It was perhaps thirty seconds after Angelica decided to take her leave that the man sitting beside Olivia patted her head again.
And, like a well trained pet, she naturally leaned her head closer, feeling the familiar warmth of his hand.
'I don't like this, though,' thought she. 'My hair always become awkward.'
Despite the fact that her hair was quite short, just grazing her nape, the constant need to fix it was bothersome, and she didn't particularly enjoy it.
Even so, after several days of this treatment—either out of reflex or an unconscious scar, like a Pavlovian dog—she found herself always leaning closer now.
"Well, what was I saying?" Although his voice could not be labeled as gentle or kind, it was neither strained, impatient nor displeased either. It was just blank.
"Umm, this." She pointed at the textbook in front of them, which displayed differential equations.
For reasons unknown to her, the man who had placed his palm on her head had been tutoring her for the past few days.
Although she appreciated his assistance, the uncertainty surrounding his motivations added to her stress.
Olivia wasn't a stupid girl; in fact, she would argue that she was among the smartest, at least when it came to academics, but the said, academics did not help her deducing, or understanding the boy any better.
Beside that, even with her above average intelligence in academics, the treatment she had endured—if you put it delicately, or bullying, if you spoke factually—at the hands of her classmates had hindered her ability to study, leaving her stagnant.
It had been six days since the man had randomly inquired about her progress, knowing that their exams would be in less than a month.
As one could expect, she was far behind her peers and unable to solve any equations he had presented, especially in mathematics.
Thus, he had taken it upon himself to tutor her.
"So, as I was saying…" he resumed, but Olivia felt a shift in the atmosphere.
'Is something the matter?' she mused to herself, raising her head slightly.
It was then she realized that he had already retreated his hand, and that she was the one who remained leaning in toward him.
Heat rushed to her cheeks as she felt like a dog begging for affection. 'N-no, that's not it,' she justified to herself.
But the next moment, she realized she was not the object of his attention.
Following his gaze, she saw an analog clock on the wall.
The small hand rested on two, while the longer hand pointed to twelve. It was now 2 PM.
The man closed the book and said, "I guess that's it for today."
"Umm… s-so?" she stammered.
"Yes," he replied, stroking her head again. As if by instinct, she leaned in closer, her cheeks flushing even more.
"You've learned faster than I thought you would."
Hearing his praise, Olivia felt her embarrassment reach its zenith, and she spoke incoherently.
"N-no. I… You. You're wrong." The words tumbled from her lips, disjointed, yet her tone remained as docile as ever.
"You learned twenty exercises in five days—four from each chapter on different subjects. That's very impressive I would say."
"....?" It was then she realized he was talking about her studies.
'I want to dig a hole,' she thought. 'I can't wait to live there.'
Just when she thought her embarrassment couldn't intensify, she found herself proven wrong once more.
"Anyway," the man said, bowing slightly as he picked up his bag from the floor and stood.
Olivia followed suit as they walked toward a section of the library.
"Are they easy to talk to?" he asked.
"Y-yes. They are very kind."
"Kind?" His voice, hollow as it was, she thought it was subtly skeptical somehow.
"They didn't discriminate against you, then?"
"That's right."
"You should try to treat them like proper friends. You're too stiff with them; otherwise, they'll never feel close enough to you."
"But they are nobles, and I'm just a commoner." A slight depression clouded her expression as she voiced her concerns.
"Well, they treated you like a friend, so you should do the same."
'Is that right?' she mused.
Olivia never dared to defy the man in front of her, nor did she have the courage to meet his gaze directly, ever.
He was undeniably cordial, never showing anger, impatience, nor annoyance when she felt slow on certain subjects during their tutoring sessions.
Regardless, she could not shake her fear.
Because humans are organism that naturally fear what they are incapable of understanding, and the man before her was such a mystery.
Olivia didn't know what he wanted, nor could she guess his thoughts.
It was only natural to feel apprehensive.
In that moment, she recalled the event that ocurred in his room, and she instinctively covered her chest, a displeased, expression crossing her face.
But, perhaps recalling her previous thoughts, she took a breath to steady herself.
"Then… are we friends?" she asked hesitantly.
There was no immediate reply.
The silence hung in the air, followed by a halt in his steps. He turned to face her, with no expression. It was the usual.
Olivia, was a girl who is on the frail side of spectrum, lacking in muscle due to her indoor lifestyle.
But, even so, she tense up all the muscle she could consciously manipulate, as if preparing for whatever might come.
Even, those muscle she didn't realize she could control tensed up so much they ached slightly, and she wanted to apologize, even though she have no idea what was wrong.
But whatever it was, it was all her fault.
She opened her mouth to speak, but just before she could, his languid voice broke through the silence.
"Of course not."
He was already a few paces away when Olivia felt the weight of his words, as he was already continuing on his pace.
She wanted to collapse, her muscles quivering with tension, but she followed him, hitting her thigh to relieve the tightness.
She wanted to ask, "What are we then?" but the cowardice in her held her tongue, leaving the question to linger unvoiced in her mind.