*Jessica's P.O.V. *

We entered the college building and parted ways to our classes. I was happy that Noah and I had finally made up. I couldn't afford to lose a friend like him. I sighed and entered the classroom. I've decided that from now on, I'll concentrate on my studies. I didn't want any problems with my grades.

I sat in my usual spot near the window, looked around and realized that Max wasn't there yet. I shook my head and concentrated on studying. After few minutes, I felt a cool sensation throughout my body, and when I looked up, I noticed him entering in the class wearing his black leather jacket.

His hair was messy making him appear more hot!

His piercing blue eyes met with mine, and caught me staring at him. His facial expression was blank as he walked in my direction.

Since Brittany was absent today, Max decided to torture me by sitting beside me. Ugh.

I cursed my fate for pulling such a stunt. This was the last thing I wanted right now.

I glanced at him through the corners of my eyes and found him staring at me with an unfamiliar expression on his face. He looked sad, hurt, or I don't know . . . It was really hard to read him at that moment. My stomach twisted with the possible reason behind his sour mood.

Was he angry?

But I didn't do anything!

Oh! Maybe because I left him in the hallway?

"I need to talk to you," he whispered in his deep husky voice.

I gulped down, realizing he meant me!

"What?" I muttered and pretended studying.

"Not here, meet me after college."

"No, I won't go anywhere with you. If you want to talk then do it here." I crossed my arms as I leaned back in the chair.

He narrowed his eyes. "You think it can solve everything?"

I looked away,  perfectly understanding what he was trying to say. "Yes. You need to stay away from me! I don't want any kind of distraction."

When he didn't reply, I turned to look at him. He had an amused expression on his face, the I-know-what-you-are-trying-to-hide kind. Before I could ask him about it, our middle-aged professor entered in the class, and after throwing a wink at me, Max turned and started studying. I was so lost in staring at Max that I didn't pay attention to a single thing the professor taught us.

To my amazement, Max studied like never before!

Normally, I wouldn't mind if the professor decided to take some extra time, but today it was so difficult to survive for the whole 45-minute lecture. The reason? A jerk bent on annoying the hell out of me.

During the class, he tapped the pen on the desk twice making me groan, and when he realised it, he did it every five minutes to piss me off.

To top it off, he winked at me several times, knowing that it would distract me from studying.

And, he was damn right about it!

How could I concentrate on my old, creepy professor when a young, hot guy was stealing glances at me?

Okay! It wasn't stealing glances because he was doing it openly so that he could annoy me, and he was succeeding in it. It got worse and worse by the minute.

"You know, I'm actually enjoying this. I should annoy you more," he smirked and whispered, earning a death glare from me.

I wanted to kick him badly where the sun didn't shine just so he could leave me alone.

When the professor dismissed us, I sighed from relief. I shoved my things in my bag.

"What's the hurry? Can't stand me?" He looked at me with a cheeky glint in his eyes.

I rolled my eyes and closed my bag. I was about to take a step when his words startled me, "So, I'm distracting you. I hope it's in good way." I could sense the tease in his voice.

Shit, shit! I bit my tongue.

That was why he was winking? God!

I really need to control my big mouth.

I didn't reply, instead I resumed walking so that I could escape his teasing. But, luck wasn't in my side today!

"Hey wait." I flinched hearing his voice behind me.

Breathe, Jazz! Calm down.

Why couldn't he just leave me alone?

"I don't want to talk to you, Max. Just leave me alone!" I said, getting frustrated.

"I just want to talk to you."

"I don't want to talk to you. Don't you get it?" I replied through gritted teeth.

"If I've done something then, look, I'm sorry, but-"

That's it! I couldn't hold it anymore.

I interrupted him, "Why the hell won't you leave me alone? Stop being so nice because I know it's not the real you. You don't need to break your rules for me, okay? Whatever you're planning, just stop it! I'm not going to fall for any of your stupid, pathetic tricks! Let me give this to you straight. Stay. Away. From. Me."

