Chapter Text
Mateo steps out into the courtyard, intending to snag a table and soak in the sun for a few hours before class starts. It’s been a month since he’s started at the University of Pittsburgh. He likes it well enough, he’s already on the hockey team and he’s got his eye on a few fraternities he wants to join.
All of the tables are already taken, apparently everyone else had the same idea to bask in the warmer weather. He’s about to turn and just start heading to class, hoping he can find an available bench on the way, when a girl catches his eye.
She’s pretty, with hair that flows down her back and sunglasses that slide down her nose as she writes in her pink notebook. She has a purple t-shirt on with ripped blue jeans. It’s a simple outfit, nothing compared to the other girls in the area who are wearing halter tops or crop tops. But her outfit fits snugly on her, and Mateo can’t help but enjoy the view.
He tilts his head, she looks familiar. And he’s wondering how he could’ve missed her before. But if there’s one thing about him, he’s always down to make more friends and he’s decided that he wants to be her friend.
So he walks up to her table, resting his backpack on the bench adjacent to hers. The girl looks up with a startled expression, her sunglasses sliding back onto the bridge of her nose. Mateo offers a smile.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to bother you.” He offers his hand to her. “I’m Mateo.”
The girl eyes his hands then slowly puts her own in his palm for a handshake. “I’m Victoria.”
Mateo grins at her. “Victoria, pretty name.”
Victoria eyes the Hockey merch his has on and slips her hand free. “Thanks.”
She’s a bit closed off, wary of him, and Mateo doesn’t like it. So he flips the charm on even more.
“You look crazy familiar to me, do we have any classes together?” He slides onto the bench, giving her all his attention.
Victoria blinks at him as she taps her pen onto her notebook. “I think we’re in biology together.” She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear.
Mateo snaps his fingers. “I knew it.” He didn’t actually, but she doesn’t need to know that. “What are you working on?”
Victoria eyes him again. “The paper for biology? The one that’s due in a couple weeks?”
Mateo sucks air through his teeth. “Damn, I forgot about that.”
She raises a brow and straightens her shoulders back. “I’m not helping you, so you can just-“
“Woah,” Mateo raises his hands. “I know I’m a jock and all, but I’m not trying to get your help. I can do my own work.”
Victoria opens and closes her mouth and he wishes he could see her eyes to see if they’re wide or not. “Sorry,” She finally mutters. “I’m just- jocks don’t usually talk to me unless they want help.”
Mateo lowers his hands and gives her an easygoing smile, the defense already slipping way from his frame. “That’s shitty of them, I’m sorry. But nah, you seem pretty cool and all so… do you mind if I sit with you and I can do some work with you?”
He wasn’t planning on doing work when he came out to the courtyard, just wanted to sit and do nothing while enjoying the sunrays. But something tells him that he’ll get brownie points with her if she sees him doing his own work without asking for help.
Victoria fiddles with her pen. “S-sure, I guess.”
As he’s pulling out his books and paper, she speaks up again, surprising him. “So, what’s your major?”
He grins at her. “Nursing. Yours?”
She smiles softly at him and he’s already deciding that he wants to see that smile again.
“Biomedical engineering. I’m, um, pre-med.”
Mateo whistles lowly. “Nice.”
She flushes and looks back at her work, and Mateo lets her escape the conversation for now. But by the end of the hour, he’s managed to make her smile five more times and snagged her phone number.
Which he already texted as soon as he sat in his first class of the day.
———
Victoria watches Mateo go to class after sitting and doing work with him for an hour. He seems like a nice enough boy and she liked that he hadn’t once talked to her about school. It was other things he asked, like when she’s from, what her family’s like, if she had any hobbies. She had answered: She’s from here, she’s not very close with her family, and she enjoys singing and debating.
It made her feel like for once in her life, she could be friends with a jock who didn’t want to use her for her brain. His smile was nice too, it sent a tingle of warmth up her spine. He just seemed so… nice.
And pretty too. She bites her lip as she breaks her gaze from his back, looking at her paper. She’s not blind, he’s very attractive. And she can already feel a crush forming. But she’d be a fool to think he’d be attracted to her, not when there’s so many other girls here that are prettier and sexier.
No, she’ll just take being his friend. If he’s willing to be her friend. Maybe this was a one off thing and she’ll never hear from him again, that would actually be more likely.
But then her phone buzzes and she glances down at it.
Unknown number: wanna meet up for lunch before Biology?
Unknown number: this is Mateo by the way
She grins at her phone, already typing back to agree.