(048b - Once Bitten, Twice Shy Part 2.)

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Thank you all so much for the 70k Views. I really appreciate everyone's contribution to the growth of this book🔥. It's almost a year since I started this book and it's mind-blowing because I have never written a book for one year before. This is the first, and it's making me realize the amount of effort I'm putting into this book. So yeah, I appreciate myself too😌.

I just want to let you know that updates will not be as frequent as before (not like it was really frequent) because I'm a little busy with a contract. But don't worry, it's just going to be for this month and a few weeks next month. So bare with me if you see updates seldomly, or don't even see them at all.

Don't worry, I'll try to be writing underneath so that when I'm finally free, you won't have to wait for long before you see a new update. I'll try my best to make it up to you guys in whatever way I can. I'm sure you understand.

Let's Dive in❤️✨.

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𝐇𝐈𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐘
(Hilary Idara Eghosa)

Ever since I became a student of Crestview International Academy, I can count the number of times I have stepped foot into Sir Isaac's office on my fingers.

Five times.

And four of those five times strictly had to do with my prefectship duties. The fifth time was at the beginning of this session, the day I was chosen as Simi's tutor.

This was the sixth time. And as you might have rightly guessed, it wasn't for a good reason, which was a first.

"This is exactly why God will never bless you with a kid because you will never know how to treat them right!"

I groaned inwardly, remembering the exact statement I made that got me here in the first place.

That statement had plunged the entire class into bigger chaos than it was before as soon as I said it, everyone screaming at the top of their lungs, cheering me. I didn't have the luxury to look around to see if anyone wasn't cheering, but it sounded like the whole class was. But they weren't the ones that made that statement, which is why it was easy for them to cheer, to hype me,

Because it wasn't until the words left my lips that realized the gravity of what I said. The implication it had.

Mrs. Khadija was dumbstruck, flabbergasted, and stupefied. She stood rooted on her feet, staring at me with an expression that made cold chills run down my spine and settle at the pit of my stomach in a strange feeling. I might not have been able to place the dark expression her face held, but I sure as hell knew my words struck a chord. Hard.

But it was already too late for me to take those words back.

"Get out and go to the Principal's office right now!" She had growled out, pointing out the door defiantly. "Stupid Idiot!" she cursed at me, her voice quivering a bit.

I didn't bother begging, didn't want to in fact. Wasn't even sure what I'd be begging for if I wanted to. I just walked out of the lab and made my way to the administration block, with her just a distance behind me. And now, here we are.

"Principal Isaac, I am so sorry about this,"

Yeah, I forgot to add. My mum was summoned.

"Hilary has never acted this way before and hearing that she said something so vile and disrespectful to her teacher is really appalling," She sounded so shocked, glancing at me from the corner of her eyes.

I looked away. I didn't want to see the disappointment in her eyes.

Sir Isaac wanted to speak by Mrs. Khadija beat him to it.

"It's me you are supposed to apologize to, not the principal!" She snapped at my mum, voice so loud that I feared even Sir Isaac's soundproof office won't be able to contain it. My Mum immediately turned to her.

"Madam, I apologize..."

"Oh Please!" Mrs. Khadija rudely cut the apology off, causing my mum to go quiet. "I don't need any stupid apology from a woman who had failed to raise her daughter right!"

What the fuck!

I pushed myself off the wall I was leaning on and sharply turned to the woman who dared to insult my mum, wanting nothing more but to give her another piece of my mind. But as if Mum knew what I was about to do, she held her hand up to stop me, wordlessly staring back at the woman who had insulted her.

I groaned, leaned back against the wall, and folded my hands across my chest in annoyance.

"If you raised her right, she'd have known better than to insult her elders," The woman went on, spitting at Mum disdainfully, literally questioning her parental skills in such a degrading manner that made my tummy churn in disgust and more annoyance.

But what annoyed me the most was how completely calm Mum was with that woman insulting her and her person.

This was exactly why it was very hard to regret everything I said to Mrs. Khadija. I wasn't a wicked person. Yes, I'm sorry for using her predicament against her. I know I shouldn't have done that, and I know I shouldn't have said what I said the way I said it. It wasn't in my place to talk to her that way. My parents taught me better than to disrespect people.

But God knows, I didn't regret putting her in her place. She deserved it and a lot worse.

Maybe I regret the way I went about it, but I don't regret telling her how much of a terrible person she is, and how much of a terrible teacher she has been to everyone, especially to Simi.

"Mrs. Khadija, you'll have to take it easy," Sir Isaac was trying to pacify the really angry woman. "We have to sort this out amicably," He added, only for the woman to dismiss his words with a wave of her hand and a loud hiss.

And she says I'm being disrespectful. I fought the urge to roll my eyes.

"I apologize on her behalf, Madam." Mum pleaded for the umpteenth time, her voice remaining calm and controller and the expression on her face beseeching. "I'm truly sorry for everything she said to you and how much she disrespected you. But I can swear, Hilary is not like that," She added, vouching for me.

