“Okay.” She hiccupped, turned around, and slumped down in her seat.
I glanced to the rearview mirror, saw Shay watching me, and felt another bolt of energy in my chest. This was how it was going to be. I had to get used to it. He just affected me. He didn’t really do anything to cause it, but it was there. It wasn’t going away. There was no judgment, sympathy, or amusement in those blue eyes as he watched me. He was literally just looking at me, and I let out a sigh.
This semester could be the longest four months of my life.
When he pulled into our dorm’s parking lot, I leaned forward. “You can pull up to the back door there.”
Kristina was swaying on her feet as we got out.
I was crawling from the back, when he quietly asked, “Do you need help with her?”
I looked back at him. “I’m sure we’re fine.”
“Sabrina’s at the front desk. Let her know if you need help.”
Sabrina.
I paused, my fingers sinking down into the seat. Of course, she’d have an equally beautiful name.
I dipped my head down, murmuring, “Thank you. And thank you for the ride.”
I didn’t say anything about Linde, because he was right. If Linde became a close enough friend where I could voice my opinion, and if he asked, I would say it then. It would’ve been me passing judgment on him, otherwise. I was prickly enough with people judging me. Hello, pot meet kettle.
I climbed out the rest of the way, shut his door, and held a hand up in a farewell wave as he wheeled the Jeep around deftly and pulled away. Holding my ID to the back door scanner, it opened for us, and I made Kristina wait in the stairwell so I could scope out her room situation.
The hallway’s low lights were on. Light shone from underneath a few of the doors, but they were quiet. I got to Kristina’s and used the key she gave me to open the door an inch. No light was on inside, and I waited—I didn’t hear anything. No deep breathing. No light snoring. I opened the door wider, then stepped inside and waited again.
No reaction.
No one moved in their bed.
I hit the switch, and the room flooded in light. Casey’s bed was empty. That answered Kristina’s dilemma, and I relayed the information. She sagged against the wall, her hand to her chest. “Thank goodness.” Her smile was a little messy, and her pupils dilated. “Thank you. It was a fun night. Those guys are nice.”
I nodded, and said another good night.
Moments later, I was in bed, and Missy’s snoring shook the post. I was used to the noise and vibrations and closed my eyes. The sound almost lulled me to sleep now.
The alarms started too early, way too early. Missy’s started at six, and went off every ten minutes until seven o’clock, which was when she finally shut the damn thing off. The bed shook again as she climbed from the top bunk, and I drifted back to sleep.
She woke me again thirty minutes later when she returned from the shower. I listened without opening my eyes as she moved around getting ready for the day and groaned when my own alarm woke me at eight.
It felt like an elephant was sitting on my shoulders when I got up, but I had to hurry it up.
Bathroom took five minutes.
Brushing teeth was two.
Face was cleaned. Another minute.
Dressed.
Brushed the hair.
No. That looked bad.
Hair was pulled into a ponytail.
I cringed. Horrible.
Hair ended up in a messy bun. Nod of approval.
Bag was already packed from the night before—and after a light coating of lip-gloss and swipe of eyeliner, I was out the door.
So was everyone else. I got behind a group of five girls leaving the dorm. There was no time for breakfast, but I veered by the library. Everyone grabbed their coffee from the coffee shop on campus, or a few in the food court. Everyone forgot about the library, because who was really there so early in the morning?
Coffee ordered, paid for, then picked up, and I was back outside. All the sidewalks were full now. It was nine-fifteen when I spotted my poli-sci building. I reached for the door handle, opened it, and it was caught by a hand above mine.
I looked—I shouldn’t have.
Shay Coleman smirked down at me, his body close enough that I felt a draft of warmth from his heat. He curved his lips up, pleased to have caught me off guard. “Morning.”
I grunted and was acutely aware of how he was right behind me up the two flights of stairs to our class.
A line of students stopped at the top, waiting to enter the room. I waited at the end, needing to cover the last two steps. Shay was right behind me. His one arm was on the handrail as he moved his foot to my same step.
He was leaning right over me.
Tension filled me.
I could lean my head back against his chest. He wouldn’t move away. I didn’t think he’d move at all, and considering it, some of the tension faded, but that effect he had on me was still there. I bit down on my lip. I couldn’t move away from him. The group of students moved forward. One more step. One to go.
I moved up.
So did Shay.
He resumed his same stance.
His breath coated the back of my neck, and I almost groaned. Almost. I held it in.
Pop quiz. Those words surged in my mind. I needed to remember what we were doing, where we were going.
The last step was cleared, and then we were through the doorway. Shay walked behind me, his arm lifted and rested on my shoulder.
I could feel Becs’s and Aby’s attention sharpen, so did so many other girls in the room. If I shrugged him off, that’d produce more attention. We all knew how much I loved attention.
Shay’s soft chuckle grazed my ear. We moved farther down the middle aisle until we got to my desk. His arm fell away, he swung into his seat, and like one being, we both sat at the same time.
The back of my neck grew hot.
Something was thrown at me. I turned and Linde mouthed, “WTF?”
Shay chuckled again—so sure of himself, so arrogant, so cocky.
Linde lifted his hands up, still waiting for my response.
What could I say?
I rolled my shoulders before turning back around. The professor arrived, and it was like how Shay called it.
“Close your books. Clear your desks. Take out your pens. Pop quiz, everyone.”
“Girl.”
That was Linde’s greeting to me once class was done. Shay got up and left, not looking back. Becs, Aby, and two other friends picked up their pace. I had no idea if they were going after him or just excited to leave class.
I knew what Linde was asking with that one word. “I felt like I would’ve caused a scene if I pushed his arm off.”
“What is going on with you and Shay?” He waited in front of me as I grabbed my bag. We walked together out of the classroom and building. “Is he messing with you?”
“Does he do that with girls?”
He opened the door, holding it for me, and I glanced over for his response.
He let the door go, falling in line again beside me. “I’ve never seen it, but that’s weird. You want me to say something to him?”
Say something? After Shay told me not to poke my nose in Linde’s business, and Linde was offering to poke his in this business. Ironic. My mouth dried up. If he did, Shay could tell him about my concerns. Linde could be pissed at me.
I shook my head. “Nah. It’ll sort out. I’m sure.”
Some guys called Linde’s name as we neared the food court. He pointed a fist toward them, then broke away from me. He started walking backwards. “I’ll say something if you want me to.”
I just gave him a grin. I didn’t want that. Linde was my second friend here. “If I do, I’ll say the word.”
He stretched his arm out toward me, a cocky grin on his face. “Word. Just say it.”
“Say what word?” Kristina asked from behind me. I turned, watching her sort through a stack of mail as she looked between Linde and me.
“Nothing.” I fixed her with a smile. Shay was gone. I wouldn’t see him for another forty-eight hours. Already things were feeling better. “How are you feeling?”
She groaned. “Embarrassed. I never drink. Now you know why.”
We laughed, heading through the line into the cafeteria. I grabbed a salad and water first. Linde didn’t just pour drinks last night. He ordered a pizza, so today was healthy me. Today was my fight against the freshman fifteen. No to pizza, yes to leafy greens.