SINFULLY YOURS

Chapter 8: Chapter 8. This Familiar Face

Chapter 8. This Familiar Face

Rosa Lin’s POV

The moment he was done speaking, the entire hallway fell silent. A few students began to disperse.

Nobody said a word.

Only a few girls still remained dumbstruck, gazing at him. I was definitely one of those few girls. I can’t be blamed. Neither can I help it. He was devastatingly attractive. Is he human? Is he even legal? I thought to myself, staring at him in a daze as he slowly turned around to look at me.

He smiled, gazing at me with an expression that looked like recognition, like he knew me. He stretched out his hand and brushed his palm through my hair. ”They look nice,” he said, forcing me to blink.

My heart did a little flip in my chest.

What? Is he complimenting my hair? I wondered.

He chuckled and then walked past me, leaving me frozen where I was in a daze, still looking up at the spot where he was.

A few of the other girls sneered. I managed to snap out of my daze, neglecting all their stares, and spun my head to look at his departing figure. He kept walking calmly, with so much masculine grace and confidence, his bag swung against his right shoulder.

I saw the moment he tilted his head back to look at me, that bright, charming smile still on his face, revealing those perfect white teeth. He stared at me for a bit, smiling even brighter, and then turned around veering around the corner and finally disappearing from my view.

That was when I snapped out of my daze, blinking rapidly and fiddling through my hair. I blinked and shook my head.

A slight chuckle escaped me. Jeez, what the hell was that? I wondered. I finally came to my senses and then looked down at the brochure paper in my hand.

Back to your senses, Rosa, I told myself. Back to your senses. I bit against my bottom lip. Whoever it was, I guess I will have to thank him later, but for now I needed to focus on school. A few other students still brushed against me, even while I tried my best to avoid them.

Yep, I guess I’ve already become public enemy number one. This is going to be a very, very tough semester.

A few minutes later, I finally managed to locate my lecture hall. I walked through and shut the door behind me. Everywhere was almost filled up.

I saw the way everyone was glaring at me; I was definitely not welcome. I needed to find a place where nobody would kick me out and slap me across the face—an empty chair, an isolated place where only I would exist. That’s my best option now.

I located a chair at the very far back of the lecture hall, obviously. People were serious about this current semester since it held a lot of credits, nobody was willing to lose, so there was definitely going to be a lot of struggle for the front seats, which left only the back seats vacant. I am so doomed. How the hell do I expect to focus and hear everything the lecturer will say from the back?

I felt exhausted and down. I exhaled, but I couldn’t sit anywhere else. I could see movements all around. A lot of people who clearly had space beside them were obstructing those spaces, placing bags and different accessories like they were keeping those places for someone, but it was obvious they were trying to keep me from sitting with any one of them.

I ground my teeth. Just accept your fate, Rosa, I told myself.

I walked over to the secluded seat at the back and took my space there, taking off my backpack and placing it against my lap. I stole a peek up to see everyone still staring at me. Just endure it, it’s going to die down. But for how long? I wondered.

How much longer do I need to bear this?

The murmurs and the whispers suddenly filled the hall once again.

”Oh my god, this is going to be the best semester of my life!” I heard a girl squeak to my left, but I didn’t bother to look up.

Unzipping my backpack, I took out my lecture notes, dropping them against my lap.

”He is so cute!” another girl squeaked at the other end.

I frowned and lifted my head up. That was when I saw the same lecturer who had saved me walking towards the podium, dropping his bag against the lecturer’s desk by the wall. Then, leaning against the pulpit, his eyelids squinted, raking all over the murmuring hall, observing everyone.

”Oh, kill me now!” Another girl to my left, squeaked dramatically and fell backwards like she was fainting.

”Hello students!” he said in a calm, controlled voice.

”Hello, sir!” We all chorused.

I swallowed hard. Oh my God! He’s our lecturer?

I quickly looked at the pamphlet to check that the course we were supposed to have that morning was Applied Music/Performance Practicals. Was he the lecturer in charge of that? My heart pounded so fast in my chest for reasons I couldn’t explain.

