Lingering taste

I didn't want to talk about it and avoided all his questions till we got home. He deserved it after all. If only he had allowed me to read a little more, maybe I wouldn't have failed so woefully.

Immediately we got home, I ran upstairs and locked the door. This act of mine left Gerard stupefied. He wanted to say something but I didn't wait to hear it.

I lay on my bed not knowing if I was sad or not when I heard a knock on the door. "Go away."

I wasn't in the mood for Lucy's drama so I just asked to be alone but after a few seconds, the knock came again.

Frustrated, I walked up to the door ready to lash at her. "I don't want to talk. Not now..." I finished talking before I realized it was Gerard.

I narrowed my eyes before walking back to my bed. I didn't say a word and just lay down on my bed with my hand under my head.

"I brought pizza." was all he said to make me stand up.

"Really?" I jumped up and looked at the pizza covetously. I ran to the washroom and washed my hands then ran as fast as I could to finally get my hands on that yummy pizza.

Gerard looked at me surprised by this behaviour of mine but said nothing and just watched.

I happily ate the cut pizza to my satisfaction forgetting all about my failure.

"You never said you were hungry. I would have gotten you so much pizza before we came home." Gerard spoke obviously hinting at the fact that pizza could wipe away my frustrations.

I stopped eating for a second then shrugged. What happened is in the past and I can't change it but this pizza is staring at me in the present and certainly, I intend to make the best of it.

Gerard stared at me surprised at how easily my mood could just switch. After there pizza remained just one slice, I realized that he had not eaten any and pursed my lips.

"Do you want some?" I asked as I passed the pack to him.

Gerard raised his brow and looked at me with a gaze I could not understand. What was that look for?

"If I eat it wouldn't your mood change again?" he asked with a straight face and I thought for a moment. Indeed, I hadn't had enough of it yet. Seeing an open opportunity, I began to eat it not thinking what he would say.

I was satisfied when I no longer saw any pizza on the pack and went to the washroom to walk my hands before returning to sit on my bed lazily.

I smiled as I remembered the taste in my mouth. Very tasty pizza.

"What happened in the test hall? Did someone treat you badly?" Gerard asked and his expression was surprisingly calm even though his voice was as cold as ice.

When I heard the first sentence, I froze but the second sentence just cracked me open. I chuckled and because he was so serious when he asked the question, this chuckle sounded rather out of place.

I noticed his gaze and pursed my lips. I cleared my throat and sat up. "No one treated me badly. 'Not like the can.' I just didn't like the way the test went but the result would be released in..." I checked the clock and froze.

Less than five minutes? I ate that pizza so happily that I didn't even know that the day was far spent.

I looked like I wanted to cry but soaked it in. Gerard noticed my eyes on the clock and smiled.

Before I could even say anything more, the phone Gerard gave me earlier buzzed with a new notification.

I ran to my bag and picked it up but my hands were shaking. I saw that there was a new notification but I didn't open it and it didn't have a title so I had no idea where it was from.

"Do you need help checking that?" Gerard offered to help but Nah... Or maybe that would be better.

I passed the phone to him and I closed my eyes as he was sliding the phone. I peeked between my fingers but his expression was dark and scary. This only made me tenser.

I got too nervous and took the phone from him but unfortunately, it wasn't a message from the school but a configuration notification for my SIM.

I narrowed my gaze and dropped the phone on the bed. "You almost killed me with that gaze of yours. I thought it was really the message from the school and that I had failed woefully. You're mean."

I pouted and folded my arms. He picked up the phone and showed the screen to me. I looked at it and raised a brow. What is he showing me now?

I looked at the screen and my eyes widened. It was the result. I took it from his hand and read through it and in the next minute, I jumped.

"97.5 I got 97.5" I kept jumping and Gerard was staring at me not knowing what to say.

I was so happy that my hair was all over my face and I didn't realize that Gerard was standing so close to me as I bumped into him.

He held my arms to make sure I didn't fall as my face collided with his chest.

The situation became awkward as I pursed my lips and pushed my hair behind my ear.

He raised his brow and for the first time, I saw him confused but it was only for a second. "You do have different faces, don't you. One minute you're sad the next you are happy because of food then, at last, you are jumping all over the place. Who exactly are you?"

His words weren't harsh only like a man who didn't understand what was going on. I was scared that I revealed something I shouldn't but in the next minute, he noticed that I was confused and hugged me which by the way, was unexpected.

"You did great."