Stella:

"Are you okay?" Riana asked me over the phone.

"Yeah, Riana, I'm fine. But how about your mom? Is everything okay on your end?"

"Mom? I don't think she'll be happy with me today, but she'll forget about it tomorrow. Thank God I reached the right moment. I couldn't stay calm when you mentioned you were going to Mike's house; my heart was not at ease. I handed over all those groceries to Mom and stepped out. But what they did to you was really unexpected!" I could feel the concern in her voice. I remained silent and didn't want to cry which made her feel bad! Inside me knew very well that I was not okay with what happened to me today!

"Stella?" Riana asked, her voice filled with concern as if she could sense that I was on the verge of tears.

"Yeah. Do you know how lucky I am to have you as my friend? My world may be small, but I have everything," I said, feeling emotional.

"Awwww! Love you too, dear, and the feeling is absolutely mutual. But don't worry, try to forget everything and get some rest! If you start crying again, your parents will begin to suspect something. It was hard enough to convince them that you fell into the pool in Mike's absence!"

"Yeah, okay! Good night. See you tomorrow. Love you," I wished her before hanging up, and she replied with the same.

Now I'm on my bed, continuously tossing and turning, thinking about how humiliated I felt in front of those idiots who seemed to have only one motive: to insult innocent people like me. If Riana hadn't been there, I might have been in serious trouble.

He didn't even try to save me. I'm really disappointed, but why was I expecting anything from him? He's a monster! and he's the reason I was humiliated today.

I couldn't stop my tears from flowing continuously, thinking about those moments that were actually a reality. Then I don't know when my eyes got tired, and I dozed off.

"Mom, I'm leaving for school."

"Eat breakfast first!" My mom's voice is louder than a high-volume speaker.

"No, Mom, it's late! I'll grab something with Riana at the school canteen." I protested, but she always had a way of winning these arguments.

"Now are you feeling okay?" my mom asked, concern in her voice.

"Yeah! Super!" I replied, trying to sound cheerful.

"Always be careful! If you fall wherever you go then I don't think you can sustain anywhere!" she complained.

"That's just a mistake, Mom! I lost my balance, and please don't tell Uncle Robert and Dad. They don't know about it, and it will only make them worried unnecessarily," I said, wanting to protect them from unnecessary concern.

"Did Mike call you?" Mom asked, looking puzzled.

I was shocked by her question and replied in an annoyed tone, "Why would he call me?"

"Why wouldn't he call you? He's your friend! But he told me he tried to call you, and your number was not reachable," she explained, sharing what Mike had told her.

"So he called me. Expected," I mumbled to myself, aware of his intention to deceive my mother.

"Do you know he liked the sweets I made for him and was even asking about you!" My mom's face lit up as she spoke about the praise she received from that guy.

"Mom, bye! I'm leaving," I said, fed up with the liar who doesn't even like sweets and is now playing with my mother's emotions.

I know he must be happy about what happened to me, and in front of my mother, he's behaving like he cares about me. Bloody hell.

In school:

As usual, Mike was absent from class. The seat beside me was still vacant, which is usually occupied by him, and hence no one wanted to sit there, even in his absence.

But deep down, I kept hoping that it would be anyone but not Mike, at least! He had already caused enough damage to my reputation and confidence, so I didn't want to go through it again. 

To avoid those tensions, I got busy with my math book and tried revising the chapter with Riana. When the teacher arrived, we became conscious of our own presence, and suddenly I noticed someone had taken the seat which had been empty nearby, but the vibe was the same!

Without looking in that direction, I consoled myself, trying to believe that he wasn't here. Why would he be? He rarely attended class. But my heart started to beat faster, as if it would explode if I kept it in suspense any longer.

That's it! Now I should check. So I checked indirectly out of the corner of my eyes.

But what! Suddenly I made my eyes straight, thinking about how that's possible! The devil is here but remains silent!

Whatever I avoided his thoughts, but his presence made me feel irritated. Why is he suddenly behaving like something he's not, and most importantly, he didn't even say sorry for what he did to me and lied to my mother!

Class ended, and everyone started to pack their bags to leave. As Riana and I packed our bags, I turned back to leave my seat.

Suddenly, I found myself facing the guy from a distance, his blue eyes as mysterious as ever. However, something was different this time – our feelings. I knew he had no idea of my presence when he first joined our school, but now that he knew, we had already drifted apart.

But why did I always feel so helpless when I looked into his eyes? Those blue eyes had the power to make me forget everything he had done to me.

"Sorry," he apologized and made his way towards the classroom door, then disappeared from my sight.

Suddenly, I was brought back to reality from the depths of his eyes, trying to process what he had just mumbled to me.

"Did he say sorry to you?" Riana asked from behind, her voice filled with doubt, while I was still struggling to process what he had just said to me.

"Whatever, I don't care. I know it's just his game, like his idiotic previous plans," I assured myself and Riana, convincing us both that he would never change.

