The next day, in freezing weather, she wore a mini-skirt and high-heeled boots, clutching a stack of textbooks as she deliberately crossed the intersection where he was on duty.
She walked back and forth three times.
She was so distracting that a passing male student walked face-first into a utility pole, yet Rhys didn't even lift his head.
Her roommate watched with binoculars from the dorm room, laughing so hard she couldn't stand up straight.
Clara wasn't discouraged.
Who was she? When she wanted something, she never missed.
She started studying his shift schedule. Every day, she timed it perfectly to sit at the café outside the West Gate. She would order a single cup of coffee and stare for the entire afternoon.
The café owner started to think she had a crush on him and quietly gave her a twenty percent discount.
Finally, one day, the opportunity arrived.
Rhys was handling a minor fender bender. The car owner was a stingy middle-aged man who was refusing to let the other party go, making a scene.
Clara walked over holding a freshly bought cup of hot coffee and very "accidentally" bumped into the man.
The man howled from the heat, pointing a finger at her, ready to curse.
Rhys frowned, pulled her behind him to protect her, and said coldly to the man, "If you have an issue, state it. Don't harass a student."
That was the first time he spoke to her. His voice was even better than she had imagined.
Later, word got out. The entire school knew that Clara, the stunner of the Economics Department, was chasing the handsome traffic officer at the West Gate.
Rhys's colleagues teased him about it.
"Rhys, that girl is here again."
"She's a knockout. You're a lucky guy."
Rhys never responded.
Until one time, Clara miscalculated the schedule. It was his day off.
She waited at the intersection for ages. She waited until it was dark, but he never showed up.
Just as she was walking back to school, dejected, a black SUV pulled up beside her.
The window rolled down. It was Rhys.
He wasn't in uniform. He was wearing a simple black windbreaker. Without the police cap, his hair looked softer than usual.
"Get in."
Clara stood there, stunned.
"It's late. It's not safe for a girl to be out alone."
That night, he drove her to her dorm.
Before getting out, Clara mustered all her courage and asked, "Do you find me really annoying?"
Rhys's fingers tapped on the steering wheel. After a long silence, he said, "No."
Clara felt her confidence return.



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