Pitbabe S2, Chapter 8 pg5

 Pitbabe S2, Chapter 8 pg5

   “A book.” I widened my eyes slightly in surprise, then quickly returned to a neutral expression. But of course, it didn’t escape Babe’s sharp eyes. “Ha, surprised? I read books, you know.”

   “I didn’t say anything.”

   “But your face just now was like, ‘What? Babe reading a book?’”

   “I just don’t see you reading often, that’s all.”

   “Hey, kid. I may not be super smart like you, but back home, I was one of the top students. If I didn’t hate that Tony so much, I’d probably be a doctor by now.”

   “Hmm… I think you could do it, Babe,” I nodded in agreement. It’s true that when it comes to emotions, Babe might be a bit slow. But in terms of brains, I agree he’s pretty sharp. He just likes to act like he doesn’t know much. He might even be quicker than me. “If you had continued studying back then, what would you have studied, Babe?”

   “I don’t know…” Babe looked thoughtful. “The last thing I remember, before leaving the house, I was watching a ton of movies about surgeons. If I had to choose what to study, I might go for medicine.”

   Of course, that wasn’t the answer I’d expected at all.

   Babe in a doctor’s gown… kinda weird, huh.

   “Speechless,” Babe lightly tapped my cheek, as if to say, No need to be that shocked. “I know it’s not my vibe, but give me a chance.”

   “Just thinking it’d be funny if you were a doctor.”

   “Yelling at patients all day?”

   “Very possible.”

   Babe laughed, clearly pleased, and I was glad to see it. It might not sound like much fun when you say, “We fight all the time” or “I’m used to it, we’ll make up soon,” but it’s hard to avoid. No matter how many years you’ve been together or how many issues you’ve worked through, there’s no guarantee that you won’t wake up to a new fight the next morning. For now, I just think that as long as the other person still wants to keep trying together, I’m okay with us arguing sometimes.

   “Love you the most,” I said, even though I’d said it countless times and it still didn’t feel like enough. I told Babe I loved him again, gently wiping the tears from his cheek with my thumb. He tilted his face into my touch, giving a small smile, then closed his eyes as if my touch melted away all his worries. “I’ll try to be less jealous.”

   “You can be jealous, just don’t be too harsh. It hurts me.”

   “Got it. I won’t be harsh anymore,” I said, running my hand gently over Babe’s face. He giggled and shrank back, probably ticklish from my touch.

   “You’re so gentle with me. Not like that Willy, he nearly tore my face off…”

   But maybe he relaxed a bit too much, because Babe accidentally let slip something he should’ve kept to himself. Those words were like a clump of pearls in a bubble tea, clogging the straw—impossible to suck up, but if you blow, it’ll splatter everywhere, ruining the drink, the mood… and the heart.

   “Willy?” I pulled my hand away from his face immediately. Babe’s mouth opened and closed, his expression dumbfounded. Of course, that’s how it should be, because he’d just soured my freshly mended mood with the half-truth he let slip. “Didn’t you say he just lent you a handkerchief?”

   “Uh… well…”

   “So he wiped your face too?”

   “He just…”

   “Okay, enough. Stop talking.”

   With that, I turned and walked away. There was no point in interrogating him further. Just moments ago, we’d promised not to lie to each other, but Babe didn’t even think to come clean. If he hadn’t slipped up, I’d never have known how much that Willy was meddling with my boyfriend.

   “Hey! Wait... Charlie!” Babe’s shout chasing after me couldn’t stop my steps. I knew I was stomping down each stair, even though the stairs hadn’t done anything wrong. But I was too frustrated, and with no idea where to vent the rage burning in my chest, the stairs and my bedroom door became the unfortunate victims of my fury.

   “Charlie... come on, don’t.” Babe burst through the bedroom door just seconds after I stormed in. He was panting, clearly having rushed up in a panic, and his voice was soft, almost sweet—fitting, since he was the one in the wrong. “I know what you’re thinking, but the situation wasn’t as romantic as you’re imagining. I was wiping it myself at first, but it wouldn’t come clean. Willy got annoyed and wiped it for me, grumbling the whole time. He wasn’t swooning over me or anything.”

   “Oh, really?” Even though I couldn’t see my own face, I was sure it was dripping with sarcasm. “Thanks for the story. Sounds like a super cute scene, straight out of a rom-com meet-cute.”

   “Charlie.”

   “Next time, tell Willy to keep the cloth as a memento. You know, something to look at when he misses you.”

   I expected Babe to fire back with an excuse, but instead, he froze like a malfunctioning robot, eyes wide before he started fidgeting as if possessed. That reaction of his lit the fuse on the second bomb in my head, and it exploded instantly.

   “What, you actually let him keep it?”

   “Well, he said he was going to throw it away…”

   “Oh, wow, Babe, you’re full of surprises today.”

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