Ziff’s Endearing 

    ~04~

    "No way. Over my dead body. I’m not letting go—don’t do this, wah."

    I was close to tears. I was not even sure why, but the looks from the girls around us seemed more like the hungry eyes of wolves zeroing in on Little Red Riding Hood. No way was I letting Ziff strip here.

    “Let go of me, Panya. Hey, are you deaf or something!”

    Ziff swore, struggling to pry my arms from around his waist and pushing my face away from his chest.

    “No. I won’t. Do you want to get fined for indecent exposure or what!”

    “If anyone’s being indecent, it’s you, you crazy girl!”

    In the end, Ziff’s strength overpowered mine, and he finally managed to tear off my grip. Undeterred, I switched tactics, lunging up to wrap my arms around his neck instead, using my body to block his scandalously sexy bare physique out of view. Ziff sighed, but he stopped trying to push me away.

    “Okay. I won’t take them off. I just won’t,” he muttered, resting his hands on my shoulders.

    “My heart was going to explode,” I said, giving his chest a hard thump but refusing to let go.

    Instead, my arms ended up draped around his neck, my face pressed to the side of his neck. I was not about to let him strip here and become the university's latest scandal.

    This guy was even crazier than I had thought. Honestly, I would not put it past him to strip everything off if it meant winning.

    “Panya, don’t hold on to him like that. It’ll look bad on you,”

    Paus spoke up with a teasing tone. I glanced over to see something in his eyes. Don’t think I did not see through you, Paus.

    “Zip it, Paus. Just be quiet,” I hissed, making a cutting motion for him to shut up.

    But Paus kept grinning ear to ear, and his eyes raked over Ziff’s body with even more intensity than the crowd of girls gathered around us.

    Then I jolted as a warm hand settled on my waist. It could only be Ziff—the one I was clinging to like a lifeline. What was he thinking? One thing had not even ended, and he was already starting another.

    “Hands off, Ziff…” I whispered fiercely, digging my nails into his hand with all my might.

    Ziff just kept smiling like it was all a big joke. Unbelievable. This had to be what they meant by no good deed goes unpunished. I should’ve left him to deal with Paus alone.

    “I hate both of you. Are all guys this awful? Even in a crisis, you’re still playing these games!” I fumed, finally managing to push myself away from Ziff.

    He let go of me without a fuss, his smile unchanging as he looked down at me.

    "I’m done with this. Go ahead, strip if that’s what you want. I’m leaving—I’m out!" I turned, intending to leave, but Ziff grabbed my wrist, pulling me back with an exasperated huff.

    "Enough already, Ziff. Every time I’m with you, I end up losing my dignity somehow..."

    "Quit the club, and then we’ll head over to my department," he said, cool as ever,

    ignoring every complaint I had just made.

    "Forget it! I’m going back to my apartment. I don’t care about anything anymore for today." I snapped, yanking my wrist free from his grasp.

    “Oh, really? You wouldn’t mind if I actually stripped, then?”

    “No!”

    "Relax. It’s just a club. It doesn’t even affect your transcript. Quit it, or I might blow a gasket," he said in a low, almost gentle tone, though his eyes had anything but a sweet look in them.

    "You can’t do this!"

    Then, as if on cue, Paus stepped in once again,

    probably more for his own reasons than for mine, I was sure, tch...

    “Well, then. How about we settle this another way? A swim match. If you win, I’ll stay out of her business. But if I win, she quits the club."

    “Fine... Sounds interesting,”

    Paus smirked, tossing his jacket aside and grabbing his swim goggles from a bench near the pool.

    “Hey, you guys can’t just do this.” I tried to protest, but neither of them paid me any mind.

    Ziff walked toward Paus, picking up the clothes Paus had scattered on the ground.

    "August! Lend me your swim trunks."

    He called over to a guy who had been watching the entire spectacle, arms crossed with a grin plastered on his face.

    “Right this way,” the guy called, turning and flashing me a quick smile.

    Wait... was that not the swim club’s vice captain? His smile was rather unsettling. I just realized he was one of Ziff’s friends. I could only hope he would not share any of my awkward mishaps in the club with Ziff later.

    Fidgeting with my hands, my eyes darted between the door of the changing room and Paus, who was warming up by the pool’s edge, while waiting for Ziff to change.

    I swallowed a big gulp when Ziff finally walked out, wearing only a snug pair of swim trunks that perfectly showcased his toned physique, earning looks from everyone around the pool.

    I took a step back, feeling my face heat up rapidly.

    This heart-pounding feeling was just like before—was this not how I felt right before my nosebleed last time?

    It was not funny how easily I felt this way around him.

    I found myself watching his every move, mesmerized. He was remarkable. The moment he flashed me a confident grin, it was like a barrage of bullets. I was bullet-riddled.

    “I’ll get you out of this club for good, just wait and see…” he whispered into my ear as he walked past.

    My heart thumped wildly as I turned to look at him once more. In the setting sun, his silhouette gleamed, dazzling to the point of pain.

