The Boy Who Tattooed My Name on His Chest novel Chapter 9

That night after much thought, I told Alex about my past with Ryan.

Out of respect for him and our relationship, he deserved to know.

"No wonder he was acting so strange today. I thought he was my friend, but he's after my girlfriend!"

Alex rarely lost his composure, but still reassured me.

"It's okay, it's all in the past. I'll try to minimize opportunities for him to interact with you."

However, when we had class with Alex's group, we still had to sit together.

Ryan showed no concept of maintaining distance from someone in a relationship, boldly sitting to my left.

The entire classroom was full, so Alex could only sit on my right. I felt like I was sitting on pins and needles, pretending to focus on the lecture while sweat beaded on my back.

Thankfully, half the class passed without Ryan causing trouble. Just as I was beginning to relax, a note was suddenly pushed in front of me.

I pretended not to see it. Ryan rested his chin on his hand, looking at me with a half-smile, apparently prepared to wait me out.

Left with no choice, I opened the note when Alex wasn't looking.

And I froze.

It contained a simple sketch of me.

Identical to the one from when we were seventeen.

The past suddenly came rushing back. For a moment, I was disoriented. When I came to my senses, I crumpled the note forcefully and tossed it aside.

Alex finally couldn't stand it and frowned.

"I'm going to eat with my girlfriend. Why are you following us?"

Ryan replied nonchalantly: "I'm also going to eat. There's only one path to the cafeteria. When did I start following you?"

Suddenly inspired, I asked Alex to carry me on his back.

Though confused, he complied.

So Alex carried me past Ryan as we chatted and laughed, while Ryan's face grew increasingly dark.

I wondered if he remembered that when we were together, I had been the one in his position.