Page 11 of Love, Academically

Perhaps it wasn’t a complete waste. He had ‘engaged’ with Lila, asked her about her hopes and dreams and all that rubbish – exactly what that stupid online course had suggested.

For the life of him, he couldn’t work out why she wasn’t doing a lexicography job.

She said she needed qualifications and experience.

Well, she worked in a university with an English department, so surely, surely there would be some kind of course she could do? Some experience she could get?

She was obviously competent (except for the cookie crumbs on his desk and possible glitter in his car), otherwise she wouldn’t have got the Departmental Coordinator job.

He took a look at Lila out of the corner of his eye and she wasn’t smiling.

Her eyes were on the sparkly rings on her fingers, twisting them this way and that.

She was tired, and (he presumed) hungry, even though he’d tried to keep her fed with chocolate. Waiting was fucking tiring.

Rhys shook his head. Things weren’t that simple for people, there were barriers –financial or otherwise – that he didn’t know about.

He shouldn’t press the issue, and he certainly shouldn’t judge.

But, if there was one thing Rhys knew about, it was following your dream, even if it meant disappointing everyone around you.

Then, one of Lila’s issues slammed open the door. Jason.

“Lila, are you all right? I’ve only just heard. I’ve taken you as my patient,” he said, putting his hand on her shoulder and looking down at her as you would a child. Rhys rolled his eyes.

“Oh, Jason. Hello,” she said nervously, those wide eyes glancing at Rhys.

If Lila had been desperate for him to be her fake boyfriend at the bar then, now her expression was positively begging him. He’d best be her boyfriend again, especially if he wanted her as his fake girlfriend at the Dallimore family dinner.

This day could not get any worse.

“Jason,” he said, standing.

This fucker thought he was a pretty boy Chad Michael Murray, but he was a weak imitation at best. In fact, his features were more weaselly than anything. Rhys glared at him and shoved his hands into his pocket. No way was he shaking hands with that dick again.

“Rhys,” Jason replied tersely, before turning back to the woman in the wheelchair. “What have you done to yourself, Li? Are you okay?”

“I’m okay, I fell,” she said, sheepishly. “Slipped on some leaves.”

Jason took a long accusing look at Rhys, who just held his stare.

“Let’s take a look at your X-rays.” Jason pulled out the black and white photographs and held them up to the light, despite the fact there was an X-ray box right there on the wall behind him. What a pretentious douche.

“Hmm. Yes, I see.”

Jason sat down on the office chair and wheeled himself too close to Lila, touching her ankle, which was propped up on the leg rest of the wheelchair.

“It’s not broken, it’s just a bad sprain.

I’ll give you some painkillers and wrap it up for you, but you have to rest, okay?

” he said, looking up at her from under his floppy hair.

Could Dr Dickhead try any harder? It’s like he’d read an article on how to flirt and was putting everything he could remember into action.

“Right, okay. Thank you,” Rhys said, his voice clipped. Jasmeet’s ‘be a proper fake boyfriend’ speech ricocheted around his head.

Jason looked up at him, leaning back in his chair when Rhys’s glare pinned him.

“Where were you when Lila fell?” Jason asked, more than a hint of accusation in his voice.

“Jason,” Lila warned softly.

“I was right next to her, Jason,” he said tartly. There was something about this man that really got under his skin. Perhaps the fact that he was an absolute fucking knob.

“Right,” Jason said, turning to the desk to fill out some paperwork. “I see.”

If Jason was trying to antagonise him, then he was doing a damn good job.

“What is it, exactly, that you see?” Rhys bit out.

“Good job you’re doing at looking after her,” Jason murmured under his breath.

Rhys looked at Lila, who had her eyes fixed firmly on her fingers in her lap. Why wasn’t she saying anything to him? Why wasn’t she standing up for herself? Fine. If she wouldn’t do it, then her ‘boyfriend’ would.

“Lila doesn’t need anyone to look after her, Jason. We established that the other day. She is perfectly capable of looking after herself,” Rhys snapped.

“Rhys,” Lila said quietly and he sat down abruptly. He may only be her fake boyfriend, but he was damned if he was going to let this guy, with his big dick energy, treat her like that.

Jason smirked at him and Rhys ground his teeth together. Kickboxing sounded really good right now.

“Li, here’s a prescription. I’ll take you the pharmacy after I’ve wrapped your ankle,” Jason said.

“Rhys can take me, but thank you,” Lila said quietly. Jason nodded graciously and rummaged around in a drawer to find some dressing.

