The Secret Admirer

CHAPTER 2

He sat somewhere in the middle of the crowded hall strategically placed to see who came in and left. He was waiting to see her. She caught his attention with the red trench coat. He noticed how she walked with grace. He felt like all the noise near him had been muffled and everything had been put on pause upon her entrance. Her hair was neatly combed and held back with a pretty ribbon, her face flawless with minimal makeup.

She was simple and elegant a trait he found attractive in a lady. There was no way Devin could be attracted to Sidney he was went for the sassy and audacious type.

Sidney took a seat by the front row. She felt like she being watched. Instinctively she turned and her eyes met that of Sean. For a minute she froze and held his gaze. Her mind was racing a thousand miles. What was he doing in her class? The professor entered the hall. Snatching back her attention she opened her books and tried to concentrate.

A few minutes to end of class the professor announced that for their coursework they would be put in pairs and were required to come up with a research topic, write a research proposal then submit the work before end of semester. The list of how they were paired was on the notice board.

As soon as they were dismissed she rushed outside to avoid bumping into him. She searched for her name on the notice board and felt a chill go down her spine. Even before she could doubt what she was seeing she felt his presence behind her.

"Looks like you are my partner" he told her.

"What are you doing here" she asked

"This is a learning institution" he replied casually enjoying the confused look in her eyes.

"I was under the impression you are doing Engineering studies"

"And your impression is quite correct"

"Then why are we paired together" she asked almost screaming. She noticed his amused look and composed herself.

"I don't understand how we are in the same class" she replied more calmly.

"This happens to be a common unit. I thought it was not a prerequisite but every student regardless of their course of specialization has to do it. I should have done it before but opted to take it in my final semester" he explained softly.

Sidney felt like screaming, his voice was having an effect on her.

"Then in that case I hope you are ready to work hard, I only score A's and nothing else" she replied and haughtily walked away.

"Then we are a perfect match" he replied keeping her pace.

She looked at him and frowned. She had heard about him. Most of the girls in campus had a crush on him. He was known to be a no nonsense kind of guy, very selective. He never dated or hanged out with the campus girls. He was older and tended to look down on them as immature. He had turned down several popular girls who had approached him. In the campus magazine he was listed as the hottest bachelor and was rumored to be dating a very beautiful mysterious lady. She suspected it was the girl she had seen him with yesterday.

Her hair was tied up in a tight bun. Not a strand was out of line. He had been observing her for several months and had rarely seen her let lose. She was a book worm, had most of the men drooling but never gave them any attention. He noticed she was struggling with her heavy text books and took them.

Sidney smiled at the gesture. Maybe people's perceptions about Sean were wrong. She decided to disregard the rumors and build her own opinion of him.

They went to the library for a few hours, discussed a few research topics then parted ways. By the time Sidney was getting back to her room it was evening. She put her books on her table and went to have a quick shower. Dressed in her pink dressing gown, she took her phone and dialed Dina's number. She always had the latest gossip. They talked for a while then hung up. She heard a knock on the door and went to open. As usual Tanya and Lavina were her frequent visitors.