Under Pressure. A. C. Meyer

smiled. - "And the nickname is not silly. I am not to blame if you are my Cinderella."

      "And what are you? Prince Charming?" - Mandy couldn't keep the ironic tone. "You think you are, don't you, Ryan McKenna?" - she couldn't stop her voice from being full of poison.

      He looked at her, surprised by the hostility.

      "What do you mean by that?"

      "That you must be full of yourself just because you are the captain of the basketball team and the girls fly around you like bakery flies. But you don't have to pretend to be interested in me, as I don't fall for your conquering heartthrob chat."

      Ryan raised his eyebrow and opened and closed his mouth a few times. She managed to leave him speechless. He knew that most people treated him with privileges because he was the playmaker and captain of the team, and the girls really flirted with him, but he had never seen himself in such a distorted perspective. As if he was a bad guy for being popular.

      He was about to reply that she was wrong when Miss. Leslie called out their names again.

      "Ryan? Amanda? Your book is Pride and Prejudice " - the teacher spoke and continued to indicate the book for each pair. - "You should make a project, showing the cultural differences of the time when the book takes place in comparison with the present, the difference in love relationships, always comparing past and present, without forgetting the theoretical basis through the authors who are part of the readings referenced for our discipline. I will make the prerogatives of work available on our class forum on the internet."

      Pride and Prejudice It couldn't be a better book. Ryan would make the Cinderella pleaded swallow the prejudice against him by the end of the semester. Now, taming that aloof girl was a matter of honor.

      At the end of class, Ryan stood up and rested his backpack on his shoulder, smiling at Miss. Grumpy.

      "Bye, Cindy. See you. But, I already want to set up our meeting at the campus library, to start our work. I'll see you on Saturday at nine in the morning."

      He bowed to her as a period nobleman would have done to a lady - perhaps even Mr. Darcy to Elizabeth - blinked and headed for the exit. I was sure that if I looked back, she would be open-mouthed, surprised.

      Chapter Four

      Upon seeing Ryan leave the room, Amanda exhaled audibly. The impact of the strange conversation hit her and she felt her body shudder. The memory of her rude words made her face flush and warm. Oh, my God. How could I be so impolite?, she scolded herself. She leaned forward, running her hands over her face. If she were sincere, she would admit what had happened. The shitty insecurity, associated with shyness, spoke louder and she reacted in the worst way possible.

      Dammit.

      The girl sighed and started to put the material in her backpack. The room was starting to fill up for the next class. As she finished packing her things, Mandy thought about how much he surprised her by appearing beside her and striking up a conversation.

      She closed the backpack carefully so as not to be embarrassed again. She rested the strap on her shoulder and headed for the exit. In a few seconds, she quickly crossed the hall to chemistry class. She barely crossed the living room door when she saw May waving at her.

      "Mandy! Here! I saved your place!"

      She went to her friend, still shaken. She couldn't stop thinking about the strange morning. Had Ryan McKenna really stroke up a conversation or was she dreaming? And had she really reacted so badly to his presence?

      "Mandy? Friend?" May shook her shoulder and Mandy looked at her with a start. - ""Honey, what happened?

      “Huh. Nothing” - she replied quickly, looking away.

      She couldn't tell anyone that, not even May. She felt embarrassed by her behavior and, at the same time, a little ridiculed by Ryan's joke, when he called her Cinderella. Because that could only be a joke. A guy like him would never look at her any other way. But, in a sneaky way, the other side of her, that romantic and dreamer murmured: “What if he really liked you? What if he's interested in something else? She took a deep breath, not knowing what to think, as her pessimistic side protested vehemently: "How bold of you to think that Ryan McKenna, the basketball star, the Brown's most handsome guy, the one who could have any girl he wanted to, would be intrested in something else. No, no, and no! He's on Mandy Summers' list of Unattainable Things and that's where he should stay. ”

      "Mandy, what happened? Are you upset with someone? Are you sick? Talk to me, friend!" - May's expression was concerned. Mandy tried to open a smile to reassure her, determined not to comment anything. She was a very closed girl with her own feelings and hated to worry about others.

      "No, May. I'm fine. I just have a little headache."

      "Oh, damm it! I hate it when that happens. I'll leave you alone to see if it gets better. Do you want a painkiller?"

      "No, thanks. Soon I will feel better" - she replied, feeling even worse for lying to her best friend.

      The teacher came into the room and started the lesson, but Mandy was completely unaware of what was happening, going over the morning's events, as if it were a movie in which Ryan and she were the main characters. She recalled the moment when he held her so she wouldn't fall. His arms wrapped around her so tightly that she didn't want to get out of his heat. Closing her eyes, she remembered his smile and his bright eyes when he stroke up a conversation during class, seeming interested in knowing more about her. Guilt hit her at the thought of her rudeness when he was just nice.

      Sympathetic and seductive, that romantic voice murmured and Mandy remembered the moment when he leaned against her, bringing his lips close to her ear, raising the hairs on her body while whispering in her ear. It would be enough to turn her head a little and their lips would meet and she could taste his taste.

      Where’d that come from? Gosh! I haven't even kissed anyone, how can I be thinking that kind of thing?

      A shake on her shoulder drove her out of her thoughts.

      "Mandy, come on. The class is over, let's have lunch."

      She looked at May, confused, wondering how an hour of class could have gone by without her noticing. If someone asked her anything the teacher had said during the class, she wouldn't know how to answer it, because she spent the whole time thinking about Ryan, his easy talk and his beautiful blue eyes.

      Shaking her head, she tried to shake the memory of the boy, put her backpack on her shoulder and followed May out of the classroom towards the university cafeteria.

      She walked beside her friend, who kept talking about the torture that had been her history class. As she turned in the corridor, a strange sensation enveloped her, as if she were being watched. She lifted her head, looked around and found the same pair of blue eyes that had destabilized her all morning. Their eyes met, he blinked and she felt her face heat up.

      "Mandy? Earth calling!"

      The young woman broke eye contact with Ryan and looked back at May, who was watching her curiously.

      "Are you alright? You look a little flushed" - the friend said and Mandy looked away to the floor.

      "Um ... I am," he replied under May's scrutiny. But she gave up on lunch. It was better to go to her safe place to put her head in place. - "Friend, have lunch with the boys." "I'm going to the library. I'm not hungry and my head is hurting a lot."

      "Do you want me to go with you?" - May asked, stopping in the middle of the hall. She felt guilty again for lying again, but she needed to be alone and try to understand what was going on.

      "No, no need. It's quiet there and that's exactly what I need now."

      May seemed a little reticent about allowing her to go there alone.

      "Are you sure?"

      The young woman shook her head, trying to smile slightly.

      "Okay, see you later, then."

      Mandy