Jake just kept talking and talking, mostly about the rumors and stuff going on in school. I was only half-listening because I did not really care that much about who was dating who.
I just wanted him to leave me alone so I could eat my cookies in peace. I thought 'Man, this guy really loved to gossip.' He was still going on about something when I happened to glance towards the classroom door.
I saw Nina walking over. My first thought was that maybe she was just heading somewhere else in the classroom, just passing by my desk. Then I realised she was looking right at me and walking straight towards where Jake and I were sitting.
My stomach dropped. I thought, 'Oh, hell, what now?' I really did not want more attention after the thing with Ronnie and the puking earlier that morning.
She stopped right by my desk, and Jake finally shut up.
"Hey, Kofi," she said, giving me a small smile. Then she looked at Jake. "Hey, Jake, do you mind if I talk to Kofi alone for just a minute?"
Jake looked totally startled, like he had not expected her to talk to him at all.
"Oh! Uh, yeah, sure, Nina," he stuttered out, getting up really fast. "No problem at all. I will just, uh, go over there. See ya, Kofi."
He practically tripped over his own feet trying to get away from the desk quickly. I watched him go for a second. 'He acted like she was royalty or something.'
Once he was gone, I looked back at Nina, and then I looked around the classroom quickly. It felt like every single person in the room was staring right at us again. The whispers stopped and it got quiet. I hated it because it felt super uncomfortable having all those eyes on me. 'This was exactly what I didn't want,' I thought. I just wanted to be left alone after everything.
"Can I sit down?" She asked, pointing at the chair Jake had just been using.
"Yeah, sure, I do not mind," I told her.
She pulled the chair a little closer and sat down, looking at me with that concerned look again.
"How are you feeling now?" she asked. "I mean, after what happened this morning in class, are you okay?"
"I am fine," I said, trying to keep my voice even.
I felt really awkward with her sitting there and everyone watching. But then I remembered the system window from earlier. 'Okay, we were talking,' I thought. 'The mission was happening now, I guess.' At least talking meant I would not have to deal with that puking penalty again, because that was the worst. Still, all those people staring made me want to just disappear completely.
She seemed good at talking, asking easy questions, but I just gave short answers. I did have something I wanted to ask though, and something to give her. I reached down into my backpack which was sitting by my feet.
"Hey, uh, did you clean my desk this morning?" I asked her. "After I went to the nurse's office?"
She looked a little surprised that I asked.
"Oh, yeah, I did," she said. "I could not just leave it like that after you left. I hope it smelled okay?"
"Yeah, it was fine, thanks," I said. I pulled out the container I had packed that morning. It was just a simple sandwich I put together, nothing fancy because I really could not cook.
'I hope this is not too lame,' I thought. "And, uh, this is for you."
I held the container out to her.
"It's just to say thank you," I explained quickly. "For the food you brought me when I was in the hospital, and for the desk, and everything."
She took the container from me.
"Oh, wow, Kofi," she said. "You really did not have to do that for me."
She looked really happy about it though. Her face got a little bit red, like she was blushing just a little, and she had this big smile. I felt weird seeing her react like that just because I gave her a sandwich.
"Kofi, I wanted to say--" she started.
But I cut her off. I knew I had to stop this right there. I thought about Ronnie, and Jake's gossip, and all the people staring, and how she had a boyfriend. 'No, I had to stop this right now,' I thought. 'This was all getting way too complicated and weird.'
"Look, Nina," I said. My voice came out really blunt.
Her smile just disappeared completely when she heard my tone. She looked shocked.
"What is it?" she asked. "Did I do something wrong?"
"No, you did not do anything," I said. "It's just... I think you should probably stop talking to me now."
She just stared at me like she could not believe what I had just said.
"I know you probably feel bad about the accident," I continued, because I wanted to be clear. "You feel guilty, like it was your fault that I got hurt. But it was not your fault at all. You don't have to keep checking on me anymore. You don't have to bring me food or clean up my desk or anything like that. You don't have to pretend to be my friend just because you feel bad about what happened. I am fine now, really, so you can just stop. It's okay. You do not owe me anything at all."
It felt weird saying all that out loud, but I thought 'It was better this way for everyone.' It was better to just end it now before it got any weirder, or before I got hurt again like I always did.
---
Nina's POV
His words just hit me out of nowhere. I just stared at him, and I could not think of anything to say back.
He told me to stop talking to him, that I did not have to pretend.
'He was kind of right, I guess,' I thought, feeling this weird ache in my chest. ' I did feel really guilty at first.' That really was the reason why I stayed at the hospital for so long, because I felt like it was all my fault. I felt like I owed him everything for saving me.
But then I thought about talking to him in the hospital, and how easy it had felt.
'It was not just guilt anymore, though,' I thought. It felt different. He did not treat me like Ronnie or Tyler or any of the other guys did. He just talked to me like a normal person.
Hearing him say I should stop talking to him, and that I was just pretending to be his friend because I felt guilty, that actually hurt me.
I did not really understand why it hurt so much, but it definitely did. I just looked at him, sitting there. I did not know what I was supposed to say to that. 'Why did I feel so sad that he wanted me to leave him alone now?'