'Mello, could you please cease your vehement masticating? We're trying to study.'
Mello looked up from the book he was reading and made a rude gesture at Linda.
'No way, smartass.'
Linda wrinkled her nose, but did not insist: she knew it was better not to argue with Mello. Instead, she stared at the bespectacled boy sitting next to him. It worked.
'Will you stop? God, you're annoying,' Mello eventually barked, compelled to by Matt's uncomfortable squirming under the little girl's gaze.
When he swallowed his chocolate, Linda smiled, then turned around and went back to her own desk in the crowded library. Matt instantly stopped fidgeting.
'Thank you for getting her to go away,' he whispered with relief. 'I was almost losing it.'
Mello looked flushed. 'Don't mention it.'