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“You’re like really smart,” he whispers, his tone kind and not mocking, keeping my heckles in place. “Is this the sort of thing you want to do when you grow up?”
He motions to the clinical trial paper between us and I smile at his use of the term ‘grown up,’ like he’s not mere months away from being considered one of those himself.
“I’m not sure?” I shrug. “I know I want to be in the medical field somehow. But I haven’t decided which part yet. Maybe in medical research? Or a doctor? Or even a nurse?”
He grins, squeezing my hand that’s still being held captive in his. “I can see you being any of those things. You’re so good at this stuff.”
I pull at my hand, trying to regain some of my sense of equilibrium, and he refuses to let it go.
“It’s not that I’m naturally smart,” I admit. “I just work hard. And I pay attention.”
Using my hostaged hand as an anchor, he tugs me closer to him, so we are facing each other, only inches apart. Sweat dots my neck.
“You pay attention to some things,” he says.
Huh? What haven’t I been paying attention to?
I lean back to get some breathing space. “You’re one to talk. You thought I was new at this school until a month ago.” This is like a thorn under my skin; the fact that he hadn’t known I existed until recently.
He leans forward, cutting back into my breathing space. “You have no idea what I’ve thought about you.” His gaze locks with mine and I watch his eyes roam leisurely over my face before landing on my lips.
“W-what?” I whisper. Is there something stuck to my face? Please don’t let it be something left over from lunch.
Matthew opens his mouth, his plump lips parting to say something important, I just know it—
“Matt!”
We jerk apart and find a swarm of Matthew’s teammates flocking towards us. There are only a handful of them, but they’re so large, it feels like more.
I shrink back into my seat, intimidated, and will myself back into invisibility.
“What are you doing?” asks Ryan, Matthew’s best friend, his eyes bouncing between us.
Matthew smirks at his friends, the picture of comfort. “I know this is an unfamiliar sight for you, but this is what studying looks like.”
His friends laugh good-naturedly before turning their collective attention onto me.
Oh, help!
“Who’s this?” Dave, one of the louder, more arrogant members of the team, asks, jerking his chin at me.
Matthew looks annoyed by the question. “This is Natalie.”
Ryan’s eyes zero in on me, a big smile growing on his face. “We’ve heard a lot about you, Natalie.”
I’m not sure what he’s implying, but it feels like I’m the only one not in on the joke. Or perhaps I am the joke? “Ok, great,” I mumble, gathering up my books. “And now I’m leaving.”
Matthew frowns at his friends before flicking his gaze to me. “But we’re not finished.”
I look between him and the men looming over us. Oh boy, are we finished. “We can finish the rest of the chapter tomorrow.”
He looks put out, annoyed, and I have a twinge of doubt. Does he want me to stay here with him?
“Great, then we can get some practice in.” Dave high-fives the guy on his left, who half-heartedly returns it.
Perhaps no one likes Dave?
“It was nice to meet you finally, Natalie,” Ryan says with a kind smile, his eyes alight with something. Mischief?
