❝𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚒𝚜 𝚙𝚎𝚘𝚙𝚕𝚎 𝚖𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚞𝚙,
𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚛𝚞𝚒𝚗
𝚊 𝚋𝚎𝚊𝚞𝚝𝚒𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐.❞

I walked hand in hand with three-foot up to a safe distance where the substitute teachers could see us and be able to indicate the arrival of his mom.

I stopped after reaching the jellyfish u tunnel bridge. Not turning around, with my back faced to him, I proceeded to look at the group of jellyfish.

I heard him shuffling before he asked with a quiet, calm voice, "Are you alright?"

I turned with a stern look adorning my face, my lips pressed into a grim line and with hooded eyebrows, I crossed my arms and said, "Surprisingly, me fainting is something I don't consider as much as a big deal as my best friend leaving me alone in an empty room."

He flinched at my tone but nonetheless, his eyes shined with hope as he muttered like an excited child who was offered cookies, "You consider me as your best friend?"

"I'm pretty sure you're like zander. Hollow skulled ass," I swore forgetting the existence of three-foot among the intense eye contact between two brown-eyed people. His were much more adorable, the right was a monolid while his left a bit swollen.

Hmm, I never observed that. Snap out of it Zoelle he isn't a scientific artefact that you are going to gush over. Oh holy god of statues! I think you made a statue come to life with a chiselled jawline and high cheekbones, with soft marble skin.

After I settle the beef, I gotta ask him about his skincare like damn that boy didn't look like he had a pimple.

A small scientific fact-driven voice in me slowly whispered but Zoelle science tells that the people with sits and pimples look much younger in the future than people with clear skin in puberty.

"Shaggy, you aren't supposed to swear in front of me. You are a bad influence, "three-foot whispered looking at me as if I'm not worthy of his highnesses precious time.

I'm pretty sure he considers me his peasant.

"Don't -"

"I like you already," he said looking at me with a slightly tilted head before bending down and ruffling three foots hair.

My eyes literally jumped out of the eye sockets, heck just like the cartoons. For a second I thought he said that to me.

Okay, heart, you can come back to where you belong and stop beating like I just ran a damn marathon.

I'm not the one you are supposed to like. You should be liking Shaggy considering you are her Velma. Wait, Shaggy is a male name, " three-foot wondered looking down., His forehead covered with his hair.

Augustus looked at me quizzically with narrowed eyes and drawn in eyebrows. He continued to stare at me like I'm the math problem he needs to solve to pass the exam.

I shifted from one leg to the another, thinking how to stop his scrutiny hurried footsteps approached us before a woman screeched, "Daniel!"

Three-foot looked up and gleefully ran to his mom with extended arms, his yellow coat flapping against his small body. Oh! So that's his name but it's still going to be Three-foot, maybe not in front of his mom.

She gathered him in her arms and lifted him off the ground with ease, his feet dangling in the air, she hugged him tight and ran a hand through his hair. She let out a deep sigh of relief as she had her son back in her arms.

Why is everyone being so dramatic today?

"They've been missing for an hour," he said. Noticing how he moved closer to me, he had his hands stuffed in his pants and with a grim face, he continued to stare at them.

Three foots mom looked at us with a small smile before she turned serious and walked towards the teaching faculty, storming with steam coming out of her ears. She looks so much alike to my mother, the way she stormed to defend for me that day when I was ridiculed by my teacher.

Mom's turn into warriors when it comes to their kids, don't they?

Sighing, he turned and said, "I know you might've gotta the wrong idea about me leaving you but I had some business to do and it wasn't something I could skip."

"Okay, I won't ask you what 'business' you had but honestly..." I trailed off not knowing what I wanted to say. I can't force him to tell me something he doesn't want to share and there was some valid point there. Then why am I feeling so frustrated seeing him and thinking about his excuse?

I leaned back against the cool glass surface and observed him under the blue luminescence. He looked ethereal to be truthful to myself but I won't be.

His brows drew closer as he lifted his hands as if to caress but quickly retreated them back and muttered with desperation, "Let me make it up to you then."

I crossed my arms over and with a quizzical look I spoke, "I don't have time right now. I have to meet Ne, Nemo."

I pushed myself off the wall and started to walk following the signs to the open pool when he shouted, "I'll text you then."

Rolling my eyes, I slowly sauntered off with the deep chuckle resonating through the tunnel behind me.

Why did I forgive him? Am I that bad of a pushover?

Sorry for the late chapter.
I've been feeling a lot of stress lately
and I decided it's self-care time.
So, Until next time,
Blues