Semua Bab The Ex-Change: Bab 11 - Bab 20

(Clarice’s POV)“Open the dooooorrr! Clar!”I hear Anna’s voice before I even reach the front door. She follows it up with a few overly loud knocks and, for some reason, an exaggerated meow. Anna is weird- an established fact.“Anna!,” I call through the door, “if you keep making noises like that, my neighbors might think I'm harboring a zoo.” “Well, maybe if you opened the door faster,” she shoots back. I roll my eyes and unlock the door, barely stepping back before she dives inside as though it’s her own place. She halts in the middle of the living room, hands on her hips, scanning the area like she's on a mission. “So this is James’s place,” she says, dragging out her words as if she’s uncovering a mystery. “Yes, this is James’s place,” I reply dryly, shutting the door behind her. Anna turns to me, eyes narrowed. “I don’t like how at ease you sound saying that.” I cross my arms. “Are you here to critique my tone or to enj

(Clarice’s POV)Anna sank back into the couch, stretching her legs out like she owned the whole place. “Okay, so I wasn’t going to mention this until I was totally sure, like a hundred percent sure, but…I think I have a crush on someone.”I raised an eyebrow. “A crush? That sounds very vague, even for you, Anna… Is it a romantic crush or a let-me-just-have-my-peace kind of crush?”Anna gave me an exaggerated eye roll. “Romantic, obviously. I have standards, thank you very much.”I smirked. “That’s up for debate.”She gasped in mock offense, then broke into a smile. “Fine. Keep your doubt. But listen, this guy? He’s different. He’s—get this—a teacher—at my school.”I paused mid-sip of my wine. “You’re telling me you, Anna I-don’t-date-colleagues Hall, are interested in someone from your own workplace? Anna!”She let out a dramatic sigh. “I know. Hypocrisy at its finest yeah?. But it’s different because he’s not a co-worke

(Clarice’s POV)I take a deep breath and settle into my chair in front of my laptop. The deadline for the app I've been working on is creeping closer, and this Zoom meeting with the clients is crucial. They've been requesting a few updates, and I know they’ll want a thorough explanation of the changes I’ve made. With my coffee on one side and a notepad on the other, I mentally gear up. This is my moment to shine.I check the clock again—five minutes left. Perfect. I launch the Zoom call, the clients’ faces popping up one by one on the screen. There's John, the marketing guy; Hannah, the project manager; and Juliet, the one who seems to manage the budget. I greet them with a polite but warm smile.“Good morning! How’s everyone doing?” I begin, striving to keep my voice upbeat despite the pressure to impress them.“We’re good, Clarice. Thanks for checking in. Let’s get started,” Ben replies, nodding as he adjusts his glasses.The next hour flies by as we delve into

(James’ POV) I didn’t think I’d be back here so soon. Standing outside my own apartment—except it didn’t quite feel like mine at the moment—was strange. The key was in my hand, but I hesitated before turning it in the lock. I could hear soft typing from within. It felt odd, hearing life in my space when I wasn’t the one creating it. Finally, I turned the key and stepped inside. Clarice was sprawled on the couch, laptop perched on her knees, her legs curled beneath her. She didn’t look up right away, too engrossed in whatever was on the screen, but when she did, her eyebrows arched slightly. “Oh.” She blinked, surprise lighting up her face. “Hey.” “Hey,” I replied, closing the door behind me. I strolled past the couch, noticing the subtle differences in my space. A neatly folded throw blanket was draped over the armrest, and a vanilla-scented candle flickered on the table. Even the kitchen counter had her influence—neatly stacked notebooks an

(James’s POV)I told myself I wasn’t going to think about it.It was nothing.Just small talk.Clarice meeting Ryan barely mattered, and it definitely wasn’t meant to concern me. I shouldn’t have cared. I had no reason to.Yet, here I was, two days later, still feeling very pissed. At first, I convinced myself that my annoyance was because Ryan met Clarice before I could even wrap my head around seeing her again. That seemed reasonable, right? I was still struggling and coming to terms with this whole situation, and now there was someone else witnessing my personal chaos. And he wasn’t even discreet. All the time I was at my apartment, I could count how often Ryan and I crossed paths. And now, he’s just lounging around since Clarice got there? Pathetic. As if it were so simple. I tried to brush it aside and concentrate on my work. My inbox was overflowing, my phone buzzing with meeting pings, and I had a design presentation looming for the community c