Sky Wang's Point of View
I woke up because someone sneezed.
Or maybe because the lecture hall got colder.
Or maybe because the surface under my face was weirdly warm and smelled suspiciously like expensive cologne.
Blinking, I lifted my head slowly… and then froze.
Oh no.
Oh. No.
That was not a desk.
That was not a pillow.
That was Rain Chen's shoulder.
And the heat rushing to my face? Immediate. Violent. Terminal.
But that wasn't the worst part.
The worst part—the soul-crushing, pride-murdering part—was the tiny wet patch I spotted right there on his shirt collar.
Right near his neck.
Right where my mouth had just been.
I had… drooled.
On Rain Chen.
The Ice Prince of Ellesmere.
My silent academic crush.
My actual mafia boss (probably not but he does give that vibe and I have suspicions).
And I had just bodily collapsed onto him mid-lecture and leaked.
My hands flew to my face. I let out a noise. It was part-gasp, part-squeak, part dying baby seal.
Rain, of course, said nothing. Just looked at me with those storm-cloud eyes and the faintest twitch at the corner of his lips. Amused. Mocking. Beautiful.
I whispered, "I DROOLED ON YOU."
Ren, on my other side, started choking with laughter.
"Please tell me this is a dream," I mumbled.
"This is your nightmare," Ren coughed between wheezes. "And it's the best thing I've seen all week."
"I'm so sorry," I whispered to Rain, rifling through my bag for tissues. "I don't usually drool on people. Well, okay, once I drooled on my cat but that doesn't count. Oh my god—your shirt! This is designer, right? Please tell me it's water resistant. Or drool-proof. Or—"
He raised a hand.
I stopped talking.
His voice was low and calm. "It's fine."
Fine.
Fine?
That was all?
I had physically invaded his aura, possibly left a saliva sample on his neck, and all he said was fine?
The man had the emotional reaction of a stone statue.
Still, I didn't miss the faint pink dusting the tips of his ears.
I grinned, embarrassed but delighted. "You're so cool, it's almost criminal."
His eyes slid to mine, unreadable.
"You have no idea," he murmured.