    Why did he seem so interested in me? I just could not figure it out...

    Both Ziff and Paus took their places at the starting blocks, with everyone else watching intently. But I could not look away from Ziff—he seemed to command my full attention, like a spell I could not break.

    Just him. Ziff, and only Ziff.

    It was unbelievable how quickly he reached the end of the pool, beating Paus despite my friend’s own skill.

    Was this guy a robot or something? He seemed to excel at everything, unbelievable.

    In the end, I was pulled out of the swim club with no way to resist. Paus only smiled as Ziff dragged me off. Was this seriously that amusing to him?

    “I’m going to head back to my place and change first. I’ll shower too,” I told Ziff as we walked toward the parking lot, where his car was waiting.

    "You’ll meet me at my department afterward, then?" he asked, folding his arms.

    His sharp, intense gaze could easily made me shiver, so I opted to avoid looking at him altogether. He was just too dangerous.

    "Yeah, I need to rinse off as soon as I get out of the pool, or I’ll get a rash from the chlorine,” I muttered, lowering my head a bit, already bracing for him to raise his voice.

    But instead, Ziff simply raised an eyebrow at me.

    “Uh... I’ll go then,” I said, inching back a step. But once again, he caught my hand.

    Why did he not just cuff us together? That way, we would stay attached every second of the day.

    “When a girl says something like that, any guy would assume she wants a ride. Get in—I’ll drop you at your apartment,”

    he said, but I quickly shook my head.

    No, really, I did not want a ride from him.

    "Come on. My car’s comfortable, the AC’s cold, and you won’t have to squeeze on a hot, crowded bus. Plus, it’s free."

    "N... N, no, thank you.. I can go on my own," I stammered, attempting another step back, but the evil Ziff just kept smiling as he gently pulled me into the car.

    “Relax, I’m practically a saint—you know me.”

    "Officer, help!”

    “I’d rather you don’t come up,”

    I mumbled quietly as Ziff made a move to follow me up to my apartment.

    The relaxed smile he had been wearing instantly faded the moment those words left my lips.

    Yikes... did I just sign my own death warrant? Why did I even say that?

    I mean, he had only been helpful all this time. Now I felt terrible about what I had said.

    “I’m sorry, that didn’t come out right. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad, I just...” I stumbled on my words.

    Ziff sighed, giving me a nod as if encouraging me to keep going.

    “Could you wait here for a few minutes... I’ll be back down in ten,” I said, aiming for my best look of pure innocence.

    “Look, I’m kind of itchy too. Check it out,” he said, offering his arm that extended over the sleeve of his workshop uniform to me.

    His skin was indeed red, looking as if a rash was about to break out. Feeling a pang of guilt as I was allergic to many things, I nodded, knowing just how awful allergic reactions could be.

    “Alright, fine, but you have to promise you won’t try anything,” I said, pointing a finger at him hesitantly.

    “And by ‘try anything,’ what exactly do you mean?” he smirked, clearly amused.

    “Hey...” I barked at his smugness.

    Of course, he even tried to strip bare to public before, how could be fazed by this. I sighed, giving in as he followed me up,

    reminding myself that I had once stayed over at his place—heck, I had even left some underwear behind in his bathroom.

    Huh! Wait a second speaking of underwear—

    “Ziff!” I grabbed his sleeve just as we reached the apartment entrance.

    “What now? I’m starting to get a little annoyed here, especially since I’m feeling sticky. If you keep fussing, I’m seriously gonna hit you.”

    See how much of a brute he was?

    “underwear...” I whispered, shifting on my feet, not quite sure how to proceed.

    “Huh?” Ziff leaned in, tilting his head to catch my barely-there voice.

    “My underwear... that I left with you the other day.”

    I could feel my face heating up like it would burst into flames. If anyone threw water at me now, it would probably boil right off.

    “Oh... that. Well, we could do a little exchange. How about you pick up some underwear for me, and in return, I’ll get yours for you?” he said, making it sound so casual, as if it were a perfectly reasonable negotiation.

    I just gaped, so stunned that he actually chuckled as he reached out to cover my mouth.

    “They probably have some down at the first-floor store. I’ll be back in a bit,” he said, leaving me behind with my jaw still hanging open.

    “Oh, and I assume you know my size by now, considering how close you’ve gotten.”

    Even from a distance, he managed to annoy me so much that I found myself stomping my feet, flustered and fuming all at once.

    That man really was a devil...

    Being alone with him in my apartment left me feeling strangely flustered. Ziff’s eyes had that peculiar look as he casually peeled off each piece of clothing, making my skin prickle with goosebumps—I could not even bring myself to look him in the eye.

    What possessed me into letting him inside? I did not understand myself.

    "If you want to shower, you can use the bathroom in my bedroom,”

    I said, hesitating at the door. Meanwhile, Ziff the beast took his time looking around the apartment. He turned to look at me, pushing his hair back, his eyes saying something unsaid. 

    If I were to protect myself from falling for him, I should stop reading into that gaze right now.

    If I really wanted to know what he was thinking, he would have to say it directly.

