Finally, we reached my apartment door. He held
it open for me.
I bowed dramatically. “Thank you, Professor.”
As I turned to go inside, he pinned me against
the wall, his arms around me. His voice was low
and husky, tinged with exasperation. “Dummy.
You’re the girlfriend. Couldn’t you wait a little
longer?”
I stopped struggling. “But you said I wasn’t.”
<
2:41
“Not then. After you graduated.”
CC
“…What’s the difference?”
“You needed to focus on graduating. I didn’t want to distract you.”
87
I looked up at him. “So… you’re saying… you like me?”
The hallway lights went out, plunging us into darkness. All I could hear was his breathing, and mine.
His lips brushed against my forehead. “Yes, Amelia. I like you.”
“Do we really have to wait until after
graduation?”
“Yes. It’s almost here.”
“Can I at least get a little something in
2:41
87
<
advance?”
“What kind of something?”
I stood on tiptoe, wrapped my arms around his neck, and kissed him softly.
He froze for a second, then his hand cupped my chin. “I can give you a little more than that.”
The next morning, I woke up to sunlight streaming through my window. Ethan was standing over me, holding a bowl of oatmeal.
His eyes were wide with excitement.
“Sis, breakfast!”
I rubbed my eyes. “I haven’t even brushed my
teeth yet. What are you doing here?”
He sat down on the edge of my bed, practically
bouncing with excitement. “Sis, Adam brought you home last night! Are you guys together
く
“What do you care?”
“Just curious!”
I glared at him. “Get out.”
After our almost–confession, nothing really
changed between us. We still played games for
half an hour every day, still saw each other
occasionally on campus. He gave me space to focus on finishing my degree.
A few months later, right before my thesis defense, the “fiancée” showed up again.
Professor Hayes had gone to get us coffee, and
she’d appeared out of nowhere, blocking my
path.
“Stay away from Adam!” she yelled. “I’m his
fiancée!”
I decided to push her buttons. “I’m his future girlfriend.”
2:42
“You’re lying!”
Just then, Professor Hayes returned with our
coffees. “Enough. One more word, and I’m
calling your father.”
87
The threat worked like magic. She immediately
shut up.
After graduation, I planned to work for my
dad’s company, so I wasn’t in a hurry to start
my career. I started visiting my uncle’s house
for dinner more often. I noticed my uncle
seemed… more generous than usual. Ethan had a ton of new Lego sets and other toys. I was worried he was catfishing someone again, so I decided to investigate.
I was about to knock on Ethan’s door when I
heard him whispering inside.
“Adam, my sister’s eating dinner. Yes, yes,
Mom made her favorite. salmon. No. there are
<
no other guys around, I promise. I’m keeping an
eye out. Quackers? He’s great, fat and happy. I
can barely lift him anymore. Adam, are you carrying me in ranked tonight?”
I froze. The spy was in my own family.
I threw open the door, glaring at him.
Ethan quickly hung up the phone, looking terrified.
“Seriously? More lies and spying? Would you
sell your soul for a good K/D ratio?”
“I didn’t!”
“Don’t lie to me.”
He looked at me, genuinely. “I swear, I didn’t catfish him or ask for money.”
“Then what happened?”
<
“I just invited him to play Call of Duty because
he had a high rank in the ‘nearby players‘ list.
We played a few times, and he was so good! So
we added each other on social media. Then, I
saw his picture and realized it was Adam.”
“You knew him before?”
“He was my tutor for a year when I was
younger. You’ve met him before, too.”
My jaw dropped. “And you still catfished him?”
“I didn’t catfish him! My profile picture was a picture of us together. He said you were cute, and then he carried me to ten straight wins. After that, whenever I wanted him to play with me, I just posted a picture of you, and he’d message me.”
“Then why did he buy you all those Lego sets and other things?”
2:42
87
“He wanted to know what you liked, so he
could… you know… impress you. He’s a great
guy, really handsome, amazing at video
games… I couldn’t resist helping him out a
little…”
66
…You’re unbelievable.”
“And you made me talk to him on the phone?”
“He wanted to wish you a happy new year
himself…”
“Then why were you crying in his office that
day?”
“I wasn’t crying… I was trying not to laugh…
but telling Dad on me was a low blow.”
“And you gave him our location that night at
the club?”
He avoided my gaze. “Yeah…”
<
2:42
“… You’re a menace.”
I immediately called Adam and demanded to
meet.
We sat across from each other at a quiet bar. The lighting was dim. I stared at him seriously, tapping my fingers on the table. “My brother confessed everything. Your turn.”
He looked innocent. “Confess what?”
“How you orchestrated this whole elaborate
scheme.”
“I didn’t orchestrate anything. I just wanted to
get to know you through your cousin. I didn’t
expect you to believe I was catfishing you.”
Turns out, I was the one who needed that
lecture on online scams.
Adam stood up and sat next to me, ruffling my
87
<
hair like I was a child. “Come on, don’t be mad.”
I looked up at him. “We didn’t even know each
other. How could you possibly like me?”
“I tutored your cousin years ago. You used to
come over sometimes. I always got nervous
when you were around.”
“And?”
He took a sip of his drink. “And one night, I was walking home after tutoring your cousin and I saw you crying, burying a dead kitten in your backyard. You were in high school, covered in mud and tears. It was… heartbreaking, and a little funny.”
“And you’ve had a crush on me ever since?”
“Let’s say I was intrigued. Then, when you adopted Quackers from me, I found out you were attending the same university for grad
<
school.”
I frowned. “Why didn’t you say anything then?”
He leaned closer, his cool nose brushing
against mine. “I was waiting for you to grow up.”
My heart skipped a beat.
“…Oops, forgot to block you.” I winked. “Well, I’m all grown up now.”
Adam leaned in, one arm wrapping around my waist. His voice was a warm whisper against my ear. “So… what do you say? Want to give this a try?”
He took my hand and slipped a sparkling diamond ring onto my finger.
I smiled. “I’ve been waiting for you to ask.”
He pulled me into a hug, and his lips found
mine. All the unspoken words, all the unsaid confessions, melted away in the kiss.
After a long moment, I rested my head on his shoulder. “Was it love at first sight?”
“Love at first sight,” he murmured, “and a very
long game.”
