Page 32 of His Untoward Hate

It was lunchtime, which only meant one thing: he was going to sit with Jasper for lunch today for the very first time in five years.

Keeping his head lowered, Jude entered the cafeteria and only lifted his gaze to find Jasper in his usual spot. Though this time, he was not alone. A girl was with him. A flicker of jealousy stirred inside him, but it quickly faded when he remembered Jasper’s gender orientation. Somehow, it made him feel like he had fewer rivals when it came to winning Jasper over now.

As he passed by the usual crowd of jocks, bullies, and the bitches, Jude held his breath, hoping they would not notice him. But, as always, his luck failed him. Insults and mocking remarks were thrown his way from every direction. Normally, he ignored them. He had grown used to it. This time, the negative insults escalated more because of what happened at the party. Still, there were moments when he could not help but wonder how long it would take for these people to finally grow up, knowing most of the bullies were from college, especially the freshmen.

“Hey!”

Jasper noticed him from a distance and waved his hand for Jude to come over. People’s gazes started to trail more toward his direction. He doubled his pace, practically running. Jude was only seven meters away when someone suddenly stuck a foot out, causing him to trip and crash onto the floor. Laughter instantly erupted around him. Embarrassed, he hurriedly pushed himself up and made his way toward Jasper’s table, ignoring the people around him. He was also trying to ignore the pain shooting from his knees from the sudden fall.

“Hey, are you okay?” Jasper asked, standing up and looking at him with concern clearly written across his face when he finally arrived at the table.

“Yeah, I just lost my balance and fell,” Jude lied as he fixed his glasses in place.

Jude was acting as though he had not noticed someone had deliberately tripped him.

Meanwhile, the girl beside Jasper remained glued to her phone, completely uninterested in the scene unfolding around her. She was too engrossed in typing something into it.

“…Come, sit down,” Jasper offered the seat across from him, and his heart began to beat erratically at the gesture.

A shiver of giddiness ran through his stomach, raising the hairs on his skin as if a cold breeze had brushed against him.

“Thanks, Jasper,” Jude muttered softly.

Jude glanced around the cafeteria and found that the stares had not faded, making him second-guess himself before taking a seat. When he sat down, the girl across from him finally lifted her gaze from her phone to him. She tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and placed her phone on the table as she offered him a small smile.

“Ah, this is Czyra, by the way.” Jasper introduced her, breaking the brief silence. “She’s our classmate in Practical Research, remember?”

“Oh, hi,” Jude greeted with a faint smile.

“Hi,” she replied warmly.

“Sorry, I didn’t know your name before, but I’ve seen you in class,” Jude admitted honestly.

“It’s okay,” Czyra said with a sincere smile, waving her hand dismissively. “But to formally introduce myself, I am Czyra Labuc, for your additional information. I am nineteen, and of course, I know you,” she added, her eyebrows slightly moving behind those thick-rimmed eyeglasses. “No other than the famous and brainiac, Jude Finn,” she continued, gesturing with her hands dramatically in front of her, slightly tilting her head as if presenting a legendary figure.

Jasper laughed softly, while Jude only gave a sheepish smile, already feeling warmth creep onto his cheeks. He was not used to praise or compliments.

“Oh, wait…I think I’ve read your name somewhere before.” Jude placed a finger under his chin, trying to remember where the familiarity came from. “Ah, I remember now! You are the third honors of the batch, right?” he guessed, recalling the day he saw the honors lists from last semester had been released.

“Yeah, right…” she replied with a smug sneer.

“Sorry to not recognize you,” Jude apologized.

“Nah, that’s fine. I’m your secret fan, by the way,” she said.

“Really?!” Jude yelled softly.

Jude was surprised and a little unconvinced, not certain that someone would idolize someone like him.

“Yeah, both you and Jasper.”

Jude looked at her with sparkling eyes.

“But why me? I mean, I’m not handsome like Jasper. I don’t even have skills and talents either,” Jude said.

“Did you just say I was handsome?” Jasper inserted.

Jude looked at him, flustered.