Impeccable Love (On Hold)

Kiss and Butterflies

I WAS seated alone in class with my earphone plugged in and my head buried in a romance novel when someone sat down beside me. I caught a whiff of the person's fragrance. I couldn't place the scent, but it was really nice. The last thing I wanted was for anyone to disturb me while I was reading. But that smell wasn't just anyone. It was one smell I was familiar with. It was the smell of... 

"Hey." David said to me. I looked up at my crush smiling at me. I took off my earphone.

"You're reading a novel with an earphone?" He asked, surprised. 

"I like to read with a soft music in the background so as to drown out the noise from the surrounding."

"And the music doesn't take your attention away from the novel?"

"No it doesn't."

"Weird."

"People call what they don't understand weird."

There was a momentary awkward silence before he spoke up again. 

"So what book is that you're reading?"

In response, I raised the book to show him the title. 

"After." He read it aloud. "A romance novel?"

"Yes. I don't read any other genre." I shrugged my shoulder. 

He scoffed. "You girls and sappy romance. What exactly are you all looking for? If you want romance, get a boyfriend and stop watching and imagining others romance."

"Now first of all, thinking all girls are suckers for romance is stereotypical and secondly real life romance can't be compared to the ones in books and movies, especially not the romance in Nigeria. You guys are not romantic."

He snorted in a chuckle. "And how will you know that when you've not had a boyfriend?"

"I'm not interested."

He cocked one of his neatly carved brows and looked at me with interest. "Why?"

Now that he asked, why? I had never thought about why I was not interested in having a boyfriend. I wouldn't even say I wasn't interested because I craved for David badly. I guess I was just... 

"You're scared?" David asked. I think that was what it was. I was scared, not sure exactly what I was scared of. Let's just say I was scared of the unknown. "Wait, don't tell me you're scared to be in a relationship."

"I'm not scared." I said, looking down at my novel. 

"Look me in the eyes and tell me you're not scared."

I looked at him in the eyes and brought my face so close to his. "I can stare right into your soul and lie to you and it wouldn't change a thing." There was a melodramatic effect to my voice. 

"So you're scared then. Scared of what exactly? Commitment? Heartbreak?"

"You're jumping into conclusion now. I never said I was scared."

"It's clear that you are." He shrugged his shoulders. 

"Can we not talk about this?"

"What? You're scared of the conversation too? When will you learn to face your fears?"

David had pushed the wrong buttons. I was greatly unnerved, I wanted to lash out at him but I did my best to simmer down. I couldn't afford for him to get the wrong impression of me. Perhaps he noticed my mood because he apologized to me. 

"You don't know me enough to say that." I said dismally. 

"I shouldn't have. I'm really sorry."