|| Arabella ||

As sad as it made me to admit, winter vacation was over.

The school was in session again with its new painful semester. I had already started on my part-time job after New Year's Eve since I had taken a week off from Christmas until then.

Right now, Theo and I were having lunch together in the cafeteria while our friends sat on the tables around us.

"I saw this Math Olympiad notice on the bulletin," Theo said.

"Don't tell me you're planning to participate in it. You have AIME coming up next month," I reminded.

AIME was a national math examination, and to qualify for that, one had to pass the American Mathematics Competition, in short AMC. I heard it's tough shit to qualify in AMC, but Theo did it, and I was proud of him.

"I know, I know. But I think it will be a good warm-up before AIME," Theo reasoned.

"Are you sure?" I asked, and he nodded firmly. "Best of luck then." I gave him an encouraging smile which made him smile as well.

"I gotta tell the other mathletes and take days off from my football practice," he said.

"It will forever be a mystery to me as to how you are still on the team when you cut so many days of practice," I commented while sipping my frappe.

He playfully winked at me and said, "I've my ways."

I rolled my eyes and asked, "So did anyone else from your mathletes club pass the AMC?"

"One other girl did. She's a good friend of mine," he said casually.

"Oh, a girl." I got an unpleasant feeling in my stomach, but I pushed it down instantly. "That's cool. What's her name?"

"I told you about her. It's Rose."

"Ah, right, I remember now."

If I remembered correctly, Rose was a nice girl and she had a crush on Theo. She and I had physics class together. But... she was very pretty for a nerd. Well, I guess my boyfriend too was a nerd but hot. To be honest, they would be perfect together. They both loved math.

"Enough about me. Tell me about your cooking club," Theo said, and I smiled at him.

So silly of me.

Why was I even thinking about Rose and Theo? There was nothing to worry about. Theo only liked me, and his actions were enough proof of that.

After lunch, we went our separate ways to finish the afternoon classes and club activities. Once my club was over, I went to the Mathletes club room to get Theo.

I found Theo and his teammates involved in what seemed like a math marathon.

Theo seemed pretty indulged. His eyes were zeroed in on his paper, his bottom lip pursed in between his teeth while his hands were moving at lightning speed. God, why did he have to be so hot?

All I wanted was to just walk right in and kiss him.

Instead, I chose to stand by the door and admire him for a few minutes.

I was completely lost in him until a pretty black-haired girl came into the picture. She leaned over Theo's desk, taking a look at his paper. Her arms were brushing with his.

"Why is she leaning so close?" I muttered.

My eyes instantly widened at what I just uttered.

I shook my head and murmured to myself, "Theo is busy. I should leave." I sent him a text that I was heading to my workplace alone.

I crossed forty minutes' distance in twenty minutes with my speed-walking while being immersed in my thoughts, rather trying to get these thoughts out of my head.

When I was near the block of my restaurant, my phone buzzed in my pocket with a text from Theo. It said:

"I'm so sorry. I didn't see your text before, but why did you leave?"

I caught my breath as I replied:

"It's okay. You were busy. I understand. I just didn't want to bother you."

Just after a few seconds, my phone started ringing.

Sighing, I picked up, and the first thing he said was, "You're not a bother."

I smiled while my heart fluttered with my love for him. "Hello to you too." I shouldn't let him get a hint of why I actually left.

He ignored my greeting and said sternly, "Ara, I don't want you walking to the restaurant by yourself when I know that you have to work your ass off there."

"I've been doing that for the past two months, it's fine. I'm used to struggles and hard work," I tried to convince him.

"Yeah, but now you have me." I fell silent after hearing that. After a pause, he added in a gentle voice, "I'm not saying that you have to be dependent on me, but I want you to rely on me more."

"Really?"

"Yes, it would mean a lot to me."

"I... I didn't know it was such a big deal to you." I now felt bad for leaving because of a silly reason. But... I didn't want to be too much trouble for him. Because what if he got tired of me quickly then? "Still, I also don't want you to waste your time and energy dropping me to work every day."

"I don't care. I want to be able to do such small things for you while I still have time."

My heart spooked a little at his last few words. "While you still have time? What do you mean? You... you don't have any terminal illness, do you?"

"No, idiot," he scolded, then snorted lightly. "I mean, we are growing up. And the more we grow up, the busier we are gonna get. It won't always be possible for me to do these things for you, that's why I want to do them while I still can."

"You mean that?"

"Of course. Sometimes... let me do things that you know you can do yourself. Let yourself be selfish. Tell me to open the door for you, order me to bring you food, demand affection from me. Tell me to do anything for you, I'll do it."