"That's why this is so shocking," Sir Isaac chipped in. "Hilary has never had any problem with a teacher in the past. She has always been a good, respectful girl." He commemorated my Mum's statement, vouching for me too.

"Oh, so you are trying to say I'm the problem, abi?" Mrs. Khadija held her hand to her chest.

Yes, you are the problem.

"Not at all,"

"That's not what we are saying, Madam,"

Sir Isaac and Mum replied simultaneously and respectively.

"What I'm saying is, I'm sure Hilary never meant to disrespect you," Mum went on, trying to appease the woman that obviously didn't want to be appeased.

"She meant it!" She retorted back at Mum, who sat still unflinchingly. "She was trying to defend her dullard of a boyfriend and decided to insult me when all I was trying to do was teach!"

"Boyfriend?" Mum and Sir Isaac asked at the same time, turning to look at me incredulously.

"Simi is not my boyfriend!" I shot back defensively, pushing myself off the wall again.

What kind of woman is this for Heaven's sake.

It was so obvious she was trying to throw me under the bus right now, but she was going about it in the pettiest way ever. She desperately wanted me to get into trouble and get me punished by the school. I knew Mrs. Khadija. She would want to drag this matter till the outcome was only satisfactory to her. Even if it meant getting me expelled.

Just like every other secondary school, Crestview frowned at students being in a romantic relationships with each other. it wasn't as if they didn't know students still went ahead with it, they did. It was more like, so far you don't get caught, you are safe. But if anyone was caught frolicking on school grounds, it was a crime punishable by expulsion. At least, that's what it said in the handbook.

That's why she was doing this, calling Simi my boyfriend in front of the Principal and my Mum.

How Petty.

"Hilary." She called my name, turning to look at me in a way that told me she wanted me to start explaining myself. I groaned out in frustration, fighting the overwhelming urge to facepalm myself.

"Simi is not my boyfriend," I repeated. "He is my friend, the guy the school assigned me to tutor," I looked at Sir Isaac as I said that, trying him know who I was talking about and he nodded. "She was talking down on him and victimizing him in class today, I had to make her understand that what she was doing is wrong," I explained myself.

"Can you imagine!" Mrs. Khadija fired after being quiet for a while, holding her hands out in a gesture that said see me see wahala. "Demonic behavior! Spirit of rebellion. She's so unapologetically and unremorseful for disrespecting me in front of the entire class!"

"You also disrespected Simi in front of the entire class, Ma! And this is not even the fucking first time!" I snapped back before I could stop myself.

"Language!" Sir Isaac snapped, hitting his table so loud, that I flinched.

"Idara!"

Mum thundered at the same time, shooting up on her feet with a speed that had me shutting up immediately. She stared at me, shock and disbelief marred across her face, looking at me like she was just seeing me for the first time like she couldn't even recognize her daughter anymore.

"What is the matter with you?" Her voice came down in a whisper, disapproval sipping through her tone. The disappointment flickering in her eyes didn't go unnoticed too. I had to look away, my shoulders slumped.

"See what I'm saying!" Mrs. Khadija rambled on, clapping her hands together in a familiar rhythmic mocking manner. "She needs to be punished! She should be suspended! She should have her badge taken from her! She's not fit to be a prefect!"

Mum didn't even debunk anything the woman was saying, or try to vouch for me or pacify her on my behalf anymore. She just shook her head and went back to her seat. It was then I knew I had really disappointed her.

Oh God.

"Mrs. Khadija, that's alright," Sir Isaac gestured with his hands for her to calm down. "Don't worry, I'll make sure everything is sorted out and Hilary never repeats such again,"

"I want her to be punished," Mrs. Khadija maintained adamantly.

"It will be sorted out," The Principal repeated, not outrightly promising Mrs. Khadija that I will get punished. He wasn't even being specific if I'd get punished or not, but I pray I wasn't going to.

Mrs. Khadija left when Sir Isaac asked her to, leaving just me and my mum in the office with him. She didn't seem too happy that he asked her to leave though, obviously wanting to be present as Sir Isaac passes the judgment on me.

"I apologize for this embarrassment, Mrs. Eghosa," He apologized to Mum as soon as the door slammed shut behind Mrs. Khadija. "I didn't mean to call you from your place of work for something like this,"

"It's alright, Principal Isaac. I understand," She flashed a small, reassuring smile at him. A smile I could tell didn't reach her eyes.

"Go and get your things from class, Hilary," Sir Isaac turned to me. "I want to have a brief discussion with your mum," He added, causing me to gulp involuntarily, swallowing the invisible lump in my throat.

"Am I being suspended?" I asked him,

"No, you are not being suspended," Sir. Isaac shook his head. I exhaled, a wave of relief washing over me. "It's almost closing time, so you can as well just go home with your mum when she's ready. You have never gotten into trouble before. This being your first time so I'm going to let you off with a warning. Don't let this repeat itself again. Is that clear?"

I nodded and mustered a small appreciative smile, walking towards the door to go out of the office.

