Cherry & Blue (Complete ✔️)

Chapter Eighteen

Rosé

Getting back to school is overwhelming. Daniel decides to ditch me for the first two days. No surprise there. I studied on my own, having no trouble doing so. In fact, it helped me distract my thoughts and feelings over the jerk.

Around the campus, we avoid each other. I can sense his rage radiating off of his body whenever I walk past him, without sparing each other a glance. He's beginning to show his true colors and what he's capable of. I get that he didn't like me but there was no need to say all those things in front of his friends and brother and hurt me.

Although I will be honest, I miss him and his stupid words and his stupid touch and his stupid face and his stupid body—urgh I hate him. Why did he have to go and ruin the small, intimate thing we had going? But he's probably not feeling the same, he probably isn't missing teasing me or touching me.

Noah, throughout the days, has made sure I'm okay and even though he keeps apologizing, I feel happy that he's there by my side. Noah doesn't need to apologize, Daniel does. He did this. He caused this pain. Aaliyah also has made sure Daniel doesn't come near me.

Wherever I am, Daniel is around me with different girls—kissing them, hugging them. It breaks my heart knowing that those hands have touched me and those lips have been on my body. Watching him touch those girls with the same hands that touched me, twists my stomach in a revolting emotion.

Bia and he are still openly messing around but in a messed up way, I'd rather he kiss Bia than any other girl.

On the third day, Aaliyah drags me to a basketball game. I sit in the stands alongside her, Kai, Matthew, and Noah. Bia and her fellow cheerleaders are cheering enthusiastically for our players.

Every time they score, everyone cheers in excitement. Daniel is playing spellbindingly. His every move is so quick, so observing, and sneaky that I smile whenever he makes a basket.

Watching him play so passionately makes me happy. Whatever Daniel does, he does it with passion and basketball seems to be his aspiration. It almost makes me forget what happened between us but that quickly fades when he completely overlooks me when he comes to talk with Noah and Kai after the game.

I feel so thrown off, so out of place that I'm left speechless.

Noah and Kai are talking with him, Matthew and Aaliyah snuck off somewhere, leaving me alone. Bia comes up to me in her cute cheerleading outfit and hugs me and I tell her she was amazing tonight.

"Daniel." Bia hugs his waist.

I stare at them with a twisting heart.

"That was a fun game." She animatedly cheers, looking up at him with stars in her eyes.

Daniel claims her waist, and something breaks inside me.

"Kinda fruity with all that blocking if you ask me." Kai teases Daniel.

"Fuck you."

"Weren't they the team that was holding 3 back to back championships?" Bia asks, her fingers playing with the hem of his white jersey.

Daniel nods.

Kai and Noah slip into a conversation.

"You're were so good tonight."

I hear Bia whisper to Daniel in a sweet, seductive voice.

I don't want to look at them but my eyes betray me. Daniel grins, sliding his fingers into her hair and whispering something in her ear that makes her giggle.

He's treating me like I don't exist.

<3 <3 <3 <3

"Are you excited?" Bia comes over to my space and sits on the table, swinging her legs like a little girl.

I nod with a small smile.

The fundraiser is tomorrow night and so is Kai's afterparty.

The art studio door slides open and my smile fades as Daniel walks in. Wearing his West Hampton Lake U hoodie, his hair wet and cheeks blushing, he looks irresistible. And curse my heart for fluttering at the mere presence and sight of him.

Our eyes meet and my heart thunders in captivation. Those gorgeous chocolate eyes rake down my body then back to my eyes and something unreadable flashes in them. My cheeks color pink under his zealous stare.

Breaking my eyes away first, I busy myself with my design work.

Bia giggles and it makes me nosy so I look up and see them kissing. My heart aches. I don't have the right to feel jealous or angry that he's kissing her because we're not anything...it just hurts. And I guess, I'm a little to blame for his cold shoulder since I told him to stay away from but still...I didn't expect him to completely ignore me. I was expecting him to annoy me or demand I take my words back with his usual possessiveness.

Watching them kiss makes me wonder how Daniel kisses. Does he kiss with passion as cruel as his anger? Or soft and mellow like his eyes?

"Let me just grab go my sketchbooks." She pokes his cheek, a gesture that I find adorable.

As Bia disappears through the art studio locker room, I close my sketchbooks and clean up my workspace but try not to squirm under his intimidating presence. He makes me shy and nervous. It takes everything in me to not look at him and when my phone vibrates with a message, I take a breath of relief.

It's Noah.

Come over and watch Jujustu Kaisen with me? I've got pizza — Noah

I chuckle softly.

I love how cute Noah is.

You had me at pizza — Rosé

I send the message but it's not even one second before Noah calls me. I'm caught off guard but answer without a second thought.

"It better be cheese."

"So is that a yes?"

"I gotta do my assignments and haven't you already watched that anime?"

"Yeah, but I wanna watch it with you and we can play seven minutes in heaven."

"Noah, we're not playing seven minutes in heaven." I laugh at his nonchalant words.

"Scared I'll flatter you?"

"Bye, Noah." I laugh in amusement and hang up.

Bia walks back into the studio with her sketchbooks. As she goes to grab Daniel's hand, he snatches it back.

"On second thought, I need to be somewhere else." Daniel coldly says, his eyes burning with frustration.

Without giving Bia a valid reason or an apology, he walks away. Peaking at Bia, I make sure she's not hurt but the girl is smiling, amused.

"And they call us complicated."

I smile but inside, I'm mad for her. Daniel shouldn't treat her like that.