Trust In Love - Chapter 282

“SoOooOo… how was your weekend?”

Alex looked up from tying her shoe. “It was fine, Xiera. Haven’t I told you?”

She flipped her hair back and removed her foot off the bench. Looking around the dressing room, Alex spotted a few girls who averted their stares. A week had passed once again in Freccia Prep. Classes were basically the same—including Neal’s odd behavior during Chemistry Lab.

With Evelyn’s sharp ochre eyes, she and her group had started rumors. The surprise visit from Logan and the others wasn’t spared from it. Alex could have cared less but this constant attention on her was becoming a problem.

“Ugh! You have to give me better than that!” Xiera cried in playful anguish. “You were with your boyfriend all weekend! There has to be—oops.”

Kate covered Xiera’s mouth. The female students of Classroom 3C had lowered their voices as soon as Xiera mentioned the word, ‘boyfriend.’ They heightened their hearing to know more.

When Kate removed her hand, Xiera’s eyes turned apologetic towards Alex. The casual statement had provided another topic for their schoolmates to gossip about.

Instead of freaking out, Alex sighed a little. She offered Xiera a small smile. “It’s fine.”

Then, she placed her uniform inside her gym locker. Her gray eyes squinted through the holes of its door. She searched for Evelyn who would have heard the comment. Judging by the reaction, Alex concluded that Evelyn did hear it and was intrigued.

Alex bit her inner cheek before shutting her locker—a little louder than usual.

She pulled out the hair tie from her wrist and wrapped her short honey brown hair into a low ponytail. “But, if you wanted to know soooo bad, Xiera…”

“Huh?” Xiera did a double take. Her head snapped towards their listeners. Alex had emphasized how privacy was important to her.

So what was she doing now?

“I did have fun with Logan,” Alex continued in the same volume. She smirked at Xiera’s expression. “We were out all day. I realized how much I missed him after that. I wouldn’t mind another surprise visit later today.”

Kate instantly knew what Alex was doing. Who could blame her though? If people were to talk, they should at least use the truth.

She skipped over to Alex’s side and linked their arms, “You have to tell me all the details. He cooked you a picnic, right?”

“How many details do you want?” Alex asked back, squeezing Kate’s hand. “List them so we can cover them when classes are over.”

“Really??” Xiera joined in.

“Really.”

Xiera narrowed her gaze and pointed a finger at Alex. “Don’t you dare back out.”

“Of course not.” Alex scoffed. Their group headed for the exit. The others should have plenty of time and space to talk about this new information. Their ȧssumption that Alex was seducing Neal should be proven wrong now.

“Smooth, Alex,” Kate whispered once they were out of earshot. The boys had already taken over the volleyball court for warm ups.

“I have no idea what you are talking about.” Alex shrugged.

“Oh, you know exactly what I am talking about.”

“It’s not like Logan’s visit will be the last. It was bound to get out somehow,” Alex said. As much as she wanted to keep her life private, that was never an option from the moment she stepped on campus.

“Mhm. And the best way to get word out is…?” Kate trailed off.

Alex blinked in her direction. “Pigeon mail?”

Kate rolled her eyes, making Alex laugh. Xiera chose this moment to interrupt and fired her questions. Alex calmly answered them. Their classmates eventually sat behind them at the bleachers, discreetly trying to listen in.

A whistle blew out and the boys also joined the girls. Their gym teacher checked for attendance. Then, he proceeded to explain their activity.

“Alright. Volleyball! The outcome of the game does affect your final grade but… not to worry! No one is going to fail,” he ȧssured, observing their mixed reactions.

“Right. Order of business,” he spoke again after the noise died down. “Team captains for the first game are the two top scorers from our test last week, Neal and Alex.”

He pulled out two paper bags filled with strips. “I have all girls in this bag. I have all boys in the second one. Pick a total of five to form your team.”

The teams turned out to be almost what Alex expected. Evelyn ended up on Neal’s side of the court while Alex had drawn out Kate. She wasn’t familiar with the males of her team. But, they all seemed close to Neal—or had some affiliation with him.

“You’re going down, Conary,” one of them mocked.

Neal simply smirked. “We’ll see about that, Gibson.”

The guy chuckled and glanced over his shoulder. “I know he’s your cousin and all, Noah. But I’m not holding back. Hope the two of you still have a good relationship out of this.”

At that, Alex followed his line of sight. She spotted a head of black hair and silver tips. If she looked closely enough, she could see his resemblance to Neal.

“No problem.” Noah nodded in Alex’s direction. He grinned. His midnight eyes twinkled with familiarity. “Hey.”

“Hi…,” she greeted back, trying to place him in her memories. “Any good?”

Noah shrugged. “I think I’m good enough to do some blocking.”

“Counting on you then.” Alex turned her head back and bit her inner cheek.

“Curious?” Kate whispered in her ear.

“More like trying to remember him because he certainly knows who I am.” Alex exhaled sharply. She met Neal’s family before as well as a few of his relatives. If he and Noah were the same age then, they must have crossed paths.

But when?

Kate glanced at Noah. He noticed this and sent a wink her way. Her face hardened with disdain. She shifted her focus back on Alex. “I bet Xiera knows him. Just save your curiosity for later.”

A coin toss later, it was decided that Neal’s team would serve first. Alex anticipated he’d also be the first one to do it. She had positioned herself in the back and bent her knees, ready to receive the ball.

Neal dribbled the ball to loosen it up. He scanned the other side of the court for an opening. Alex observed closely to predict where he’d aim but Neal didn’t let his guard down. The corner of his lip curled up in amusement.

The ball went up in the air and Neal jumped to spike it—perfectly aiming for a difficult spot in front of Alex.

She cursed and leaned further forward. The ball hit her arms but she fell to her knees. ‘That little shi—’

Kate followed the ball with her arms raised up to toss it. She passed it to a male player who spiked it over the net. It went back in the air and, this time, Neal sprinted for the net in order to spike it over.

Eyes trained on the ball, Noah jumped to block it. The ball hit his fingertips but continued its course. Alex called out to another player and mimicked Neal’s approach to the net. Kate spotted her through the corner of her eye and sent the ball up in her direction.

Neal and his teammate tailed Alex, ready to block. She jumped up and swung her arm back for more power on her spike.

Then, she tapped the ball over their hands. The ball landed right behind them, dropping to the floor with a soft thud.

Alex’s team cheered for their first point.

On the other hand, Neal gave a disbelief scoff. “A dump shot right at the beginning?”

She smiled. “You were going full out that I wanted to break it.”

The air dropped a few degrees between them. Their lips may wear smiles but it was clear that neither person meant it. Noah clicked his tongue. This was becoming far more interesting than he thought. Who’d think the quiet and obedient heiress would fight back?

“We’ll get the next point,” Neal provoked.

“We’ll win the game.” Alex scrunched her nose and spun on her heel. Her teammates raised their hands for high fives. Although they didn’t know each other well, she gained their trust—especially her male schoolmates.

Kate served the ball. It landed right in the middle of the other court. Noah and another player guarded the net. The spiker from Neal’s team avoided their arms. Alex lunged for the ball, hitting it with one arm. It flew back towards the other side of the court.

Neal blocked its path, smashing the ball on Alex’s side of the court. Her ears went pink. She practically handed the point over!

“I told you we’d get the next point,” Neal boasted as he watched her grimace while crouching on the floor.

Alex straightened her legs and shook her head. Losing points in volleyball was expected. There was no need to dwell on it. She needed to focus on the rest of the game.

“If what you said came true then…” she started to say.. “There’s no reason why mine won’t.”