“Your room, beautiful.” I gently place her down on her feet but don’t miss the shock that's clear on her face.
How cruel the world is to have someone so genuinely beautiful, filled with doubt over a simple observation of truth.
“Thank you.” She pushes a few stray strands of hair behind her ear before sinking her teeth into her bottom lip, her eyes trained on the ground as if it's the most fascinating thing she’s ever seen.
She makes it so difficult to behave without even knowing it.
Before I can think too much about it, I reach out and pull her phone from her back pocket. I’d felt it earlier when she was on my lap, and I hadn’t thought much about it, but now...
Well, I’ve never been good at self-restraint.
She opens her mouth as if to protest before she snaps it shut when I offer the phone back to her a moment later.
My phone chimes with the message I just sent myself.
“Text me if you ever need to talk, Blondie. No need to sit alone and cry.”
She purses her lips as she takes the phone back, and I know she’s not happy about being seen like that. From everything Gavin’s told me about her, she’s tough and smart.
But you can be tough and cry; everyone needs a chance to let emotions out every once in a while.
That’s why I still sleep with people despite not wanting more—for some kind of connection, release, whatever you want to call it.
Well, that and because my beast is a horny asshole.
I lean in and press my lips to her forehead, breathing her in one last time before I turn and walk back the way I came, before I lose the little self-restraint I have.
I feel her eyes on me until I turn the corner, where I pause and wait, listening for the sound of her door clicking shut. A quick glance back confirms she’s safely back in her room, and I breathe a sigh of relief but also sadness, standing alone in the hallway for a moment to get control of myself.
With nothing else to do, I return to the room Gavin and I share. I’m not surprised he’s sleeping; it’s well past eleven, and he’d been up early to study and practice.
Not that it mattered; Wren had wiped the floor with his whole team.
Just the thought of her makes a smile pull at my lips, but I quickly bite it back. The last thing I need is Gavin asking questions. I’ve never lied to him, and I don’t intend to start now, but if he doesn’t know what to ask about, well...
That’s not on me then.
Good night Blondie.
Good night D.
Her text comes in as I lie down in bed, and I don’t fight the smile this time.
3 years later
Meadow Ridge Academy
For as long as I can remember, I’ve dreamed of being here. Everything about Meadow Ridge Academy amazed me. From the classes they offered to the dorm rooms and halls, it was a shiny present, just waiting to be unwrapped.
My brother and I used to spend hours talking about what we would do while we were attending, the classes we would want to take, and the parties we would go to.
The two of us coming here wasn’t just a dream. It was a certainty, as it had been for our parents and their parents before them. For generations, our family has attended, and we never even considered the possibility of breaking that tradition. Being legacies was a highlight for us.
Now, as I head to my room, I wish I could be anywhere else.
What I wouldn’t give to be someone else, as far away from here as possible. But I know better than to hope for the impossible. Hopes and dreams only build unrealistic expectations. The only way I’m getting out of here is with a degree in two years. Nothing can change that, no matter how much I might wish it could.
My only real hope is to take some extra classes and maybe get out sooner, but I get the feeling this isn’t going to be a walk in the park after the way these first few hours have gone.
