Bella:
"Bella, wait up!" Kai yelled, but I didn't stop until I got to my room.
I pushed the door open at once and rushed into the room, slamming the door with my back against it, panting heavily.
"What is the matter?" Hazel asked. My eyes darted across the room to where she lay
on her back with her head bent at the edge of the bed, a book in hand.
I moved away, walking toward her, and she spun around, dropping her book.
"You... smell weird," she said, and my heart sank.
"How bad?"
When I asked, she crumpled her nose, taking a huge breath toward me.
"Like Ryder."
She got to her feet at once, rushing over to me with a smile on her face. She wanted the tea, and although I wasn't ready, she had found me out.
"This is bad," I began, tossing my bag on my bed, then pacing around the room, picking my left index finger with my right thumb.
What is bad? And why are you tensed? Did Ryder do something? Was it that bad?"
She questioned, and I came to a halt, yelling, "No!"
Then I placed my palm on my forehead, giving off a sigh before looking up to meet Hazel's eyes.
"Look, I'm sorry for yelling, but my mind is messed up at the moment."
I sat on my bed, then I explained everything to her.
"It's great, but maybe what makes it great is that we shouldn't be doing it. My mother will kill me, and the twins... I..."
"Everyone loves a forbidden fruit," she said, and I glared at her with my face wrinkled. "I'm sorry, I couldn't help it," she added, and I sighed again.
There was a moment of silence between us before she sat close to me.
"I think you should freshen up and join the boys in the cafe before dinner is over. That way, you can avoid any kind of suspicion. Then both of you should come clean because eventually you will be found out. The twins are not dumb, and this is a mate bond. It's not like what Fae and Ryder had. Your mate can sense some things, and who knows what they have found out..."
"Please stop." I stood up, my chest rising underneath my shirt.
All she said, I already knew, and that was what scared me.
"I'll go take a bath now," I said, walking away to the bathroom.
**
After taking a bath, I put on jean shorts with a tee, then paired them with some sandals. After that, I grabbed a book, slid it into my black tote bag, and left for the cafe with Hazel.
As we walked into the bustling cafe, I spotted the triplets at their usual table, which was at the center of the cafe. I walked over to it, holding a smile on my face.
"Hey," I said, holding my gaze at Finn and Kai while avoiding Ryder's.
"Bella." They echoed at once, then I forced a smile.
"Can we sit here?" I asked, looking at Finn, who had his mouth stuffed with his beef lasagna.
He gulped down his meal.
"Sure, you can... there are a lot of seats to go around," he replied.
"Good."
I placed my tote bag beside Finn, who sat in front of Ryder, while Hazel placed the
book in her hand beside Kai, who sat on the left beside Ryder.
"We'll be right back," I said, and we left.
I breathed in relief at once.
"That was the longest one minute of my life!" I exclaimed, and Hazel chuckled. "It's not funny."
"Sorry." She huffed.
"I don't think they noticed because they would have been aggressive with Ryder. Mates
are not known to be that gentle. You are lucky."
Sure I was, and I hoped it would remain that way.
When we got our meals, we walked back to the table, and I sat beside Finn while Ryder glanced at me occasionally as he ate his food.
"So, what have you guys been up to? I haven't been able to keep up since I am swamped with schoolwork," I said, tilting my head to the right, so that I could face Finn, who was by the left. I took a forkful of my coleslaw, chewing slowly with my eyes on Finn.
I could feel people in the cafe staring, waiting to get juicy gossip for their diaries, but I didn't care. Ryder would have to take an L for a moment, or else our fantasy would be
over.
"Well, it's been a rough week. Exams are fast approaching, and it isn't really the best time of the semester for me," Finn replied, and Kai sighed, causing me to look at him.
"Yeah. Who wants to have their nose buried in a book at the library when I could go fencing or be on vacation?"
I chuckled when he said this, then I reached for his hand, causing Ryder to shoot me a quick glare, which I shrugged off.
"Kai, I'm sure you'll get through it. You can study with Hazel and me." When I said this, Ryder gulped down the water in the plastic bottle at once, crumpling it while Hazel buried her head in her food, widening her eyes.
"We are your seniors, Bella, and..."
"Hazel is a genius," I cut Ryder short with a little pout.
Hazel drew her hand horizontally across her neck in a swift motion, but when Finn looked her way, she grabbed her bottle of water.
I grabbed mine too, shoving it in my mouth to cover my face because I couldn't tell what I was doing, and I wasn't sure it was the right thing because a moment of silence hung over the table.
"You know what? We might take up your offer," Kai said, and Ryder widened his eyes, staring at him.
"We will?" he asked.
"We get close to topping the class most times, but it's always difficult. And the football season is here too. Ryder will be very distracted, and we might not have enough time to study. But when we pair with the smartest student in school, we might get through." The beautiful nonsense he spewed made me happy because he didn't think I was silly, but then I had just formed a reading group I didn't intend to.
"Sounds like a great idea." Finn chipped in, and Hazel concurred.
"Ryder, what do you think?" I asked, and he squinted his eyes, forcing a smile on his lips.
"Marvelous. I haven't heard anything better."
His voice was laced with anger and sarcasm. He took two extra spoons from his food before he pushed his plate forward, getting to his feet.
"You know, I have to practice solo for tomorrow's match, so I'll go run some reps on the field alone," he said, and then he walked off.
The more distance he covered, the harder it was for the ribs I had in my mouth to go down my throat. This continued until he disappeared.
After dinner, I texted Ryder and waited hours for his message, but he didn't text back. Even the next morning, my messages were void of his text. This made me wonder if I crossed the line and if he would ever speak to me.