“Umm, my nephew used to study here in VCU,” she began slowly, scratching the back of her head. “And well, a lot of people found him very attractive—Gods know why by the way, but hey—and so they used to follow him around everywhere, even to our bookstore. It was good business, I can’t lie. But they drove me nuts.”

So they do that a lot around here huh, Vi wondered as he did some quick math in his head. “Wait, I’m sorry, but your nephew’s older than you?”

“Yeah, five years older. But that’s another story,” Cat-Eyes huffed. Vi faintly remembered what Mom had told him. ‘And oh, they also had a tiny daughter!’

He smiled. The tiny one, was it? “Sorry for the invasive question,” he said, clearing his throat, “but do you have a sister who’s way way older than you?”

Cat-Eyes’ eyes seemed to light up with curiosity. “My Big-Sis is in her forties, yes. Why do you know that?”

Vi nodded, and decided against telling her about the fact that her Mother used tutor his Mom when she was a child. Instead, he flashed her a warm smile.

“My mom told me she went to school with your sister,” he smiled.

“Ohh,” Cat-Eyes looked away as if she were calculating in her head. “Oh yeah, I think I’ve heard that too."

“An older nephew sounds like fun though,” he added quickly, eager to continue the conversation.

“That’s debatable,” she looked at him thoughtfully. “Prasanna’s an irritating old bum, and he’s something closer to a big-brother to me,” she crossed her arms.

Vi mimicked her pose. “And his ‘pesky’ fans brought good business, you say?”

“Yeah, but…if I get one more excited ‘fan’ asking me what his favorite color is, I might just explode.” Suu huffed, making Vi bite back a laugh. But he held onto that thought.

“Prasanna…” Vi crossed his arms and began to think. He’d heard that name before. “…the only Prasanna I used to know was a ‘Prasanna Nemari’, so unless—” he let out a hard laugh at the disgusted, crumpled look on Cat-Eyes' face. “—no way, really?! Did he go to Kshirasa Academy for highschool?!” he chuckled with disbelief.

“Oh Gods, yes he did! You know that big clown,” her voice filled with disappointment.

“I used to. I didn’t study at the Academy for long though,” a sad smile flashed across his lips. “So I doubt he remembers me,” he sank his gaze.

Truth be told, Vi hated his time at the Academy, and there were memories he wished he could burn. But Prasanna’s artwork was one of the very few things that he cherished from his time there. “He was an incredibly skilled artist,” he said fondly. An entire wall at the Academy’s Debate-Hall had been painted by him; a sea of characters meticulously painted in warm, earthy tones. Vi had spent so much time gazing up at it.

Cat-Eyes chuckled, a proud smile spreading across her lips. Vi nearly faltered at the sight of it, pressing his lips tight to center himself. “He is! Pa taught him well,” she said softly. “He still finds time to help Pa out these days.”

“Ah, so that was your father,” he realized, thinking back to the art studio and the hunched figure within it. Cat-Eyes snapped her gaze at him, pure alarm flashing in her eyes. Before he could continue, she cut in.

“D-Did he see you?!” she nearly yelled. Vi shook his head, wondering why she looked like he’d committed arson.

“Oh, no,” he found himself assuring her. “I could sort of see someone inside, but I couldn’t really tell,” he waved his hand. “I promise I didn’t disturb him,” he clarified, wondering if that was what she was worried about. Either way, she looked very relieved upon hearing that.

“Y-Yeah, he, uh,” she stammered, “he shuts himself up in there, you know? It’s like, um, it’s like he’s in another world when he’s painting,” she gave him a helpless smile.

Vi struggled not to laugh. “Ah, well,” he stammered back, “does that happen to you too?”

“What do you mean?” her alarmed eyes met his again.

“I mean, uhh, do you paint like him too,” he clarified again, before immediately regretting the question when he remembered her ‘art’ from the little book.

Oh sh*t, I bet the hell not.

“Ah, well…” her voice trailed off, before finally meeting his gaze. No trace of that proud smile from before. Vi had to physically stop himself from sucking his teeth, cursing himself for asking that. Being the talentless child of a talented person, it wasn’t something he wanted her to dwell on. “…l can’t,” she shrugged. “The straightest lines I can draw are about as straight as my hair,” she said flatly, and a few curls bounced around her head as if on command.

“There’s nothing wrong with that,” the words escaped him before he could think twice. “Curls and curves are just as important as straight lines. And just as pretty,” he whispered, leaning in ever so slightly. Going by the way Cat-Eyes nearly froze, he could tell she heard him, for better or worse. “I’m sorry I asked,” he continued, leaning back.

Golden-brown orbs met his dark-brown ones. “That’s alright, I’m used to getting asked that,” she sighed. “And…thank you,” the words barely made it out of her lips, soft and tender, and for a second Vi wondered if he’d misheard. But from her lowered gaze and fidgeting hands, she seemed just as conflicted. The air between them began to strain, and he knew he had to change the topic before awkwardness hammered down.

“Back to the bookstore then,” he offered, sliding his hands into his pockets. “You don’t want me talking about it in public. Got it.”

