✰ ✰

"𝐈 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰"

Friday rolled around fast. The basketball game was taking place on our college premises.

Aydan had to arrive much earlier than the rest of us, and Kara would be taking her own car.

For the game, I wore a simple attire. A short skirt, paired with a white top tucked under the skirt and a black sweater over, all of which were accessorised with necklaces and rings.

I wore my hair down in its natural state and finished the look with a pair of white sneakers. I went downstairs after finishing my preparation and waited for Nicolo outside.

We opted to take his car because it had more space than mine. I rested my back against the railing, gazing up at the pink and blue sky. I exhaled heavily, simply exhausted from the long week.

Studying, essays and papers were piling up as classes and work became more intense, and that was everything I did during the week.

Roman's been around, hardly. Due to his 'obligations' college is not really a priority. But he's stopped over to see me during lunch breaks - Blondie has been keeping me company during our business class.

I'd say the last time I saw him was Wednesday afternoon, and I hadn't heard or seen him since then. Theo stated that he'd be with him at the game tonight.

"Ready, Bella?" Nicolo hollered from behind me.

I smile and nod as I look over my shoulder. I follow him to the car, leaning off the railing.

We both climb into the leather car and speed away, heading for the city.

I linked my phone to the car and started shuffling my playlist while Nicolo drove out into the freeway. Thankfully, Nicolo and I shared similar tastes, so he didn't object.

Nicolo and I started talking roughly halfway through the drive.

"Oh, I forgot to mention. The yearly fair opens next week, and I was speaking to Kara about how we could all go for our birthday next week."

With a smile, I raised my brows and nodded, "Yeah, that's a great idea."

"Okay good. You could bring Roman as well since Kara invited that Theo guy." My attention snapped to him at his surprising words.

He gave me a short glance before launching into an explanation.

"Just because I noticed you're friends, and Theo is his best friend, so..."

I laughed and nodded, staring down at my shoes.

"I'll ask him tonight," He responded with a nod and continued driving.

Inviting Roman was a good idea, I was glad Nicolo made that comment instead of me.

Kara was the only person to who I had mentioned our secret relationship too.

Because Roman was still my father's business partner, and it would be a lot of chaos otherwise.

It would eventually come out. But for the time being, I wanted it to be on the low.

As a reaction to what I told her over the phone, she screamed for a good five minutes. Then there were the thousands of questions, all of which I answered, disregarding the steamy scene.

To be honest, I was extremely grateful to have Kara. It was nice to have someone to talk to about it instead of keeping it all to myself.

As it stood out against the darkness, our beautifully lit campus came into view. We were fortunate enough to find a parking spot squeezed between two other cars. We couldn't be bothered to park down the road and walk if we were being honest.

We entered the college through the open doors, which were crowded with people. We walked down the few halls, which were littered with signs and posters advertising tonight's game.

The opening doors to the indoor courts could be seen from our vantage point, and the loud voices of crowds could be heard, which grew louder as we progressed.

The place was densely filled as soon as you walked through the entrance. On both sides of the courts, the majority of the benches with many stairs had been filled.

Nicolo had spotted Kara and began tugging both of us towards her.

Kara was on the top seat, and she was holding the original purple poster with Aydan's entire name written on it.

It was something we had made back in high school for him - at all his games we would scream his name and shake the poster around.

It was mostly to embarrass him, but he grew to like it, and it has since become a tradition - presuming the poster was entirely for good luck.

Nicolo helped me up the few steps since the obnoxious people didn't want to move out of the way - my clumsy ass would've just fallen on them.

We drifted up to Kara after descending the steep series of steps.

Kara looked up and grinned at both of us when she recognized us, scooting her belongings to the side and moving over.

While Nicolo ruffled her hair, I threw my arm around her neck and sat alongside her.

Kara handed the poster to Nicolo, who scowled but accepted it anyway.

"How's my girl doing?" She grinned and patted my thigh, I pursed my lips and shrugged.

"As good as ever. How's my Kara?"

She flashed a bright smile as she turned to face the court in front of us.

"Your Kara is completely satisfied,"

"In what way?" I asked, sceptically.

It was her turn to blush as she swatted my head but I ducked in time.

She started talking to me about herself and Theo but left out the details. The game had finally started after a half-hour wait.

They began to call out the opposing team, we all stood up, as the other side of the court began to cheer as loudly as ever.

As I kept focused on the courts, several of the boys in front of us began booing loudly, which made me giggle.

One of the boys in front of me turned around and gave me a sly grin, which I returned with a little smile.

Then our team was called, and I returned to the front. As each player jogged out, I recognised most of them owing to Aydan.

The three of us went crazy when Aydan, the fourth male, came out.

"Woo! Aydan!" Kara and I screamed at the same time while we both flung the poster in the air.

"Go Ventello!" My brother screamed and jumped on his seat.

All of the players took their places and settled down. We sat down again, holding the poster in our hands.

The game begins when the bell rings. My gaze is drawn to the ball and the players as they move around the court.

