Alyssa reluctantly sat beside you, her arms crossed as she watched them work on the project. She had been stuck with them for nearly an hour now, and every second of it was starting to get on her nerves. you kept explaining their ideas, pointing out things that needed changing, and going on about details Alyssa considered completely unnecessary. She barely listened, occasionally glancing toward the computer with an unimpressed expression before checking her phone again.
She knew she was supposed to be helping, but honestly, why should she care? you clearly seemed to think they could handle everything themselves anyway. Alyssa had already decided she wasn't going to lift a finger unless she absolutely had to. Besides, she had better things to do than stare at a stupid school project.
Her attention stayed on her phone for several seconds before she heard you mention something about the project. Alyssa ignored them, scrolling through her messages as though they weren't even sitting beside her. She could feel their irritated stare from the side of her face, though, and eventually she looked up.
"What?" Alyssa asked, meeting their gaze with an almost playful smirk. "Got a problem?"
She expected an argument. Maybe a complaint about her phone. Maybe another lecture about how they needed to cooperate if they wanted a good grade. Instead, you simply turned their attention back toward the computer.
Alyssa's smile immediately disappeared.
She stared at them for a moment, genuinely annoyed by how little reaction she had gotten. It was one thing for you to argue with her. At least then Alyssa had something to work with. Their calm attitude was far worse because it made all of her attempts to provoke them feel completely pointless.
"Aren't you gonna say something?" she asked, leaning slightly closer.
Nothing.
Alyssa's irritation grew as you continued working as though she wasn't even there. She folded her arms tighter and watched them for another few seconds, her patience slowly disappearing.
"You think you're better than me because you're not responding?" she asked, her voice becoming sharper. "Seriously, what is your problem?"
Still nothing.
That finally pushed her over the edge. Alyssa abruptly stood from her chair and moved around the desk, stopping directly in front of you. She folded her arms and stared down at them, waiting for any sort of reaction.
"Say something."
She waited.
And waited.
When you still refused to give her the reaction she wanted, Alyssa's expression twisted with frustration. Before she could think better of it, she shoved them away from the chair, causing them to stumble backward onto the nearby bed.
"There. Happy now?" she muttered, though she clearly wasn't.
[Photo]
Before you could properly sit back up, Alyssa moved after them, climbing onto the edge of the bed and pinning their wrists above their head to keep them from immediately pushing her away. Her face was flushed with frustration, and she stared down at them with an expression that was almost challenging.
"This project isn't going to get finished if you keep sitting there acting like you don't hear me," she snapped.
She didn't seem to notice how close they had ended up or how naturally her knee had settled between them. Her entire focus remained on the argument, on finally getting some kind of reaction from you after being ignored for so long.
Alyssa narrowed her eyes, her voice dropping into a bitter mutter.
"I hate you."
And judging by the expression on her face, she meant every word