Under Different Circumstances

Chapter 31

I glanced at Aidan. He felt my eyes on him and looked over. When our eyes met, the corners of my mouth quirked up. He didn't know why I was smiling, but he returned the sentiment anyway and grinned back at me.

Jay was picking me up after class, and I saw his car parked a few feet down the street when I exited the building with Aidan. Mei walked past us, excitedly chatting with her mentor Claire and waved goodbye to the two of us.

"Are you nervous about the first test tomorrow?" Aidan asked.

"No, I've been learning every night. I just have to add today's material to my study guide, and I'm good to go. You?" I replied, looking up at him.

"Seems like you're better prepared than me. I'll have to do a lot of cramming tonight." Aidan ran his hand through his blonde hair. "I only moved into my new apartment last Sunday and have been unpacking all week after school. I don't really have a good space where I can learn yet," he explained.

"I'll email you my study guide," I decided and got my phone out.

"Thank you! That would save me a lot of hours of work tonight," Aidan gushed.

I sent off the email, and his phone buzzed. "There you go. Good luck with your studying. I'll see you tomorrow," I said nonchalantly, and he bent down to hug me goodbye. He smelled like a pine forest.

We went our separate ways, and Aidan headed over to his car in the parking lot, and I walked to Jay's truck. An excited, giddy feeling developed in my stomach when I opened the door and climbed into the passenger seat.

Jay turned his phone off, and I watched my beloved smile form on his face.

"Hey," I grinned and threw my backpack onto the back seat before leaning over to him.

I laced my fingers behind his neck and pulled him closer until our noses touched. Closing my eyes and savouring the moment, I brushed my lips against his, barely letting them touch at first. I pulled back for a moment as he cupped my cheek with his hand, then closed the distance again and pressed my lips onto his.

What started off as a simple hello kiss, developed into something deeper, more passionate.

When we pulled apart, we exchanged a long, enamoured look, giving the moment between us time to simmer out slowly.

"Was that Aidan?" Jay asked eventually, pointing towards the entrance of the academy.

"Yeah, that was him."

"Has he asked you out yet?" Jay inquired in a casual tone.

My brows snapped together. "No. Why would you think that?"

"I saw your interaction, and I'd say it's pretty clear that he's into you," Jay shrugged. "Does he know about me?"

I tried to remember if Jay had come up in a conversation with Aidan at any point. "No, I don't think he does," I admitted. "But I haven't omitted that information on purpose, I promise!" I added quickly. "We just haven't really talked about our private lives that much."

The corner of Jay's mouth quirked up, and he jutted his chin out in response.

"I'll find a way to weasel your name into a conversation tomorrow, okay?" I promised and stroked my hand over his forearm.

He stared back at me with an amused smirk, then looked at the time. "Are we still going to your restaurant for dinner?"

My mum had been begging me to introduce Jay to her ever since I had told her about him. I didn't want it to be an uptight or formal introduction, so I had decided to just casually drop by the restaurant with Jay and have them meet like that. That way, I could also fill her in on how my training at the academy was going because she'd asked about that a few times too.