I was on the verge of tears. "Why do you have to be like this?"

Theo chuckled lightly and said, "I signed up for this when I let you put that watch on me. Besides, aren't boyfriends supposed to be slaves?"

I laughed through my tears and replied, "I hope your payment isn't too high because your master is broke."

"I can make do with a few kisses and hugs. Oh, but I need to be paid every day."

"You got yourself a deal then. Come pick me up at nine, my slave."

"As you wish, my master."

I saw my cheeks turning red from my reflection in the glass window of a store as my mind conquered some pretty dirty ideas.

Shaking my head and clearing my throat, I said, "Since your master is nice and kind, she is giving you a few days off from dropping her to work."

"What? Why?" he whined.

"Because she wants you to work hard for your upcoming competitions, and she won't listen to any arguments."

"Ugh, fine. But you are not a nice and kind master. You are mean."

"We all know who the mean one is."

I could picture him rolling his eyes as he said, "Anyway, your shift has already started. Run if you don't want them to cut your pay."

"Oh, shit, right. Bye!"

———

"Oh, please, that was a tragic ending," I said.

"No, how can a dog's death be sad?" Theo argued.

"Really? If it were a cat, you would be crying rivers," I argued back.

"Well, of course, that cat could be Clove's mate for all I—"

"Um, Theo, can we talk? I need to ask you something," Rose interrupted.

Theo and I were having lunch at the cafeteria like usual, bantering about the movie we saw last week, when Rose came to our table. His Olympiad was only a few days ahead, so he has been swamped at school and spending an awful lot of time with her. And now, she was interrupting the only time I got with him at school. Just fantastic.

"Uh, sure," Theo agreed and got up. He pecked my lips and said with an apologetic smile, "See you later."

"Bye." I waved at him as he and Rose left the cafeteria. She was showing him something on a clipboard while I gritted my teeth and took a few voracious bites of my burger.

"Hey, girl, what's wrong? You seem like you want to murder someone," Coral chimed, occupying Theo's seat.

"What are you doing here? Not eating with your boyfriend in the garden?" I snarked.

"First of all, he's not still my boyfriend—"

"Yeah, right. Just someone who you really like and who likes you back?"

She ignored my comment completely and continued, "Secondly, he can survive without having lunch with me for a day. In short, spill the beans, my friend."

I frowned and leaned back on my seat, glaring at Theo's leftover tray of food. "I'm jealous."

"And?"

I turned up my glare at Coral. "Don't you get it? You know, I've never been jealous like this."

"Well, it's normal. I don't like it when other girls hang around Wyatt too."

"Yeah, but I didn't think that I would be..." I couldn't complete it as I felt so ashamed and disappointed in myself.

"A jealous, controlling girlfriend?" Coral completed for me, and I nodded. "Look, you won't be. Trust me, I know it."

"How do you know? I mean, I've literally never felt like this when I saw them with someone else."

"What about when you saw me with other friends of mine? Didn't you ever get jealous then?" she questioned.

I shook my head. "Never. That's because you have a life on your own. Your life doesn't revolve around me. Of course, you would've other friends aside from me."

"Mm-hmm."

"But in his case, I can't think that it's okay for him to have other girlfriends aside from me, which I know he won't. Still—"

"Just talk to him then."

"But what if he thinks I'm too much? I don't want to restrict his freedom. What if he doesn't want to be with me anymore? If he wants to leave me... What if he breaks up—"

Coral gave a squeeze to my hand on the table and affirmed, "He won't. And you will know it once you talk it out with him. Communication is the key to a healthy relationship; you taught me that."

I was still unsure, but I still smiled at her and said, "Thanks."

———

"Uh... are you mad at me?" Theo asked all of a sudden which took me off-guard.

We have been doing our homework in the living room for the last hour, and we hadn't said a word to each other, though I had been trying to start a conversation but was unable to due to my lack of courage.

"Huh? No. Why would you say that?" I asked, sounding like I fell from the sky.

"Is it about the earthworm you found in your room last night?" he guessed.

"That was you?" I shrieked. "You know how much I hate earthworms!"

"Yeah, I know. I just wanted you to sleep in my room," he reasoned.

"You could have just asked." I pouted.

He lowered his head and mumbled shyly, "Sorry, I just didn't know how to bring it up without being all awkward. I'm stupid. But you're not very smart either. I mean, how would there be an earthworm in a building with tiles?"

I buried my face in my notebook, groaning.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Theo scooted closer to me, wrapping an arm around my shoulder. "Is something bothering you? If it's me, I'm sorry—"

"It's not you. It's me. I'm jealous."

★★★