Alex took a second to reply. It was not the first time a girl had come this close. But it felt like the first time he did not feel nauseated from their thick line of makeup or smell. She smelled like mint. Alex shook his head and pushed the girl back on the wall. A decision he regretted, her body was too warm. The hand touching her shoulders felt scalded. What was happening? He looked at her in confusion. And then around them.
"Do you think that I need your help with my studies?" he asked, frowning. But the frown had nothing to do with their conversation.
"Do you not? You always get zero." Nora feigned ignorance. But even if he was smart, she was smarter. She had read all these books once, she did not need to attend the classes to know what the teacher was going to teach next.
"Ha!" he scoffed, "i do not care what you think. Fuck off and do not cross my path again." he pushed her and started walking away when her eyes narrowed.
"Fine! Go then. I will find a way to fight my family no matter what. They could not force me to return home this time." her voice was not loud enough. But he was still standing too close to hear her clearly. His feet paused and his upper body twisted toward her direction.
He saw rage in them and the hurt too.
"You want money to survive alone?" he asked, surprising her? She blinked and then nodded with a cold face. "And you would do anything to earn it?" He put extra pressure on the word "anything" and spoke it menacingly so that she knew where she was landing herself to.
But Nora still nodded without hesitation. The man puckered his lips for a second and then sighed.
"You are lucky Nora. I need some help tonight. Let’s see how useful you are." The treacherous smile on his face looked no less than a demon coming from hell. Devastatingly alluring but dangerous at the same time.
Nora was not to fear. She braced her shoulders and nodded. "What am I supposed to do?" acting innocent, she asked again, earning a chuckle from him.
"What is the fun in knowing in advance. Let’s say it is your test. Meet me at 10pm in the garden when the curfew starts."He did not even ask if she was living in the dorm or not before inviting her there.
She stared at his straight back leaving her alone. Now that she looked closely at him. He looked just like the mini version of Alric. Same hair, features and even their voice matched so much. No wonder she felt intimidated for a second. But he lacked the streak his brother held. Nora shook her head and walked back to the class only to see that Alex had not returned.
Everyone was staring at her and whispering. She could feel Penny’s glare the strongest.
When she sat on the desk and looked at the board, Nora’s eyes narrowed.
"Slut! Sold herself to get a room in the dorm." was written on the board. There was no name but everyone knew only Nora had recently gotten a room in the dorm. And many had seen her getting dragged by the bully of the class. Who did not get any idea.
Everyone looked at Nora as if they were waiting for a good scene when she returned to the class. But to their surprise, she had opened the chemistry book and was solving equations.
"Ha! Not everyone is brave enough to accept what they did." someone shouted from the back.
"Or they were too guilty to even stand from their seat. Who knew their body betrayed them." a crude comment but Nora did not even flinch or move. These kids were swayed. They are not her target and she would not waste her breath in fighting them. When they would know the trust, they would regret their words.
Many continued to comment on her until the next teacher came. When every word felt like it was thrown on the cotton ball. The class representative stood up and cleaned the board before the next teacher could arrive.
Many complained that they missed the fun. But except a few crude remarks, no one said anything to Nora.
"Now I know how she had contacts." Penny muttered to Linda and her other friend. "Though we do not know the background of Alex, we all know that he was backed up from a powerful family." her face looked gloomy as she realized why Nora was not interested in Benard. She had already held a strong thigh.
But Benard is a successful businessman while Alex is a fool who could not even get a single mark in the exam. Even if Alex was rich, how long could he keep that wealth with his dull mind.
In the end, she would regret it. Rest of the lectures were a blur for Nora. she only stood up when she was told to. And when the last bell rang, she hurriedly packed her things and left the class.
In the corridor, she dialed the number,
"Hello." the magnetic voice paused her for a second.
"I have achieved the first step. I am going to give a test tonight." a leisurely hmmm vibrated from the other side and Nora held her breath unconsciously.
"Do not contact me around him and be careful. I am sending you an app, downloading it and linking my number with it. Hide the app then so that he could not know about it." The call was cut just like that yet Nora did not move even an inch for a few seconds.
After that, she let go of the breath she was holding. "What have I gotten myself into!" but the smirk on her face told otherwise.
She went to the dorm only to see it was empty. She rummaged through her clothes and took out a simple shirt and jeans and changed her clothes when the door opened again.
"Ha! So you have sold your body to share the room with us."