Chapter fifteen
Devyn
“You’ve been staring at that dress for ten minutes.”
I looked up as Sahara stood in the middle of our room with one hand on her hip and the other holding a curling iron.
“No, I haven’t,” I denied.
“Yes you have,” she argued.
“No, I haven’t.”
“Devyn.”
I rolled my eyes. “Fine. Maybe a little,” I admitted.
Holly laughed from Sahara’s bed. “A little? Girl, you looked like you were about to write it a love letter,” she teased.
The room erupted with laughter. I threw a pillow at her and she caught it.
Tonight was the school’s Spring Formal. Apparently, every year the school hosted a dance before students left for summer break. And everybody seemed to be excited except me.
Sahara was practically vibrating. Ivana had changed outfits three times already. And Holly had spent twenty minutes arguing about shoes.
Meanwhile, I was wondering why I couldn’t just stay in my room for the evening. “You better not stand against a wall all night either,” Sahara joked.
I looked over at her and said, “I won’t.”
“That’s exactly what somebody planning to stand against a wall all night would say,” she said as we all laughed.
An hour later we finally made our way downstairs. I had to admit that the school looked beautiful. String lights hung from the ceiling, music echoed through the ballroom, students laughed and danced everywhere.
For a second, I almost forgot I was in Zurich and for a moment, it just felt like being fourteen.
“Come on!” Sahara said as she grabbed my wrist and dragged me towards the dance floor.
“I don’t dance,” I said.
“Neither do I,” she said.
“You literally dance all the time.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. The night actually wasn’t terrible. To my surprise, I was actually having fun. The four of us danced, took pictures in the photo booth, made fun of each other, ate way too many desserts and for the first time in months, I wasn’t thinking about Atlanta every five seconds.
I was just enjoying myself. Then I noticed him standing near the refreshment table. He had brown skin, curly hair, and was tall and cute. And he was staring in my direction.
The second our eyes met, he looked away. Then he looked back and smiled.
Uh oh.
Sahara followed my gaze and immediately she grinned. “Oh.”
I already knew that tone. “What?” I asked as I raised my eyebrow.
“Nothing,” she said with a smile.
“Hmm.”
“It’s nothing.”
“Sure.”
I rolled my eyes. A few minutes later I forgot about him. At least until he started walking towards us. My stomach immediately tightened.
“No,” I mumbled.
Sahara started laughing. “What?”
“He’s coming over here,” I said.
“No, he’s not.”
“Yes he is.”
“No, he’s…” She didn’t get to finish her argument.
“Evening, ladies.”
The British accent nearly took me out. Of course, Holly’s eyes widened while Ivana looked impressed and Sahara looked entertained. I wanted the floor to swallow me.
The boy standing before us smiled and I wasn’t surprised by his perfect, white teeth.
“I’m Oliver.”
The girls introduced themselves one by one.
Then his eyes landed on me. “And you’re Devyn, right?” he asked.
I blinked twice. “You know my name,” I said.
He shrugged. “We have literature together.”
Damn.
I had seen him before… a few times actually. I just hadn’t paid much attention. Apparently, he had paid attention enough for both of us.
“You look lovely tonight,” Oliver said.
Sahara immediately looked away to hide her smile… such a traitor.
“Thank you,” I said.
The conversation lasted another minute. Then Oliver did the thing I knew was coming. He held out his hand to me.
“Would you like to dance?” he asked.
All of a sudden, the room went silent. At least it felt like that to me. My eyes dropped to his hand then back to his face. Then back to his hand. He seemed nice enough and his accent. Plus, he was polite, cute, and very normal. Everything a girl was probably supposed to want.
Unfortunately, my brain instantly thought of Dylan. Dylan struggling through books in the stables. Dylan teaching himself to be patient. Dylan texting me from Atlanta. Dylan wishing me happy birthday.
Dylan.
Dylan.
Dylan.
“I’m sorry,” I said. His smile faded slightly. “No thank you.”
To his credit, he handled it well. “Maybe next time,” he said.
I smiled politely. “Maybe.”
