Hacking The Relationship Code

Chapter 16: Sweaty and Smelly

Adrian's POV

I was speeding back home at a dubious pace. My navigation senses were circumstantially numbed as I drove wherever the road took me. The slapping of the wind n my cheeks and the chill from the temperature aided at calming me down 'cause, right now, I had too much of adrenaline flowing through my veins. As soon as I reached home, I handed over the notes to Cole without speaking a word with him and retarded to my room banging the door behind me.

Anger, that's what was boiling inside me right now. I was mad but at no one in particular. So outraged that I decided to double with my punching bag. How did I let all this happen? I was under the impression that Ginna was avoiding me 'cause she had read too much into the gifting gesture but the truth was; she was expecting more. More than just plain, platonic friendship. Of course, I wasn't ready to give it to her. I mean I just couldn't bring myself to.

Rejecting Ginna felt lot different than the others. It was just as unpleasant but this time the disappointment had graced both of us. I had always led my life a certain way, nonetheless, I planned it to be that way. Girls never played any role in it and I preferred it that way. It wasn't like I was waiting for the right one. I guess it was never very important for me to have someone to share my life with. At some level I was convinced that I could never find 'the one' since I was indeed the 'wrong one'.

Ginna wasn't aware of my past. She wasn't aware of how ugly love could get and why I didn't entertain that idea in the first place. I had been betrayed by this feeling many times before and I didn't want to give it the power to do it again. I had spent a better part of my life; giving chances to my father, the one person who was obligated to love me and I knew how that had turned out. My father had tried offering chances to my mother but even that didn't fare well. I had always had hard luck with love and I wasn't going to give it a chance to screw me again. On top of that it was Ginna this time. I could take that from anyone but not Ginna. If she screwed me over, I wouldn't know what to do.

If I was going to be honest with myself, Ginna had always been special to me. I loved being the object of her attention. In 10th grade, when she was with Nick Garryson, I swear I felt like punching the grin off his smug face every time I saw them together. Her being in my life meant something to me and if I was thinking in an unbiased fashion, she already had some sway over me. I might not be the funniest or the most charming person in the world but when I made her laugh, it felt like I had just bagged a lottery. Her being so beautiful and smart didn't hurt my feelings either.

I wasn't ready to give her what she wanted but I couldn't just break it off with the person I felt closest to. Couldn't we just act as if nothing ever happened and still be friends? 

I tried getting some sleep but as soon as I closed my eyes, I saw her face. It bore the same painful expression she had before I took off from her apartment. It kept questioning me and testing my patience. Damn it! Can't I even sleep peacefully without thinking about what happened for once?

All the thoughts that followed directed me to a premise any logically adept person could configure; I liked Ginna.

Maybe I wasn't ready to accept it yet but a tiny part of me had been feeling this way for a while now. Her saying that she wanted more, made it even more real.

Now the real question was; whether I was going to let my past cost me the best person in my life or was I going to throw away my insecurities and pursue something that could make me the happiest person on the planet. 

Ginna's POV

Thank god I started at 7-eleven from Saturday. It was assuredly the only distraction that helped me remain sane. After Friday night, I couldn't face Adrian. I purposely took the corner seats in class so that I didn't have to sit beside him. I would refrain from waiting after class, making some excuse about being late for work.