Chapter 13
*love doesn't rely on physical features*
Lesotho
Liam felt his neck prickled ,he had the feeling he was been watched,though he was used to been the sole focus of people ,what he does is just to ignore them since he was typically uncomfortable about getting such attention ,he mistakenly raised his head and caught Iris standing closely,his gaze dropped on hers,they had not seen each other since the rape incident with peter had been settled .
Iris felt her Heartbeat Escalates as Liam studied her intently for what felt like minutes probably mere seconds.
'To be the sole focus of such kind of intensity is disarming at best 'Iris thought inwardly
Amusement lurks in Liam's eyes as iris grapples for composure praying he doesn't notice the effect he was having on her, he waved his hand lazily motioning for her to come close,Iris felt butterflies singing in her stomach as she walked towards him.
Liam noted she was clad in a knee length jean skirt,faded T-shirt and a simple footwear,her shoulder length dark hair clipped at the side ,her face clean from makeup,only a shiny pink lip gloss which made her kissable lips glow .
Jeez!she was just too pretty for her own good.
"Hey pretty " Why does such endearment had to be sweet coming from him
"Hi William" She replied shyly removing her gaze from his dominating ones
"So how have your day been"
"Perfect so far" Iris replied Quickly
"Hmmm" Liam gave her a secret smile gesturing for her to sit close to him.
Iris awkwardly sat close to him tightly clutching the duffel bag she held.
Liam noticing her discomfort reached out for her hands lightly which made Iris stiffened expecting another spark at there closeness.
"You don't have to feel uncomfortable when you are around me"
"I...I...I" Iris stuttered then paused taking a deep breath "I realised I haven't really thanked you enough for saving me "
Gosh! Why does he has to be this handsome ,it was surely playing with her senses
"Oh! I thought you did thank me times more than I could count and its enough for me" Liam said as he looked at her "Let's forget about the past and move on and I want to use this opportunity to do this ,I Guess I owe you an apology ...am sorry I ran over you,am sorry for be a Jerk"
Iris gaped at him surprised, if there is one thing she had learnt about him is that he doesn't apologize very often.
Liam gave her a coy smile waiting for her reply
Iris cleared her throat "like you said its all in the past ,I have already forgiven you"
"Good...so how did you and Philip met" Liam asked
"Well I got to know Philip when he and my roommate were at loggerheads over what am still yet to fathom"
"Yeah I notice that too..Bad blood I guess" Liam chuckled alongside Iris who nodded with a smile
"How do you cope with school ,expenses since I heard you are on scholarship"
"Like you already know I work at the school canteen"iris replied
" Don't it affect your studies and school routine"loam asked genuinely concerned
"I just find a way to manage and squeeze in both schedules"
Iris found Liam looking at her in such a strange way
"What?" She asked with a small smile
"Trust me its rare to find someone with such doggedness as yours , it only piques my curiosity to get to know you more...intrigue me" Liam said uncrossing his legs as he faced her all ears
Iris gave a short laugh"there is really nothing much to know about me ohhh....am just a simple girl that's all"
"Nah I refuse to believe that ,lemme give you a head start, where are you from...your family?
" I a Bona fide Anambra girl,I grew up in my maternal home with my mother and grandfather ,I am an only child"
"Really am an only child too...see we have something in common...but what about you father"
"I was told my father died before I was even born,I never got to know him or see him" he watched the sadness in her eyes but it disappear as quickly as it came
"Am so sorry for the loss" he spoke sincerely squeezing their still held hands
"Its okay,it happened a long time,I just want to graduate with flying colours and do my family all proud"
"Am sure you will in time soon ,you are not only beautiful, you are intelligent and hardworking "
Iris laughed with muffled amusement "you think I have all those qualities"
"I see you have all Those qualities but your good qualities came along with a loosed tongue"Liam chuckled " that's a flaw"
Iris flushed literally her chin a bright shade of red
"Okay enough about me tell me more about yourself" she quickly cut in
"But I meant what I said about the good aspect of you Iris,calling you beautiful is merely a gross understatement" he emphasized
Iris also noted he didn't give compliment freely unless he meant it
"Emmm..thanks tell me about yourself too" she flushed
"Nothing much to tell too,am from Edo state,an only child like you,I have an overly protective mother and can understanding father " he stated laconically aware of the other parts he had left out
"I spent most of my life time abroad ,this Basically my first four years in Nigeria "
"Oh that obviously explains your foreign accent ,it suits you well though"
"Thanks " he replied indolently and caught her studying him "what?"
"Twenty Five why" he asked
"Nothing never mind" her eyes widened then she shakes her head bending to pickup the duffel bag she had been clutching tightly to
"I also came to return this,I seem to have a wardrobe of your jackets with me" she smiled
"Thanks " he replied her tossing the jacket aside
"I really did my best to make it look as sparkling as you gave them to me" Iris said teasingly as she remembered how much Ivie had told her the two jacket was worth,it was worth enough for her upkeep for a whole year..
Liam chuckled "it wasn't necessarily a big deal to stress yourself that much,thanks all the same"
"I got to run along" Iris spoke attempting to stand up ,Liam held her back
"Wait" he said making her to look at him "I know we didn't start out been nice to each other but I really like you ,if you would give me a chance,I will like to keep you close to me so I can comprehend what this feeling is all about"
Iris looked at him dazedly confused "I don't understand"
"I would like us to get to know each other more Iris"
Iris caught his intense stare"I...I can't go beyond been more than friends with you William "she replied him inwardly concluding it was the right thing to do
" why is that Pretty ,I really really like you"
The reason was she not prepared to go through that lane,she couldn't deny the way her heart fluttered whenever he was close,or the sizzling sparks whenever they touched each other,her common sense told her to run away because her mother once told her
'its better to fall from a tree and break your back than fall in love and break your heart '
"Am sorry I really have to go" she said as she scurried off without a backward glance
Liam watched her retreating form as he stood up caught up between going after her or holding back,even if he wanted to cout her ,how the hell does a man do that ,since he had always had women dangling endlessly around him.