The Wallflower and The Star Athlete (closed for Poprockz)

[Poprockz]

She had to admit she was impressed by that major. Psychology was a tough major, probably made all the more difficult by his need to train and maintain his physicality. The fact that he was maintaining his grades, training, performing, and managing a personal life (she assumed), was nothing sort of applaudable. Perhaps they could have a competition between the two of them about which one of them was the busier student.

"Yeah, no problem. I'll see you around," she answered casually, holding out her hand for another handshake. While she doubted they would actually talk again, it was one of those formalities that one went through the motions for. He seemed like a decent person, so she hoped things went well for him in his career.

 

[Mr_Positive]

Adrian firmly shook her hand, meeting her gaze. He then left. Noticing the time, he rushed to get some food before his next training session. He just hoped the press team had not told his coach about his unplanned longer stay at the soup kitchen. He didn't need another grilling right now.

After training, Adrian his way back to his dorm. Being the star athlete had its privileges - he had his own room with no annoying roommate. He liked the space - it was the only place where he was truly alone. This gave him his first opportunity to reflect on his morning in the soup kitchen. And Olivia. She seemed really cool, if not a bit standoffish. He was not used to that. In fact, he liked it as he had carry his weight in the conversation. He wondered if she was single.

 

[Poprockz]

She finished up in the soup kitchen and headed home.

“Hey Vee, the dishes are piling up…” her roommate commented as she entered the apartment. Alexandra was glued to her phone, not even looking up as Olivia hung up her bag and simply grunted in acknowledgment. She had two other Roomates, so they split the rent three ways- it was really the only way she could afford to live around here, so she didn’t want to rock the boat.

The dishes would be done later, but for now she needed to finish her homework. Tomorrow was Sunday, so she’d be working her usual 12-hour shift.

Before she knew it, Monday had rolled around. God she was tired… Maybe one of these days she could use her Vacation time and just chill out for a week; she world full-time after all, which came with vacation and sick time benefits, though they weren’t plentiful.

Olivia got up and dressed in her usual I’ll-fitting clothes, beanie, and mask. She made her way to the bus station and traveled to campus, going to her biology class first and taking her usual seat in the back. Fortunately for her, she had the presence of mind to grab herself a coffee before class. Thank God… she needed a bit of a pick-me-up.

 

[Mr_Positive]

Thankfully Sunday was a rest day for Adrian - a few hours with his sports massage therapist interspersed with some homework.
Monday morning meant biology class - he normally didn't like it so early, especially since he had been up early for training. But he secretly hoped to run into Olivia, and see their chance encounter at the soup kitchen was more than an once-off.
He slowly made his way into the lecture hall, carefully scanning the seats. He smiled when he spotted her. The mask was her giveaway. He discreetly made his way to her, and sat down two seats over.

'Hey'.

 

[Poprockz]

She lifted her head and her blue eyes met his. “Oh, hey.” He was giving a nod in greeting as she wondered curiously what brought him to the back of the class.

Who knew if he actually liked being in the front, but the teacher had been delighted to have him in class and had invited him up there at the beginning of the term. He hadn’t seemed put-out by the invitation and had sat up there as requested. To be fair, she could see how he might have had a hard time saying no when the teacher had been so excited.

Social pressure was a hell of a thing.

 

[Mr_Positive]

‘So this is why I have never seen you in this class before. Some might say you are trying to be invisible’, he said with a small laugh.

Truth be told, Adrian hated sitting at the front. The professor, as well meaning as he could be, was on the verge of being annoying with the levels of excitement. Plus it meant everyone could see him, which was a distraction on most days.

‘I think I need to start sitting back here for my own sanity’. Plus it had the added benefit of being near Olivia.

 

[Poprockz]

“I mean, it’s definitely better to be at the back in my opinion,” she smiled under her mask. “I don’t mind being invisible- it makes it easier to study and pay attention.” Olivia had assumed that he flourished in the sun, but maybe even people like him needed a break from the spotlight sometimes.

“Mostly though, I sit here because it’s just closest to the door.” She shrugged, “My schedule is really tightly packed, so I have to be really quick about getting from class to class. Being the closest to the door means I can just dash when the professor dismisses-“

“Adriaaaan!” An excited voice whined. “Why are you all the way back here?” Lexi was one of the women who liked to chat with him during class, the woman planting herself cheerfully in the desk right between Adrian and Olivia. She was gorgeous of course, and Olivia had to respect her commitment to having a pristine appearance every day from her make-up to her unscuffed shoes- that seemed like it would take a lot of work. Today she was wearing a ruffled white sleeveless blouse with a short black skirt and two-inch heels, her glossy red hair pulled back into a neat ponytail.