He took his damned time wrapping her ankle up, all sly glances and little smiles up at Lila.

If Rhys was really her boyfriend, he would be getting seriously pissed off by now.

Not to mention the fact that Jason had a girlfriend.

How would she feel if she knew Jason was mooning over his ex?

Because that’s what he was doing. Mooning like a fucking teenager.

“Li, if you need anything just text me,” Jason said, opening the door for Rhys to wheel her out. “I’ll always be your friend, ready to hold your hand.”

“For fuck’s sake.” The words just burst from his chest. “You mustn’t know her very well, because she doesn’t need anyone to hold her hand, Jason.”

“I think I know her better than you,” Jason snorted. “We were together for seven years.”

“Yeah, and you messed it up, boy,” Rhys snapped, his anger getting the better of him, Welsh accent stridently cutting across his vowels. Christ, he hadn’t used the word ‘boy’ in that derogatory tone for years.

Jason took a step closer to him.

“Guys,” Lila pleaded.

This was absolutely ridiculous, Lila wasn’t even his girlfriend. Jason had made his choice and was seeing someone else, and here he was squaring up to him? What the actual fuck?

“Guys, please stop arguing. I’m tired and hungry. I just want to go home,” she said quietly, her blue eyes imploring him to just wheel her away. “Rhys, can we go home?”

Rhys looked at her and frowned. Lila was on the verge of tears, her voice choked and her throat working hard to keep all her emotions in. Why was she upset? It wasn’t as if she still cared about Jason. Or did she?

Regardless, he felt like a right dick, letting her ex-boyfriend get under his skin, making her upset.

“Yes, of course,” he said, turning the wheelchair.

“Call me, Li, if you need anything,” Jason called after them, a fucking smirk in his voice.

Rhys’s knuckles were white on the handles of the wheelchair as he navigated the winding corridors to the pharmacy.

He positioned her and passed the prescription for painkillers (and, he hoped to God, crutches) to the pharmacist behind the counter.

Rhys was genuinely baffled. She was so Lila, so vibrant and alive in work. Then Jason rocked up and she turned into a meek little serf, needing someone to tell her what to do. That wasn’t the Lila who’d pushed him into doing that stupid course.

“Why do you let him think you can’t do anything by yourself?” he asked when he sat down next to her.

Lila turned her sad eyes to him. “Because sometimes I can’t.”

She shrugged helplessly and tears she had obviously tried so hard to keep down started to escape down her cheeks.

She was crying.

What was he supposed to do with that? How did you comfort someone who was crying?

Dan didn’t cry, and his sister always had their mother and other people to look after her when she was upset (not that Elin was a crier).

That was one of the things his ex, Seren, didn’t like; he just wasn’t very good with emotions, his own or other people’s.

He reached over and patted her hand awkwardly.

“There, there, it’s okay,” he said. “You’re okay. You’re okay.”

The words sounded stupid but Lila snorted a laugh, so they must have done something.

“Thank you for pretending again.” She turned a watery smile on him. “I was really hoping I wouldn’t see him here.”

Rhys shrugged and looked away from her outpouring. “It’s fine. It would have been weird if I wasn’t your fake boyfriend.”

“I’m sorry. I’ve ruined your day and now I’m crying.” She sighed. “I’m just hungry. I need to be fed regularly.”

His day had been ruined, and yes, she was crying, but it was all right. He’d done a good thing.

“I can stop and get you fish and chips if you like. But you can’t eat them in my car.”

Why had he said that? His car would stink of vinegar.

“Can you? Would you? Thank you! Thank you so much,” Lila said, putting a hand on his forearm.

“Yep,” he said, folding his arms across his chest, waiting. Again.

Lila

It’s a good job they hadn’t taken Petunia, because it would have been a struggle to get the crutches in.

“Don’t worry about stopping, Rhys. I’ve ordered some fish and chips to be delivered on Just Eat.” God, she was starving. “I’ve ordered you cod and chips okay? Oh, and gravy.” That was the least she could do for all his help today.

“Oh. All right,” Rhys said. He stopped at the main road and looked at her expectantly. “I don’t know where you live.”

“Oh sorry! Left here.”

Lila massaged her hands as he drove. The five minutes it had taken to get to the car park were the longest of her life (well, not really, but still).

Her palms burned. Perhaps she had some blanket fabric at home to wrap around the handles to make them softer.

All the better if it was rainbow sparkly.