Then I paused, turning my head to the side, and looked at Mum. I wanted to see her reaction to the revelation that I wasn't getting punished after all, but I didn't get anything from her. She wasn't looking at me and wasn't smiling either. I needed no soothsayer to tell me that she was pissed at me.

My shoulders slumped at that realization.

I finally walked out of the office, exhaling in exhaustion and somehow, dejection. Mum wasn't happy with me and she had every right not to be. Not only did I get in trouble in school that made the principal summon her, but she was also insulted by a teacher questioning her parental skills, practically telling her that she didn't do a good job raising me.

It was embarrassing. I was embarrassed on her behalf. But I also knew it was my fault. I was the one that put her in the position to be embarrassed and insulted by that deranged woman.

And then, I even disrespected her further by snapping back at Mrs. Khadija in her presence and the presence of the principal, indirectly proving the woman right.

I messed up. And I know I wasn't going to hear the end of it when we get home. I can't even begin to imagine how Dad will react when he finds out about this. I don't think I'd be able to bear his disappointment as well.

Moving out of the reception slash waiting room of the principal's office, my mind was on Sir Isaac's instruction to get my things from class. Suddenly, I began to feel a bit reluctant to go to class. I didn't want to be in the same space as my classmates after what went down. In as much as they hyped me for what I did, it didn't diminish the fact that it was some kind of taint on my already crappy reputation and an embarrassing one at that.

But when I got to the hallway outside the office, I knew immediately that I didn't have to go to my class. Because Simisola was standing right there in that hallway.

And my bag was with him, strap slung over his shoulder.

Has he been waiting for me? I asked myself, my heart swelling in my chest and my lips stretching in an automatic smile as I halted in my steps and watched him for a bit.

He was oblivious to my presence in the hallway with him, staring right ahead at the plain wall in front of him like he found something interesting about it. He wasn't doing anything. All he did was stand there, leaning lazily against the white wall behind him with his hands folded across his chest, the sole of his sneakers tapping patiently on the tiled floor beneath his feet.

He was so laid back. It was beguiling... incredibly attractive. He didn't even have to do anything for me to find him that way.

Wondering how long he has been standing there, I started making my way toward him. And like he heard my footsteps approaching him, he paused his tapping and turned in my direction, pushing himself off the wall he was leaning on to stand upright.

It wasn't until after his eyes met mine that it dawned on me. It was like someone had doused me with ice-cold water, refreshing my memory and reminding me what I said at the lab... how I blurted out about his learning disorder to the whole science class, and possibly to the entire SS3 population because I knew the gist won't just die in our class.

It would never.

And soon, everyone will know Simi has a learning disorder, possibly putting him in the position of even more ridicule and mockery from our classmates.

Shit.

Realizing the implication of what I did made me halt in my steps, stopping short in the middle of the hallway, guilt washing over me at an unimaginable wave.

What the fuck did I do?

Simi's brows furrowed in confusion, probably wondering why I had stopped in the middle of the hallway like that. But he didn't dwell on it for long because he started walking towards me to meet me halfway, till he was standing right in front of me.

Right in my personal space.

Not like I actually mind. I liked it when he was this close to me, so close yet our skin barely touched. But then, his skin didn't even have to touch mine before he made me feel everything all at once. Every single, beautiful thing.

But I still had to find out if he was pissed at me for blurting out about his learning disorder like that.

When I looked up at him, his face didn't give anything away. He didn't look angry, or disappointed in me. His expression wasn't impassive either. It was just... cool. Very cool. And I could see the concern twinkling in his eyes as he stared down at me.

He looked like Simi. My Simi.

Your Simi? Since when na? Sister, be calming down o. My subconscious mocked me.

"Hey," My voice came out more hushed than I expected, with a hint of huskiness sipping through.

"Are you okay?" He asked, his voice just as hushed and husky as mine, maybe a bit deeper too. I could also hear the concern in his tone, and that made my heart swell even more. "You are not getting punished, are you?" He asked, and I shook my head slowly.

"No," I answered, averting my gaze from his for a bit. "But Sir Isaac called my mum though," I added, looking back at him. He nodded like he already knew.

"Yeah," He whispered. "Someone saw her and came to tell the entire class," He told me, a ghost smile playing at the corners of his lips.

I sighed, knowing for sure that that only added to the unnecessary drama. I can bet anything right now that they were exaggerating my call to Sir Isaac's office. Some may be even saying I'm getting expelled.

I have never met any other set as dramatic as mine.

"I figured you might not want to come back to class, so I packed your things for you," He went on when I didn't say anything, allowing my bag to slip down from his shoulder and catching it with his hand before it could fall, placing it in the space between our bodies for me to collect.

"Thanks," I whispered, looking down at the bag before holding onto it, and collecting it from him. I expected him to let go now that I had it but Simi didn't. And I didn't have to look up to know he was still looking at me. It's not as if he ever took his eyes off anyway.

