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Basic human nature had me swinging around to see who was calling out and if it was directed at me.
When my eyes landed on Joh
Oh my god.
What was he doing?
Why was he coming over to me?
What the hell was happening?
"How's it going?" Joh
"Uh, it's, ah, it's going good," I stumbled over my words, completely thrown off kilter being this close to Joh
"It's going good," Joh
It was my first time seeing those dimples and my memory soaked them in like a sponge.
"That's good," I breathed, struggling to focus.
Unlike the last time I was up close to him – when I was seeing stars – or in the hallways when he was a blur of movement or too far away to get a good look, I had a clear, concussion-free, unobstructed view of his face.
And boy was that view a breathtaking one.
Like, for real, he was strikingly, achingly, distractingly attractive.
He had remarkable bone structure with high cheekbones and a strong jaw, swollen lips, and a messy mop of dark brown hair that was shaved stylishly at the sides, with that extra bit of length on top.
His face bore the markings of a boy that had been in many of a fight.
Over his left eye brow was a freshly clotting scar, his nose had clearly been broken a time or two, and his right cheekbone was purpling at a rapid pace.
"You remember who I am, right?" he asked, still smiling, although he looked a little nervous now, probably because I was staring at him like a creeper. "Sha
Oh god.
"Yeah," I choked out, feeling every ounce of blood in my body rush to my cheeks as I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. "I remember you." Unsure of what else to say or do, I stupidly raised and hand and waved. "Hi, Joh
What was wrong with me?
Seriously?
Did I just wave at him?
While I was talking to him?
God…
The smile he was sporting grew into a full, perfectly straight, pearly-white smile. "Hi, Sha
Oh crackers…
"Well, I'm good," I said, tone a little strained. "And you're good. So, it's all…good."
"That's good," he replied, lips twitching.
"Yeah, it's all good," I answered, cringing at my awkwardness.
Joh
Mortified, I looked up at his face and then quickly away again as I strived to never utter the word good again.
"I watched your match," I blurted out instead. "Congratulations."
Oh yeah, Sha You should have stuck with good, idiot! "I know," Joh I opened my mouth to say something, anything to save myself, but I came up empty and shrugged helplessly instead. "Did you get my note?" Joh "Yeah, and I wanted to thank you for the money," I told him, voice small. "I just didn’t know if I should –" "Don’t worry about it," he interrupted with a smile. "I didn’t expect a thank you." "It's too much, by the way," I quickly added, tucking my hair behind my ear. "My mother got a new skirt for thirty euro." "I hope she got you those tights you wanted," he countered with a knowing grin. Oh, dear god. That boy's smile was something else... "Uh, yeah." I blushed scarlet. "Those were only a fiver." Sliding my hands into my coat pockets, I looked down at my shoes, inhaled a shaky breath, and then faced him once again. "I can pay you back the rest of it –" "No way," Joh "Keep it?" I stared blankly. "You don’t want sixty-five euro back?" "I hurt you," he replied, his intense blue eyes locked on mine. "I fucked up. You're not paying me back anything." Oh, thank god because my parents would never give me the money back. "Are you sure?" I croaked out. Joh I smiled up at him. "All better." "You sure?" he asked, smirking now. "No residual damage that might land me in trouble? I don’t need to call in the lawyers, do I?" "W-what?" I gaped. "No, no. I'm fine. I would never sue you –" "I'm messing with you, Sha "Oh, okay." I flushed. "Thanks." "Joh I turned my head to see a burly man sauntering towards us with an impressive looking camera strapped to his neck. "Give us a picture for the paper, will ya, son?" I was fairly sure I heard Joh "Good man yourself," the photographer praised and pointed the camera at Joh "Oh, right, sorry!" I squeaked and scrambled to back out of the line of the lens. "We were talking," Joh "Smile," he instructed quietly as he pulled me into his side and clamped his huge, muddy hand on my hip. Stu "Smile," Joh Frazzled, I turned back to face the photographer and did exactly what Joh I beamed. The photographer arched a brow and gave me a curious look, but quickly hurried to snap what felt like a million snaps. The flashes coming from his camera were blinding and when they were joined by many more flashes from other photographers, I began to shake with anxiety. What the hell was happening? "Alright, that's enough," Joh "Joh "Private," Joh "What's your name, love?" the original photographer asked, as he pulled a pen out of his coat pocket. Trembling, I just stood there, feeling like a dummy, feeling a million pairs of curious eyes on my face. "Sha "What are they doing?" I asked uncertainly, unable to focus on what he just said, because I was too busy eyeing the photographer writing something on the back of his hand and several other reporters skulking nearby. "Ignore them," Joh "They're watching you," I whispered. "And I think they're watching me?" Releasing a frustrated growl, Joh