Chapter 65: Mean Girl Preferences

Chapter 65: Chapter 65: Mean Girl Preferences

I made my way to Nicole’s office and knocked on the door.

"Come in," she called.

I opened the door and stepped inside, closing it behind me before looking her way. She was seated behind her desk, going through something on her computer, but the moment she looked up and saw me, her face lit up with a smile.

I walked toward the couch, dropping my bag beside it before sitting down.

"Seems you’ve recovered from this morning."

Nicole blinked at me, then placed a hand against her chest. "Recovered? I’m still dealing with emotional trauma, you know."

I looked at her. "Emotional trauma. That’s what we’re calling it?"

"You abandoned me a few blocks from campus, Nathan." She shook her head sadly, though the smile tugging at her lips ruined the effect. "I had to drive the rest of the way. Alone. Do you know how lonely that was?"

I couldn’t help smiling. "I’m sorry you had to go through that."

"Thank you." Apparently, that was all the apology she needed. She reached beside her desk and picked up a bag containing two takeaway containers.

I glanced at it as she stood. "What’s that?"

"Lunch." She walked over to the couch and held one out to me. "I got some for both of us."

I took it from her. "Thanks."

"You’re welcome." She smiled at me again before sitting beside me, close enough that our shoulders touched.

I opened the container and took a bite. I hadn’t realized how hungry I was until then.

Nicole watched me for a moment before asking, "How was your first paper? Becker’s, right?"

I swallowed and nodded. "Yeah. It was manageable."

She raised an eyebrow. "Manageable?"

"Most of the questions were simple. A few were designed to make people question their life choices, but that’s pretty standard for him."

Nicole laughed softly. "That sounds like Becker."

I took another bite. "I think I did pretty well, though."

Her smile brightened at that. "And your next paper?"

I was halfway through chewing when I answered. "MA 216."

"MA 216," Nicole repeated, thinking for a moment. "Engineering Mathematics II..." She paused, then looked at me again. "Richardson?"

I nodded, still chewing.

"You’re going to breeze through that one, aren’t you?" she asked.

I swallowed before answering. "Probably. I’m his favourite student, after all."

Nicole scoffed. "You’re my favourite student, not his."

I smiled and went back to my food. She was being cute, and I wasn’t about to argue with her when I was enjoying myself.

Her phone buzzed on the desk almost immediately. Nicole glanced toward it, then held her food out to me. "Hold this for a second?"

I took the container from her as she got up to retrieve her phone. She picked it up, read the message, and made a face that fell somewhere between boredom and mild irritation, as if she’d expected something but was also already tired of dealing with it.

She typed a reply, dropped the phone back on her desk, and returned to the couch.

I handed her food back and watched her settle in beside me, apparently ready to resume lunch as though nothing had happened.

I took another bite before asking, "Work stuff?"

Nicole shook her head. "Alex texted. Apparently, Tessa got drunk again after another fight with Brandon."

"That bad, huh?"

"You have no idea." She sighed. "Those two are always fighting, then making up, then fighting all over again. It’s like they never get tired of putting themselves through the same thing."

She took another bite, looking thoroughly unimpressed with the whole situation. "Honestly, I don’t know how they do it. At some point, you’d think they’d either figure things out or leave each other alone."

I didn’t say anything. I was too busy remembering Alessandro’s little comment about Nicole getting bored sooner or later.

The nerve of that guy.

But it wasn’t as though his interest in Nicole had been difficult to notice. The way he’d spoken to me that night made it pretty clear he had feelings for her, and judging by that little comment, they weren’t exactly new.

I wondered if Nicole had noticed. She was easily the smartest and most observant person I knew. I wasn’t exactly lacking in either department, but even I had to admit she was on another level when it came to picking up on things other people missed. If Alessandro’s feelings were that obvious to me, there was no way she hadn’t noticed.

Then again, knowing Nicole, she might have noticed and simply decided it wasn’t worth paying attention to. Still, I wanted to find out. Mostly out of curiosity, obviously. It had absolutely nothing to do with wanting to know if I had any competition.

"You know he likes you, right?" I finally said.

Nicole paused mid-chew and looked at me. "Hm?"

I met her eyes. "Alessandro."

She finished chewing and swallowed, studying my face as though she were trying to figure out how serious I was. Then her lips curved into a smile. "Are you jealous?"

"I’m being serious right now."

That only seemed to make it harder for her to keep a straight face. She pressed her lips together, clearly fighting a smile, while I decided to ignore it.

"Seems like you do know," I said.

"Hmm," she nodded. "He actually confessed to me on my twentieth birthday."

She immediately took another bite of her food, as though she’d just mentioned something completely ordinary.

I kept staring at her. "And?"

Nicole chewed, swallowed, then smiled at me. "I told him he wasn’t my type and that I only talked to him because he’s Tessa’s big brother."

She took another bite of her food before adding, "I also told him that if he ever tried asking me out again, I’d stop talking to him altogether."

I blinked and just stared at her. I hadn’t expected her to be that mean about it.

"That’s so... cruel."

She shrugged, looking entirely unbothered. "Told you I’m a mean girl."

I looked at her as she went back to eating, apparently having no regrets whatsoever.

"But you two seemed to be on pretty good terms at the party," I continued.

Nicole swallowed her last bite, closed her empty takeaway container, and set it aside. "That’s because he agreed to be just friends."

"But he still likes you."

"Yeah." She smiled. "It’s kinda sad."

I looked at her bright, perfectly happy eyes. Whatever sadness she felt for Alessandro, it certainly wasn’t showing on her face.

"You don’t really care how he feels, do you?"

She shook her head slowly. "Not one bit."

I stared at her for a moment, trying to reconcile the woman sitting beside me with the one who’d apparently threatened to cut off a longtime friend for daring to ask her out. It was both impressive and a little terrifying. Nicole had the brains, the money, and the confidence to be exactly the kind of woman people would think twice about crossing. Yet I kept getting the version of her that pouted when I wouldn’t kiss her and looked at me like I’d personally invented happiness whenever I agreed to spend time with her.

I wasn’t sure whether to consider myself lucky or deeply, deeply compromised.

"What happens if I hurt you?" I asked.

Nicole turned to look at me. "Define hurt."

She seemed genuinely curious about where I was going with the question, which somehow made me feel like I’d just walked myself into a trap.

She tilted her head slightly. "Cheat on me?"

I briefly considered pointing out that we weren’t technically a couple yet, but decided against it. That wasn’t what I meant anyway.

"No. Not that. Let’s say we got into an argument and I stopped talking to you or something."

"Oh." She looked thoughtful for a moment, then nodded to herself. "I’ll cry, I guess."

I stared at her for a moment, unsure what to do with that answer. I’d expected something a little more threatening, given what she’d just told me about Alessandro. Instead, she’d calmly told me she’d cry, and the thought of putting that look of sadness on her face didn’t sit well with me.

She seemed to notice the look on my face because she tilted her head the other way, a small smile forming on her lips.

"What? Did you think I’d say something like I’d ruin your life or hate you?"

I said nothing.

"I mean..." She looked thoughtful again, as though she were genuinely considering it. "I’d probably think about it if you really hurt me, but I don’t think I’d be able to go through with it."

She paused, still thinking. Then she shook her head. "Nah. I don’t think I can."

Then, just as casually, she glanced at the time. "It’s almost twelve thirty."

"Right. Yeah."

I took another bite and chewed while staring at her. Nicole stared back, a smile slowly spreading across her face. Then, as though she’d found something in my eyes that I wasn’t entirely sure I’d meant to show her, she smiled a little wider.

"Love you too," she said.