Lexi leaned towards him and rested her head on her hand as another girl sat to his other side. “Did your PR thing go well? I heard you went to a soup kitchen or something. That is super selfless of you, you know. I wish I could volunteer like that, but I just can’t ever find time. What was it like? Was it like literally soup or did they have other stuff?”

Olivia sipped her coffee, pretending not to eavesdrop on their conversation. One of the simple pleasures in life was to be a fly on the wall while other people talked amongst themselves. She always found it interesting to peek into the windows of other people’s lives.

 

[Mr_Positive]

Adrian recognised that high pitched shrill. He inwardly groaned before turning on his polite face.
‘Hey Lexi, yeah it was alright. Always good to give back to those in need. Maybe a few less hours in front of the mirror, and you’d find the time’.
It was unlike him to make such a remark, but Lexi had rudely interrupted Olivia without even acknowledging her.
‘Listen, I need to focus today so you ladies have a nice day’.

 

[Poprockz]

The woman looked shocked at his less-than-polite reply, her cheeks turning a deep shade of pink from the humiliation of being called out. She recovered enough to laugh nervously and reply, “you’re so funny, but I get that you need to study and stuff.”

Lexi took out her books and avoided talking to him for the rest of class, though she would still steal glances at him when she could.

Olivia cringed inwardly at how awkward the atmosphere was after what had gone down, but she made her best effort to pay attention as the class went on.

When the class was dismissed, she was out the door before one could say ‘packed schedule.’

Since the class was every other day, she didn’t come back to the class until Wednesday, once again sitting in that same seat with a coffee and an air of tiredness.

 

[Mr_Positive]

This time, Adrian knew where to find Olivia.

‘Hey again. Your schedule must be as packed as mine. You look really tired’.

He cringed as soon as he said it. Telling a girl he like that she basically looks like shit will go down like a lead balloon.

Trying to recover, ‘Would you have time for a coffee after this? My treat’.

 

[Poprockz]

She "looked tired"? Jesus, did she really look that bad? Maybe she ought to use some of that eye cream sample she got from the mall. While she wasn't one to primp and polish like a peacock, she wouldn't deny that she wanted to take care of her appearance as far as skincare and such went. Though her hair was often a mess, she tried to take decent care of that as well.

Olivia's eyebrows scrunched, but it seemed like she was more uncomfortable with looking like shit than she was with the fact that he had pointed it out. Damn. She really needed to get more sleep. Olivia assumed that he was offering to take her to coffee due to how tired she looked, which was quite kind of him. "I appreciate the concern and that would be nice, but I work after school, so I can't. My only free day is Saturday, and that's after the kitchen. I'm definitely going to go bed early though."

 

[Mr_Positive]

Adrian couldn’t hide his disappointment, but respected her decision.
‘Maybe another time then’.
Now he was in his head. Had he scared her off before he had even had a chance to get to know her?

 

[Poprockz]

Why did he look disappointed? Confusion stirred within her and she started pondering it. He hadn't asked her out to coffee to get to know her better, had he? She didn't think he had any romantic interest in her, but their chat in the kitchens had been pleasant enough that perhaps he wanted to be friends. Well, if that was the case, then he would unfortunately find that she was simply too busy for friendship at this point. Unless she won the lottery or her parents died in a car-crash, she was locked-in to her current lifestyle of running around like a chicken with its head cut off.

"Do you... want to grab coffee on Saturday?"

She surprised even herself by having asked, not sure why she felt the need to extend the invitation to him.

 

[Mr_Positive]

His hopes soared, hardly believing her words.
‘Yeah sure, I could meet you after your soup kitchen shift if you’d like’.

Adrian couldn’t shake this feeling, but Olivia was stirring something deep within him. Something he had not felt since his high school girlfriend. They broke up as they ended up on opposite sides of the country.

 

[Poprockz]

"Okay, that sounds good. Have you ever been to Ruby's Roast? It's a great coffee shop a couple blocks away from the kitchen. They've got great coffee and even better pastries. I usually get a latte with the blueberry muffin, but they've got something for everybody." Olivia was amenable to going elsewhere, but she figured it might be convenient for both of them to go there since it was near campus.

 

[Mr_Positive]

‘Sounds great. I don’t get out that often, so I’m grateful you had that lined up’.

