29

The airport was a hive of activity, as strangers from all around the world hustled past us, their voices forming a symphony of foreign languages blending together with the clacking of luggage wheels against the sleek tiled floors.

I walked through the airport with Iris by my side, holding our suitcases, stuffed to the brim with clothes, and everything else we'd need for our trip to Greece.

She's been talking non stop about the Olympiads and now only realized how dumb she is for coming with.

From her perspective, she thinks she won't be able to answer any of the questions. But, we (by we, I mean Professor Garcia) trained her well for this.

Well enough for letting her pass with a 80%.

Talking about Daniela...

We hadn't spoken since the café. No text messages, no calls, nothing.

I was still confused about the kiss and everything going on.

And now, I have to face her after ditching on her, when I was the one who said I'd stay and talk like the adults we are.

Clearly, I'm afraid.

She's my professor for crying out loud.

We walked towards the waiting area, our eyes fixated on the sight of our flight information displayed on a massive digital monitor.

We were immersed in our conversation, when suddenly, a voice spoke behind us, causing us both to flinch and whirl around.

"You two are early."

Professor Garcia was sitting on the bench behind us, specifically behind me.

Her back faced us, so no wonder we didn't notice her.

When she looked over her shoulder towards us, there was a pair of dark shades resting on her face.

I couldn't see her emotions in her eyes. She was probably furious about that day when I ditched her.

She has to understand that it's not normal being seen with a professor at a café.

Especially if it's vacation.

"Uh...we..." I stumbled over the words, feeling heat rise to my cheeks. "We just... wanted to get here as fast as possible. Didn't want to miss our flight." I glanced at Iris, who looked just as surprised as I was.

Daniela turned back away from us again and looked ahead of her.

"Oh?" She said lowly, "For a second I thought you were going to ditch me. Then again, it wouldn't be so bad. Having the entire trip to myself without having to attend the Olympiads to watch over you."

Well damn she got me there.

I close my eyes and sigh.

"We wouldn't ditch, professor." Iris said.

I cringed.

After that, we all just became quiet.

Iris looked worried, maybe she thought she said something wrong.

The silence was killing me.

Just behind me the woman I've kissed was sitting, acting as if nothing happened between us.

She looked calm, collected.

She wasn't looking at me, and she wasn't talking either.

How could she when Iris knows nothing, and it should stay that way.

I need to tell Daniela to stop before she loses her job.

Thankfully, the flight monitor above us began to flicker.

"Well, that's us." Professor Garcia said, breaking the silence.

She stood up, grabbing her suitcase and a bag.

I picked up the rest of our luggage, gesturing for Iris to walk with me towards the lines.

She nodded, her eyes darting from me to the professor with a worried expression, which I replied to with a reassuring smile.

The flight attendants had gone through the safety briefings, and now the plane was silently gliding through the clouds towards our destination.

I had settled into my seat in the middle, Iris happily gazing out the window beside me. But my attention was drawn to professor sitting next to me on my left.

We hadn't said a word to each other since the flight began, and the silence between us was beginning to nag at me.

I had so many things I wanted to say, but the words felt stuck in my throat.

We were so close to each other that with every small movement, our shoulders or knees brushed against each other.

Each time we did, little sparks of electricity seemed to dance over my skin, like miniature static shocks.

My body would flush warm and I'd immediately turn away from her.

And now, when our fingers accidentally touched while placing it on the armrest, I freaked out and said the first thing on mind.

"I need to go to the bathroom." I announced, trying to calm down my rapid heartbeat.

I stood up from my seat, careful not to disturb anyone nearby.

But as I tried to step over her legs, I stumbled, losing my balance. My hands flew out to catch myself, but before I knew it, I was falling right into her lap.

I found myself sprawled out over her thighs, straddling her lap, my face just inches away from her startled face.

Her hands instinctively reached out to catch me and held my waist.

A flush of heat spread across my cheeks.

I quickly tried to scramble off her lap, but my hands fumbled against her legs, my fingers accidentally grazing her thighs.

"Hey, woah, woah, woah. You're going to hurt yourself." Daniela said, containing a laugh, trying to stop my movements.

I was just turning redder at that point.

I finally managed to climb off her and saw Iris staring at us, shocked, yet amused.

My eyes widen even more, "I-I'm so sorry!" I spoke fast and rushed away down the rows to the bathroom, my cheeks still flushed.

The plane had grown quieter as tired passengers started to doze off in their seats.

Even the crying baby from earlier has fallen asleep on its mother's lap.

I was busy texting my dad to check in with him, while professor was engrossed in a book.

Iris leaned against the seat with her back almost turned towards me and her feet brought up. I leaned forward to see what she's doing. She has earphones in while watching a movie.

So, I leaned back again and took it as a chance to speak to professor.

I lower my phone. "Have you ever been to Greece?" I ask, and mentally slap myself for that stupid question.

Professor didn't even look up to me. Her eyes were glued to her book. "No." She said dryly.

My lips form a flat line before I nod awkwardly and look down.

Suddenly she spoke again, "I assume you haven't been as well?" My eyebrows raise as I look back at her, not expecting her to actually put her book down and talk to me.

I shake my head and she nods in return.

"I'm sorry." I said quietly, "For running again."

She immediately knew I was talking about the café and gave out a low, sarcastic snicker. "If I truly know you, Victoria, I knew you'd run. I prepared myself for it." She shrugged. "Didn't fool me."

I clench my jaw, "Are you mad?" I ask and her eyes soften.

She looked at me softly before taking a deep breath in, "No." She breathed out, "Like I said, I know you, Victoria. I'm not allowed to be mad. The only person I'm angry at, is myself. I shouldn't have done what I did that night."

For some reason, that hit a sensitive spot in me. "We're even now." I said softly.

She frowns, "What do you mean by that?"

"I kissed you. You kissed me." I said, "We're even."

"We can't talk about this right now." She said, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"You tried talking to me about it yesterday. I'm trying to make up for it." I said, "I know we can't keep this on without talking about it."

"Let me tell you about it then." She said and turned her body towards me, "Like you said, we're even. And I know I said before it can't happen again. I realized how stupid I was for kissing you. I'm sorry. I'm supposed to be the professional one, but I wasn't."

I listened closely, and at every word, my heart ached.

She sounded so sincere and worried.

"Daniela..." I whisper, but struggle to find the right words.

Suddenly, Iris gasped besides me and threw her earphones out. She grabbed our attention as she leaned forward to the window.

"Look, the island!" She squealed.