Chapter 87 Chapter 2: Nixie
Chapter 87 Chapter 2: Nixie
Nixie:
I am awoken at four in the morning by a video call. What the fuck? I sit upright, staring around the barely dark room. Anna is asleep but Elva isn’t here. I guess she is spending the night with her boyfriend, Alex tonight.
My phone and laptop keep ringing with the familiar tone of an incoming FaceTime. I hop out of my bed and sit down on the desk, squinting at the screen of my laptop, it’s Ivan V.- that weird nerd that I want to fake date. Well, that weird nerd also knows my only secret so I better treat him with respect.
I click the accept button watching as his face fills the screen, his glasses are slightly crooked and his hair is fluffed in such a way like he has been running his hands through them all night.
“Don’t you sleep at all?” Like me, he’s also propped on his desk, since he is angling his laptop in a very awkward angle, I can see the contents sprawled on his desk, astronomy textbooks, lots and lots of textbooks. I am basically yawning and it looks like I just rolled out of bed, which I just did but he looks like someone who has woken since one in the morning.
“There’s a lot of things going on in my head that keeps me mostly awake. Like you said, it is really messy.” He tries to smile at me but it ends up being a deep frown.
“You don’t have to explain.” I yawn, “So what’s with the early morning phone call?” Because I really want to get back to bed, not being stuck in a FaceTime with a guy who would probably beat me in every single exam.
He pushes his glasses up, I notice it’s a habit of his. “I made rules about the fake dating stuff, I sent it to your email.” Seriously? Doesn't this guy text at all?
“This better be good, Vexmore.” I mumble under my breath, feeling lazy to check my phone. “Can you just summarize everything I need to know?”
“Right. Okay.” The tip of his ears goes bright pink and I roll my eyes. “So we should start with physical affection first. No kissing on the lips,” he says, not meeting my eye.
I tilt my head, feeling very amused. “Why not? Are you scared of kisses?” My attempt at teasing him makes him look up at me with a strange expression.
“I’ve...never kissed anyone before,” he mumbles, looking off-screen like he wants to vanish from the call. “I just want my first kiss to be something more, you understand.”
I blink, caught off guard.
“That’s weirdly sweet.” I admit, because it really is. “Okay. No lip kissing. Cheek kissing is okay, what of forehead kissing? Or just random hand brushing?”
“I-uh-cheek is fine. I think. Probably. If I have a warning, forehead might make me a bit faint, and the hand thing-um, maybe? But not too much- my hands get all clammy and I get nervous.”
I laugh. “Ivan, we are fake dating, I am not going to marry you.”
“I know,” he says quickly, “I just don’t want to mess this up. Or make you uncomfortable. Or me uncomfortable. Or anyone.”
“Goddess, you are so painfully considerate, it’s adorable.” I lean on the chair, I have never met someone so like Ivan before, well he’s a bit like Elva, if I am being honest, but he’s a socially shy, academically overloaded werewolf nerd who is basically a walking anxiety attack in glasses.
“Can we just talk about stuff that makes you breathe slower? Things that make you happy? Or just weird things that you do?” I ask because he seems to be tapping his pen against the desk. He is anxious, I can tell.
“Oh,” he clearly wasn’t expecting that question. “I am really bad at eye contact, I get flustered really easily, oh and I might look like I am mad but I am just thinking really hard. Or scared.”
I just keep nodding my head, watching him speak. I check the time and realize that we have spent thirty minutes talking.
“Ivan, why don’t we just start with our first meeting together in public? I don’t think we have any classes together, so meeting publicly is the only way to drag Kaela’s attention. Tell me, what does she like doing after classes?”
Ivan tries thinking. “She goes to this cafe in town with her friends, perhaps we can go there. However, there are a lot of students there. I have mild social anxiety.” He admits.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be with you.” I say. “So let’s meet a few hours later in the courtyard, okay?”
He nods. “Thank you.”
“It’s not a problem. I want to hang up now because I am so tired and you look like someone who has been fuelled with caffeine.”
