Chapter 8

When I woke up in the morning, I was so sleepy I could barely open my eyes. I absolutely hated Blake. Unlike other teachers, most of my classes were scheduled in the morning, so I was already not getting enough sleep.

Just to avoid Blake, I had to wake up even earlier!

Irritable, I cursed under my breath as I went downstairs. As soon as I stepped out of the building, I looked up and saw Blake leaning against his car door again.

It seemed I still wasn't early enough.

"Morning, Nate. Come on and get in!" Blake called out with a smile.

I found Blake's smile incredibly annoying. I stared at Blake, thinking he looked despicable. In my heart, I swore that I wouldn't let Blake catch me when I went out in the morning again.

Feeling defeated, I slumped my shoulders and got into the car.

"Here's some breakfast for you." Blake handed me a paper bag like he did yesterday.

After waiting a moment and noticing that the car hadn't started moving, I asked, "Shouldn't we get going?"

"It's still early, so there's no need to rush. We'll set off after you've had your breakfast," Blake said, gesturing for me to eat.

I thought that Blake was quite considerate. Truth to be told, eating on the road yesterday was inconvenient. I nearly choked several times.

As I opened the paper bag, I thought I didn't really feel like eating waffles today. I had eaten too many yesterday and was a bit sick of them. But when I saw that the bag contained some buns and a cup of oatmeal porridge, I was pleasantly surprised.

I ignored the look Blake was giving me and quickly finished everything in the bag.

After I was done eating, I suddenly realized that every time Blake brought breakfast, it was just a single portion. I wondered if Blake had eaten yet.

"Blake, have you eaten?" I scratched my head, feeling a bit embarrassed for not noticing sooner.

"There's plenty of time for me to eat after I drop you off. Buckle up. I'll drive you to school now," Blake replied, starting the car.

When we arrived, it wasn't even 7:30 am yet.

I was speechless at this and surmised that Blake must have been waiting for me downstairs from a way earlier time. He had even bought breakfast! What time had he woken up for this to be possible?

My schedule was packed today. By the time I finished my last class, it was already 6:00 pm. Once the students had all left, I leisurely walked out of the classroom with my things, greeting my colleagues along the way.

As the school gate came into view, my heart began to beat faster.

When I spotted Blake standing at the gate, my heart settled. I knew it! I knew that jerk would definitely be waiting at the gate. Why did this feel so much like I was being pursued by a suitor?

I thought that since there were a lot of people around, I could sneak away unnoticed. If Blake couldn't find me, he'd probably leave. I could just text him from the subway later.

This plan seemed perfect to me. I kept my head down, trying to blend in with the students, and tried to slip past Blake.

I got closer and closer to Blake. I held my breath in nervous anticipation.

It was a success! Blake didn't notice me.

But in the next moment, I realized something was off. Why wasn't I moving forward? What was going on?

It turned out that Blake was holding onto the strap of my backpack, smiling as he turned his head to look at me.

"Let's go, Mr. Shaw," Blake said, dragging me along by my backpack strap toward the car.

"Hey, don't drag me along! I can walk by myself!" I protested.

After I had gotten into the car, I was still fuming. I had been dragged along by Blake like a child in front of so many students and parents. It was humiliating!

I couldn't help but wonder, "Doesn't he need to work? How does he have so much free time? Is he staking me out 24/7? Doesn't he have his own things to do?"

"When are you getting back to work, Blake?" I asked, exasperated. I couldn't go on like this. Right now, I fervently wished that Blake would go back to work soon.

"In about a week. I still need to iron out some final details," Blake replied.

"What final details? Could it be that his company doesn't want him anymore? Hmph! Is that why he has so much time to bother me?" I thought.

As if reading my mind, Blake added, "The company I'm with was started by me and a few close friends from university. Initially, we set it up as a trial, but the prospects turned out to be great. So, we had to take it seriously later on. I volunteered to work in Fioreca back then. Now that I'm back, the old position isn't suitable for me anymore."

To me, Blake was just bragging about his good foresight and how capable he was. I felt annoyed at Blake being his usual remarkable self. If my parents found out about his achievements, they would start lecturing me again.

With those thoughts swirling in my mind, I stormed out of the car and headed straight for the building entrance without saying goodbye.

Blake chuckled, wondering how he had managed to piss me off again. Then again, I had always been quick to anger since we were young.

He texted me: "Nate, I'll pick you up at 7:30 am tomorrow. You don't need to get up as early as you did today."

I glared at the message on my phone and set an alarm for 6:00 am right away. I swore that I wouldn't let Blake catch me again tomorrow morning.

…

I yawned as I finished washing up and looked out the window. The sky was still dark, with a hint of light peeking out on the horizon. This added to my exasperation—I felt like I was someone who was going to great lengths just to run away from some huge debt.

Upon checking my watch, I saw that it was only 6:20 am. I scowled, and the begrudging expression on my face became even more pronounced.

However, when I went downstairs, I got a taste of true despair.

"Blake Wagner!" I was so incensed I could explode. I had every reason to believe that Blake had been waiting for me downstairs all night.

