Learning To Love (bxb) ✔️

Chapter 10

Rowan! ^^

Liam's POV

Theo, Ethan and I head over to this little pizza place where we're supposed to meet Michael and Rowan. The colourful neon sign is lit up brightly, and the smell of fresh pizza is heavenly.

We sit down at a table and not too long later, Michael arrives with an ever so slightly taller man in tow and- wow.

My first thought is that he's definitely very attractive, with broad shoulders, a chiseled jawline, nice cheekbones, and calming bluish-green eyes. His hair is a light brown colour and looks soft and fluffy.

He sits down next to Michael before extending a hand and greeting us.

"Hi, I'm Rowan. Nice to officially meet you guys." His voice is low but soothing. Damn, he's checking all my boxes.

"H-hi... I'm Liam. Nice- nice to meet you too." I stammer. My voice comes out a lot quieter than I intended. Despite finding him attractive, I still can't bring myself not to act nervous around him because he's... kind of intimidating.

His hands are huge... or maybe mine are small, but when he shakes my hand I can feel my hand being completely engulfed in his.

I let go of his hand and he turns to Ethan, repeating the gesture.

We settle down and order some pizzas to share between all 5 of us. As we wait for the pizzas to arrive, Michael and Theo share a glance before turning towards the group.

Theo nudges Ethan. "Mingle."

"Er, so you're also a student here, Rowan?" Ethan looks at Rowan curiously.

"Yeah, I'm in my masters studying to become a physiologist."

"Oh cool! I'm still in undergrad. I want to become an architect one day though."

"Interesting choice of career. What about you, Liam?" Rowan turns to look at me.

"I... uh. I'm going to be a vet, hopefully." I say.

After that, conversation flowed regularly easily. Rowan was polite and friendly. He knew how to talk in a way that didn't make me uncomfortable, and allowed me to share quite a bit about myself too. I found this quite interesting because I've never met anyone I was able to converse with so easily before.

Once we finished our lunch, we all walked over to our dorm since it's not too far. I see Ethan chatting with Theo and Michael a few steps ahead of me, and Rowan happens to walk beside me.

"So, what was your favourite school subject? Was is biology? Just a guess since you're studying animal medical." Rowan comments casually, strolling with his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah, I picked up on biology the fastest out of the three sciences, actually."

"Oh, that's cool. Biology is my favourite science too. I'm the best at bio and chem. Not so much physics, but I'm working on it." He sends a small smile my way, and I can't help but return it.

"What about hobbies? You mentioned you liked music and piano before. Anything else?"

"I like to cook. I'm not sure if it really counts as a hobby, but I've been doing it since I was eleven and it's kind of... therapeutic I suppose." My mind drifts for a moment, all those memories with me cooking for mum when she was too tired after she came back from one of her many part time jobs.

"That's nice, and it's great that your hobby is useful. Personally I'm really terrible at cooking. I've tried before, and I've always burnt one thing or another." Rowan chuckles.

"I'm sure you're not... that bad." I attempt to reassure. However, I falter at the end of my sentence because I can't really say for sure considering I've never seen Rowan cook, "what about your hobbies?"

"Well, I love going to the gym and working out. It's a way for me to vent any stress or tension I feel. Basketball is also really fun, I used to play a lot when I was little but don't have much time to do so anymore. Not to mention there's not many people to play with." He explains. I can't help but let my eyes subtly gaze over the rest of him as he mentions working out. I can't really tell how muscled he is since he is wearing several layers, but he must be pretty fit if he regularly works out.

After that we catch up with the three who were ahead of us, reaching the dorm.

"Rowan's been here before right?" I asks as everyone steps into the dorm.

"Yeah, once or twice. To pick up Mike or drop off Theo mainly." Rowan replies. I nod thoughtfully, wondering why I've never seen him or heard him coming over.

Ethan, Theo and I lead Michael and Rowan to the living room, and we settle on the couches. Michael and Theo take the three-seated couch along with Ethan, so I sit on the couch across from them with Rowan.

We ended up chatting about some more things. I learned about his sisters and how he had a lot of extra-curricular classes as a child. I learned that he hates doing the dishes, but doesn't mind doing other chores like laundry or vacuuming. He doesn't mind dogs or cats but isn't a big fan of hamsters.

Ethan left around 5:45 to go to dinner with some of his dance group friends. When it came time to deciding what to eat for dinner, we all sat around thinking for a good few minutes before Rowan suggested this Italian restaurant he knows.

The restaurant was really nice and elegant. Theo ditched me and decided to sit next to his boyfriend, so I sat next to Rowan instead (not that I minded).

"So, if you don't mind me asking, why did you want to become a vet?" Rowan inquires, seeing as Michael and Theo are busy having a private conversation.

I pause for a moment, contemplating on whether I should tell him the truth or not. I've only known Rowan for half a day, but we've talked so much that I already know quite a bit about him and I'm pretty comfortable talking to him too.

I decide to give him the truth. I find it difficult to lie anyway.

"Well, ever since I was little, I found it really difficult to talk to people and make friends. My parents got me a kitten for my birthday when I was five years old. I named her Bella. She got me through a lot. She's my best friend, and made me realize the passion I have for working with animals and caring for them. Then... my parents divorced and my social anxiety... got worse. Anyway, long story short Bella's very close to my heart."

"That's... wow, that's really inspiring actually. It's a lot deeper than I expected." Rowan sends me a smile.

-

The food came and it was delicious. I can definitely see why Rowan likes this restaurant. I see Michael give Theo a chaste kiss, and I couldn't help but feel a bit awkward at that. Not that I mind them showing some PDA, they are a couple after all. It just... made me a little more aware of my single status.

"Keep the PDA to a minimum please." Rowan chuckles. We turn to glance at him.

"So, how are you and Li getting along?" Theo asks him curiously, glancing at me with raised eyebrows. I feel my face start to get warm and I bite my cheek nervously. What does he think of me?

"Really well. He's very cute." Rowan comments, ruffling my hair.

"Hey! I'm not cute." I protest, glaring up at him. He's too tall for me to intimidate him in any way, this isn't fair.

"And Liam told me his whole story of becoming a vet. I think it's a very adorable aspiration." Rowan continues, a smile on his lips.

"I guess Liam's getting along well with you too, since he's not stuttering over every word and is actually held a conversation with you." Theo points out, and Rowan appears content at the information. I can't believe Theo just disclosed that! How embarrassing...

"Yeah, you're a good friend." I feebly attempt to salvage my embarrassment.