Blatant display.

Steven, Eric, Luna, Ruby and I arrived at the cafeteria somewhat late, apparently, because the queue was already kinda long. My four classmates all let out a collective groan.

“Why does our building have to be so fucking far?” Luna asked, slumping her shoulder.

“Yeah, I’m gonna go find us a table while you buy your lunch,” I told them, fixing the electric guitar case on my shoulder.

“Aren’t you going to buy something?” Eric asked me.

“No, I made lunch at home,” I told him. “Get me a bottle of water, though?” I asked Eric, passing him a bill.

“Yeah, sure. Carbonated or not?”

“I…” Before I could answer, my phone buzzed.

Sometimes I curse the habit the girls have made me adopt of having to look at my phone the moment it rings because it’s annoying to be glued to the thing, but there’s a reason I still keep that up. For stuff like this.

-Sarah: Hey babe. Are you close to the cafeteria by chance? The guy I told you about the other day… Think you can come say hello to him?

Don’t let it be said I don’t understand subtlety. If Sarah wasn’t asking me to help her get a guy off of her, then he must be a really nice dude.

-Oliver: Where in the cafeteria are you?

-Sarah: Close to the middle entrance, around one of the pillars.

-Oliver: Omw.

“Sorry, I need to do something,” I told the group, pocketing my phone again. “I’ll text you if I find a table.”

“Did something happen?” Steven asked me, a little perplexed.

“Nothing’s gonna happen,” I said, walking away and fixing the guitar on my shoulder again.

I found Sarah rather quickly. While not exactly unique, I’d recognize that blonde mane anywhere. She was sitting at a table with a man across from her.

Chestnut colored hair, fit, strong jaw, looked tall even sitting. It… gave me the slightest pause, which surprised me, actually. I thought I was… over my insecurities, but I guess not.

I felt something like a slap on the back of my head, though I felt no pain, no recoil and no… actual slap. It was more like a phantom slap, chiding me for feeling… lesser.

Point made, Frey.

“Sarah,” I spoke up. I felt the relief wash over her as she heard me. It was… reassuring. I walked over to their table, wearing an easy smile.

“Hey, babe,” Sarah said, smiling at me.

I made a choice I probably wouldn’t have made had the conditions been different, but Sarah wanted me here to help her out with the guy that had been pestering her, so… I leaned down and gave her a quick kiss on the lips before even addressing the guy in front of her.

Sarah grinned against my lips while I felt jealousy flaring up next to us.

“Were you having lunch around here?” Sarah asked me.

“Looking for a table, actually,” I said. “I left Eric and the others waiting in line.”

Sarah nodded. “Ah, Oliver. This is Jason. He’s a classmate.”

I looked and met Jason’s eyes. His expression betrayed no jealousy, but I could feel it as clear as day. Bitterness and envy towards me and lust towards Sarah.

…

No, no just lust, surprisingly. Respect and admiration, too. Lust was prevalent, yeah, but it seemed his feelings for Sarah were genuine. Still doesn’t change the fact he’s pushing beyond what the woman herself finds acceptable.

Jason stood up with a smile and reached out for a handshake. “Hello there. Sarah talks about you a lot.”

I smiled back and took his hand, then immediately felt his grip tightening, not in a firm handshake, but in one that was intended to hurt. It didn’t, but if he was gonna give me an opening…

“I think she’s talked about you a couple of times, too,” I said, strengthening my own grip to the point Jason flinched, the pain visible in his face for a second before I let go. He sat back down, quietly.

I’ll be honest, I didn’t know exactly what to do. I guess I could’ve just outright told this guy to stop flirting with my girlfriend, but somehow I felt that would only push him to do it more. Like… a sort of wound to the male pride that would urge him to take the girl away from me to prove his superiority or something. Really, I wasn’t even sure if that feeling was just me or actual understanding from reading the guy’s feeling through his lust. Instead, though, I decided to do something else.

I glanced at the plastic container on the table and saw the quiche I’d made yesterday in it, already with a few bites taken. I smiled.

“Did you try the quiche? How is it?”

“Oh, yeah! It’s really good! What exactly did my mom tell you? It doesn’t really taste like hers, but even so…”

I smirked. “Nothing much. I just told her how I made it and she told me what not to do. I was overcooking the spinach and it made it bitter.”

Jason cleared his throat, apparently not happy at being left out. “You cook?” he asked me.

“Hm? Ah, yeah, a bit. I made us lunch for today. I’m glad it turned out okay. And speaking of, what do you think we should have for dinner tonight?” I asked Sarah.

“We could always buy something on the way if you’re tired of cooking…” she offered.

“No, I’m starting to enjoy it. At least since I can make stuff that actually tastes good.”

Sarah smirked. “Then… how about pasta carbonara? The one from last week was really good, too.”

I went through a checklist in my head. “Yeah, I think we have everything at home.”

“Um…”

I looked to my right and found two other people standing there with trays in their hands, waiting.

“Ah, sorry, I’m in the way,” I said, moving to give them space.

The girl smiled at me. “No problem, thank you. Are you Sarah’s boyfriend?”

I nodded.

“Yes, this is Oliver,” Sarah said, introducing us. “Oliver, these are Yasmine and Josh, friends from my class.”

“A pleasure,” I said, smiling at them. They returned it.

I glanced briefly at Jason, trying to focus on reading his feelings again. Reading other people was also becoming easier, especially so if their lust or other emotions were strong.

Jason was… defeated. Not in the sense that I ‘beat’ him, but in the sense that he felt defeated. His confidence cracked, somehow.

I admit that my idea was to blatantly show that Sarah was happy with me, but I didn’t expect… that.

I sighed and turned to Sarah again. “Everything okay, then?” I asked for confirmation.

Sarah smirked. “Yeah, everything’s great. Now go eat your lunch. There’s like 20 minutes left until next period.”

“Right, right. I still need to find a table…” I groaned. Again, I leaned down and pecked Sarah on the lips. “See you later.”

It didn’t feel great to put on a show like that. It really was a sort of ‘look at how happy we are!’ kind of display… but if I can avoid threatening people or using the intimidating aura, then I’d rather not do it. If he still tries something, though, then all bets are off.

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