I don't think I'll be able to maintain this look any longer because I can't find anywhere to rollerblade in a busy city like this.
                          
"Do you go to the gym?" I asked. Bad question! Bad question! I told myself. Didn't I just tell myself that he's mostly sitting down at home or in school?
                          
"No, what makes you think so?" he replied.
                          
"You have muscles," I said.
                          
He rolled his eyes. "Everyone has muscles," he retorted.
                          
"You know what I mean!" I replied, frowning. Does he take me for an idiot? "Anyway, you have muscles. They're not that well-defined but they're still visible. One would expect you to be a little fat because you sit around all day studying."
                          
"I guess I have good genes," he muttered in reply.  "Besides, I don't eat a lot. I accidentally skip meals many times because I'm too engrossed in studying."
                          
I shook my head. "You, of all people, should know the consequences of skipping meals! You'll get gastritis. If prolonged, you'll get chronic gastritis which may lead to stomach ulcers and increase the risk of stomach cancer! Do you want to die?"
                          
He chuckled, "I believe in the doctors. Besides, I'll have you to treat me. I trust you, Grey. I trust that you'll be a good doctor."
                          
I blushed. That's by far the nicest thing he has said to me since we met a week ago. I nodded and replied, "Thanks, Matteo, but complimenting me won't make me forget the fact that you skip meals a lot. Besides, I'm not a doctor yet. I can't help you."
                          
He shrugged. "I don't think I'll get cancer that early in life anyway."
                          
"Look at Izzie Stevens, Matteo," I sighed. "She was only thirty or so when she found out that she had stage four metastatic melanoma. If you're going to get stomach cancer when you're thirty years old, you have only eight years left. You only die once after all."
                          
"Don't use my words against me, Grey," he laughed.
                          
"I'm serious," I said firmly. "You said that you will be Derek Shepherd and I will be Meredith Grey. You are not allowed to die. Do you hear me? How can you take death with a pinch of salt? Once you die, it's game over. You can never live once again."
                          
He clicked his tongue and folded his arms. "Fine, if it makes you happy, I'll take note of my meal times. You can even call me to remind me to eat if you want to. I have to warn you, though. My phone is on 'Do Not Disturb' mode when I'm studying."
                          
I rolled my eyes. "Okay, Matteo."
                          
Soon after, we reached school and we parted ways. I met up with my three best friends who happened to see me waving Matteo goodbye. Of course, they couldn't help but tease me about it. Why do they keep shipping me with him?
                          
"How are things going with Matteo?" Talia asked.
                          
"How was studying with him on Sunday?" Erica added.
                          
"Are you guys officially dating?" Zenia questioned.
                          
I put my hand in front of me to stop them from continuing. "Stop it, guys. We're just friends. Matteo is like a brother to me."
                          
"That's what Jake said when Boyle asked him if he liked Amy!" Talia squealed in a sing-song voice. "Admit it, Lexie. You two have something going in. You managed to win the ice prince's heart! Even if it's platonic, it's still something. He's Matteo Knight, the ice prince."
                          
"Haha, what? Ice prince? He's more like a dark knight," I chuckled. He is good at heart but he has some issues. Big time. He needs to sort out his defensiveness problem. Still, he does have an ice wall surrounding him that prevents people from getting close to him. Calling him an ice prince is still accurate. "Okay, maybe he's both an ice prince and a dark knight."
                          
"Ooh, you know a lot about him, Alexia," Zenia teased.
                          
I rolled my eyes and shook my head. When will this childish ship end? "Ugh, I give up. Think of it however you want. I can't be bothered to argue. At this moment, Matteo and I are just friends and neighbours. That's it. Believe it or not."
                          
Erica shrugged. "That's for now. Who knows what will happen in the future? You two could fall madly in love with each other and become the happiest couple on earth!"
                          
"Yeah, that's what I thought when Derek asked me to be his girlfriend," I said. The mood changed instantly. The trio stopped talking. They know this is a sensitive topic. Thank God they know. "Come on, let's go. Class starts in ten minutes."
                          
"Yeah, let's go," Erica muttered.
                          
Derek Sherwood ruined love for me. After what he did to me, how can I dare to be in another relationship? It will take some time before I completely recover from that heartbreak and be ready to commit myself to a man once again.
                          
Love? Ha, what a joke.