"Unbelievable, man! Let's go," Riana said to me.

Mikes proverb:

I went straight to the men's restroom, feeling breathless after a sudden encounter with Stella, whom I had been trying to avoid since the last incident. I sat down, trying to figure out how to overcome the impact of her presence near me. Throughout the class, I couldn't help but be strongly affected by her, which resulted in me continuously stealing glances at her.

I was doing my best to stay calm and act as if nothing significant had happened. But it wasn't easy, and I couldn't understand why. As the class ended, I made my way towards the classroom door. Suddenly, she appeared right in front of me, and it left me feeling utterly helpless. My head seemed to have a mind of its own.

My eyes were drawn to her face, and I couldn't tear my gaze away from those mysterious eyes that had captivated me since the day I walked into this classroom.

Her enticing lips, lightly coated with pink lip balm, made it incredibly difficult for me to resist the urge to kiss her passionately.

I don't understand why she's driving me crazy, even though we've always despised each other. These feelings are unusual, and it seems like it might be more than just our mutual dislike.

In my mind, there's a constant debate: "She exists! No, she does not exist!"

"Hey, Mike..."

She does not exist; she's not real!

"Miiiike...."

I paused for a moment as I heard my name coming from somewhere.

"Mike, look at me... It's Jennifer!"

Oh no! What is she doing here? I thought to myself, then said indirectly, "Hey, you! Sorry, but I'm not in the mood to talk right now. Please leave me alone."

"Please, Mike, try to forget everything. I've already been punished for what I did. I've tried to live without you, but I don't think it's possible for me, and I believe it's the same for you," she blurted out, her words struggling to find a place in my mind, which was fixated on a single image at that moment.

I gazed at her, wondering if she could be the solution to my unknown problem.

"Yeah, I forgive you, but I won't forget," I replied. "Let's just remain friends and not think beyond that." I had finally found a solution.

"Oh, thank you, Mike!" She exclaimed happily. "I'll be happy, and you won't need to worry about it. I'll take care of the rest!" She sounded as if she had just won something.

"Anyway, whatever you did with that girl Stella was impressive!" Her face and eyes lit up as she said this.

"Who told you, and what have you heard?" I asked her with a hint of anger in my voice.

"Oh, Mike, this is what everyone is talking about!" She said, her excitement clearly showing.

"Just stop it and leave me alone right now!" I said firmly, feeling the need to do something to calm myself down.

"Okay, we'll catch up soon, and I love you, Mike," she waved and left the place, her happiness apparent, as if she had found water in the desert.

"Hey, Robin! Where are you?" I fumed at him over the phone.

"Hey, hey buddy, what's going on with you again?" Robin became serious.

"Forget about me, Robin. Just find that idiot who's spreading rumors about last night, a secret among our close friends. I'll figure out the best way to deal with him," I mumbled angrily, then hung up the call without waiting for a response.

Then I spotted Stella eating alone in the college canteen, without her usual bodyguard who always stuck by her side.

My anger suddenly subsided as I observed how innocent and carefree she looked while eating. While everyone else was engrossed in conversations and activities, she was the only one fully focused on her food, chewing it in an adorable manner.

Unintentionally, I followed her to her table and took a seat, effectively reserving the one in front of her.

Wow! She's so adorable!

She noticed my presence and her facial expressions clearly conveyed her discomfort.

"What are you doing here?" She mumbled slowly, addressing me.

I responded by saying, "Is this your personal property? Can't I sit here?"

"That's not what I meant, you know that! You can sit anywhere, but why here?" She sighed and continued, "Listen, Mike, I'm tired of all this nonsense. You've already taken your revenge on me, and I'm still trying to figure out what I've done to deserve it. You even lied to my mother, who has no idea what game you're playing. But whatever! Now you should be happy that everyone in our school is spreading rumors about me. My life has turned into a nightmare. I usually keep to myself, but now I'm starting to think I'll never be able to face anyone," her voice was heavy, and although she wasn't as confrontational as yesterday, I could see the hurt in her eyes. Her face looked drained of color.

Why did her voice affect me so deeply? In that moment, I felt worse than ever before. An intense urge swelled within me to embrace her, offering my sincerest apology, making her understand that I genuinely meant it.

As she started to leave, I called out to her desperately, "Listen, I had no intention to..."

"Hey, Mike..."

I turned around and saw Robin calling me, waving his hand. I exchanged a glance with him, but when I looked back to where she had been, she was already gone, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

Robin had hurried over to my location and was out of breath. "Buddy, I got him," he exclaimed.

I looked at him with a sly grin and said, "Let's give him a taste of his own medicine!"

#Thank you Adrianna_over_here AdriannaRaines3172 for making this wonderful character aesthetic for my story characters Stella and Mike! I really found it amazing. Thank you once again, dear!

# Thank you for reading this chapter. Hope you guys like it!