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"Mom, it's Christmas," I beg.
She's silent on the other line. "I'll give you the rest of the day, but tomorrow, we're sorting this out."
"Yes, Mom." I know better than to argue.
"I'll call you later," she adds, and then the line goes dead.
The phone drops from my hand, and the tears start falling.
"Baby..." Nathan whispers, and his hands come down on my shoulders, massaging gently. "It's going to be fine. You're an adult. You don't have to go home. You can stay right here with me."
Out of everything, the prospect of being pulled out of college and forced home isn't what's bothering me the most. "Nathan," I gasp, fighting back a sob. "I think I know who called her. I think it was Danny!"
His grip on me tightens, and he pulls me closer to him, arms wrapping around me. "Fuck. It makes sense."
"After you made him apologize, after he said he would leave me alone!" I'm full-on crying now, and while a part of me wants to curl into his chest and just sob my heart out, another part of me tries to shrug him off. I feel like I'm being suffocated. "I need to go back to the dorm, Nathan. I need to fix this. If he's called my mom, then he's definitely called the school."
"If they believe him," Nathan points out.
"It's a risk I can't take." I push him away. "I've got a scholarship and I need to get my degree. If I don't, I won't be able to make a career!"
"You don't have to work," he says, voice low and serious. "Not if you're with me. I'll take care of you."
"Nathan!" Now it's me who’s almost shrieking. "We've only known each other for two weeks!"
He looks taken aback. "So? We both feel the same way."
"It's not fair to ask me to drop everything and come live with you." I'm panicking now. Nathan looks completely bewildered and pissed, and my brain is a fog of anxiety. "Why wouldn't you want to be with me? This can't just be one-sided. You said so."
"No, but..." I'm at a loss. All I know is that I need to go. Now.
"But?" he repeats, raising an eyebrow.
"Maybe I need some space," I tell him, backing up towards the door. "Maybe I can't handle all of this, not now, and not with everything going on with school."
He steps forward, and I step back, palms pressed against the door as a panic attack starts to grip my chest. Vision narrowing, I feel like a cornered animal. Not because he would ever hurt me, but because if he touches me, I know I won't be able to resist. I want him to hold me so damn bad.
Nathan tries to reach for me, and I flinch. His entire face shuts down, body language going cold in an instant. "Fine. I'll call you a cab."
"No, no, it's fine. I can get an Uber."
"Take the cab, Noelle." His eyes are dark and furious.
"Okay."
He walks away, leaving me to stand there feeling miserable and scared and unsure.
I don't know how I'm supposed to be able to do anything other than just sit here and cry. But Nathan doesn't reappear, and the cab is outside waiting for me before I can even get myself together enough to walk out the front door.
As the car pulls away, I look back at the house. The front door is open, and Nathan is standing on the front step, watching. His expression is unreadable, and I turn around, looking straight ahead until the cab turns the corner and the house disappears.
"Thank you," I mutter, giving the driver a tip as he parks on the dorm's curb.
"Merry Christmas!" the oblivious driver says brightly, and I want to weep all over again, but I manage to hold it together.
"Yeah. Merry Christmas..."
I have to fish in my backpack for a moment for the key to my dorm, and once I find it, I hurry down the hall and inside. My room is cold and feels so barren, but at least my bed is here. I make a beeline for it, collapse on the hard mattress, and sob until my voice gives out.
