Take My Breath Away

Debbie rolled her eyes upon hearing that voice. Gail was everywhere on campus, always following her like an annoying shadow. "What's it to you?"

Debbie retorted. She was wondering why Carlos hadn't told her he was coming here.

But then, a lightbulb came on in her head. She glanced at Gail, who was so excited to see Carlos that she was close to tears. 'No wonder Debbie keeps looking over there. It's Mr. Huo! I'm not dreaming! He's here! I'm seeing Mr. Huo again!' Gail thought, her eyes reddening.

The two men, Carlos and Curtis, were so handsome they made a magnificent sight when they stood together. More and more eyes were drawn to them.

Debbie patted Gail's shoulder. The girl was bathed in happiness now that she saw her dream man. "What?" she asked, so excited that the grin on her face didn't vanish even when she turned to face Debbie.

Standing next to Gail didn't make Debbie explode with rage this time, which was odd. She pointed at Carlos and said calmly, "Look. Carlos."

Gail rolled her eyes and snorted, "I'm not blind."

Ignoring her hostility, Debbie raised her voice and suggested, "Care to make a bet?"

"Why would I do that?" Gail intended to say "Have you lost your mind?" But she remembered she had a public image to maintain, and bit back that retort.

"Don't you always want me to make a fool of myself? I'm giving you a chance. Remember the last time you set me up and I ended up embarrassing myself at Carlos Huo's launch event? Now that he's here, are you really going to miss such an opportunity to humiliate me again?" Debbie coaxed her.

Gail moved closer to Debbie with an innocent, sweet smile on her face. But what she said was neither innocent nor sweet. "Of course not. I won't miss any opportunity to screw things up for you. It's so much fun," she whispered in Debbie's ear.

Debbie took a step back to put some distance between them. Gail was not alone. A few of her friends were with her. Debbie looked at them and said, "How a

uo, Mr. Lu."

The familiar voice made Carlos' smile widen.

Curtis waved at the girl. "Debbie, come here." As an educator, Curtis was urbane in his every movement.

Debbie trotted over to them and stood where she could see Gail.

Carlos checked the time and asked, "Two minutes to class. Shouldn't you be on your way?"

Debbie didn't answer his question. She could sense annoyance in his tone, but she ignored it. Instead, she looked at Curtis with embarrassment and asked, "Mr. Lu, could you please give us a minute?"

"You want to talk to your husband in private?" Curtis asked.

Debbie nodded with a giggle. "Kinda. But I only need him for a minute. Or maybe you could just turn around."

Curtis looked at her lovingly and said with resignation, "Your minute starts now." Then, he turned his back to the couple.

Looking at her expressionless husband, Debbie smiled mischievously, which confused her man. The next second, she snuggled into his arms and shouted, "Carlos Huo, I like you. I really like you!"

She had shouted so loudly Gail didn't have to read her lips to know what she was saying, for her voice could be heard from tens of meters away.

The other girls watched her, their mouths agape. Even Jared and Dixon, who had arrived at the scene late, were astounded. 'When did she get so brave?'