91 - the chapter with Theo's declaration

Rose

I watched in silence as Christian walked away, half of me wanting to follow him immediately, conflicting with the other half that didn't want to appear clingy and needy.

" She doesn't even disguise it anymore " Sky's voice snapped me out of my moment of contemplation.

" What? Who doesn't disguise? " I frowned.

" You can't hide the fact that you've been dying to jump on Davis' neck since he sat down at this table," Theo teased me, drawing laughter from all of our friends.

I took a deep breath and turned my attention back to my food, that was typical of all of them, they always had to make absurd assumptions about everything. Okay, I admit I wanted to kiss him as soon as he sat down at our table, but that was just a still frazzled part of my mind that found comfort in his arms speaking louder.

Or at least I hoped it was.

"Why is she going to hide? After parading around campus with his name on her chest, I guess there's nothing left to deny," Sky whispered to the boy.

" Oh my God, you guys are awful! " I complained.

" Are we awful or are you just annoyed because the group's attention has moved away from Sky and I and onto you two? " Liam shot back.

" You know how it works, the more you deny it, the more we'll tease you,” Theodore glared at me with a smile on his face.

" You guys are horrible, and that's why we didn't want anyone to find out,” I muttered.

"Rose, we always knew. We just didn't have visual confirmation," Sky pointed out.

"Oh, you've always known? " I sneered.

" I've known since the day Christian decided to teach you how to ride his motorcycle," Liam smiled.

" I've known since the Halloween trip," Sky returned.

" I saw you two together in the library the same day Liam found out, you thought there was no one in that session," Theo shrugged, to my surprise.

Okay, Sky, I knew she had connected the dots on Halloween, and as for Liam, he kept making jokes about Chris's scratches, but I didn't think Theo knew! Out of everyone, he was the one who picked on us the least!

" Look, I'm not going to keep going on and on, everyone might know we're having sex, but I don't want them to confuse things. We are not together!

I decided to put an end to that subject, sipping the rest of my soda.

"I don't think I've ever met someone who was as afraid of relationships as you are," Cam commented.

" I'm not afraid!”

" She just doesn't know what she wants in life," Sky added.

" 'I don't understand why my love life has become the main topic at this table,' I took a deep breath.

" Because the love life of these two is finally solved, so let's move on to the next complicated couple of the group," Theo answered naturally, pointing to Sky and Liam.

" Really? And when are we moving on to you? I've never seen you take on any of the girls you've been with,” I glared at him, “and I know there have been a lot of them.”

My provocation, however, didn't have the expected effect, the boy instead of talking back, looked deep into my eyes, giving a small smile.

"The problem is that I'm not complicated like you. I didn't take on anyone until now because I didn't have anyone to take on."

My mind focused on the way he spoke, using the verb in the past tense, and a smile appeared on my lips as I maintained eye contact with my friend.

" This is getting really interesting,” Liam teased.

" 'So you're not complicated like us? " I ignored Van Derr Waal's little tease, not taking my focus off the other boy.

" I'm an open book, Rose. Ask me anything you want " he crossed his arms, leaning back in his chair while an expression of pure disdain took over his face.

" Really? " my lips stretched into a wicked smile, causing Sky to sigh instead, realizing what I was going to do next.

I knew it was evil what I was about to do, but I couldn't allow him to mock me like that and get away with it, and also, I hoped it would take the focus off Christian and me.

" Ask me anything you want, I will answer with complete sincerity. I'm not afraid of you,” the boy challenged me.

" Right, so when do you plan to assume you're crazy about this cutie here and ask her out? " I slipped my arm around Camille, who was sitting next to me.

Camille, as expected, turned red on the spot, her eyes widening in surprise at my words.

" What? Rose, from where…”

" 'As soon as we get back from winter break,” Theo didn't flinch and didn't even look away when I answered, interrupting Camille.

I turned to the girl with a mixture of amusement and surprise on my face, watching her wide eyes fixed on my friend.

" Oh my God! " Sky laughed at the situation as Liam watched with amusement as everything unfolded.

" What? " Cam stammered.

"I didn't ask before because we were so busy with activities and tests, and tomorrow we're going home for Christmas, but as soon as we get back to campus, I want to take you on a date," she explained.

Silence reigned for a second while Camille seemed to have lost the ability to utter any words at all, Liam was the one who broke that silence, and he did it in the typical way of our group. Without any sign of politeness or discretion.

" What's up, cutie?”

" What? " She blinked dazedly, only then seeming to have rebooted her brain's operating system.

" This is the part where you answer. Either you accept and make our friend Peterson look forward to the next two weeks, or you deny and put an end to his expectations of hot nights by your side." The boy explained, shocking the poor girl again.

" Hot nights? " She stammered, turning even redder.

Poor thing, if she doesn't get used to our group soon her head could explode at any moment.

" Camille, don't mind him. Just tell me whether or not you would like to go out with me. I promise not to try anything that makes you uncomfortable." Theodore took control of the situation.

" Come on, Cam. This is your chance to prove that you're not afraid like Rose," Sky teased me.

" Hey, I'm not the subject here anymore," I returned.

" Yeah, I'd like that,” the girl finally replied, making Theo's smile widen.

" I bet she'd like a kiss too," Liam nudged our friend.

I was about to tell him to stop picking on the poor girl, when she surprised us with a spontaneous answer that wouldn't be so cute if it didn't come from her.

" What? Now? " she widened her eyes, making us laugh.

" Actually, I was talking about the two of them dating, but if you want to now, it won't be a sacrifice for Peterson," Liam replied.

" No, I didn't mean…”

Camille began to fumble over her answer, and that's when Theo got up from his seat, approaching the girl who was still trying to explain herself, offering her his hand to help her up. Camille stood up confused, but before she could say anything, the boy's hand went to the back of her neck, pulling her into a tender kiss, not caring that it was in the middle of the crowded cafeteria.

Our group exploded into a cheer, while I laughed and applauded the situation, Liam whistled and Sky cheered, infecting half the cafeteria with that joy.

He pulled away, leaving Camille paralyzed in the same place, looking like she couldn't believe what had just happened, even though she didn't hesitate for a second to return the kiss.

I pulled her back to her seat, amused by her reaction.

" We have a date in two weeks then," Theo winked at her as she settled back into her seat.

" Okay," was the only response the poor thing could muster.