Why did he have to be so persistent?

"It seems like you didn't sleep well judging from how foul your temper is. Do you want to sleep a bit more in the car?" Blake asked pleasantly.

I slammed the car door shut with a loud bam. Then, I leaned back in the car seat and closed my eyes, refusing to engage with Blake.

Right now, I didn't want to see Blake. I feared I might not be able to resist strangling him.

"Nate, wake up! We're here!"

"Huh?" Dazed, I checked the time. It was almost 8:00 am. I looked around and confirmed that we were indeed at school. This meant that I had fallen asleep for quite a long time.

I hurriedly opened the car door to get out, but Blake grabbed my arm.

"What now?"

"Here's your breakfast." Blake handed me the paper bag.

"T-Thanks, Blake. I'll get going now."

"Sure, go on." Blake reached out to ruffle my hair and couldn't help but be amazed at how soft my hair was.

I didn't have many classes that day, so I finished work early. I didn't leave right away but went around to each of the classes I taught to look for the other teachers teaching those classes.

I planned to switch up my schedule so that all my classes would be in the afternoon for the next few days. Then, I'd tell Blake I was taking time off.

I didn't want to be alone with Blake at any given time.

After what had happened that night, Blake's attitude toward me was way too unsettling. I had a bad feeling about it and knew that things couldn't go on like this.

As expected, Blake was waiting in his usual conspicuous spot at the school gate. Since there weren't many people around now, I didn't bother playing any tricks and walked straight to his car.

"Blake, you don't need to pick me up for the next few days. I've taken some time off from school because I have some things to take care of."

"Alright." Blake didn't ask any questions and drove quietly.

I was dumbfounded. The happiness that came without warning overwhelmed me for a brief moment. If I had known Blake was so gullible, I wouldn't have bothered rescheduling my classes. I could have just told him I was on leave.

"Well, getting to sleep in for the next few days wasn't a bad deal either," I thought.

"I'm heading up. Drive safe! Goodbye!" I couldn't hide my glee as I spoke, as I was feeling pleased that I plan was a success.

"Okay. Go on up," Blake replied.

Blake's gaze softened as he looked at me being cheerful. I wore my heart on my sleeve, and Blake found that incredibly adorable.

I hummed a joyful tune as I went upstairs. My good mood lasted until noon the next day. I got to enjoy a good, long sleep. Then, I made myself a simple lunch.

Sipping on a bottle of yogurt drink, I casually made my way downstairs. I had plenty of time, so I thought I might as well ride my bicycle today.

Lost in my thoughts, I made my way downstairs leisurely.

Suddenly, the yogurt drink bottle fell to the ground. At the same time, I struggled to swallow the yogurt in my mouth.

I was absolutely done with Blake! In fact, I believed Blake had been staking out my place day and night. Or did he install surveillance cameras in my room? That seemed like a reasonable explanation because Blake kept showing up consistently whenever I was heading out.

"Why are you here?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady and conceal my frustration.

"I came to give you a ride to school." Blake's deep and resonant voice was the ugliest sound in the world to my ears.

"But… But I don't need to go to school today. I took a day off!" I explained desperately, feeling exasperated.

"Then, where are you going with that backpack on your back?" Blake asked teasingly in an even tone.

"Where I go is none of your business! You nosy jerk!" I screamed inwardly.

"I… I'm going to the library… Yeah! I'm going there to read!" I scratched my head, subconsciously twisting my fingers together.

"Get in the car. I'll take you there," Blake offered.

My heart sank. If Blake took me all the way to the library, I would be late for work. I wasn't ready to give up my perfect work attendance bonus just because of Blake's relentless pestering.

"No! No thanks!" I blurted out, trying to refuse.

"Alright, get in. I'll take you to school." Blake stopped teasing me.

If I didn't realize by now that Blake knew I was lying, I'd be a fool. I admitted defeat, having lost this round. Even after all these years, I still couldn't outwit Blake.

I had suffered a complete defeat in my battle of wits with Blake. So, I had no choice but to stop resisting and let Blake have his way.

Luckily, in a few more days, Blake would have to go back to work. Once he started working, he shouldn't have this much time to bother me.

On weekends, I could go on dates with Willow. We would hang out and read, shop, have coffee, or eat dinner. Blake wouldn't shamelessly interrupt our dates, right? This way, I wouldn't have to worry about Blake showing up and insisting on driving me around.

Even if Blake knew where Willow and I were, it wouldn't matter. No one in their right mind would want to be a third wheel on a young couple's date. Besides, Blake was my cousin. Surely, he wouldn't have the nerve to intrude on his cousin's dates.

I thought this was a good plan. I would hang out with Willow more often and flaunt my relationship in front of him. Then, I could ask Willow to help me by showing off our affection for each other in public. This way, I could make Blake realize that we were not the same.

After all, I was a man who was about to get married.

This reminded me that my wedding photos with Willow should be ready soon. I decided to get Willow to check on the progress. When it was ready, I would set it as the wallpaper on my phone and make sure that Blake would catch a glimpse of it when the time was right.