He pushed himself off the pulpit, placing his hands in his pockets, ”You can call me Mr. Don Diaxu.”

”Ooh!” I heard countless girls cooing all over the hall.

”Good morning, Mr. Don!” One girl squeaked.

He smiled with a raised eyebrow. ”Well. Good morning to you too. I have never seen this level of enthusiasm since the eighties.” He uttered.

The hall erupted and he grinned.

I looked around at the starstruck horny girls filling the hall. Look at the people calling me a slut and insulting me when the school’s popular celebrity took advantage of me. What shall I call them now? Ogling someone who was clearly or probably old enough to be their father?

I looked back at him. Or maybe not. That man looks too young to be a father, and so bloody good-looking.

I blinked and shook my head.

Snap out of it, Rosa. Don’t become like them, I thought to myself and looked down at my books, arranging myself. Just focus. Focus on why you are here.

”Miss Rosa Lin?”

I flinched at the mention of my name. My eyes widened.

Okay, what now? I thought to myself. How did he... how does he know my name?

My heart thumped so fast. I slowly tilted my head up to see that everyone had turned around and was gazing at me, including him.

Oh, come on. Why the hell is it just so hard to hide?

I opened my lips, and they shook with confusion as my eyes darted around. I pointed at myself. ”Me?” I asked.

He chuckled. ”Seriously? Is there any other Rosa Lin on this campus?” he asked, smirking at me.

I felt confused. My body shook as I stood. I stood up and then placed my hands by my sides, bowing down. ”I’m... I... I’m sorry, sir.” I stuttered, unable to regain control of myself.

He chuckled and shook his head. ”I’m sorry if I’m inconveniencing you. I just wanted to say that the place you are sitting is quite isolated, and I have a feeling that you are going to have a hard time hearing me for there. Why don’t you come forward to the front, where you’ll be able to hear me clearly?” he suggested.

I blinked and chuckled nervously. ”I don’t know Sir, the front is occupied,” I said, trying to make my voice loud enough so he would hear.

”No, come on, don’t worry. I will make space for you. There is enough space over here. Come on!” he said. ”Hurry up! Make it snappy,” he said, snapping his fingers.

I swallowed hard. Oh my God! This is one of those moments in my life where I really wished a sudden tornado would come and destroy the entire campus so I wouldn’t have to live through this.

I folded my lips and bent my head down, packing up my books and stuffing them into my backpack. I swung my backpack over my shoulder.

I avoided everybody’s gazes. I stumbled down the aisle between two rows of chairs until I got to the front and hesitated.

The place he pointing out had a set of girls sitting there, and I definitely recognized them: the diva girls of my year, girls from rich parents who spent their entire lives focusing on glam, social media, and the sassy lifestyle that definitely influenced their attitude, and they were going to be the leading girls that were going to hate me the most in this department.

I swallowed hard. Yeah, this is totally a bad idea. I diverted and tried to take the seat behind them.

”Nope,” he said. ”Take that seat. Shift,” he said, staring at the girl closest to the end of the bench.

She looked at him and hesitated, clearly not wanting to give me space. She huffed and moved herself over, but it was clear she wasn’t doing that out of the goodness of her heart.

I saw the way he frowned and observed the girl for a while, but then he turned to look at me, the smile returning to his face.

”Have a seat, Miss Lin,” he said.

Yep! This is definitely going to be the worst lecture of my life, I thought to myself and slowly, hesitantly took a seat, pressing myself against the edge and sitting on only one half of my butt to keep as much space as I could from the girl lest she stabbed me with her eye pencil.

Her eyes said what words couldn’t.

I dropped my backpack on the floor beside me and quickly took out my books, using my hair to shield my face.

When I placed my notebook on my lap, I finally looked up to see that he still stood in front of me with both of his hands in his pockets, watching me with a smile.

I blinked. I tilted my head to the side to make sure I was the one he was looking at and looked back at him. He chuckled and finally turned around, heading back to the podium.

The familiarity of his face was still tugging at my brain.

Think, Rosa! Where the hell have you seen this face before? I kept wondering with a frown, my forehead creasing.