"Something is bothering you," He picked up so easily, and I didn't even attempt to deny it. "Are you scared? Is that it?" He asked, moving impossibly closer till my bag was squeezed between us. "Is it about your mum's reaction? Or is it about our classmates-"

"You are not pissed at me?" I cut him off with a gentle question, looking back up to meet his eyes.

He looked slightly taken aback at first like he was trying to understand what I meant. And as if it finally dawned on him, a corner of his lips quirked further in a smile.

"And why would I be pissed at you, Hilary?" He asked me a question of his own, bobbing his head to the side as he peered at me inquisitively. I exhaled, took my bag from between us, and slung it over my shoulder.

"Simi, I swear I didn't mean to blurt out about your Dyscalculia like that," I told him sincerely, my voice pleading. "No matter how angry I was, I should have controlled myself enough to know that you weren't okay with me talking about it, especially in that manner-"

"I never said I wasn't okay with it," It was his turn to cut me off, calmly too. When I looked at him, his smile had transcended into an alluring lopsided grin that had me suddenly tongue-tied.

But thankfully, my speechlessness wasn't noticeable because Simi went on.

"And of course, I'm not pissed at you, Hilary," He assured me, holding my gaze spellbound with his.

"Why would you even think that?" He asked, closing the remaining distance between us till his body was partially flushed against my, invoking whirls of unnameable emotions in me, flooding every part, every muscle, and every cell of my body in an impetuous tempest.

Clearly, this boy had no freaking idea of what he was doing to me because he stretched his hands out to my neckline and swept back the locks of my cornrows that were hanging over my collar bone, the tip of his fingers daintily brushing against my skin in the process.

I inhaled sharply, but didn't step away from him. I didn't want to step away.

"Hmmn?" He urged, bringing my mind back to the question he asked me.

"It wasn't in my place to let the class know like that," I said. "You obviously didn't want them to know about it," I added, and he shrugged, looking over my head briefly before he looked back down at me.

"Now they do, and there is nothing we can do about it," He stated, and he sounded pretty cool with it. "Maybe after what happened today, they'll broaden their horizon and stop judging people like me," He punctuated with another shrug.

I exhaled, nodding.

"I hope that's the case," I whispered, adjusting the strap of my bag over my shoulder.

When I looked back at Simi, he was grinning down at me. My lips immediately stretched in an automatic smile, even though I had no idea what was making him smile like that.

"What?" I asked him, laughter in my voice.

"I never knew you were so badass," He said. I laughed, knowing he was referring to what had happened in the lab with Mrs. Khadija, talking back at her the way I did and damning all the consequences.

"You know I'm not that kind of person," I defended myself, and he smirked back at me teasingly, his eyes telling me he didn't believe me. "Seriously Simi, I'm not." I maintained, slapping him playfully across the arm.

God knows, I've never disrespected a teacher in my life and I never thought I'd disrespect a teacher in my life. No matter how much some of them annoyed me, I've always comported myself.

But today?

Every sense of reasoning left my mind with Mrs. Khadija. I completely hated the way she was trying so hard to bring Simi down because he finally answered one question correctly. I have never met a teacher that relishes so much in the failure of her students the way Mrs. Khadija does. I had to do what I had to do.

"I honestly don't disrespect teachers," I told Simi and he nodded, a small smile playing on his lips.

"I know," He whispered, letting me know that he believed me.

"I just couldn't sit back and let her talk down on you like that," I continued. "The way she was trying so hard to victimize you and bring you down was so disgusting and irritating, and appalling, I couldn't stand it," I paused to take a breath. Simi didn't say anything, just kept watching me with an unreadable expression marred across his face.

"I couldn't let her do that to you," I whispered. "I'm never going to let anyone do that to you," I added, the words slipping out of my lips without a second thought. Words that sounded like a promise... that was a promise.

And looking at Simi, he looked quite surprised. Like he didn't expect me to say something like that, or make a promise that sounded so plain, yet so intimate. He has made a lot of promises to me too, promises that have branded him in my head for life, promises he was very good at keeping.

I guess it was my turn.

"Never knew you cared this much about me," He stated, his voice in hushed and raspy tones with a hint of tease. I breathed out a small laugh, looking away from him shyly.

"You know I do," I whispered back, glancing at him from beneath my lashes.

His lips stretched in a smile, before he pulled his bottom lip in between his teeth, drawing my attention to them. And as if I was seeing it for the first time, I couldn't tear my eyes away, subconsciously memorizing every little detail I didn't notice before.

Like the perfect cupid bow that made his upper lip, or how defined the lines merged with that of the lower lip, or how full it was... and how incredibly soft it looked between his teeth.

Out of nowhere, I began to wish it was my teeth nibbling on it.

Kai, Hilary. You stray.

But I wasn't complaining. Hell, I dare not.

"Hilary!"

I was sharply pulled out of my lewd reverie at the sound of Mum's voice echoing through the hallway. I turned around to see her standing right outside Sir Isaac's office, staring right at Simi and me, looking between the non-existent space between both of us with a slight frown on her face.

