Chapter 12
Chapter 12
Meanwhile, Luciana had dragged Vivian back to the design department’s lecture hall. There were still a few minutes before class started.
They grabbed seats in the very back row. By now, Vivian had completely forgotten she had just been in a full–on brawl. Her mind was stuck on the image of Thiago gently holding Larciana’s hand and speaking to her in that soft, low voice.
She looked like she had just been struck by lightning. Her face was blank, and her curiosity was practically boiling over.
Suddenly, she whipped her head around, startling Luciana mid–brush as she helped fix Vivian’s hair.
“Luci, what the hell was that? Did something go down between you and Thiago?”
Luciana flinched but tried to play it cool. “No. We were just classmates back in high school.”
“No?” Vivian’s voice was so loud that it echoed to the front of the lecture hall. “If nothing is going on, why was he holding your hand like that? What is he, some kind of handsy creep?”
Luciana silently thanked God that Vivian hadn’t seen Thiago tying up her hair. If she had, she’d probably be picking out baby names by now. She kept her gaze down, still brushing Vivian’s hair. “Maybe he’s just… helpful?”
“Helpful?” Vivian scoffed. “Then why didn’t he help me beat the crap out of Wendy?”
Sensing the conversation was heading back to that mess, Luciana quickly changed the subject. “What happened anyway? Why were you two fighting?”
Vivian thumped her chest, trying to calm herself down. “I saw Wendy texting Nigel. She sent him a bunch of lingerie pics and asked which one he liked best. She said she wanted to wear it for him.”
Luciana froze, then asked, “And Nigel? Did he reply?”
“Hell no. If he had, I would’ve smacked him too!”
Luciana let out a small, dimpled smile. “Nigel’s a good guy.”
Vivian raised an eyebrow, smirking. “Girl, the hottest guy in Jaxwell is out here worrying about you, and you’re still jealous of me?”
That “hottest guy in Jaxwell” line made Luciana laugh. She shook her head and said lightly, “You’re overthinking it. Thiago just remembers me from high school, that’s all. He’s always been kind.”
But as she said it, she couldn’t help but think of the 98 burritos Thiago had eaten during their senior year–all because of her. A flicker of guilt crept into her chest.
Thiago really was a good guy. Back in high school, even though he always had that cold, quiet vibe and barely said a word, he was never mean to her. That was what made her start to think that maybe–just maybe she might have a chance.
The only time he ever talked to her was that early summer afternoon before the college entrance exam. She had been sitting in the back of the classroom during lunch break, beading a bracelet. She planned to confess her feelings before the exam.
She had her head down and was focusing on beading the bracelet when suddenly, Thiago’s face appeared right next to hers.
“What are you doing?” he had asked.
Luciana jumped, quickly shoving the bracelet into her desk drawer. “Nothing,” she muttered.
Back then, it was a trend at school for girls to bead bracelets and give them to their crushes as a wordless confession. Thiago probably knew about it. He had definitely seen the beads clenched in her pale fingers.
But he didn’t react at all. He just sat down, stone–faced as ever, and kept his eyes on his phone as if nothing happened.
Looking back, Luciana knew she should’ve snapped out of her feelings for him then and there. Thiago had never liked her. She had made it all up in her head.
How could something as cheap as a beaded bracelet ever catch Thiago’s eye?
Vivian’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts. “Luci, be honest. Do you think Thiago likes you?”
Luciana’s hand froze mid brush. She steadied her voice, trying to bury the ache in her chest. “No way. I’m not delusional. And Thiago has a gulfriend, remember? Don’t say stuff like that.”
“Thiago’s girlfriend? Who? Monica?”
Luciana nodded. “Yeah. I saw them at The Fable Fox last night while I was working.”
She had to keep her feelings locked up. Thiago could never know–not him, not anyone. She didn’t want to be the punchline of some cruel joke, She needed to protect what little pride she had left.
They said unrequited love was a one–person war. And for someone as stubborn as Luciana, if she didn’t come to her senses soon, her whole life fighting a battle that no one else even knew was happening.
