Chapter 5

"I've literally been here for like five minutes, so no, I haven't heard about how popular you are, Mr. Dante," I replied, trying to be irritated by his cockiness, but really, it was doing strange, wonderful things to my body. The coy smile remains on his face. "Damn, what a pity. I usually don't have to talk myself up." "Yeah, I'm sure I probably would've heard about how girls just start tearing their clothes off when you walk into a room, huh?" I teased, raising an eyebrow. I wonder if I’d be one of those girls. No. Stop. I’m not thirsty like that! He chuckled lightly. "You know, that really doesn't happen as often as you think it would." I feign a pout. "Aww, I'm sorry to hear that." By now, I'd completely ditched the classwork and my full attention was on him. It was a first for me, actually having a guy pay attention. I'm usually the quiet, nerdy girl who sits at the front of the class and doesn’t make friends. So, his genuine interest piqued my curiosity. I couldn't help but wonder why he was drawn to me. Clearly, I wasn't his usual type, but hey, maybe my attempts at a little reinvention were starting to work. He casually checked the clock at the front of the classroom and then shifted his gaze back to me. "What are the rest of your classes for the day? Maybe we have more than one together?" I got out my phone and carefully examined the picture of my schedule (I wasn’t about to take any chance of losing that crucial piece of paper). "Uhm, study hall, Statistics, and Psychology." A slight frown of disappointment creased his forehead. He glanced down at his phone. "Damn," he mumbled after a long moment. "What's wrong?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "I've seemed to have lost my number. Can I have yours?" he asked with a poker face, seemingly looking straight into my soul. I couldn't suppress the girly giggle that escaped me. "Wow, that was a good one. I don't think your girlfriend would find that very funny." There was no way a guy this hot was single, right? There had to be girls throwing themselves at him. He smirked, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Lucky for me, I don't have one," he answered softly, his gaze lingering on mine, "but you do look a lot like my next one." I giggled again, feeling the warmth spread to my cheeks. "Is that so?" "Was that good enough to get your number?" I pretended to ponder, running my fingers along my chin. "You know what, I think it was." He handed me his phone, and I swiftly typed in my name and number. A look of accomplishment spread across his face. "Damn, that was easy." I couldn't help but feel a twinge of embarrassment, realizing he could probably get anything easily from me at this point. "Shut up," I mutter, my fingers grazing the defined muscles of his bicep as I playfully slap it. A surge of electricity courses through my arm, an intense sensation that sends shivers down my spine and ignites every nerve ending in my body. It's a bewildering rush, leaving me breathless and utterly captivated. What the hell was that? The way his eyes widened let me know that he felt it too, but he also brushed it off with a casual demeanor. "So, is it okay if I text you during your study hall then?" he asked. I smiled and nodded softly, aware that we only had a few minutes before class was supposed to end. Swiftly, I closed all the tabs on my laptop and stowed it away in my backpack. The bell rang loudly, prompting me to grab my bag and rise from my seat. I waited until most of the other students had filed out of the door before I followed them. I could feel the warmth of Dante's body as he trailed closely behind me. Stepping through the doorframe, I found Jasmine waiting for me in the hallway. Her gaze followed Dante as he silently walked past her. "Hey, dummy," she called after him. He gave her a dismissive wave and continued walking down the hallway. I stared in the direction that he disappeared, silently wishing he would come back. The desire to see him again surprised me; after all, why was I missing someone I just met? And why did I want to know everything about him? My thoughts were interrupted when Jasmine grabbed my arm and started dragging me down the hallway. "Hey, Angel, how was your first class? I forgot to mention that my twin was in your class. Did you meet him?" I simply nodded, "Yeah, I didn't really get to talk to him much, but he seems like a really nice guy." She scoffed, still scowling in his direction. "Yeah, every girl he meets seems to think that. Stay far away from him, okay? He's a dog!" It was interesting how she was so cheerful towards everyone but her own brother. I’m guessing this was a sibling thing. She rolled her eyes, a hint of frustration evident in her tone. "Seriously, Angel, he's trouble. Don't let those charming looks fool you, you’ll only get hurt." A nervous, fake laugh escaped from my mouth, “yeah, duly noted.” But why did a part of me still want to find out how much trouble he was?