Oh shit.

I quickly moved away from Simi, who thankfully got the hint as well and put a distance between us. But it didn't change the fact that Mum had seen it.

Had seen us.

My heart began to thump hard in my chest, the wheels in my head turning as my mind was trying to decipher how long she has been standing there, how long she saw Simi and me in such a compromising position, right outside the Principal's office. We were too close for comfort, and it was clear as day. I definitely couldn't talk my way out of this one.

"Mum-" I started but she cut me off.

"We are leaving," She stated curtly, looking from me to Simi, and back to me, her eyes passing a clear message across. I couldn't argue with her, not after the position I put her in today, and definitely not after seeing me with a guy. I wasn't in the position to argue.

So I simply nodded.

I expected her to start walking ahead, so that I'd at least have a little opportunity to tell Simi goodbye. But she didn't move from her spot, and immediately I knew that she wasn't going to start walking until I was with her, or in front of her.

Typical Nigerian Mother move.

I looked back at Simi, who already understood what was going on. He didn't say anything, only gesturing that he'd call me later, and I nodded, turned away from him, and walked up to Mum.

She didn't start moving until I was ahead of her, a safe distance from Simi. She then started moving when she was standing between me and him so that I won't have any opportunity to turn around and give him one last look.

Oh sigh...

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"Are you seriously giving me the silent treatment?" I asked, following behind Mum as we walked into the house. After shutting the door behind me, I turned to face her, completely frustrated.

The ride back home was torture. I expected her to start snapping at me as soon as we got to the car. I wanted her to snap at me, to show me how angry she was. But instead, she was quiet. Too quiet. Even when I apologized repeatedly, She didn't give any response, didn't look at me, not even so much as a glance in my direction.

And her face, her expression was awfully chill.

She was even humming. My Mum doesn't hume.

I knew I fucked up, but I didn't know I fucked up this bad.

Now, she was literally acting like I wasn't standing in front of her, this close to bawling my eyes out. She just plopped down on the sette, crouching just a bit to unbuckle the strap of her heels, taking her time to loosen it. When she was done with the right leg, she kicked it off and went ahead to unbuckle the left, taking her sweet time again.

"Mummy, I've said I'm sorry," I begged her, kneeling down right in front of her. She didn't flinch, didn't act like I was there. I exhaled.

"On the bright side, I didn't get in trouble with the school. I didn't break my perfect record. Sir Isaac let me off with just a warning, so I'm off the hook-"

"Yes, I heard him," She finally spoke, cutting me off. "I was there, remember?" She kicked off her second shoe, lifting her upper body in a more upright position so that she was looking straight at me.

I gulped.

"But do you seriously think that's what is upsetting me?" She asked me, peering at me intently. This time, she had an emotion on her face, and in her voice. It wasn't anger, it was disappointment. And it made my heart drop to the pit of my stomach.

Disappointment was a lot worse. I can handle my parents being angry with me, but I can't handle them being disappointed.

Tears began to well up in my eyes.

"Do you think that's why I'm feeling this way, that you might have gotten punished, or broken your perfect record like you said... or stripped of your prefectship position, or even worse," She listed. "Do you think that's what is upsetting me, Hilary?" She called my name, like she wanted to get a genuine answer from me.

But I couldn't answer, because I didn't have an answer to that.

"What is upsetting me," She stood up, towering over my kneeling frame. "Is the fact that you put me in an imperil position, making me completely vulnerable to ridicule and embarrassment," She said, the hurt in her voice very evident.

I blinked down the tears that had gathered in my eyes, averting my gaze from her.

"You put me in a position where that woman had the audacity to insult my person and question my job as a mother, when I know I taught you better than to be disrespectful, especially to your elders," She went on, the disappointment in her tone clear as day. "Do you have any idea how embarrassing it was, to have to sit there and take all of it? Do you even understand what you did?"

"I'm sorry," I didn't know what else to say, didn't know what else to do than apologize.

"When your principal told me the reason I was being summoned, I didn't want to believe it," It's the way her voice was still surprisingly calm and composed for me. "Because I know I thought you better than to act that way. You didn't just disrespect that woman, you used her problems against her. He told me and I didn't want to believe it. As in, that's not my Hilary, that's not my daughter.-

But instead of you to prove me right, you went ahead to raise your voice at the woman right in front of me, disrespecting her again right in my presence. And for who? A Guy?"

I just knew Simi would come up eventually.

"It's not like that," I quickly countered, getting up on my feet.

"Then tell me what it's like," Her gaze remained unwavering from mine. "Because I am pretty certain this Simi fellow you were defending in class is the same guy you were standing dangerously close to in the hallway,"

Oh God.

"That wasn't what it looked like," That was all I could say to defend myself, nothing more. "He only came to drop my bag- mum, you are deviating off-topic. This is not about Simi," I whined, wiping my eyes with the back of my hand. Mum quirked her brows inquisitively.