Then he walked away and the second he disappeared into the crowd, Sahara exploded.
“GIRL!”
I busted out laughing. “What?” I asked.
“Why would you say no?” she asked.
“I didn’t wanna dance.”
“Liar.”
Holly pointed dramatically. “He is cute,” she said.
“Very cute,” Ivana agreed.
“Extremely cute,” Sahara added.
I rolled my eyes. “Y’all are doing way too much,” I said with a smile.
“No, you’re doing too much,” Sahara said. I laughed then reached for my drink. Sahara crossed her arms and eyed me down suspiciously. “This is about Dylan, isn’t it?”
The laughter disappeared.
Damn. Straight to the point.
The three girls stared at me, waiting. I looked towards the dance floor, and the lights, and the crowd.
Then I shrugged. “Maybe.”
The answer made them groan.
“Oh my God.”
“What?”
“You’re impossible.”
I laughed, but deep down, I knew they weren’t completely wrong. Oliver was cute and sweet too. And if I had met him under different circumstances, maybe I would’ve said yes.
Maybe.
But tonight wasn’t one of those nights.
A few hours later I was back in my room getting ready for bed when my phone buzzed.
A smile immediately tugged at my lips when I saw it was Dylan. Of course, I opened the message immediately.
Dylan ??: What you doing?
I smiled then typed back…
Me: Just got back from a school dance
The response came instantly.
Dylan ??: Did you dance?
I laughed out loud.
Me: A little
I rolled my eyes then climbed into bed because some things were changing… my confidence, my friendships, and my life. But some things weren’t. Not yet anyway.
And judging by the smile on my face as I texted him back, Dylan was definitely one of them.
My phone buzzed again almost immediately.
Dylan ??: Just a little?
I laughed.
Me: Yes, just a little
Dylan ??: That don’t sound like a little
Me: Why you say that?
Dylan ??: Because you said it twice
I rolled my eyes.
Me: You’re annoying
Dylan ??: And you’re avoiding the question
I smiled and shook my head thinking some things never changed.
Me: We had a school dance. You asked if I danced and I said a little. Everybody danced
A few seconds passed.
Dylan ??: I didn’t ask about everybody? I asked about you
Me: And I answered you Dylan ?? why are you being weird?
Dylan ??: How am I being weird?
Me: B/c you keep asking me something I already answered
The three dots appeared then disappeared and reappeared.
Dylan ??: Switzerland is definitely changing you
I laughed.
Me: Shut up! No it’s not
Dylan ??: Uh huh
I stretched out across my bed. The room was dark except for the lamp Sahara left on. Across the room she was pretending not to listen, which meant she was absolutely listening.
Me: Anyway, how was your day?
The response took longer this time.
Dylan ??: It was cool
I frowned. That usually meant it wasn’t.
Me: What happened at school today?
Dylan ??: Nothing much
Don’t ask me how, but I immediately knew he was lying.
Me: Dylan be honest
A few moments passed.
Dylan ??: A girl gave me some balloons
I sat up straight immediately because now he had my attention. Even though we hadn’t solidified our relationship with a label, that didn’t mean I wanted other girls gifting him anything.
Across the room Sahara took notice of my perfect posture.
“What happened?” she asked in a voice barely above a whisper.
I ignored her question as my eyes remained glued to the phone screen.
Me: A girl?
Dylan ??: Yeah, but it’s no big deal
Me: What girl?
Dylan ??: Tyla
I stared at the message. Why was that girl giving Dylan balloons? What did she want from him?
Me: Tyla gave you balloons?
Dylan ??: Yeah
For some reason that made me laugh. Her desperate ass had been after Dylan since before I left.
Me: Why?
Dylan ??: For my birthday
Me: What else did she offer you? ??
The answer came instantly.
Dylan ??: Why you gotta be so dramatic? You jealous?
Me: HA! What I gotta be jealous of her for?
Dylan ??: I’m just saying cuz you sound jealous
Me: Well, I’m not. But girls like her always want something if they gifting you. So, what does she want?
Dylan ??: ????
Me: What’s funny?
