Meet Me In The Umbrella Garden

Chapter 1: The Seatmate

It was... strange, indeed.

When Ivy was the first person to take the seat at the back closest to the windows, of course, she knew there was bound to be competition, even when she had already taken the seat on the first day of school when there was bound to be no seating arrangements yet.

And yet, there she was. Bothered, by just the presence of this random boy who came up to her.

"Uh... That's supposed to be my seat?"

Ivy looked up briefly. Her head had been lazily buried in her own arms as she had slumped onto the desk. And even after spotting the boy looking down at her after having said those words before, she didn't show any reaction at all.

And instead, she observed him.

He was tall, alright. Probably about six feet. And he had sharp facial features and a deep voice as she's heard earlier. Put that all together and that makes up for a very intimidating person.

But Ivy didn't care... Or at least, she tried to act like she didn't.

"Well, I came here first so I claim this seat. Go sit somewhere else."

She almost regretted that. And her facial expressions could have exposed that if it weren't for the fact that she had buried her face back into her folded arms yet again. Truth be told, she was definitely intimidated by this huge presence that loomed over her...

But it seemed it wouldn't take long before she realized that there really wasn't anything to feel intimidated about.

"Oh... Sorry, I just wanted to ask if I could sit there so I can leave in case of an emergency without disturbing anyone. So... could you...?"

That... was odd.

Once again, Ivy raised her head. But this time, the expression on her face showed mild curiosity as she looked back at the boy.

That was odd. Very odd, indeed...

How come his tone suddenly changed?

And then she saw it: his eyes. Apart from his intimidatingly tall height and sharp features, there was something else that was different from this boy's other features.

His eyes shone, not with the intimidating, fiery gaze that Ivy could have expected from someone like him. Instead, they shone with a strange sense of purity and innocence; they reminded her of a young pup. The irony almost made her laugh, but she didn't, especially considering the fact that this boy was still looking at her with curious, expecting eyes. Those same eyes that almost captivated Ivy.

"No," she finally spoke, before she proceeded to continue ignoring the boy.

She could have sworn she heard a disappointed "oh" from him. But he left eventually, leaving the girl in her own peace and quiet... But only for a few minutes.

The bell rang, signaling the beginning of classes, and it didn't take long before Ivy heard the sound of shoes collectively shuffling and chairs sliding against the floor. Including the one beside her.

"Hmm?" She raised her head again, and once again, her eyes settled on the same boy that had bothered her just a few minutes ago, pushing his own chair onto the empty space truly beside the windows. "Huh? Hey?!"

"W-why? What's wrong? Is someone seated here?" he asked, clueless. And that, for some reason, only annoys Ivy even more.

"No?! But that doesn't mean you can just take it! There's no seat there for a reason!"

"But Ms. Alvarez told me it's okay."

The moment he said those words, Ivy suddenly fell silent. Their class adviser told him to take the empty space beside the windows... Really?

"Hey–" Ivy tried to confront him again, but Ms. Alvarez herself soon entered the classroom, catching the attention of the students as she spoke while walking through the door.

"Good morning students!"

Ivy turned to look ahead, and as she did, she spot the teacher nodding towards the male student beside her, as if to assure him.

So... he was telling the truth.

Ivy gave up, eventually, but she still let out a silent groan as she leaned back on her seat, giving her new seatmate a side-eyed glare. And when he noticed him, she turned fully. "That was supposed to be my seat."

To her surprise, that innocent look in his eyes was suddenly replaced by a mischievous playfulness, and he smiled at her just as the sun shined comically from behind him, giving him some sort of halo. "Well, I was here first... So I guess you're stuck where you are."