To Asa’s amazement, Isla’s cold demeanour seemed to soften a bit. She actually looked mildly flattered at Carmen’s observation.
“Yeah,” Isla said. “You noticed?”
Carmen nodded, that same effortless smile ever-present on her face. “It falls around your face differently now, makes your cheekbones look more prominent.”
Isla’s eyes widened, and she turned her body around to completely face Carmen. “It does, doesn’t it?!” She smiled widely, looking excited, and Asa felt himself relax now that her mind was diverted from having a spat with Willa. “I thought the exact same thing when getting the haircut. But nobody else mentioned it, so I figured it must not have made that much of a difference at all.”
Carmen opened her mouth to respond, but Asa didn’t catch what she said because Willa had turned to speak to him.
“You planning on standing there for the rest of lunch?” She smirked, raising her brows at him.
Asa grinned back, dragging out the chair next to her and flopping down on it. “If you wanted me seated next to you, you could’ve just said so,” he said.
Willa scoffed. “Please. Take that ego down a few notches. I’d sooner inhale polluted air than willingly have you close to me.”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night, mi amor.”
Asa felt Carmen’s eyes flicker towards him at that and then look away.
“Is that my nickname now?” Willa’s hazel eyes lit up with amusement. “Mi amor?” she said, testing it out on her tongue. Asa couldn’t help but notice how plump her lips were, coated in a coral pink colour.
He shook his head. “You don’t really say it that way, like they’re two separate words,” he told her. “It kind of just rolls off as one word, like miyamor. You know, just naturally.”
“Well, duh, coming from you, it naturally would.”
“True, my first language is Spanish.”
“I wasn’t talking about that.” Willa smiled slyly. “I was thinking more along the lines of how many girls you have already addressed as mi amor for it to become second nature to you.”
Asa rolled his eyes. “Shut up,” he muttered, thinking of the girls he’d whispered sweet nothings to. The girls he’d made giggle with his terms of endearment. He’d just wanted to make them feel beautiful, the way they made him.
But those words never meant anything, did they? He’d always grinned at them when he called them something sweet; he’d always said it with that teasing edge to his voice so that they knew he wasn’t leading them on. For a brief moment, Asa wondered what it’d be like to actually mean those sweet nothings. What would it feel like to call a girl mi amor like he truly meant it? Like she was the love of his life?
A laugh broke Asa out of his haze and his eyes landed on a laughing Isla—a laughing Isla. Because of Carmen. She’d made the ice queen laugh.
Warmth flooded him at the realisation that Carmen had gone out of her way to make Isla feel comfortable there, despite the clear hostility displayed by Willa. She didn’t have to do that, Asa knew. Carmen didn’t have to do anything but pave the path to Willa for him, and yet she’d gone that extra mile.
Her kindness was a rarity, he had to admit, especially given the common misconceptions surrounding Isla’s character.
His mind went back to what he’d been thinking of all through history period, about what he knew should be the right thing to do. Right now, he was surer than ever.
As soon as school is over then, he made a mental note. Lord knew Carmen deserved some of her kindness back.
16.
An Act of Kindness
“I think you were being a little harsh on Isla today, Willa,” Carmen said as the last bell rang, ending school for the day.
Willa snorted as she stuffed her books in her bag. But before she could say anything, Joyce spoke up.
“You must be the only girl in this school that thinks that,” Joyce said, shaking her head disbelievingly. “You’re too nice, that’s what you are. Who the heck could like a bitchy queen bee like Isla?” She shuddered.
“I do,” Carmen replied, smiling. “I like her.”
Willa threw her an exasperated glance. “Maybe you dig the whole I-will-destroy-anyone-who-gets-in-the-way-of-claiming-my-man vibe, but as for me, I think she’s delusional and needs a reality check.”
Carmen slipped the strap of her bag over her shoulder, standing up. “What on earth are you on about?” She looked confused. “Who is Isla claiming as her man?”
Willa looked at Carmen like she’d just grown another head. “Well, isn’t it obvious? Asa! She thinks she’s entitled to him, or something like that—”
“No, no, no.” Carmen shook her head, her long hair swishing against her back. “Isla sees Asa as her best friend and nothing else. It’s easy to tell by just the way they interact. There’s nothing intimate there—at least, not in a way that’s not platonic.”
“Oh, come on, Carmen.” Joyce huffed. “It’s the typical queen bee staking her claim on the hottie of the school. I mean, why else would she be so hostile towards Willa in the first place? Because she knows Willa’s caught Asa’s attention! She’s insecure about it, just like any girl with zero self-esteem would be.”
Carmen wanted to say she believed Isla had a pretty strong sense of dignity and self-esteem. She wanted to say that perhaps Isla was so cold towards Willa because this new girl had just barged into her territory and was marching about with an air of superiority after having already decided what kind of girl Isla was just because she was a pretty and popular cheerleader who liked her fair share of boys.
Carmen wanted to say that maybe the reason Isla couldn’t stand Willa’s presence was because