She squeezed her own arm and averted her gaze. “That would be ideal, yes,” she admitted. “I’m sorry,” she sighed, avoiding his gaze again. Vi felt a strange tightness in his chest, and he really didn’t want to think about why it was so. The little book drama aside.

She didn’t seem like she was afraid of him, but she wasn’t really swooning over him either. And despite being far shorter, she seemed to see him eye-to-eye, never once cowering under his gaze.

I like that. But still, the urge to tease grew and grew.

He uncrossed his arms this time, with a teasing tilt towards her. “I’ll accept your apology in exchange for one of the books you sold me, sure,” he teased. She jolted at that and immediately met his gaze, eyebrows furrowing with worry.

“Oh,” she tipped her head curiously, “what was wrong?”

“Well,” his tongue stayed on that word for several teasing moments, mind whirling with how best to irritate her. It suddenly occurred to him that he genuinely enjoyed teasing her. Because if her intense eyes and posture told him anything, it was that she would bite back. Every single time; without fail. “It’s not your fault really, but that romance novel I bought from you was pretty awful,” he said, and he wasn’t lying about that.

“Oh…right…” she darted her gaze around. “…was it really bad?” she asked, sounding like she didn’t quite believe him. As if she could bargain with his silly little opinion.

He smirked while shaking his head. “It was all right, but I wish it had a summary I could’ve checked,” he drawled, scratching his neck. “Because it was one of those fake-relationship stories, and I can’t tell you how much I hate them,” he sighed. Again, he wasn’t lying about that. Cat-Eyes raised one of her eyebrows suspiciously.

“Ah, well, I can exchange it for a book that’s of a similar price if you’d like,” she tilted her gaze upwards thoughtfully. “But what exactly don’t you like about stories like that?”

“I just think they’re lame,” he admitted with another shrug, making sure to sound as nonchalant as he could. “They’re all so bloody predictable—they start off faking it and then they always fall in love and live happily ever after,” he rolled his eyes. “It’s the same slop, every single time. But my elder-sister loves them beyond measure.”

“Because those stories are fun,” Cat-Eyes bit out through clenched teeth, and he pushed down a laugh when she crossed her arms at him again, eyes narrowing. “It’s not my favorite kind of story either, but if some people like it, then so be it. Maybe your Big-sis will like that book,” she said.

Vi could tell she was trying to offer a solution, but it sounded more like an angry retort. It didn’t help that she looked at him with what looked like a ‘who-do-you-think-you-are’ expression. “Since you like to call people’s taste lame, let’s hear your favorite type of book then, shall we?”

The uncontrollable urge to continue their banter surged through him, and with a malicious smile flashing across his face, he wasted no time thinking.

“This one,” he slipped the little book out of his pocket in one smooth swing. Cat-Eyes’ frown left her face as she stared at the little hardcover in his hands. Her eyes darted all over what she could see of the little book as if she were searching for its title. Vi knew this was a dangerous game to play, but he desperately wanted to push it further. He couldn’t remember the last time this much excitement surged through his veins.

“What book is that?” Cat-Eyes marveled as she stepped towards him. Her hands twitched, and he could tell she wanted to flip through it. That’s too bad, Cat-Eyes, he smirked.

“It’s a secret,” he teased, bringing the book towards her almost as if to offer it to her. But the moment she reached for it, he yanked it away and held it well above her head. He was banking on her doing that, and it paid off oh so well. Because like an angry cat fighting for her dangly toy, she tried to swipe at it to no avail.

“Hey!” she tried not to yell, “If it’s such a big secret, maybe don’t tease me with it?!” she stopped jumping, clearly out of breath. “Now I have to know! Is it a special edition of something? I don’t want it if it’s a book of hymns or a diary, though…” she blabbered on with her hands on her hips. “Not interested if it’s got your embarrassing thoughts in it, no offense but no thanks.”

Vi flashed her another one of his seldom-used, nasty grins, and safely tucked the little book into his pocket. When he caught her eyeing his pants with her lips twisting to one side, he laughed again.

“It’s none of those things, Cat-Eyes,” he said lazily, grinning again at the way her eyes widened at the endearment.

“Oh that’s rich coming from you, Fox-face!” she shot back with an angry smirk, and he nearly bent over laughing.

There was no doubt about it, for better or worse, she was the human incarnation of his unhinged little book. He couldn’t remember the last time he felt this excited while talking to someone, and he refused to think about those weird, warm, unfamiliar feelings that surged all over him.

“It’s best if you never find out,” he said earnestly as he backed away, “guess I shouldn’t have teased you with it, I’m sorry.” His voice sounded far from sorry though, and Cat-Eyes looked at him with an expression that screamed ‘I-don’t-believe-a-word-of-that’.

An angry frown followed as if she wanted to call him a ‘lying-ass-jerk’. He knew those words from the book, and so much more, and a part of him enjoyed the thrill of keeping the book away from her. He liked that, so, so much.

“I’ll see you around, Ms. Airavara,” he waved and turned to go.

But before he knew it, he was looking over his shoulder to meet her confused gaze. And before he knew it, he was poking his tongue out at her like a cheeky little lying-ass-jerk.

_____