“Oh. Right. Sorry.” He chuckles, “Nixie?” He calls out my name.
“Yes, Vexmore?”
“Why are you helping me? Well, yes. I know that you are a siren, but why do you want to help get my crush?” He seems really curious to know because his brown eyes are focused intently on me.
“Maybe because you have a very depressing love life so I’m just trying to help you.” I shrug. “Besides, I like you, Ivan Vexmore. So I just want to help, okay? And please, try to get some sleep. Try quieting down whatever is in your head.”
“Okay.” He nods. “Can I ask a question?”
“Vexmore.” I groan and he laughs while muttering sorry under his breath. “Go ahead.”
“Your siren form....You can read minds when you want to because you are a siren, what else can you do?” he seems really interested in knowing.
“Well, I can seduce you if I sing, don’t worry, I won’t do that to you. I have a lot but I am still discovering it, are you happy now?”
“Yes.” He nods his head. “I am sorry that I kept you up for an hour, you should sleep now.”
I sigh, “Goodnight, Vexmore.” He says goodnight too and I end the call, grinning cheekily to myself. Maybe this fake dating stuff might not be that bad, who knows all the fun I might end up having.
I clear my laptop on the desk before walking to the kitchenette and propping the leftover ramen into the microwave. Since I am fully awake, I prepare a pot of coffee.
I take the plate of ramen and a cup of coffee and go back to the desk, I open my inbox to see the email of Ivan, damn. It’s a lot. I better start reading if I want to understand the mysterious brain of Ivan Vexmore.
\--
Ivan:
I am standing in the courtyard of the academy, clutching two paper of chamomile tea I got earlier from the school cafe, I just rounded off all my classes for the day and finished my tutoring with a senior, so I have three hours of free time before I start studying, Nixie and I are going to the cafe in town where most students usually go to chill after a long day.
My phone pings with a text and I set the paper cup on the bench as I manage to check the screen, it’s from Mira.
Mira: Have you died yet?
I type back, biting back a smile. Mira and I developed a thing a few years back; whenever there’s a social setting I have to go out, Mira asks me if I have died yet from the intensity of too many people around.
Me: Not yet, my hands aren’t sweaty yet! But I am waiting for Nixie, she texted me saying she will be here soon.
I keep smiling at my phone.
“What are you smiling at?” The voice makes me panic, almost causing me to drop my phone on the floor. Nixie laughs, shrugging while I stare up at her in sheer panic.
“You scared me,” I say, already flustered.
“How in the hell do you get scared that easily?” She throws her head back and laughs, I have to admit, her laughter is beautiful, it makes my racing heart calm down a bit.
I remember the paper cups and I say, “I got us tea, I didn’t know what you like, so I got peppermint tea, it helps calm the nerves down.” I pass her a cup of coffee, before taking a seat on the bench. Nixie follows, taking a seat beside me, but she keeps frowning at the paper cup of tea.
“What is it?” I ask, my mom has always said I have this habit of trying to please people and when they don’t like what I’ve done, I start to get all jittered. “Is it not to your liking?”
“No, it’s not that.” She nods her head, pursing her lips. “No one has ever got me a paper cup of tea before, normally we teenagers like to survive on head strong caffeine.” She laughs again and my heart returns to its normal rate.
“Oh, well...okay then.” I stare at the sky, the sun is already starting to set, the orange glow casting on our faces. We watch some jocks practice their footballs, some people are huddled by the ice-cream truck, while there’s a trio reading books and eating sandwiches, it’s all loud rumbles of students doing their own thing. I breathe in sharply. “This is normally not my thing, you know, so many people. I would rather have my own time alone.”
“Let me guess.” She tilts her head back, twinkling silver eyes staring intently at me and because I suck at eye contact, I avert my eyes feeling the tip of my ears go red. “Probably huddled alone in a library is your thing?”
“Yes,” I sincerely answer. “I think people terrify me a bit.”
“But you’re so smart and all.” Nixie says, “That friend of yours?” She's fishing for more information about Mira and to be honest, I don’t mind talking about the only friend I have; besides Mira would love me telling everyone about her.