"Oh really?" She folded her hand across her chest. "So he wasn't the one you were defending in class that made you raise your voice and use cusswords on your teacher? That made you say to your teacher that she'll never have kids of her own? That almost got you into a truckload of trouble?"

"Simi didn't make me do anything, Mummy!" I cried out in exhaustion, tears of frustration running down my eyes.

"I never said he made you do anything," She didn't yell back at me even after I yelled at her. "I know he didn't make you do anything. You made all of those terrible decisions all on your own but it was because of him." She stated matter-of-factly, and I sighed out in dejection.

"I was defending my friend, Mum," I was trying to reason with her. "You have no idea how hard it had been for Simi, how much he has had to endure in that school," I told her and she silently looked on. "You don't know the kind of insults and ridicule he has had to put up with just because of his academic status. If you were in the class with me today, you wouldn't have been able to stand the way Mrs. Khadija desperately wanted to bring him down."

"Yes, your principal explained how awfully problematic that woman is. I also got to see it for myself, but it still didn't give you the right to talk back at her that way, Hilary. Especially in such a derogatory and humiliating manner, in front of your classmates. Two wrongs don't make a right! I have always taught you that!" Her voice had risen an octave higher.

But...

"But you are also the one that taught me to stand up for what's right," I countered her. "Are you now saying I should have sat down and allowed that woman to talk to my friend in an equally derogatory manner? Is that what you are saying?"

"If that's what it takes to keep you out of trouble and keep you safe then yes, you should have sat it out," She answered me without mincing words or being concerned that she was now preaching double standards.

"Why?"

"Because you tend to make very irrational decisions when you are emotional and intimately attached to someone, Hilary!" She fired back, shutting me right up.

Every word at the tip of my tongue and every thought I had in mind suddenly disappeared, and I started trying to understand what she meant. She exhaled deeply, as if she was trying to calm herself down and pick her words carefully.

"There is no way you can convince me that you don't have feelings for that boy,"

Her voice was back to being calm now. No disappointment. Just my mum's soothing voice. And when I tried to counter her, to tell her that Simi and I were just friends like I won't stop saying, hoping I'd believe it too, she rose her hand and stopped me from speaking.

"Don't try to convince me otherwise because I know exactly what I saw in the hallway," She said knowingly. I swallowed back my words, knowing that it was no use trying to convince her about something I couldn't even convince myself of. I just looked away from her, hugging my hands around me.

After what happened with Jidenna, I don't think my parents will ever let me go out with any guy again, especially since I proved their initial skepticism right. And now that I was falling hopelessly, uncontrollably, and unashamedly for someone else, it didn't even take Mum so long to figure it out. It made me feel really bare and naked in the strangest way.

I heard her exhale again, and then felt her walk up to me till she was in front of me. She placed her hand on either side of my folded arms, giving it gentle caresses that calmed me down just a tiny bit.

"Look," She whispered calmly. "It's completely okay for you to have feelings for someone," She told me, her words causing me to look up at her. She peered back at me, understanding in her eyes. "You are a teenager and it's normal. If you weren't having these feelings, then I'd be concerned." She said, and I sniffed.

I could feel a but coming, and it did.

"But where this starts to become a problem is when you allow those feelings cloud your every sense of reasoning and rationality, and drives you to make very despicable decision that you cannot take back, decisions that might end up hurting you more than you can ever imagine," She stated point-blank and slowly, I began to understand.

The reason for Mum's disappointment gradually started to make sense. I was making the same mistake again even without realizing it.

"The last time that happened," Mum paused, drawing in a shaky breath. I drew one in too because I knew what she was about to say. "I lost your brother, Hilary," Her voice had come down in a low, croaked whisper filled with painful nostalgia.

Henry...

I averted my gaze for the umpteenth time today, feeling brand new tears well up in my eyes. I blinked and they fell. And they didn't stop falling.

"And no, I'm not blaming you for his death. I'd never blame you for his death," Her was was more controlled now, even though I could still hear the slight quiver in it. I nodded slowly, knowing that she wasn't blaming me.

Only telling me the bitter truth.

I guess that's why I've been having that fear anytime I think about my feelings for Simi.

"But you made a mistake and I will not sit back and watch you make that same mistake again, and hurt yourself in the process, Hilary. I AM NOT ready to lose you too,"

I was already crying. Loud sobs, shoulders quaking, mucus out of the nose kind of crying.

"Do you understand me?" She asked, bringing her hand to my chin and tilting my head up so that I'd look at her. "Do you understand me, Hilary?" She repeated, like she desperately wanted me to understand where she was coming from.

And I nodded, because I understood perfectly. And that made even more tears cascade down my eyes.

"Come here," She whispered cajolingly, drawing me into her arms and I fell in her embrace burying my face in her chest as I cried my heart and soul out, not just because of the painful truth in what my mum said,

But also because I knew I had a very difficult decision to make.

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

I didn't want to avoid him. It was torture, but I couldn't think of any other way that felt easier. And it was easier because Mum grounded me and took away my phone. So no calls, WhatsApp messages, or even text messages. I was completely off the grid, and it made avoiding him easier.

