.

I stood up, still feeling like a fussy child. I would have done anything to just run in another direction, but that was not appropriate behavior since I was no longer seven years old. I hugged the book as if to form a shield around me and took a step towards his desk.

He cocked his head at me, obviously shocked at my reaction.

“Thank you for… earlier. Even though I’m still not exactly certain about what happened.”

I struggled not to stutter as his eyes found mine and all profanity vanished from his gaze. Thank God he was still in his seat. But even then, he was intimidating. I could have sworn no one left the class, stopping to stare at us.

Harris let a smile form on his lips and nodded.

“Anytime.”

Whatever that meant, I was in no mood to find out. I gave him a crooked smile as I turned to leave because I could feel my feet turning to jelly and I hated that.

“Katherine!”

I didn’t manage to take more than a step before his voice made me stop and look at him.

He had stood up.

Oh, sweet baby Jesus!

I clutched the book tighter while not even five inches separated us. His scent intoxicated my senses, but his breath put the final nail in my coffin as my head barely reached his chin. I knew I should have run away.

I kicked the hormonal barrage in my brain as I looked up at him, trying to appear as relaxed as possible.

“Did he say anything to you?” he asked, his voice barely a whisper as he leaned closer to me.

It took me a few seconds to figure out that he meant Joshua.

I shook my head. He had, but I didn’t want to talk about it. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that the class was still full. It wasn’t the right time to mention that Joshua thought Harris was coming to school for a certain girl, tried to take me, and was talking about some transportation.

I was so close to him that I could’ve sworn I felt his heartbeat, and I knew the stares were bothering him too.

“I promise he won’t bother you again,” to which I immediately snapped my eyes to him.

“Why did you help me?” I couldn’t stop myself from asking.

He looked at me intently for a while, and I was unable to bear such a long gaze.

Before he could give me an answer, I heard my name from somewhere behind us, and I turned to see Zac standing a few steps away from us.

“Zac, what are you doing here?” I asked.

I wasn’t looking at Harris anymore, but I knew he was even closer because I could feel his hot breath on my temple.

“I came to take you to lunch; we’re meeting the others in the cafeteria,” he spoke to me, but he was looking at Harris.

Oh, no, I didn’t want to get between the two of them.

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