“I have known her since when I was little, we’re a bit on different lanes, but she mostly puts up with my bullshit sometimes like she eats breakfast with me in the library sometimes so I won’t be alone.”
“She seems kind.” Nixie blows out a breath, sighing.
“She is.” I say back.
“But you have to get out of the sidelines at least once in a while, no one will notice you if the spotlight isn’t on you. You can’t push yourself back, you have capability, you’re so good at astronomy stuffs, and you got the looks, maybe not like bad boy look, but you got a pretty handsome face and-”
“You think I am handsome?” I cut her off, my eyes finally meeting hers. For some unknown reasons, I don’t find myself shying away from this eye contact.
“You don’t get that often?” She seems surprised. “You are.” She shrugs, like telling me that I am handsome isn’t such a big deal.
Kaela and her friends start walking across the courtyard; I guess they aren’t going to the cafe anymore. Kaela sights us and waves; my heart skips a beat but deflates when I realize she’s actually waving to Nixie. Nixie waves back with so much enthusiasm. We watch as Kaela and her friends huddle to a corner with some jocks.
Some students are looking at us now, mostly Nixie.
“Why are people staring?” I ask, feeling queasy. “The whole plan is to make sure Kaela notices me, we’ve done that, now let’s go.” The intensity of people’s gazes is starting to make me feel uncomfortable.
Nixie seems to be enjoying the whole attention because she leans against the chair and squints her eyes at me. “They will start spreading rumours that we are dating or something, since Kaela and I know each other, she will start paying more attention to you.”
I furrow my brows in confusion. “But everyone will think we are dating.”
“Exactly,” Nixie rolls her eyes. “We just have to keep the whole pretend thing going for a while, like hold hands in the hallway, and then Kaela will want to spend time with you because you are going to get popular.”
I go into full thinking mode, “But I don’t want someone to like me because I am popular.”
“Ivan.” Nixie sighs. “Let’s call it a day, try and get some rest. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” She says and I nod my head.
“I’ll walk you to your dorm.” I offer, standing up the same moment she stands.
“Is it okay? Just for publicity?” Nixie asks, signalling at her hand. I nod my head and she easily slips her palm into mine, her hand is very warm and soft, it makes something flutter in my stomach, also I feel this very strange spark in my body, like I am being electrocuted, but not the type of electrocution that leaves you dead.
“You okay?” She looks at me, suddenly her scent is all my mind is wrapping around, a mix of vanilla and strawberries.
“Yeah.” When I feel her sharp gaze, my ears blush again. She chuckles and soon, we are walking inside the academy. Like predicted, people are staring at us, murmurings ensue in the hallway but Nixie whispers in my ear that I shouldn’t pay any attention to them. Why do I find that calming?
When we reach her dorm, Nixie smiles, shoving her hands into her pocket. “Thank you, so what are you going to do?”
“I might read.” She groans and I smile a bit. “Or perhaps watch a documentary with Mira.”
“She’s going to kill you if you make her sit for two hours watching boring documentaries about bees.” Nixie’s hand lingers on her doorknob for a bit.
“Maybe,” I cheekily say.
“Have a nice day, Vexmore.” Nixie opens the door of her dorm, waving as she gets in.
I pull out my phone and start walking towards my dorm. There’s thousand of messages from Mira.
Mira: Rumours circulate fast around campus!
Mira: You guys are the rave of the topic on the school’s chatroom, the headline is ‘Nerdy guy hangs out with popular Nixie Coral.’ People are even speculating about a lot of things.
Mira: Where are you? Get your ass over here so we can talk, everyone keeps tagging you on social media. All the girls are certainly going to be showing up at our doorstep any time now. Who knew hanging out with the right person could boost your social position?
I roll my eyes, before typing.
Me: Mira, what does it mean if my chest flutters just by holding someone’s hand?
Her reply comes almost immediately, I imagine her on her bed, eyes glued to the screen, as if she has been waiting for my text.
Mira: Really? Oh my goddess Ivan, I think this fake relationship is going to blossom into something so beautiful!