But only because it was the weekend.

Coming back to school on Monday, I knew it was going to be harder. We were in the same class, offering the same subject. I knew I'd have to face him sooner or later, but I didn't know how I was going to do it, how I was going to tell him that I had to stay away from him. Because I didn't want to. It was the last thing I wanted,

To stay away from Simi.

So I put extra effort into avoiding him. He couldn't reach me on phone, but it was easy for him to get to me in class. I avoided meeting his gaze, being in the same space with him, being in the class long enough for him to come and meet me. Prefects meeting was a good cover, but barely. I knew he was trying to, could see he was trying to reach out but I tried even harder... and made it even more painful.

A lot more painful.

But it was the only way. It had to be the only way to free myself from this guilt. This survivers guilt. So I pushed down the pain, and kept trying my best to avoid Simi.

But my best wasn't enough of course. That, or Simi was very desperate to get my attention.

"Eirkk!"

I shrieked when I felt myself being pulled into a room, a hand clasping over my mouth as I wanted to scream again. With my heart beating rapidly against my chest, my back was pressed against the closed steel door and I felt a body pressed partially over mine.

A body that emitted a very savvy, evocative scent, cocooning me immediately and unconsciously calmed me down.

I needed no one to tell me who it was.

"Don't scream," His voice rang out, confirming my exact thoughts. and my eyes looked up to meet topaz orbs, knocking the breath right out of me. He removed his hand from over my mouth and stepped away from me, putting a little distance between the both of us.

"It's just me,"

He added, the slight echo of his voice making me realize that we were in an enclosed space, one of the empty classes at the end of the SS3 block.

"S-Simi," I exuded shakily, not knowing what else to say. I haven't been in the same space with him for days now, so being here with him, this close to him was sorta overwhelming. Good overwhelming.

Is this how my entire being has become so used to him?

"I'm so sorry for dragging you in here," He began, folding his hands across his chest. "I just had to get your attention one way or another because you have literally been a ghost lately. I had to find a way," he said, a slight smile tugged at the corners of his lips.

Simi was smiling, and it made my heart clench in my chest.

"Simi..." I trailed off, hating the way I couldn't find words to say, hating the way I was sounding like a broken record.

"If you have been trying to avoid me, you are not doing a very good job at it," He stated, bobbing his head to the side.

He didn't sound hurt. He didn't look hurt either. If he was feeling it, then he was doing an exceedingly good job of not showing it at all, because he was still smiling, still beaming with his beautiful golden eyes gleaming down at me. Seeing him like that, that he wasn't mad or upset at me for ghosting him was supposed to make me happy.

But instead, it broke my heart into pieces and made my eyes well up in tears. Because seeing him like that made it a million times harder.

"I'm not trying to avoid you, Simi," I lied, my voice coming out croaked. I forced a smile, pushing the tears that were beginning to well up in my eyes down. If he noticed this, he didn't say anything about it, his smile turning into a knowing smirk

"Oh really?" He quirked his brows. "Well, you haven't spoken to me in days and you wouldn't even look at me in class," He pointed out. "Heck, your phone has been switched off for days now," He added.

Thankfully, I had a very good and valid excuse for that one.

"My mum took my phone away after what happened last week," I watched as Simi's eyes widened in realization, the smile dropping from his lips. "That was my punishment for what happened with Mrs. Khadija. That's why you haven't been able to reach me," I explained.

His shoulders slumped.

"I'm so sorry, I should have asked about that first," He whispered, moving closer to me. "How did she react? Hope I didn't get you into more trouble?" He asked, referring to the fact that mum sorta caught us in the hallway that day.

I shook my head, my chest getting clogged as I remembered how everything had turned out that day. How everything went downhill. But it wasn't his fault. No, Simi didn't do anything wrong. He didn't do wrong by being so perfect.

It was all me.

"You didn't do anything," I assured him, mustering a smile. "You didn't do anything wrong, Simi," I shook my head, pausing my lips together because I couldn't stop my lips from quivering.

That, Simi noticed.

"Why do I feel something is not right?" He asked, peering intently at me like he could see right through me. This time, I couldn't push back the tears that have been threatening to well up in my eyes. And that was enough to prove to Simi that something was indeed wrong.

Why am I so emotional, Goddamnit!

"Okay, something is definitely not right," He whispered, more to himself than to me before he moved close to me, wrapping his hands around my middle instinctively... protectively. "Hilary," He sounded incredibly worried. "What's going on? Talk to me, please." He pleaded desperately.

I shook my head, not finding the right word to say. And when I blinked, tears fell.

"I'm so sorry," Was all I could muster, taking my hand to clean the never-ending tears from my eyes.

"You didn't do anything to me," He said, bringing one of his hands up to palm the side of my face, thumb cleaning my tears away. "Hilary, you did nothing to me. Why are you sorry? There is nothing to be sorry for." He told me, desperately trying to tilt my head up so that I'd look at him.

