Chapter 241 Best Buds (1/2)

✿✿ Cafeteria ✿✿

Ali gritted his teeth.

It was supposed to be a date, with just the two of them.

How did it turn into this?!

It was bad enough that the Elite Five were all at the table, having their lunch with him and Sophia.It was understandable that Betty was there, too ... but why was Sarah and Beatrice along as well?!

At least Sophia didn't appear awkward around them. She was busy smiling, laughing and talking with the others as well.

Ali's face softened when he saw that.

In fact, everything about her seemed so mesmerizing. The way her eyes sparkled when she found something interesting. The way she laughed which seemed to brighten up her face. The way she ate which was so delicate as she scooped each mouthful inbetween those luscious lips ...

Ali shook his head, moving his attention to his food.

Haram! Haram!!*

What the heck was he doing?!

Why were his thoughts so filled with ... urgh. Ali shoved the food into his mouth, while reciting some prayers to calm himself.

This was going to be much tougher than he thought.

Why did a switch seem to have flipped within him?

All this time, the attraction had always been there but since he became aware of his deeper feelings, the pull was even stronger.

Was this why all forms of intimacy were forbidden? People only knew about the 'no-sex-before-marriage' part but in reality, it was as drastic as 'no skin-to-skin contact'.

Ali sighed.

This truly was a test of his Faith.

It's amazing how easy it is to follow certain rules and guidelines so long as it didn't conflict with anything. Not drinking, for example : if you have never touched alcohol and is never inclined to, it's not hard to abstain, right?

But not touching the girl you are so in love with?

Ali sighed and stabbed his food again.

This is going to be much tougher than he initially thought.

Unknown to him, Kyle was busy observing Ali, noting his facial expressions and the way he seemed to be in some great turmoil as he watched Sophia. At the rate Ali seemed to be going ... well, Kyle will continue to observe.

If need be, Kyle would need to take more direct action.

For now, Ali needs to walk this path by himself.

Kyle frowned a bit as he took a sip of water, though it wasn't noticeable. He was thinking that Ali can't take too long though. He'd give Ali a week - if he hadn't done anything yet by the time the party was planned, Ali better be prepared for what Kyle would do.

Not that he'd know, of course.

✿✿ Planning the Party ✿✿

After that spoilt date, Ali made sure to meet up with Sophia at less crowded areas. He wasn't going to share his time with her with anyone else. Sophia had been more than willing to help him, so they would meet up everyday after class to do the plans.

The more Ali spent time with Sophia, the more convinced he was about his feelings for her.

The only problem was, did she feel the same?

Kyle had given him this opportunity to spend with Sophia in order for him to get with it, so to speak. Yet, even after a week had passed by and they had talked about everything under the sun, Ali did not bring up the matter about his feelings at all.

Ali was too happy to just spend time with her, and he didn't want to rock the boat yet.

Once he started down that path, he was afraid that she'd either treat him differently or that he'd lose his best friend.

To give him some credit, he did try once.

Once.

It was on the third day, when Ali and Sophia were finalising the food details.

Ali said cheerfully, as he tried to gauge her reaction, ”I'm so glad I have you, Sophia. If it wasn't for you, I'd be quite lost in doing this.”

Sophia smiled bashfully and said as she smacked him on the shoulder, ”What are you saying? Aren't we best buds?”

Dang. Best buds again?! Ali kept the smile plastered on his face as he tried again (this time, dropping hints), keeping the nervousness out of his voice, ”Yes, yes we are. You're very special to me, Sophia.”

”As are you, to me,” Sophia said, ”We'll be best buds for life, right?”

Ali sighed and scratched his head, thinking he should drop an even more obvious hint, ”Yes, for life, God Willing. You'll always be with me, right?”

Sophia gave him a soft smile, ”Of course. For as long as you need me. You don't even need to ask, you know. As best buds, isn't that the most basic thing?”