Pitbabe S2, Chapter 6 pg4

 pg4

   “A therapist, a psychiatrist, anything.”

   “Not my type. I don’t really get those people.”

   Even in his gloom, he’s still got enough energy to tease. It’s not my business, but I can’t help wondering: is the Pete I’m seeing now the same one Way knew? And if so, was there ever a moment when Way thought this guy was charming in his own way?

   

   BABE:

   After our little argument (where I shed a few tears), it’s like my emotions were pulled out of the water. I can breathe easier. Charlie is back to being adorable in my eyes—maybe even a bit more than usual, since he keeps making these guilty, droopy puppy faces for making me cry. I’m not exactly proud of it, but I can’t deny that Charlie is always extra cute and endearing during these remorseful moments.

   And because Charlie is so cute, I soften and agree to take him to the lab as the adorable guy pleaded. Even though, deep down, I’d rather go home and cuddle like a proper couple.

   “Not long, right?” I say, putting on a stern tone to remind him that he’s supposed to rest today.

   “Yep. Just dropping off the water bottle, a quick chat, and we’re out,” Charlie replies firmly. “Babe, you can wait in the car. Shouldn’t take more than ten minutes.”

   “Nope, I’m coming with you.”

   “Liu’s not gonna flirt with me.”

   “But he’s still cute!”

   Charlie lets out a soft sigh, clearly exasperated that I’m not letting go of the Liu thing so easily.

   In short, Liu is one of the researchers, the only woman on this project. She’s older than me by three years, but her face looks like a high schooler’s. Tiny and pale, like she’s been locked in a tower since childhood, with long, glossy brown hair and blunt bangs that show off her big, round eyes. She scurries around the lab in cartoon slippers—some character I don’t recognize—massive enough to make it look like she’s gliding on roller skates. That’s not the issue, though. What makes me want to declare war on her every time is that Liu loves to tease me by pretending to flirt with Charlie just to rile me up. Even though it’s obviously not serious, I still see her as an enemy. Plus, Charlie calls her just “Liu,” no “sister” prefix, despite that fake-youthful adult being older than me.

   “Didn’t Babe say Liu isn’t cute?” Charlie teased with a grin. “Admitting it now?”

   “I meant cute in other people’s eyes. Not for me.”

   “Including me?” Charlie chimed in.

   “Isn’t it?”

   “Hmm… yeah, I guess,” Charlie said, pretending to ponder. He probably thought acting like that would make me jealous or lose my cool. Big mistake. I knew he was just messing around. “She’s cute, Dean, like a doll.”

   “Huh?”

   Stay calm.

   Charlie’s just teasing. Don’t fall for that one-eyed jerk’s game.

   “You asked,” Charlie shrugged, acting like it was no big deal to compliment someone else’s cuteness right in front of me. Meanwhile, I could feel a burning heat rising in my head and chest, with signs it’d only get worse. “If you ask me, I think Liu’s pretty cute.”

   “Yeah… true.”

   Charlie’s wide, innocent eyes widened a bit more, probably because he’d braced himself for me to snap. But in reality, my reaction was way calmer than he expected.

   “For real?” Charlie asked again, like he couldn’t believe it.

   “Yeah, she’s cute for real.”

   “You’re not mad, Babe?”

   “Mad about what?”

   “That I called someone else cute.”

   “Why would I be mad? It’s no big deal,” I shrugged, replying in a casual tone that must’ve completely clashed with the hotheaded image in Charlie’s head. Honestly, forget Charlie—if there was a mirror in front of me right now, I’d probably get chills from my own composure. “I think other people are cute all the time too. It’s normal.”

   “You think other people are cute too?” Charlie’s reaction was getting more entertaining by the second. His eyebrows shot up, he blinked faster than usual, and his mouth seemed torn between a smile and a frown. All in all, he looked so funny I wanted to whip out my phone and snap a picture.

   “Yeah.”

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