But I couldn't look at him. Not with what I was about to do, even though I couldn't get the right words.

"I'm sorry, Simi," I choked out, "I'm so sorry, but I can't... we can't..." I trailed off, not knowing if I'd be able to go through with it. And I swear I didn't want to go through with it.

"We can't?..." Simi sounded confused at first, trailing off for a moment like he was trying to understand. Then as if it finally dawned on him what I meant, he went,

"Oh,"

It was a whisper of realization, his voice soft like a breath, but I didn't miss the undertone that said he had grasped what I was talking about. He dropped his hands from where they were wrapped around my waist, stepping back just a little bit. This small action elicited uncontrollable sobs from me

When I summoned courage to look at him through my teary eyes, he was staring down at me. There was no hurt on his face, or in his eyes. Just understanding. Only Understanding.

But he didn't understand. There's no way he understood that I had to stop seeing him, even when it was the last thing I wanted.

"You were actually avoiding me," There was certainty in his voice, a certainty that he was right initially.

"I'm sorry, I wish I could explain," I took my hand to my face to wipe the tears again, but I couldn't seem to stop crying. The tears won't just stop coming.

"You don't have to explain anything, Hilary," He shook his head.

"No," I moved closer to him, closing the space between us and he surprisingly didn't move away. "I want to explain things, Simi. I really do. I owe you that, but I don't know how..." I trailed off again, sobs escaping my lips in short pants.

I didn't know how to tell him how my feelings for him excited me just as much as they terrified me. And that after Friday, after that talk with my mum, it terrified me even more because I didn't want a repeat of what happened with Jidenna, even when I knew, even when I was certain there was no comparison.

Simi wasn't Jidenna. Simi can never be Jidenna.

But this fear. This fear.

"You don't have to explain anything, Hilary," Simi repeated and I looked at him, watching as a small, sad smile crept its way up to his lips and settled there. "Because I understand. Perfectly," And his tone was enough confirmation that he did understand.

Unable to stop myself, I buried my face in his chest and started crying all over again, soft sounds from my lips echoing through the empty classroom we were in.

"No," Simi whispered as I felt his hands on either side of my face, hoisting my head off his chest so that I'd look at him. "You are not going to cry, Hilary. Please stop crying," He begged me, wiping my tear-stained face with his knuckles.

"I-I don't want to s-stay away from y-you," I choked out between tears, looking at Simi through blurry eyes. I heard him sigh.

"I don't want to stay away from you too. I never want to stay away from you," He answered, his voice in a soothing whisper, his hands desperately cleaning my face, trying to stop me from crying.

"Hey," He breathed out, soft minty breath fanning my face indicating that he was close to me. I blinked down the tears blurring my eyes, allowing me to see him clearly. He was smiling. A soft genuine smile that seemed to melt every bad feeling away.

"I care about you," He said, holding my gaze with his intense ones. "I care so much about you and I'll never hurt you, you know that right?" He was promising me something I already knew. Something I was already certain of.

"That's what makes this a lot harder, Simi," I whispered back. All he did was smile, but the smile didn't make me feel any better. It only made me feel like I was losing him for good. And I didn't want to lose him.

God, I don't want to lose Simi.

"Simi," I called him even though I had nothing else to say. And he nodded, that smile stretching across his lips like he knew exactly what I was thinking.

"I'm still here," He answered, knuckles trailing down my cheeks in a soft caress, the pad of his thumb brushing daintily against my skin. "I'll always be here, whenever you are ready," He promised me, and I nodded, trying to stop the fresh tears from falling down my eyes.

Why can't I stop crying?

Simi exhaled, bringing his left hand to wrap around my waist again, his right still settled at the side of my face. He drew my face close, tilting my head slightly not so I could look at him, but so that my face was close to his. Then he leaned in, and pressed his lips to my forehead in a soft, lingering kiss.

A sigh involuntarily escaped my lips as my eyes fluttered close, tears dripping down my eyes in beads with my hand fisting his shirt.

I can't do this. I can't do this.

Simi pulled away slightly and looked at me, smiles still tugged at the corners of his lips.

"I'll see you around Hilary," He whispered, finally letting me go.

And as soon as he walked out the door, I couldn't hold back anymore. My knees gave way and I fell to the floor, crying.

𝐀/𝐍

Sigh 🤧.

I told you in the last chapter that Hilary was meant to make that mistake of yelling back at Mrs. Khadija and I'm sure y'all now understand why. Her mum spelled it out. Hilary had already started making the same mistake she made with Jidenna, but she didn't even realize it, and that's because it's an instinctive behavior.

Roadblock number one for our Silary ship. But don't worry, they'll get over this one faster. I can't say the same for the rest tho 💀.

I'm so sorry for any form of tackiness in this chapter. I think I didn't write it as well as I had it in my head and it's making me feel somehow 🤧. I'm sorry. I hope you still enjoyed it.

You know the drill. I'll see you when I see you ✨❤️.