Chapter 95: Change
"Kenn," I shouted louder while chasing after him. "Wait!"
Suddenly he stopped and turned around just as I reached him. I looked up and smiled at him in greeting. However, my smile faded. My forehead furrowed. I blinked in disbelief at what I saw. All the questions I had prepared suddenly vanished.
"Kenn? You ... what happened to you?" I asked softly.
Kenn looked at me flatly. Behind it, his eyes seemed to hold many things he wanted to say. But strangely, he seemed to resist his own desire and chose to erase them.
"What is it?" Kenn asked briefly, then turned his face away. "If there’s nothing important, I’m leaving."
"I want to talk, but not here," I said almost in a whisper. "Please, just for a moment."
"Here or not at all."
I glanced around. Honestly, I had realized since I shouted Kenn’s name that those who saw me immediately stopped and stood still watching us, as if Kenn and I were characters playing in a big-screen movie, while they were all the audience.
Even though no one dared to cause trouble when Kenn was around, I still felt uncomfortable.
I bit my lip, then looked at him again. He towered in front of me, raising one eyebrow with a sharp gaze.
"So are you going to talk or not?" he snapped coldly.
I strengthened my resolve. I cleared my throat softly while recalling what questions I was going to say.
"Okay, so," I began. "I already know that you were the one who paid the hospital bill. I also know that because of you, I was not expelled from this school. Mr. Ahmad said you were the one who handed over the video evidence when I was being bullied. About your panic when I fainted, and the way you made Farah leave this school. I know everything."
I paused for a moment and stared at him intently. There was tension clearly visible in his body language.
"Why did you do all of that secretly?" I demanded. "I hope you can give a reasonable explanation, Kenn, including where you got that video, when there are no surveillance cameras behind the warehouse," I continued.
Kenn smiled crookedly, snorting softly. "If I explain it now, there’s no point. Everything is already too late."
"What is too late? Explain it to me!" I urged while pulling the end of his uniform sleeve. "What do you mean? Please answer my question without going in circles," I said irritably.
He did not heed my tone. His gaze swept over the students around us. Instantly, they moved aside, as if receiving an invisible command.
I was stunned.
"I thought you wouldn’t be this curious," he muttered.
"What?" I asked.
"Nothing," he said briefly. "Just consider this a favor returned. You’ve made me realize what I have to do for Hendra."
For some reason, my chest felt painful.
"Is that really all?"
He looked at me for quite a long time. I waited for his answer, but instead he glanced at his wristwatch. "The bell is about to ring. You’d better go inside."
"But we’re in the same class. We can walk together," I said quickly.
He remained silent, looking at me with an expression I could not explain. Then, a faint smile appeared on his lips. Very faint, almost invisible.
Kenn gently ruffled my hair while giving a bitter smile. Somehow I could feel that something was not right. His eyes implied disappointment, though I did not know about what.
Damn!
I hate this feeling. Hate my own curiosity. Hate the fact that I still care about his matters.
"I’ll go first," he said softly. He looked at me for a moment, then turned his face away, staring sharply behind me before walking off.
Curious, I turned around. My heart seemed to drop when I saw Kevan standing a few meters away from me, frozen with his hands clenched tightly.
"Kevan?" My voice was almost inaudible.
I was shocked and at the same time afraid. Afraid he would misunderstand. Afraid he would think something he should not.
Kevan stepped closer to me, his gaze still paying attention to the direction where Kenn had gone.
"Is your urgent matter finished?" he asked in an unusually flat tone.
I swallowed hard. "I can explain. It’s not what you think, Kevan."
"No need," he said gently. "I trust you. The bell has rung. Come on, I’ll walk you to class." He tried to smile even though his eyes could not lie.
He held my hand and walked with me. I stayed silent, occasionally looking up at his face that I could not read.
"Kevan, you’re really not angry?" I probed softly.
"I’m just worried about you, that’s all," he replied briefly while continuing to walk.
In the end, I told him my reason for chasing Kenn and everything he had done for me. Kevan listened in silence. A few moments later, he smiled sincerely.
I let out a relieved breath. Thank goodness, he understood my position.
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