She swivels on the spot, pleased by my praise. It probably helps that Noah signed twenty poster-sized printouts of Rise Up’s debut album for her last night. I thought she was set to sell them, but supposedly that’s just her personal collection. She’s planning to hit Noah with the big stuff once her bank balance recovers from purchasing tickets to his first concert.
Once I slide my bare feet into my undone boots, I hunt for my keys. I find them on my shelf of photos at the same time Crystal asks, “Are you okay? You seem a little frazzled.”
“I’m good. Actually, I’m great!” I sling my arms around her neck to hug her tight. Jenni and I are often accused of being super friendly, but this morning, I’m ten times worse. I’m so excited, my stomach is bubbling with anticipation. “But I have to go. I need to reach Noah before he boards his flight.”
Crystal laughs at my eccentrics before gesturing for me to go.
I do precisely that two seconds later.
When I reach the elevator, I jab the button numerous times, begging for it to hurry up.“Come on.”
I give it another five hits for good measure, but it remains in the lobby, teasing me. Forever impatient, I throw open the fire door to jog down the stairs. Because I'm in such a hurry, I trip over one of my undone laces. As I careen toward the rigid ground, my first thoughts go to protecting my baby. Instead of holding my hands out to shelter my fall, I place them over my stomach.
Just as I'm about to hit the concrete, I’m caught by a pair of solid arms. “Are you okay?” questions a male voice as he assists me back onto my feet.
"Yes, sorry." With the scare of my fall still in the forefront of my mind, I bend down to tie up my laces. "I tripped over my laces…" My reply falls short when my sleep-deprived head finally registers the stranger's voice as familiar. Although it’s been a while since I’ve heard it, I'm confident I've heard his voice before.
After tying my laces, I lift my eyes. My breath hitches halfway to my lungs when they lock onto a pair of glistening baby blues. Not only do I recognize the blue eyes staring down at me, I hate them as well.
“Zander…” I scan around my surroundings, double-checking I’m still in my dorm. It appears the same, but I must have been sucked into a vortex, as this can’t be real. “What are you doing here? Why are you in my dorm?”
My eyes rocket back to Zander when he steps closer to me. Loving that he’s secured my devotion, he flashes his shiny-white grin that used to make the senior girls' heads go into a tizzy. It doesn't work on me. Actually, it has the opposite effect. The queasiness I referenced earlier has returned stronger than ever. I'm seconds from barfing on his prissy shoes.
“I need to talk to you. I want a chance to explain why I did what I did.”
With a roll of my eyes, I skirt past him. “We havenothingto talk about.”
He snatches my elbow, halting my hasty retreat. His hold isn’t rough, but it sends a clear warning to my head that he hasn’t changed from a boy into a man. He’s as arrogant as ever.
“It won’t take a minute.”
“I don’t have a minute. I have somewhere very important to be.” Because my reply is honest, it sounds that way. “There’s also nothing for us to discuss. What was done, was done. We can’t change the past.”Unfortunately.
Zander peers down at me, stupidly believing his puppy-dog eyes will have me backpedaling on my decision. All it proves is I no longer haveanyfeelings for him. My heart, body, and soul solely belong to Noah. He is my everything.
I yank my elbow out of Zander’s grip. “Goodbye, Zander.”
After a final sneer, I gallop down the stairs, sprint across the frosty grass of the vacant quad, then dive in the driver’s seat of my beloved pink beetle. Noah hates my car. He thinks its emasculating.
It is to anyone lacking his sexiness.
My engine struggles to turn over in the chilly morning temperatures.“Come on, you can do it.” I continually crank the key until the engine finally sparks to life.“Yes!”
While pulling out of the lot, I glance at the clock on my dashboard. It's 5:22 AM. The trip to the airport usually takes forty-five-minutes, but with my wish to see Noah more imperative than my safety, my foot gets extra friendly with the gas pedal.
It takes several painstaking seconds for my tires to gain traction with the road when I flatten my foot to the floor, but when they do, I rocket out of the lot as dangerously as I did the hospital multi-story garage only weeks ago. It doubles the thickness of my veins while also adding to my excitement.
There’s only one time I’m more excited.
When I’m beneath Noah.
3
Due to the early hour, the roads are noticeably quiet. I make it several miles without incident, only slowing five miles from the airport. Traffic is gridlocked, stretching for as far as the eye can see. Defeat fills me when I chance a glance at the clock on my dashboard. It's 5:48 AM.
I'll never make it in time.
Disappointed, I lower my head to the steering wheel to bang it a few times. It reminds me of Noah’s response when I told him I was only seventeen at the start of our relationship. He thought my confession was the beginning of the end for us. In reality, it was the commencement of something beautiful.
