Lose Me Again

Collisions

Chapter Four

Collisions

(Esha’s POV)

A few more weeks slipped by, and despite my best efforts to steer clear of Andy, we kept running into each other more than I would have liked. Campus wasn’t that big to begin with, and Edinburgh somehow felt even smaller when your paths crossed with the same people over and over again. Between lectures, study sessions, and the occasional campus event, Andy seemed to appear like clockwork—always with that insufferable smirk and some comment on the tip of his tongue, ready to set me off.

The worst part? Cassandra hadn’t let up with her little jokes about the “chemistry” between us. I tried to brush it off, insisting there was absolutely nothing between Andy and me except mutual irritation. But that didn’t help when my own thoughts would betray me at the most inconvenient moments. Like when I found myself scanning the crowd for him, or when the sharp, biting edge of our conversations left me both angry and… oddly exhilarated.

It didn’t make sense. I didn’t even like him. At least, that’s what I kept telling myself.

Today was supposed to be different, though. I was in a good mood for once, having just aced my first big assignment. Cassandra and I had plans to head into town later that evening, and I’d even decided to stop by the campus café to reward myself with a latte before hitting the library. Simple. Routine.

But, of course, as soon as I walked in, there he was—standing in line just ahead of me.

He was talking to someone—probably another one of his groupies—and hadn’t noticed me yet. I briefly considered ducking out and heading to the library early, but before I could act, Andy shifted slightly, his gaze meeting mine.

His smirk appeared instantly. “Well, well. If it isn’t my favorite rival.”

I sighed inwardly but stepped up beside him in the line. “Not today, Andy. I’m in too good a mood for you to ruin it.”

“Good mood, huh?” He raised an eyebrow, genuinely curious. “That’s rare.”

I gave him a withering look. “Why is it that every time I see you, you think we need to talk?”

Andy shrugged, glancing at me from the corner of his eye. “Maybe I like talking to you. It’s the only time I ever get a challenge.”

I rolled my eyes, trying not to let his words get under my skin. “I’m not here to be your entertainment.”

“You’re not,” he replied, turning to face me fully now, his smirk softening just slightly. “But you’re certainly more interesting than most of the people I run into around here.”

That caught me off guard, and for a brief second, I saw something different in his expression—something less arrogant, more real. I didn’t know what to do with that, so I defaulted to my usual response: sarcasm.

“Glad I can keep things interesting for you,” I said dryly, stepping up to the counter as the barista called for the next customer.

While ordering my coffee, I tried to ignore the way Andy’s presence seemed to linger behind me, even though he’d finished ordering and was waiting for his drink. I could practically feel his eyes on me. It was infuriating how aware I’d become of him, like my body was betraying my mind’s insistence that he was nothing more than a nuisance.

As soon as I had my drink in hand, I made a beeline for the door, hoping to escape before Andy decided to stir the pot any further. But, of course, luck wasn’t on my side.

“Hey, Esha, hold up.”

I almost didn’t stop, but something in Andy’s tone made me pause. It wasn’t teasing this time—it was almost… serious. Against my better judgment, I turned around to find him standing a few feet away, his coffee in hand, his usual cocky grin absent.

“What?” I asked, a bit more sharply than I intended.

Andy hesitated for a second, as if weighing his words, and then said, “Look, I know we get off on the wrong foot pretty much every time we talk, but… maybe we should try starting over.”

I blinked, caught completely off guard. Of all the things I’d expected him to say, that wasn’t one of them. “Starting over?”

“Yeah.” He took a sip of his coffee, his gaze holding mine steadily. “I mean, we’re going to keep running into each other, right? Might as well call a truce. Try to have a normal conversation for once.”

I stared at him, trying to figure out if this was some kind of trick, but Andy seemed unusually sincere. There was no trace of his usual smugness, no mocking undertone. It was just… a simple suggestion.

“Why?” I asked, narrowing my eyes.

He shrugged, his expression light but his eyes serious. “Why not? Maybe I’m tired of fighting every time we talk. Or maybe I’m just curious to see what you’re like when you’re not mad at me.”

I almost laughed at that, but something about his expression made me pause. I wasn’t sure what game he was playing, but I had to admit, I was tired of the constant tension between us too. It was exhausting, and honestly, it wasn’t how I wanted to spend my time at university.

I sighed, crossing my arms. “Fine. But if you say something obnoxious, I’m out.”

Andy grinned, some of the usual lightness returning to his face. “Deal.”

We stood there for a moment, the awkwardness of the truce hanging between us. I wasn’t sure what to expect now. Was he just going to start chatting like nothing had happened?

“So,” he said after a beat, “why are you in such a good mood today? Must’ve been something big.”

I hesitated, then shrugged. “I aced my first assignment. It was a tough one.”

Andy nodded, clearly impressed. “Nice. You must’ve put in a lot of work.”

“I did,” I replied, feeling a small flicker of pride. “And what about you? I assume you’ve been busy with… whatever it is you do.”

“Being obnoxious, according to you,” he said with a grin. “But yeah, I’ve been busy too. Got a big project coming up, actually.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Oh? You never struck me as the serious student type.”

He chuckled. “I have my moments.”

Before I could ask more, Cassandra walked up, clearly having spotted us from across the quad. “Oh wow,” she said, smirking as she approached. “Are my eyes deceiving me, or are you two actually having a civil conversation?”

I gave her a look, but Andy grinned. “Shocking, right? I told her we should start over.”

Cassandra laughed, crossing her arms as she looked between the two of us. “Starting over, huh? Does this mean we’re entering the ‘friendly bickering’ phase of your relationship?”

“There’s no relationship,” I said quickly, though I could feel my cheeks heating up at Cassandra’s teasing.

“Sure, sure,” she replied, winking. “Keep telling yourself that.”

Andy chuckled, clearly amused by the whole thing. “I like her,” he said, nodding toward Cassandra. “She gets it.”

“I’m regretting this already,” I muttered, rolling my eyes but unable to fully suppress a smile.

Cassandra gave me a playful nudge. “Come on, we’re heading to the library, right? Can’t spend all day flirting.”

“We were not flirting,” I insisted, though my face was practically on fire now.

“Uh-huh.” Cassandra shot Andy a grin. “Good luck with your ‘starting over’ thing, Andy. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of you.”

He raised his coffee cup in a mock salute. “Count on it.”

As Cassandra and I started walking away, I glanced back once more, half-expecting Andy to be watching us with that familiar smirk. But instead, he simply turned and walked the other way, leaving me with a strange feeling I couldn’t quite shake.

“So,” Cassandra said after a few moments, her tone casual but knowing, “that was interesting.”

I groaned. “Don’t even start.”

“Oh, I’m starting,” she replied with a grin. “You know I’m not going to let this go. You two might actually be able to coexist without trying to kill each other now.”

“I doubt it,” I muttered, though the thought of our argument-free conversation lingered in my mind. Maybe Cassandra had a point. Maybe this “truce” was actually a good idea.

Still, something told me that it wasn’t going to be that simple. Not with Andy.

“Whatever this is, it’s far from over,” Cassandra added, as if reading my thoughts.

I nodded, a small smile playing on my lips despite myself. “Yeah. I have a feeling you’re right about that.”