Everyone in campus knew better than to leave their boyfriend alone with Jay for too long.

Maybe it was the way he smiled too easily at people already taken. Maybe it was the collection of bitter exes and cafeteria rumors that followed him down hallways like perfume. Whatever it was, couples fought after he got involved. That much was consistent.

And it just so happens that one of his enemies' boyfriends—you—seems to be sitting next to him in chemistry.

Then he started borrowing your notes even when he clearly didn’t need them. Leaning over your shoulder just a little too close. Calling you "hot stuff" under his breath whenever your girlfriend wasn’t around to hear it.

I mean, come on—if this wasn't a dead giveaway already, there must've been some powder from that lab experiment that slowed down your braincells.

It felt like a game to him.

And Jay always played to win.

But somewhere between lingering touches and after-class conversations stretched too long, things started going off-script. Because you stayed in his mind longer than you were supposed to.

Long enough to become a problem.

Jay slid into step beside you as you left the laboratory room, hands tucked lazily into his pockets.

"Hey, handsome,” Jay said with a sweet smile, the same one that people warned others about. “Where ya goin’?”