Excuse Me, I Quit! novel Chapter 25

Mike's P.O.V.

After having that conversation with Evan, I was even more determined to have Annie all to myself. I refuse to lose to him. Annie can't possibly fall in love with him. I won't let it happen. I decided to go see her right away. I knew she lived right across from Evan so it was easy to get to her. Lucky me.

It was late so I tapped on her window. The curtain was closed but I saw the shadow of her so I knew she was in there.

She opened the curtain and gasped. She immediately opened the window.

"Mike? What are you doing here?" she exclaimed.

"Can I come in?" I smiled sheepishly.

"Um...okay..." she hesitated but stepped aside. Glad she trusts me.

"I came to see you since you refused to hang out with me today," I complained.

"You can't be here! If my mom sees you..."

"She won't find out if we are real quiet," I reassured her. I went over to her bed and sat down then looked around the room. Her room wasn't anything fancy. It barely had any furniture. Not like how a typical teenage girl's room should be. The empty walls and the lack of furniture made it look depressing.

She brushed a few strands of hair away from her face and sat on the chair in front of me. My eyes landed on her hand that was heavily bandaged.

"What happened to your hand?" I asked.

"Um...I burned myself cooking," she said and avoided my gaze. Why do I feel like she is lying to me? But I didn't want to push her for more explanation. Instead, I decided to change the subject.

"I came here because I missed you," I said.

"You did?" she looked at me surprised.

"Yes, and I wanted to see if you want to go out with me Friday night," I said.

"I don't know..." she hesitated.

I got up and walked toward her then leaned over. Our forehead almost touching. "I know you like Evan. It's no secret. But let me tell you something, you are wasting your time on him. He will never appreciate you like I would," I said.

Annie looked me in the eyes. "How do you know? He said he really likes me," she said quietly.

"I am sure he does but it won't last. It never does. Just ask any of the girls he dated before," I said.

"H..how can you say stuff like this about him? Aren't you his best friend?" Annie's eyes were full of shock and worry.

"Why did you kiss me?" I asked.

"Because I wanted to see how you feel about me. And judging from your lips, you are into me too," he touched my lips with his thumb.

"I feel...I feel so confused," I said honestly.

"I know. I want you to think about who you wanna be with. Me or Evan? And I want you to let me take you out on a date so I can show you I am a better choice for you. How about it?" he smiled.

I thought about it for a moment. Evan was nice to me and he saved me from my mother so I couldn't betray him. But at the same time, he never asked me to be his girlfriend so it wasn't like I would be cheating on him if I went out with Mike one day. I needed more time to think.

"I don't know yet. Can I think about this?" I asked.

"Of course. Take as much time as you need," he said and stroked my hair. "I'll go now but let me know if you change your mind about our date, okay?"

I smiled and nodded.

I buried my face on the pillow. I did like Mike. He had been nice to me since the beginning and we have fun together. And when I kissed him, I felt warm all over. He was so gentle and sweet.

But it was different with Evan. He made my heart race, it was almost scary. He made me hot and bothered whenever he touched me. It would've been easier to decide if Evan was still mean to me but he had been acting protective and kind. I couldn't let him go for Mike. I felt annoyed and frustrated trying to decide what to do.