Kara's familiar ringtone begins to ring 'Don't Cha' by The Pussycats, which grabbed my attention.

She scooped her phone into her palms and smiled.

She pushed the phone in front of my face and said, "It's Theo."

I giggle and encourage her to hurry and pick up the phone.

Refocusing my gaze to where it had been before, I kept an eye on Aydan.

"Oh, whereabouts?"

My attention is redirected to Kara from the side, as she searches the seats below us. She began to wave as she landed on something or someone, and I looked just where she did.

"Okay, I see you," She remarked as soon as I noticed the platinum blonde hair.

I watched as he smirked at Kara and winked, making her blush, but then my gaze was pulled to the figure shifting alongside him.

Roman sat at the far end of the seat. I examine his attire; he was dressed casually in a pair of loose denim jeans, a grey sweatshirt, and air forces.

The locks in his hair were untamed and dropped down over his forehead, with a few falling into his eyes.

His focus was clearly on the game in front of him; I only had a side view of him, but I could see the way his eyes emotionlessly watched the game with focus.

His jaw tensed, and his eyes darted away from the game and straight to me. Physically, I felt my eyes widen a fraction as his piercing eyes stared straight to mine - then only for them to travel over me.

They moved slowly over my body, not enough to make me uncomfortable but enough to make me jittery. He matched my stare, his face blank while his eyes sparkled.

I smiled and waved at him and his lips pull into a mischievous smirk while keeping his eyes on me.

He licked his lips and averted his gaze, allowing me to take a breath again. My attention went back to the game as I focused on supporting my best friend.

✰

Half time had come around faster than expected. At the moment, the teams were tying.

Some students had begun to gather towards the canteen that was available just outside of the room.

And that was exactly where I was heading too. Kara had gone to speak with Theo and had asked that I get her a packet of skittles.

Fortunately, I arrived at the stall before it became overcrowded; just approximately four people had already formed a line, with me being the fifth.

I grabbed some cash out of my pockets and placed it in my hand. I took a step forward and faced the elder lady after the guy in front of me finished.

"Hi, could I please get a packet of Skittles, two Reeses cups, and a packet of original Oreos,"

She nodded and proceeded to gather all of the goodies. She gave me the total as she set them all on the counter, but before I could put my own money down, a twenty dollar note got placed down.

As she collected the money, I turned my focus to the person standing next to me, and Roman was there as predicted.

I giggled and shook my head.

"Thank you, Roman,"

He gave me a shrug as I took my things and proceeded by his side.

"Can you hold these?" I asked, holding out the Reeses cups, and he took them from me. I grinned to myself as I opened up my Oreos.

I nibbled on my cookie and looked about as we headed back to the courts.

"What'd you do this week?" I asked, my curiosity piqued.

I focused my attention on my feet as I felt his gaze on me.

"Eliminating,"

I broke out into laughter at the chosen word he used.

"Eliminating," I repeated, tasting the word on my tongue. I gave him a cheeky smile, to which he responded with a deadpan expression.

"Whereabouts?" I continued, stuffing an Oreo into my mouth.

"Oh!" I cut him off before he could respond, I leant in closer towards him to speak quietly, "What about the thing with Haley's dad?"

As we entered the courts again, he leant down to hear me over the developing buzz.

"Still getting information," He remarked, and I gave him a short glance. He seemed to understand my expression as he continued, "Not from her," he explained.

"What are you going to do after you find the guy?" I asked, slowly averting my gaze. I handed him my half-empty Oreo packet and swapped it for Reese's cup.

His eyes darkened significantly as he looked down towards his very veiny hand.

"Kill him," He said coldly, "and everyone else with who he shared information with. "

I nod my head and agreed with him as I bite into my Reese's cup.

"Fair enough," I murmured, and he gave me a small smirk.

We'd made it back to the benches, and Theo, Kara, and my brother were already conversing towards the far end.

I sat next to Kara, who was sitting next to Theo, and Roman sat next to me on the opposite end. I tossed the skittles into her lap, and she thanked me with a kiss on the cheek.

I continue to eat my chocolate while watching the players slowly return to the court.

A strong hand had wrapped itself around my waist. The contact burning me as the hand consciously traces its customary circles over my covered skin.

"Ella," The name flowed like gold from the tip of his tongue.

My heart raced as I angled my head towards him.

"Yes?" I replied quietly.

The arm around my waist dropped to the other side while he leant in closer, his lips contracting closer but not close enough to touch.

His head was inclined to the side, and his lips were at an angle physically able to press against my own.

As the next statement poured out of his mouth with ease, my mind went into a trance.

"Can I kiss you?"

His gaze fell on my lips, which appeared incredibly close to my own, and the desire to kiss him was unbearably strong.

I did, however, recall where we were and who was nearby.

He spoke before I could.

"I know," He adds almost dejectedly as he pulls away and places his hand on my lower side once more.

I shifted my gaze away from him and towards my feet, swinging them as my heart yielded for his embrace.