Pearl stood by the doorframe, her voice casual but her words heavy.
"I'll be moving out next weekend."
Frederick, who had just taken a sip of juice, choked dramatically. "What?! You're abandoning your only child?" He slammed a hand to his chest. "How will I survive without your jollof?"
Pearl chuckled. "You'll live. Amanda found me a decent place. It's time."
Frederick groaned like he'd just been disowned, flopped on the couch in protest. But from the corner of her eye, she saw Jason. His smile had vanished the second she said it.
He said nothing. Just walked past her—quiet, unreadable.
***
Later that night, Pearl stepped out of the bathroom, towel-drying her hair. She wore only her bathrobe, loosely tied around her waist. Her skin still glistened slightly with droplets of water, and her collarbone peeked through the robe's edge. She padded toward her bed—and froze.
Jason was standing in the middle of her room.
She screamed.
He turned sharply—and froze too.
His eyes widened, but instead of turning away, they dropped slowly, betraying him—trailing down her curves like they had a mind of their own. He was speechless.
Pearl shrieked louder. "Pervert! Pervert!" She grabbed the nearest pillow and smacked him with it, pushing him out the door with both hands. "Out! Out, you creep!"
"Wait, wait—Pearl—I didn't mean to—I just wanted to talk!" Jason stammered, practically tripping over himself as she shoved him backward.
The door slammed.
Silence.
Inside the room, Pearl leaned against the door, breathing hard, her cheeks burning. Her heart pounded like it had gone rogue.
Why was her heart racing? Was it anger?
No. Not just anger.
Jason had looked at her like she wasn't just a girl in a robe—but something more. Something he couldn't look away from. And that look… did something to her.
Outside, Jason scratched the back of his head and muttered to himself, "Great job, genius. Walk in like a stalker. Smooth."
Pearl, inside, touched her chest.
What was that feeling?
And why did she want to feel it again?
***
The next morning, Pearl avoided Jason like he was contagious.
She skipped breakfast, left early for class, and returned late—always with Frederick or Emily around. Whenever Jason entered a room, she'd find an excuse to leave it.
Jason noticed. Of course he did.
He tried greeting her in the hallway once.
"Hey, Pearl…"
She walked past him like a ghost. No eye contact. No smile.
Even Frederick raised a brow. "What did you do this time?"
Jason sighed. "I walked into her room by accident. She was just out of the shower."
Frederick choked on his cereal. "Oh, bro… you're dead."
By the sixth day, Jason had enough.
He found her in the kitchen that evening, stirring a steaming pot of stew. The scent was rich, spicy, and familiar—but Pearl didn't look up. She scooped some into a smaller bowl, the one she usually saved for Frederick, and moved past Jason like he was a cupboard.
No second bowl for him.
Not anymore.
"Pearl," he said softly, blocking the counter with his body.
She didn't answer.
"Are you really moving because of me?"
Silence. Just the bubbling stew and the clink of a spoon.
"I didn't mean to barge in that night," Jason continued, lowering his voice. "It wasn't planned. I wanted to apologize… for what I said before. About this not being your apartment"
Pearl's hands paused. She didn't look at him, but her shoulders tensed.
"I didn't mean it," he added, his voice raw. "I was being a jerk. I know you cook for us. I know you care. I… care too."
That made her glance at him, briefly.
And that was all it took.
Jason stepped closer. Not touching. But close enough that Pearl could smell his cologne—earthy, warm. The same one that clung to his T-shirts when they hung outside.
Their eyes met.
"You looked… beautiful that night," he whispered, guilt layered beneath honesty. "But I shouldn't have stared. I'm sorry."
Pearl's heartbeat thudded again. Her grip on the spoon tightened.
Suddenly the door swung open.
Frederick.
He blinked at the tension in the room, the proximity. Jason standing close. Pearl's lips parted like she was about to say something.
"Oh no," Frederick muttered. He covered his eyes dramatically. "Not again! Guys, seriously—PG, remember? There's a child in the house."
Pearl stepped back instantly, flustered. "It's not what it looks like!"
Jason groaned. "Frederick, get out!"
But Frederick was already strolling out, still pretending to be blind. "My innocence… ruined. Again."
Jason slammed the kitchen door shut behind Frederick with a loud *thud*.
"Idiot," he muttered, raking a hand through his hair in frustration.
When he turned back, Pearl was still standing by the stove, her cheeks flushed, eyes wide, lips slightly parted.
She was breathtaking—and he was drowning.
His gaze flicked to her mouth. Soft. Pink. Close.
Too close.
"Pearl…" His voice was husky, thick with something he couldn't name.
She blinked. "Jason, don't—"
But he already had.
Before she could move, before he could think better of it, he crossed the space between them in a heartbeat. His hand reached for her waist, pulling her closer. Her body stiffened, but he couldn't stop—not now. Not when she was looking at him like that, not when her lavender scent wrapped around him like a spell.
And then, he kissed her.
Soft at first, like testing a flame.
But the moment their lips met, it lit a fire in his chest. He deepened the kiss instinctively, tasting her warmth, the faint trace of tea on her tongue, the sigh she didn't mean to release.
She didn't kiss back.
But she didn't pull away either.
Not for a moment.
Then, like reality crashing into a dream, Pearl jerked back with a gasp, her hand striking across his cheek—*slap!*
Jason reeled back, stunned, his face stinging, his heart heavier.
"What the hell was that?!" she snapped, breathless and furious.
"I—I don't know," he admitted, still dazed, lips tingling, eyes searching hers. "I wasn't thinking. I just—"
"You just what?" Her voice broke, rage and something else—something deeper—rippling beneath the surface. "You think you can talk down on me one week, ignore me the next, and kiss me like none of it matters?"
"Pearl—"
She stormed past him.
"That's it. I'm moving out. Tomorrow morning."
Jason froze.
She didn't look back.
And this time… he knew he deserved it.