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Leaning down, I press my mouth against hers in another kiss before pulling back.
“Did you just steal my panties?”
With a smirk, I take a step back. “Don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Those blue eyes narrow on me. “You’re lucky I don’t have time for this now.”
With her eyes still on me, she goes to the door and pulls it open.
“There you are!” Grace says from the hallway. “We’ve been looking for you.”
Fuck.
Jade slips outside just as I move out of the line of sight. “The main bathroom was occupied, so I used the other one,” I hear Jade explain, her voice growing softer as she closes the door behind her, and they move down the hallway.
That was fucking close.
Letting out a sigh, I flop down on the bed. My knee’s still aching, so I massage the soft flesh. Turning on my stomach, I go for the nightstand and pull out the pain meds. Getting a couple of pills, I swallow them down, my mind still on what just happened. Letting my head drop on the mattress, I smell the faint scent of lavender, and I know there is no way I’ll fall asleep tonight.
CHAPTERTWENTY-FIVE
JADE
“Okay,” Professor Reyes, one of my photography professors, claps her hands. “Now that you’ve learned the basics, I have a project for you.” She takes in our small class, the corner of her mouth lifting in a knowing half-smile. “A friend of mine owns a gallery in Boston.”
I shift in my seat, intrigued by where this is going. There’s a beat of silence as Professor Reyes looks around the room, amusement clear on her face. She has us, and she knows it.
“I asked her for a favor, and she agreed. In order to put to use what we’re going to learn this semester, you’ll also have a project of your own you’ll be working on. The deadline for this project is the first week in December. I want you to implement all the techniques we’ll learn and present me with a portfolio of about five to ten photos. My friend and I will review it and select one student whose work will be displayed in the gallery in January along with some other artists.”
“Is there a specific theme you’re going for?” I ask, lifting my gaze from my notebook where I was jotting down the notes.
“There is,” Professor Reyes shifts her attention to me and nods. “The theme for this project is raw beauty.”
Just then, the bell rings, but nobody moves a muscle. A first, but given the topic we’re discussing, it’s not even surprising. The possibility of this is huge. To have our work displayed at an actual gallery when we’re only sophomores? Sign me up.
And Professor Reyes knows it. She gives us a knowing smirk. “If you have any questions, you know where to find me. I’ll see you guys next week.”
With that, she turns on her heel and returns to her desk.
I quickly grab my things and shove them into my backpack, her words ringing in my mind.
Raw beauty.
What the hell does she even mean by raw beauty?
This class is calledLooking Through the Lens, which is one of the reasons why I took it. It seemed interesting andpractical. I didn’t want to learn about theory, I just wanted to shoot. That was the point of being a photographer, after all. And so far, I’ve liked it. We’ve been learning about focus and colors, how sometimes less is more, and capturing the details that tell the story instead of the broader picture that’s pretty but soulless.
Raw beauty could be anything really, which I guess is the point of it, and should give everybody equal chances of winning this competition.
I’m still going over all the possibilities on how to make myself stick out against the rest of my classmates as I walk to Cup It Up.
The local coffee shop is relatively silent, which is surprising since it’s the middle of the day, but I’ll take it. The bell chimes as I step inside, and Yasmin smiles at me from across the counter.
“Hey, stranger. I haven’t seen you since…” She purses her lips as if she’s trying to remember it. “The party after the game? That can’t be, can it?”
“Well, I’m here every day. Where are you?” I hop onto the bar stool by the counter, letting my backpack drop into my lap.
“Don’t even ask me. I had to cut some shifts since this year is kicking my ass.”
