Chapter 4 LITTLE GUY

MICHELLE's P O V

After Devon had done showering, he suddenly appeared by my side, and the aroma of citrus and fresh sweetness that he exuded flooded my senses as he came closer to me. When I turned to face him, I noticed his eyes turned dark with his hair moist, and he stared at me in silence.

‘‘Hey, why are you blushing all the time?’’ he asked, inching closer to me. ‘‘Are you sick or something?’’

He then pressed his forehead against mine, checking the temperature closely, causing me to jerk back. ‘‘I… I’m just feeling hot, yeah… It’s very hot outside.’’ I quickly created an excuse and turned around.

After a while, I glanced over my shoulder to check on him, and he was now drying off his hair with a towel, still shirtless from before. The ridges of his abs glistened with water droplets that fell onto his body, and I gasped as I looked away, and went back to hang up my uniforms inside the closet.

Since the moment I stepped foot inside this place, I haven't had the opportunity to breathe properly.

My train of thoughts was interrupted when I felt a hand suddenly yank my shirt up.

‘‘Hey!’’ Instantaneously, I pulled it down, and my heart was almost racing all out of sync. It was Devon's hand, which else. ‘‘What are you doing?’’

‘‘You feel hot, right? I’m just helping you in taking it off…’’ he retracted his hand, a little taken aback by the reaction I gave him. ‘‘Are you sure you don't want to take that off?’’

‘‘Uhmm, no…'’’ I recoiled from his scalding touch and shook my head in response. ‘‘You claimed I was skinny. I’m conscious about it, so please…’’

‘‘Oh...,’’ he said as a sudden flash of insight illuminated the look in his eyes, and then he quickly distanced himself. ‘‘I’m sorry, I didn't intend to...’’

‘‘It's okay…’’ I put up my hand to prevent him from apologizing further.

The two of us were forced to spend a few minutes awkwardly standing next to each other before I made the decision to take a shower. I began by pulling my towel from the drawer, followed by picking up the basket containing my toiletries from underneath the bed. Throughout it all, Devon was fixating his gaze carefully on me and examining my body in great detail.

I walked past him as I headed my way out, but before I could swing the door open, I heard him talk again which caused me to roll my eyes.

‘‘You’re going to the bathroom with all of your clothes on?’’ When he swept his eyes over my body, I turned a shade of pomegranate red that was even deeper than before.

‘‘I told you, I'm conscious---’’

‘‘Yeah, I'm aware of it now. But at least, remove your shoes and put on some slippers...’’ he shrugged as he opened the closet door and retrieved various items of clothing to put on.

I bit my lip in embarrassment as I went to sit again on my bed, and kicked my shoes before tugging off my socks. After stowing my footwear beneath the mattress, I slipped into my house slippers before hurriedly exiting the room.

I ventured into the hallway with my chin held high, meeting some lads in pajamas, while others were shirtless and only wearing boxers which caused me to slowly look down, doing my best to avoid looking at their gorgeous bodies. It’s Devon Kai’s body that I only wanted to look.

While some were engaged in animated conversation with a companion, others lazily munched on pastries like muffins and croissants. As I hastened my pace, just one person looked my way, and the moment our eyes locked, a wave of nerves washed over me like a train.

I averted my eyes and fiddled with the handle of the basket as I made my way down the corridor toward the place that Devon had said housed the restrooms. I wasn't there for very long before I found myself standing in front of the blue door that had the word ‘‘Washroom’’ inscribed across the top in an ornate calligraphy.

In a strict sense, it didn't specify that only boys were allowed. But despite my best efforts, I just couldn't bring myself to grab the handle. Entering the room would be stepping across a boundary that I wasn't entirely sure I wanted to cross.

The longer I remained motionless in that spot, the door seemed to get bigger and bigger as it loomed over my head. I adjusted my weight as a guy with broad shoulders went past behind me, and because he was close enough, I needed to step forward to prevent colliding with him.

The door swung open inward, squeezing the air out of my lungs, and I jerked backwards as a person who was close to my built emerged from the room. He, too, came to a halt, blinking in apparent shock as he ran a hand through his short, dark hair.

‘‘Shit! Sorry there, little guy…’’ he murmured as he walked around me and then disappeared down the hallway.

Little guy? I scoffed shaking my head.

I blinked as I watched the door swing closed and reached out to stop it before it completely closed. My palm rested flat against the cold wood, and I pushed it before cautiously peeking inside.

I couldn't help but smile when I entered the room because it was so blissfully devoid of anyone else.

There were sinks all along the right side, and the passageway leading to the back was lined with white linoleum. Stalls and white fixtures of an unusual shape were lined up against the wall in the area of the room at the left half. I wasn't sure if they were drinking fountains or some kind of chairs for young children, and I didn't much care to find out.

My attention was immediately drawn to the three vacant stalls, and I didn't waste any time before locking myself in the one that was situated most closely to the wall. The sound of water striking tiles bounced off the walls, and the thought of naked guys showering a scant ten feet away threatened to short circuit my brain, but I focused on finishing my business as soon as possible despite the distractions of their presence.

I almost sighed as I relieved myself, so grateful that I didn't have to look for the family bathroom in the mess hall to pee.

I made a quick work of tugging up my pants, although I did pause for a moment when the spray of water stopped. It was a difficult decision, between waiting it out in the stall until whoever it was left or trying to get the door before they saw me here. My flight instinct won out.

I was able to open the lock with the tips of my fingers, and after tinkering with it for a short while, I quietly slipped out of the stall. The room was delightfully devoid of anyone else, so I crept around to the sink on the opposite side of the room before stumbling to a stop when a man burst through the door of the back corridor and made a beeline for me.

I squeaked and froze in place like a deer caught in headlights as what I suddenly saw was a very massive person holding out his hand in caution as he stopped himself from running me over.

I was eternally grateful.

‘‘Hey!’’ the guy exclaimed in a deep voice that reverberated off the tile, and I was unable to contain my gasp as I took in his unclothed state.

This giant of a boy stood nonchalantly a few feet away from me while dripping wet, wrapped in a very small towel. My head didn't even come close to touching the glistening of his chest since he was so tall.

Goldstein Academy was turning out to be a significant turning point in my life. I’d gone from only seeing shirtless models in anatomy books and a handful of movies to being in the same room as two different shirtless guys within twelve hours.