The Blossoming Love

**Chapter 8: Lines and Warnings**

****************Bella's pov****************

Bella sat in the cafeteria, stirring her juice with a straw, barely listening to the conversations around her.

The lunchtime crowd was as noisy as ever—students laughed too loudly, trays clattered, and sneakers squeaked against the tiled floor. But in her mind, it was quiet. Too quiet.

Sarah noticed it first. "Okay, spill. You've barely said two words since we sat down."

Alex raised an eyebrow. "Is this about schoolwork? Or…?"

Bella looked up slowly. "He talked to me."

Emily blinked. "Wait. Who talked to you?"

"Ethan."

The mention of that name sucked all the air out of the conversation.

Sarah narrowed her eyes instantly. "What did he say?"

Bella looked down. "He said he's seen me around, that I'm quiet, and that we should get to know each other."

Emily's mouth dropped open. "Oh no. He's starting."

"What did you say?" Sarah asked.

"I told him I'm not the 'get to know' type," Bella replied.

Alex coughed into his drink. "Okay, ice queen! Who is she?"

Bella gave a small laugh, but it didn't reach her eyes. "I didn't know what else to say."

Sarah reached across the table and squeezed her hand. "That was perfect. Exactly what he needed to hear."

Bella nodded, but she still didn't feel settled. "It didn't seem to bother him. He just smiled and said he'd change my mind."

Emily groaned. "Ugh, he would."

"Don't let him get to you," Sarah said firmly. "Ethan thrives on attention. The more you ignore him, the less fun it will be for him."

Bella stared at her juice again. "What if he's not doing this just for fun?"

The others fell silent.

"You think he's actually interested?" Alex asked, surprised.

"I don't know," Bella whispered. "I just… I don't like the way he looks at me. Like I'm a puzzle he wants to solve."

Sarah leaned in. "That's exactly how he works. You're new to him, unpredictable. That's the only reason he's looking your way. And when he gets bored…"

"He'll move on," Bella finished for her.

Emily sighed. "Then maybe we should do something about it."

"No," Bella replied quickly. "I don't want to cause drama. I just want to stay invisible."

"You're not invisible anymore," Alex said. "And that's not a bad thing."

Bella didn't respond. A part of her still wished she could slip back into the background where it was safe and quiet. But something about the way Ethan looked at her, like he already had a game in motion, made her nervous.

She didn't want to be part of anyone's game.

Especially not his.

****************Ethan's pov******************

Ethan lounged on the edge of a bench under the school's old tree, using his backpack as a footrest. Next to him, Jake and Matt were chatting about a party that hadn't even happened yet, but he wasn't really listening.

His mind kept drifting back to Bella.

She had looked him in the eye and told him she wasn't the "get to know" type.

That statement echoed in his head.

"She didn't even blush," he muttered, almost to himself.

Jake glanced over. "You're talking about Bella again?"

Ethan didn't respond.

Matt chuckled. "You've got it bad, man. I've never seen you this hung up on someone who didn't immediately fall for you."

"I'm not hung up," Ethan replied coolly. "I'm just curious."

Before they could press further, a familiar voice interrupted him.

"Ethan!"

It was Rachel.

Ethan sat up slightly, watching her approach. She wore a tight top, too much perfume, and a nervous smile on her face, as if she already knew what was coming and didn't care.

"Hey," she said, playing with her hair. "Can we talk? Just for a sec?"

Jake raised an eyebrow and muttered under his breath, "Here we go."

Ethan sighed but stood up anyway, stepping away from the guys. "What do you want, Rachel?"

She looked around before leaning closer. "I miss you. I know we haven't talked in a while, but… I still like you. A lot. And I don't care what happened before. We had something, right?"

Ethan stared at her, feeling bored already. "Rachel, we didn't have anything. We hooked up a few times, that's it."

Her face fell, but she pushed on, her voice trembling. "But I thought it meant more…"

He shook his head, unapologetic. "It didn't. Look—I wasn't trying to hurt you. But I never told you I wanted anything serious. You made it into something it wasn't."

Rachel looked as if she had been slapped, but she didn't move. "So it was all just fun for you?"

"Exactly," Ethan replied flatly. "Nothing more, nothing less."

Behind them, Jake and Matt were watching like it was a soap opera.

Rachel's voice dropped. "You didn't even like me?"

Ethan blinked, growing irritated. "Rachel, I didn't pretend to love you. You just wanted it to be something it wasn't."

She opened her mouth again, but Ethan turned away.

"Save it," he said over his shoulder. "You're embarrassing yourself."

He walked back toward his friends without looking back.

Jake clapped him on the back as he sat down. "Brutal."

Matt whistled. "You really don't hold back."

"She needed to hear it," Ethan replied, his tone empty.

But even as the laughter around him picked up again, his mind wandered back to someone else entirely.

Bella.

He imagined saying those same words to her—cold, final, and careless.

For some reason, he didn't like the way that felt. Not at all.