Thank God! We were alone, otherwise it could be great show!

Max stared at me with wide eyes. I may have crossed the line and over-reacted but it wasn't in my control, which made me more angry and frustrated. I was definitely going crazy knowing that he was changing for me. Why me? He didn't need to do that because it was completely wrong.

He remained silent as I simply walked towards my locker. I knew I hurted him and I should apologize, but I won't. This was the best for both of us. This way, we wouldn't hurt each other anymore.

I tried concentrating on my next class, but it was very difficult as my eyes were continuously searching for someone with whom I didn't want to know.

My stomach flipped when I realized Max wasn't attending the class.

When the lunch break came along, Max wasn't there. Maybe he was skipping, but why?

I shouldn't dwell on those things. It was none of my business if he was skipping or not. In fact, I had more important things to look after.

While sitting alone in the cafeteria, I decided to check my email account and noticed an email from Mahi.

I swiped my thumb over the screen, mentally arguing not to open it. At the end, I decided to open it later in my free time as it would only be her teasing me. I took a deep breath and finished my cheeseburger quickly. I was about to leave when Noah arrived with Jelline and stopped at my table. He nodded, signaling that I should talk to her first.

"Hey," I greeted her.

"Hello," she said and hugged me suddenly.

I hugged her back and when she pulled out, gave her a confused look.

She cleared her throat. "I'm sorry for avoiding you, but I just couldn't believe what I heard about you and Max. He is such a jerk.” She glanced at Noah who squeezed her shoulder and nodded. “You know, there was a time when I really liked him, but he used me and broke my heart," she added sadly, and my mouth gaped open.

I quickly turned my face in an attempt to hide the shock from them, but my eyes glistened with the pain of betrayal.

I shouldn't be shocked to hear that. How on Earth? I thought Max was different.

I shook my head, disappointed. I was regretting everything.

Now, I wasn't feeling guilty for insulting him. He deserved it.

Jerk!

"That's why I hate him so much, but when I heard you went out with him, I felt cheated. You should stay away from him. He is not good for you.” Her voice snapped me out and I looked at her.

"Do you still like him?" I mentally slapped myself for asking her such stupid question.

She chuckled and waved her left hand in denial. "Of course not. I'm not stupid. I've already moved on," she replied, shyly glancing at Noah.

“Are you okay?” Noah asked concerned.

I stared at him and my mouth went dry.

I swallowed, “Y… yeah.” The words came out a whisper, and I took a deep breath to make it normal.

Noah shook his head, totally unconvinced, but didn't ask anything.

“So, I'll see you around?” Jelline asked, hopefully and waited for my response.

I nodded and hugged her. I didn't say anything–I just couldn't. I didn't know whether I should be sympathetic for Jelline or for myself because of my stupidity. He was just playing with me. I really wanted to scream right then, but I had to control my emotions.

After few minutes, I bid them goodbye and walked away. I was having an internal debate because of the information I had received. My heart was screaming at me to have some faith in Max.

Don't jump to any conclusions!

Don't listen to others!

I should have given him a chance to explain. There must have been some misunderstanding; although, my mind thought differently. It was the perfect excuse to avoid Max. I could've believed this whole theory and started hating him. I already had a crush on him and there was no excuse to deny it. Max realized it too. I had to go with whatever Jelline said, whether it was half the truth or complete.

This was the perfect opportunity.

Believe it and avoid him!

I sighed, knowing that it was the stupidest thing I could do. I was about to leave when I saw Kyle coming from the opposite direction. I mentally debated whether to greet him or not, but all my doubts vanished when he walked by without even glancing at me. I bit my lip angrily and went to my next class.

Classes were over, yet there was no trace of Max. I walked outside and found Noah waiting for me.

"Hey, Nina is with Jake, so I thought I'd give you a ride," he said hopefully.

I scoffed. This was not something I'd planned.

