All Chapters of My summer crush : Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

Immediately after Ava disappeared into the main building, I should have left.But instead, I stood there for a few seconds, staring at the entrance.Students moved about, smiling, chatting, and meeting new people.Ava was now one of them. A college student.A bad feeling settled in my chest.I got into my car and reversed out of the parking lot of Pasadena University.This was why I had stayed away for a month. The distance had been meant to solve problems, not create new ones.Soon, I was on the main road, heading toward Virelli Petroleum Headquarters.I had taken over the Pasadena headquarters immediately after my college exams ended, and today I had a meeting regarding a major merger.My phone buzzed halfway through the drive.I ignored it.A second buzz followed almost immediately. Then a third.Annoyed, I picked it up at a red light. My expression darkened when I saw the name.Unknown.It was Ava.How did she even get this number?The answer came almost instantly.Davis.Of cours

I came downstairs early the next morning intending to leave before anyone else woke up.A run.Then work.Then anything that kept me occupied.Anything except Ava.Instead, I found her sitting alone in the kitchen.A mug rested in front of her.She wasn't dressed for college.For a moment, I considered turning around and leaving through the back door.Unfortunately, she looked up.Our eyes met.The atmosphere immediately became uncomfortable.I walked to the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water."Morning.""Morning."Her voice was flat. She was still angry.Good.Maybe that would make things easier.I unscrewed the bottle."You don't have class?"She looked away."I do."I waited a few seconds ."I'm not going."I nodded once.I took a drink and headed toward the door.Behind me, I heard her laugh.A short, humourless sound.I stopped."That's it?" she asked.I didn't turn around."What?""You ask why I'm not going to class and then act like you don't care."My jaw tightened.T

AVA’S POVI told myself I wouldn’t think about it anymore.That was the easiest lie to believe when you were alone.Because the moment I stepped outside, reality had a way of reminding me anyway.“Random girl.”It wasn’t even said with anger.That was what made it worse.I didn’t matter enough for it to carry emotion.Just a label.I adjusted my bag on my shoulder and kept walking faster than necessary.*****I stayed out late at school on purpose.Every excuse I could find to delay going back.Group chats, Library, Even sitting outside pretending to revise.Anything worked, as long as it kept me away from that house and him.Because I didn’t know what to say anymore.Or how to act like nothing had changed.The worst part was… I didn’t even understand why it bothered me this much.He had said it once.Just once.Still, it followed me around like it had been repeated a hundred times.Random girl.Random girl.Random girl.As if I was nothing more than background noise in his life.****

AVA’S POV “So you are seriously not planning to resume this semester?” I said as I held the phone to my ear and stepped out of class. “My mum has been busy, Ava, and my dad recently travelled to Hawaii for business… I’m afraid I’d be skipping,” Stella replied. It had been weeks since we properly talked. The last time was when she told me she also got admission into Pasadena. We had both been busy trying to figure out life. And I had been busy trying to figure out Christien. “Don’t you think it’ll affect your second semester?” I asked, crossing into the hallway and heading down the stairs. I passed Mason near the corridor. He looked up. I gave a small wave. He smiled, a little too brightly, like it meant something more than it should have. But Mason was nice. Genuinely nice. The kind of guy most girls would probably like without thinking twice. He smiled easily, made conversations feel effortless, and never seemed intimidating. Being around him felt comfortable. Safe.

AVA’S POVSophie’s words stayed in my head.Stay away from him.I didn’t know why it bothered me so much.Christien had always been distant. That part wasn’t new.But now it felt like there was something I wasn’t seeing. Something people around me understood but didn’t say out loud.And that made me question his back scars and sleeping pills.I lay on my bed and stared at the ceiling.I wasn’t doing anything….. Just thinking.My phone was on my stomach.No messages. No calls.I checked it again anyway.Still nothing.I turned it over.“Get a grip,” I said quietly.It didn’t help.I kept thinking about Sophie. About how serious she looked when she spoke about him.And I kept thinking about Christien.My phone rang.Davis.I picked up.“Hey,” I said.“Where are you?” he asked.“At home.”“Alone?” he added, lighter now.“Yes,” I said.There was a pause.Then I heard something in the background.A girl laughing.I frowned slightly.“Are you busy?” I asked.Davis laughed.“Define busy,” he