“Now what?” Trevor asked once both assignments were completed.

I bit my lip.

Why did his eyes narrow at that?

“Can we…” I started a bit hesitant. “Can we talk?”

It was his turn to appear nervous.

“Why is it that whenever a girl asks 'Can we talk?' the guy usually doesn’t like what comes up next?” It sounded like a rhetorical question so I gave him no reply. “Okay, April… Talk.”

I did my best not to smile when he called me by my name.

“You said you wanted to be friend, right?” He nodded. “Why now?” I blurted out. “Why after four years did you suddenly take interest in me? Why after four years did you decide out of the blue that you wanted us to spend more time together?”

“It wasn’t out of the blue, Ape,” he replied and I thought I heard relief in his voice. “I’ve tried to approach you before but you always brushed me off.”

I gulped as guilt crept through me. It was true: I was the one who avoided him, not the other way around. But I had my reasons. I could not help but blush when he smiled at me; I could not help but stutter when he was being flirty; I could not help but trip or bump into things when I knew he was watching me. I just had no control over my mind and body when this boy was around.

“Well, I… You… You always jest with me,” I gave the first excuse that came to my mind.

“I’m sorry if I offended you! I just…” He paused. “Is it the Ape thing? Because I can stop calling you that. It will take a while since it’s a habit but I could do it.”

“Actually, I’m getting kind of used to it,” I admitted.

“Good. ‘Cause I like being the only one who calls you that,” he smiled that shy smile for a second time today. It had the same effect as before: it tinted my cheeks red.

“Is that everything you wanted to ask me?”

I opened my mouth to say yes but then I remembered something:

“Where did you get my number from?”

“Oh, that!” He laughed and ruffled his hair. “I stole it from your mom’s phone.”

“You what?!”

“Well, I tried Maggie first but she didn’t have it. So this one time when I was over at your house and your mom left her phone in the living room I kind of browsed through it and took your number.”

“Why? When?”

“To be able to text you sometime and about three years ago.”

I gaped at him.

“You had my phone number for three years?”

“Give or take.”

“And you never texted or called me before?”

He groaned.

“I already told you about that: every time I tried talking to you in person, it looked like you can’t wait to end the conversation. I thought it would be the same if I texted you. But yesterday you seemed friendly and relaxed so I finally grew a pair and messaged you.”

“Grew a pair?” I snickered.

“Shut up!” He said, rolling his eyes.

“I’m sorry about brushing you off before. You must’ve thought I was some stuck up bitch for doing that.”

“Actually, I thought that you were just being shy. Although I’ve seen you chat with other people at school and you don’t seem so bashful around them.”

“Yeah, that’s…” I looked away from him and through the window. What was I supposed to say? I’m shy around you because I’ve fallen for you? “Huh! You can see my room from here,” I commented simply to change the topic of our conversation. “Mom will be back soon so I should probably get going.”

Trevor got up from his seat.

“I’ll walk you to the door,” he announced.

“How gentlemanlike of you.”

“My lady!”

The exaggerated bow he gave me made me double with laughter.