After Alisha agreed to eat lunch with me, we calmly walked out of the school building and headed toward the cafeteria when, out of nowhere, a rogue volleyball came flying straight at her.
I reflexively used my hands to catch it, but because of the intense force and my poor positioning, I lost my balance and ended up falling onto Alisha, who was right behind me.
The situation we got into was a very awkward one—I was on top of her, our faces just inches apart.
Both of our faces started heating up along with the atmosphere.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I lost my balance after catching the ball that was coming straight at you. I'm really sorry, Alisha," I said, stuttering.
"No, it's fine. In fact, I should be thanking you for catching the ball. Who knows what would've happened if it had hit me? So don't feel guilty or down about what happened," she said in a calm, reassuring voice—though her face was clearly flushed.
"Ah, Alisha, your face is bright red. Are you okay? You're not hurt, right?" I asked, worried.
"No, I'm fine. It's just that... uhmm…"
"You don't have to explain, Alisha. I get it. So, shall we continue?" I said in a relaxed tone.
"Yes, I would love to. Thank you," she replied with a big smile, still a little embarrassed.
Around us, the eyes of nearby students were fixed on us, clearly intrigued by Alisha's cute reaction as she gazed at me.
"Umm, Alisha, we should keep walking. The atmosphere here isn't the best for someone like you who's still getting used to this school."
Alisha, hearing what I said, looked around, quickly nodded, and we continued toward the cafeteria.
As we arrived, someone tapped me on the shoulder and said:
"Well, well, looks like Alfred is with Ms. Beautiful Alisha. You really seem to have taken a liking to her. I mean, even at first glance, any guy would fall in awe of her out-of-this-world beauty and heart-melting smile."
"No, it's not like that, Cedrick. I'm just treating her to lunch since it's her first day, and I want her to feel at ease."
"Huh? Are you sure about that, Mr. Lover Boy? I saw you two earlier in a very intimate position, ehehehe."
Hearing his mischievous laugh, my temper snapped.
"Oh, just shut your mouth! Say one more word and I swear I'll tape it shut myself."
"Okay, okay, I'll stop. But seriously, you two were so cute back there—ahaha, byeee~"
Before I could even catch my breath, I suddenly felt a warm presence behind me.
I turned around and saw Alisha—looking like a small, sad puppy—staring at me as if she'd done something wrong.
"What's the matter, Alisha? Why do you look so down?"
"I... I'm sorry—I want to apologize. It seems like your friends are teasing you a bit too much because of the incident. I'm really sorry for making you flustered. Please forgive me."
Her apology was so sincere that I couldn't help but smile and say, "It's alright. You've done nothing wrong. Besides... I'm actually having fun talking with you."
Once Alisha's brain registered what I'd said, she suddenly hugged me and whispered:
"Why are you such a gentleman?"