    Honestly, I was not sure of anything when it came to Ziff.

    “Entering your bedroom, what’s that supposed to mean?” he asked, smirking in a way that made me wary.

    “It’s the only bathroom here. If you won’t shower then get out,” I muttered, backing up to the door and clutching my underwear bag tightly to hide it from him.

    And there he was, tossing the bag of men underwear I had bought for him with much embarrassment, up and down like a toy, clearly enjoying my discomfort.

    So, this was how he had to have felt when he bought one for me.

    Damn... Was it this awkward? 

    “Alright, I’ll shower, then. Hungry yet? Bet you’re starving after that swim.” He guessed right.

    I was starving...

    But all I wanted was for Ziff to finish up and leave, not stand there looking at me like that.

    Once he was done, I was determined to kick him out, though I could not be sure if he would actually listen to me.

    “Let’s go grab dinner afterward, Panya…”

    Ziff, the beast-like man was calling my name so sweetly my heart raced. This was the allure of a true predator Ziff was, was it not?

    He did not have to do much—just stand there, waiting for his prey to stumble into his trap.

    And whatever the circumstance, I knew I could not risk letting myself get caught up in this game...

    “Goodnight…”

    Ziff’s voice was soft as he dropped me off at my apartment after our dinner.

    I had looked tired, so he did not insist on me going back to work on the research project with him at his department. He had simply taken me out to eat and brought me back here.

    Sometimes he was so kind that it was almost frightening.

    “Are you sure it’s fine? I’m supposed to be helping you guys with the experiment,” I said, feeling uneasy.

    “It’s fine. We’ll work on the circuits and leave data collection and programming for later. Don’t overthink it, alright?” Ziff replied, giving my hair a playful ruffle.

    “I still feel guilty, though.”

    He just smiled, backing away a bit.

    “Seriously, it’s no problem. I’ll see you tomorrow,” he waved, then got into his car and disappeared into the night.

    “Why does it make me feel so empty seeing you leave, Ziff...”

    .

    Ziff’s Talking…

    “You’re in a surprisingly good mood today, Ziff…”

    Golf’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts. I squinted at him immediately.

    “So what? You want me to saw your head off!” I replied, lifting the saw I had been using.

    “Sure, but you were even smiling while using it. I wonder who’s put you in such a great mood?”

    He kept teasing, but I was not in the mood to mess around with his banter.

    But as the minutes ticked by, I started to get annoyed. The little scatterbrained, mop-headed girl had not shown up yet.

    Yeah... I’m talking about plain old Panya. Who knows what she had been up to? She had not picked up my calls. If I had known it would take her this long, I would have just waited for her in front of her department.

    “Ziff, did you get into an argument with Panya or something?” another teammate asked, frowning.

    “No, we were talking fine yesterday.” Now I was starting to feel uneasy, wondering if anything had happened to that clumsy girl.

    “Really? She’s pretty accident-prone, though. The other day she didn’t watch her step and got bruises from the stairs,” Golf added.

    “Yeah, and she almost fell in a storm drain once too,” added Ek.

    “Honestly, she could hurt herself just eating lunch. And she’s totally out of it when walking around campus; it’s kinda dangerous. Plus, humanities department’s also quite a distant away.”

    They kept going on about Panya’s clumsiness, and before long,

    it was sounding less like concern and more like a curse.

    “Shut up, all of you. I’ll go find her myself.” I cut them off, got up, and was ready to search for that ditzy girl myself.

    But just then, she finally appeared, drenched head to toe.

    As usual, Panya was carrying a bag of treats for us.

    “What the! Why are you soaking wet? What happened?”

    I asked, surprised, and moved to check if she was hurt. But she brushed me off, set the bag on the floor, and kept her head down, muttering curses under her breath.

    Honestly… it was a bit unnerving.

    “Panya!” I called her name louder, hoping to scare her into listening to me once again.

    “I hate you the most.”

    She finally lifted her face to look at me, her cheeks stained with tears, her eyes red and puffy. It was clear she had been crying long and hard before she even got here.

    “What happened!” I grabbed her shoulders, and asked.

    But she squirmed away, then balled up her fists and punched me so hard I turned away in shock.

    Panya looked horrified at what she had done, like she had not meant to hit me, but in the next second, her expression turned to disappointment.

    It did not hurt... but it left me wondering what I had done to make her cry.

    “Why would you do this to me, Ziff? You were with the other girl. Why would you send me a picture of you with that other girl that you slept with!” Panya choked out, collapsing into a squat as she sobbed into her hands.

    I rubbed my cheek, trying to remember when I had done anything like that. But seeing her shoulders shake with her sobs only left me feeling a mixture of pity and frustration. And more than anything, I wanted to know when I had supposedly sent her a picture.

    “Panya, let’s just talk this out. What are you even talking about? What picture? A picture of me with who?” I knelt down beside her and put my hand on her shoulder.

    “Susie. Why would you send me a picture of you in bed with her, Ziff!”

    End Ziff’s talking…