Damn you, Noah. Why are you doing this? I don't want you to build up your hopes. Now, I understood everything–even, why he'd suddenly gotten excited to know my perception about Max. He was actually trying to learn about my feelings and he thought that he still had a chance.

Dammit! I should have guessed it earlier.

I suddenly felt someone's eyes upon me, but when I looked around again, nobody was there. I shook my head.

Definitely crazy!

"Um, no, it's okay, Noah. You don't need to. Besides, I need to buy some essentials. I'm going to the supermarket. Thanks for the offer!" I politely rejected his offer with a perfect excuse.

"Oh, okay. Anyways, what are you doing this weekend? Any plans?"

"No, I want to study. I've already skipped a few classes and I need to cover the whole course to maintain my grades."

What? You skipped only one day and you need the whole weekend to cover that? What a perfect excuse, Jazz.

He looked at me for few seconds, then nodded. "Okay, see you on Monday! In case if you've a change of heart and need some company, I'll be here," he said giving me a smile that showed his perfect shiny teeth. I awkwardly smiled back.

Why was he not getting this? Ugh, if Nina knew about this, she would kill me! Wait a minute, it's not like it was my fault if her brother was interested in me! I tried my best to push him but he didn't understand anything.

Screw him!

I had other things to deal with. I knew it was rude, but my mind was already messed up by Max and now, Noah...

Ugh. Leave it.

I waved him goodbye and started walking.

I spent my weekend studying and talking at home. Mahi was busy with her projects, so I only spoke with her once. She still suggested that I should give a chance to Max, despite knowing about Jelline. According to her, he deserved a chance to explain himself and I agreed with her. The thing was, I couldn't risk giving him a chance because at the bottom of my heart, I knew he would convince me.

Manipulator!

*****

I didn't realize the weekend had passed and then Monday came, which meant I had to attend college, and that meant I had to face Max. I sighed and did my morning routine. I took a shower and rummaged through my bags for the day's outfit. I grabbed a white flower print knee-length top and paired it up with brown tights. I wore my favorite pearl bracelet. I did a bit of make-up and tied my hair in a side ponytail. Satisfied with my looks, I clicked a selfie and uploaded it onto Facebook.

One week had passed since the last time I saw Max. I hated to admit this, but I gotta say that I missed him. My gut wanted to call him, to ask if he was okay, but then I heard from Brittney that it was his parents' anniversary on the upcoming Friday which was why he took leave from the college. They were hosting a grand party, and Brittney was even invited! I took a breath of relief, knowing he was fine. I was trying hard to not to think about him, but every single thing I saw was somehow related to him.

I also maintained a distance with Noah and gave him some subtle hints about not wanting any relationship. I was not sure if he got it or not, because I didn't find any changes in his behavior.

*****

Thursday (A day before the anniversary)

*Max's P.O.V. *

Despite our concerted efforts, we were still running behind on everything. It was kind of silly to be groaning about because, really, when has anything ever run perfectly smooth the day before the big day?

I wanted everything to be perfect, which was why I'd decided to go there early and take everything in my own hands. I went to inform Jessica about this, but she was busy with Noah. I didn't want to eavesdrop, but when I heard him asking about me, I couldn't stop myself. My heart nearly broke when I heard her thoughts about me.

But then I decided to talk to her about it. I walked to class and sat beside her. I tried to annoy her so that she would blurt out everything, but the thing I didn't know was it would break me more.

Feeling hurt, I walked away. Later, I asked Kyle about her. He spotted them in the parking lot after college and then I came to know about her closeness with Noah.

Noah was good for her. Both of them were goody-two-shoes!

I pushed away my thoughts and started working. I wanted to make the day very special. My parents would be so proud of me. I spent the afternoon at the ballroom venue for the dinner, organizing some last minute details with my event manager. He was few years older than me but we were like friends.

Kyle was coming the next day, and then, maybe, I would get to know more about her.

Damn, Max! She doesn't care about you.

Stop thinking about her.

Yes! She doesn't deserve me.

******

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