Falling For The Campus Heartbreaker.

FIVE

Justin's POV

I took a deep breath; I could barely feel the sting of the injection from the shot the nurse gave me. I tried to ignore her presence, but it was harder than I expected. Her being this close to me did things to me that surprised me.

"Alright, thanks for your help," the nurse said to Anna with a little smile. Anna nodded quietly and returned to where she was sitting. It was hard not to turn my head to look at her one more time. Something about her was alluring, but I couldn't place my finger on it.

"I'm all done; the doctor will be here in a minute, so you can get some rest while you wait," The nurse said to me with a wink that I knew all too well. She was trying to flirt with me but I had little to no interest in her. The girl sitting beside me had all my attention.

"I'll take my leave now," she announced her voice the only source of sound in what seemed like an awkwardly silent room. She gave me a look one more time before leaving, maybe hoping I would call her back or say something to her, but for some reason, I remained silent.

The nurse left the room, leaving Anna and me alone, and we continued to sit in awkward silence. I was well aware of her still sitting beside me. I let out a shaky breath. I didn't dare glance at her again, but for some reason, her presence felt like heat brushing against my skin.

I looked at the white wall before me, wondering what was wrong. Why was I reacting this way? To a girl I just met.

What the hell is wrong with me? I've had girls throw themselves at me since sophomore year, but I've never frozen like this. I've never felt this way. I felt my palm sweaty; was I nervous?

No, it had to be the pain. Yes, it must be because of the pain; it must have broken something in me. I knew I was only trying to convince myself and failing at it. Deep down, I knew it wasn't the pain but this girl.

Annabel... Who is she?

The silence was eating me up, and I felt so tempted to take another look at her.

Should I try to start a conversation with her? What do I say?

I didn't want to make her more uncomfortable than she was. What if I say something that worsens the mood?

"Hey," I heard her voice and turned to look at her before I could stop myself. Damn it, did I turn too fast? I wanted to curse at myself but needed to keep it cool and appear natural. I didn't want to freak her out.

"Yeah?" That was the only word I could think of saying at that point. It felt like my mind had gone blank. She raised a brow at my response but didn't react. She looked away, seemingly uninterested. This girl was different. Other girls would have used this opportunity to throw themselves at me; why wasn't she doing the same?

"Your friend Caleb sure is taking a while," she mumbled, still not looking at me. I blinked at her words. Was she upset? She didn't look like she was. Maybe she was tired of sitting here silently; she wanted to leave. Or was she trying to start a conversation? I was confused and inwardly panicking.

Say something smooth, Justin! Be cool, anything but "fine" again.

Anna turned to me, raising her brows again, expecting an answer from me, probably because I was taking time to reply.

"I guess," I mumbled dryly. I almost face-palmed myself at how uninterested I sounded. At least it wasn't another "fine."

I silently hoped she didn't think I was uninterested. I started thinking of ways to properly converse with her when she suddenly shifted closer to me. I stopped myself from widening my eyes at the sudden movement.

"You need water?" She said, holding up my water bottle with her right hand. Did Caleb drop that off with her? She moved towards me, and I almost lost it. I forced air into my lungs; all I could smell was her. She smelt like vanilla and clean soap, a combination I never knew could be so addictive until now.

She smells like heaven! Don't look. Don't breathe.

I failed.

My eyes met her big, warm eyes that seemed to stare directly into my soul.

"Hey," She mouthed again, and my eyes fell on her lips. I blinked and instinctively shifted away from her, trying to push away those thoughts from my mind.

I could see her face drop a little, and she tried not to show the disappointment she felt on her face, but her eyes said it all. I was hyper-aware of how close her hand came to touching my arms, and if she had, I might've flinched- not from pain, but from the fear of losing control and scaring her off.

She stared intently at me and suddenly paused, her brows furrowing. I break our eye contact, avoiding her eyes. It looked like she wanted to say something but didn't press. She backed off slightly, giving me space again. I noticed this little gesture and felt a little guilty.

Great! She probably thinks I'm a jerk, or worse, she is repulsed by me.

I drew my lower lip into my mouth and was tempted to run my hand through my hair.

Since when did I care about girls so much?

I knew I wasn't being my usual self. I was smooth, cocky, and effortless with girls. Hell, I had a reputation for being a playboy. But now. I didn't recognize myself anymore. And this girl... Annabel. There was something about her. Something about her that made me feel this way. But what? Why her? Why not? What made her so special? What made me act so nervous around her? Why couldn't I act normally with her sitting beside me? All these were questions in my head that I had no answers to, and they were beginning to give me a headache.

The scene of her running right onto the court, with no hesitation and all heart, flashed in my head. I couldn't picture any other girl I knew doing the same. And now, she was sitting beside me, trying to be nice, and all I could do was act like an emotionally constipated statue. I sat there, thinking of what to do or say. I needed something to end this.

The door was suddenly pushed open, stealing our attention, and just in time to save me from further imploding, Caleb walked in with a casual smile.

"Hey," he called casually, not reading the room. Is everything good?" He turned to me, his brows raised in a questioning manner when he saw my rigid posture and Anna's uncertain expression.

"Yeah, it's all good," I mumbled, even though it obviously wasn’t. Thankfully, Caleb shrugged and didn't push it. He turned to Anna with a polite smile. "Thanks for staying here with Justin while I was gone," he said, and Anna nodded with an equally polite smile.

"I'll be taking my leave now since you're back." She got up and took steps back. My heart dropped; I didn't want her to leave. I wanted to say something to stop her, to make her stay, but I couldn't. I bit my tongue; I had never felt so cowardly in my life.

"Okay, thanks for all your help," Caleb said, and she nodded and walked towards the door.

"It's nothing," she replied smoothly. As she walked out, I finally dared glance up, but she didn't look back.

Cool! Now she must think I hate her; mission accomplished dumbass!