Dylan ??: You are silly
Me: I’m not laughing. You’re deflecting so just answer the question
Dylan ??: Aight. She asked me to go to the movies with her
I froze. Not that I was shocked. The way he avoided answering the question let me know that the chick was up to something. And somehow, even from another continent, I felt some kind of way.
With my heart beating like a track star, I texted back…
Me: Are you going?
His response took longer than I thought it would… much longer. Then finally…
Dylan ??: I don’t know
I stared at the message then smiled because somehow that answer made me giddy. But I wanted to test him to see where his head was at.
Me: You should go if you want to
The three dots appeared then disappeared.
Then appeared again.
Dylan ??: You mean that?
I looked out the window at the moon hanging above Switzerland. Thousands of miles away from Atlanta and from him.
Me: Yeah
This time his response came quickly.
Dylan ??: I don’t really want to tho
My heart did something weird and stupid, but I refused to take the time to examine it.
Me: Why not?
Several seconds passed and then he texted back.
Dylan ??: Because
I laughed out loud.
Sahara immediately threw a pillow at me. “What?” she asked with a questioning gaze.
“Nothing.” I giggled.
“Liar,” she teased.
I ignored her then typed back…
Me: That’s not an answer
His response came through a few seconds later.
Dylan ??: Goodnight, Dev
I busted out laughing.
Me: Coward ?? Goodnight ??
I smiled then set my phone down because some questions didn’t need answers. And some answers didn’t need to be said out loud.
︵?︵?????︵?︵
Summer was upon us before I realized it. The funny thing about that was I didn’t go home and neither did Sahara. A lot of students left campus… some returned to their families, some decided to travel, and some just hauled ass… but not us.
We stayed.
At first, I thought I would hate it. Turns out I was wrong. The campus felt different during the summer… quieter, slower and more relaxed.
For the first time since I set foot on campus, it felt less like a school and more like a community. My days settled into a routine… piano lessons, horseback riding, reading, studying and exploring the city with Sahara.
The piano became my favorite part. Mostly because I wasn’t as good as I thought I was when I was back home. And I hated not being good at things. Every lesson felt like a challenge and every mistake made me want to practice harder.
Sahara thought it was hilarious.
“You make the same face every time you mess up,” she said.
“What face?” I asked.
“The one where you look like you want to fight the piano.”
I laughed and replied, “That’s probably because I do.”
The instructor laughed too.
Apparently, I wasn’t the first student to lose an argument with an instrument.
Horseback riding was much easier, and it reminded me of home, of the estate, and of the afternoons I had spent riding while trying not to think about things.
Sometimes it made me miss Atlanta. Sometimes it made me feel connected to it. Either way, I loved it. Then there were the train rides. Those became me and Sahara’s thing.
Every weekend, the two of us would hop on a train and head towards Uetliberg Mountain. The views from there were unbelievable. I had never seen anything like it. The rolling hills, forests, and the city stretched out below us like something from a postcard.
The first time we went, Sahara spent twenty minutes just taking pictures. The second time she spent half an hour snapping pics on her phone… selfies included. By the third trip, I stopped pretending she was going to change.
“You have a problem,” I said with a laugh.
She looked up from her phone. “I know.”
Well, at least she was honest. We sat on a bench overlooking the city while eating ice cream. The breeze was cool, the sky was clear and for the first time in a long time, life felt easy and good.
“Can I ask you something?” Sahara asked.
I looked over to see her watching me carefully. “Sure.”
“Are you happy?”
The question caught me off guard because honestly, I wasn’t sure. If she had asked when I first got here, the answer would’ve been easy… absolutely not.
But now, things are different. I thought about the friends I had made, the places I had seen, the things I had learned, and the confidence I had gained.
Then I thought about Atlanta, home, Dylan, and my father. I also thought about Imani, my friends at school, even the staff. A couple of times, I thought of Carter too.
Finally, I smiled.
“A little,” I replied.
Sahara grinned. “A little?” she asked with a raised brow.
I laughed. “Okay.” Then my smile widened. “Maybe more than a little.”
And for the first time since Switzerland became my reality, I realized that was actually true.