Class starts as their conversation ends. Like the previous day, Olivia is gone as soon as the class is dismissed. He then realised he didn’t get her number. Now he had to pray Saturday worked by the time it came around.

 

[Poprockz]

The rest of the week whizzed by at astronomical speeds, and soon it was Friday. She didn't keep up on the school newspapers, nor the city ones, but her roommate liked to. When she went into the kitchen to make herself a protein shake as an easy breakfast, her roommate casually mentioned that it was weird seeing her in a hair cap rather than a beanie.

Olivia's face scrunched in confusion before she came over to the couch and leaned over the other woman's shoulder. What she saw made her face pale. Not only was the picture of herself, Jake, and Adrian not blurred for any of them, it even listed their names in small text underneath the photo. What made it worse was that she was looking at the city newspaper rather than the campus one, as she assumed they had released both articles in both places for more coverage. "Fuck!" she hissed, quickly walking back to her room.

The rest of the day was spent pacing, worrying, and checking her phone and socials. Nothing yet, but who knew when they would see it.

It was a fitful night, and the next day she was quite sleep-depraved as she headed off to the kitchen. Everyone who spoke to her got one-word answers, most people sensing that something was up and largely staying away from her. It was unusual for her to be in such a dark mood, so many of the patrons traded concerned looks with each other. Eventually her shift was over and she put her beanie back on, sweeping out of the kitchen and stalking her way to the coffee shop.

 

[Mr_Positive]

The rest of Adrian’s week also flew by, a mix of classes, training and studying. He had Nationals in a couple of weeks. It would be his first time attending and a chance to see how he currently compares to the country’s best athletes.

Saturday started with as usual with a double training session, first some track work and then the weights room. By the end of the two hours, he was exhausted.

But his coffee ‘date’ with Olivia kept him going. He grabbed a shower and some light food before making his way to the coffee shop.

 

[Poprockz]

She arrived there first, though she didn't go inside. Instead, she waited for him outside. After all, she didn't want to make a scene inside the shop. Outside the shop was fair game though, especially since there was an alley next to the shop she could take them into for a little bit of privacy. Her sharp eyes scanned the street for him, waiting for the subject of her simmering anger.

 

[Mr_Positive]

Adrian neared the coffee shop and saw Olivia outside. He smiled at the sight of her, but as he got closer that smile disappeared. There was a look on her face like thunder.

‘You alright, Olivia?’

 

[Poprockz]

She had watched him approach silently, waiting for him to get close before they could have their conversation. The only answer to his question that he got was a gruff, "come with me- I need to talk to you now." With that, she grabbed his wrist and pulled him into the alleyway next to the shop. Though her grip was firm, she made sure not to squeeze him hard enough to be painful.

Once they were in the shadow of the alley, she turned to him with fire in her eyes and anger in her tone. "So Adrian, is your editing team illiterate? Or is your team just full of assholes?"

 

[Mr_Positive]

Her reaction startled Adrian, following her into the alley without a notion of what was to come. When she turned to him and met his gaze, he could see the anger. But her question confused him.

‘What do you mean? I don’t have an editing team, sorry I’m confused right now’.

 

[Poprockz]

"Alright, then who wrote that fucking article about you being in the soup kitchen? Because unless I've lost my goddamn mind, I seem to remember signing a nondisclosure form that revokes you and your team's right to use both my name and image." she growled in reply. What did he mean he didn't have an editor?! All articles had an editor, or at least a writer. She wanted to know who fucked up and why so she could tear them a new asshole.

 

[Mr_Positive]

Adrian closed his eyes in disbelief, struggling to comprehend the magnitude of this mistake.
‘Olivia, I’m so sorry. The college press team must have forgotten to give that form to the papers’.
He could see the rage behind her eyes, it went deep.
‘The way these things work is that the college photographer takes the pictures and then sends them out to publications. The writing of the article is done by that publication. Essentially I have no input on these things’.

 

[Poprockz]

"Yeah, then who am I supposed to blame, huh? The photographer who forgot to hand over the disclosure? The publication who didn't know to not use my personal shit for the article? You for being the root of all of it?!" Olivia took a breath and tried to calm down.

"Do you ever wonder why I wear a mask when Covid is largely not an issue at this point? It's because I don't want to be recognized. And now I have to look over my shoulder because of your team's carelessness! You have no fucking idea- you just- Fuck!" She took off her mask and shoved it into her pocket so she rub her face in a very stressed manner.