LAILAH
NINETEEN
The next two weeks flew by, and I fell into a routine that made me feel like I’d been living here on campus for much longer than two and a half months.
Jay and I went running every morning, hitting the harder trails on the weekends.
I could feel my strength and endurance get back to what it was when I was on the track team.
With Jay pushing me to be better and to run faster, I was now able to beat him in some of our friendly races.
Hudson and I spent Tuesdays in the library study room, trying to improve my failing grade.
I was excited because it was actually making sense, and I didn’t feel quite so stupid.
That is until I went to work with him in his lab on Thursdays.
The math and material he was working with was like an alien language to me.
He had me help mainly as his runner, grabbing slides, chemicals, and other equipment he needed.
It was cool to see him in action and to spend time talking to him about what he was passionate about.
Brayden offered me a spot on the Halloween party organizers committee.
We all helped to make the decorations, paint backgrounds for photo booths, and make sure we had everything we needed to make this one epic party.
Parker popped up here and there, typically when Cami was busy or was spending quality time with Maggs.
I think she felt bad that she was leaving me alone, so she sent him to keep me entertained.
Out of the five, the only one I didn’t see much of was Micah.
Not that I was looking to spend a whole lot of time with him, it just seemed odd he was never around much on campus.
I had expected that me spending time with his best friend would mean he might be around more.
Maybe it was more of a girl thing to include all your friends in everything.
I set my dinner tray down at the table Cami and I always sat at.
She was doing dinner with her sisters, so I was on my own.
Parker had texted me, telling me he was busy tonight too, with lots of sad crying emojis to show how he felt about me eating alone.
It didn’t bother me; I was used to being on my own.
It wasn’t until I met all of them that I was constantly surrounded by people.
A shadow crossed over the book I was reading, causing me to look up. Standing in front of me were four girls I recognized from my dorm. I groaned internally, knowing that this was not going to be enjoyable.
“Lailah, right?” one girl asked.
“Unfortunately,” I muttered.
“We would like to have a word with you,” another said.
I closed the book and heaved a big sigh. “How can I help you?”
“Is it true that you’re going with all The Manor boys to the Halloween party?”
“I am attending the party, but I was only asked by Brayden,” I said, trying to keep my answers simple so they couldn’t read into it.
“Then why are Parker and Hudson telling girls they’re going with you if you already have a date?”
“I can’t control what they say or who they hang out with.
I did not ask to go with them, and they didn’t ask me.
It looks like they might just be saying that, so they don’t have to go with you guys.
” As soon as I said it, I knew it was the wrong thing to do, but I was so sick and tired of these girls causing trouble that it just slipped out.
One girl picked up my glass full of soda and tossed it in my face.
I shut my eyes waiting for the cold, sticky liquid to hit me, but it never came.
I felt my chair getting pulled away from the table, and someone stand in front of me.
The girls all gasped. When I opened my eyes, I found Micah, of all people, blocking my view of them.
He reached a hand up and wiped his face off with napkins someone handed to him.
“Oh my God, Micah, I’m so sorry. I seem to be so spacey today, I can’t believe I spilled my drink like that,” one girl said, her voice shaking.
I peered from behind him to look at their faces. Sure enough, they were scared shitless of Micah right now, and I couldn’t be more pleased it was them and not me for a change.
“I think you had better go before your clumsy ass spills something else on me,” Micah growled.
And just like that, they scattered like mice getting chased by a cat. Micah pulled out the chair next to me and sat down muttering as he tried to dry his shirt. I stared at him with bold curiosity. Why had he just done that? What was he doing sitting next to me? Did he want something?
“I’m not an animal in a zoo. It’s rude to stare, or didn’t your mother teach you that?” Micah said, meeting my gaze.
“Thank you,” I said, not backing down from his challenging look.
“Whatever.”
“How long were you watching?”
“Long enough to see you do a great impersonation of a doormat. Why didn’t you do anything about it, you were just going to let them douse you because they’re petty bitches?”
“I didn’t ask for your help, and I certainly didn’t ask for your advice,” I snapped.
I wasn’t sure what it was about Micah, but he seemed to set me off. I couldn’t manage to keep him from getting under my skin.
“It's not advice, anyone with eyes could see that something was going to happen. It was almost too painful to watch, like some National Geographic shit where the lion takes out the gazelle.”
“I’m confused. You come over here, take a bath in my soda for me, and now you’re mad at me for not doing anything about it?
Who the hell do you think you are?” I stood up from my seat, grabbed my book, and turned on my heel.
Then on second thought, I turned and looked over my shoulder.
“You want me to do something, well here is me walking away from an arrogant asshole who doesn’t deserve my thanks. ”
I was so mad at him, I was shaking as I left the cafeteria. What really made me mad was the fact that as I was telling him off, he had excitement in his eyes, like he was proud of me for standing up to him.
“Fuck him,” I said a little louder than I had intended.
“Lailah?”
I gulped as I turned slowly. “Hey, Brayden.”
Great, I was just insulting his best friend right in front of him. Not good.
“You okay? Did someone do something?” he asked, reaching out and touching my arm.
A jolt of energy shot through me at his touch, just like it had with Jay on our first running hike. This time Brayden reacted, jerking his hand away from me and shaking it out like it stung.
“What was that?” I asked.
Brayden just shook his head, looking as confused as I felt. “I have no idea.”
“Hey, dipshit, good thing you didn’t get very far. You left your backpack behind,” Micah said, walking up to us.
I snatched my bag from him, but our hands brushed, sending another electric current through my body.
“What the hell is that?!” I demanded as my backpack fell to the ground. “Why do I keep getting shocked when I touch people?”
“Wait, this happens to anyone you touch?” Brayden asked.
I shook my head, wrapping my arms around myself. “I don’t know, maybe not everyone, but it happened with Jay a few weeks ago. Now it just happened twice with you guys.”
“Lailah, I’m going to try and touch your arm again to see if it happens again,” Brayden said as he slowly reached out. When his hand grasped my arm, nothing happened. “Did you feel anything?”
“No, nothing,” I said. “I have no idea why it happens or when it chooses to do it. Is there something wrong with me?”
“No, nothing’s wrong with you,” Brayden said, pulling me into a hug.
I nestled into his chest, letting him hold me.
I breathed in his soft scent that reminded me of fresh-turned earth and spring showers.
He rubbed my back, helping to calm me down from my panic attack, making me feel more grounded.
The comfort I felt in his arms was amazing, and like nothing I had ever experienced before.
“Hey, what happened?” I heard Parker’s voice from behind me. “You say something mean to her, asshole?”
I could only assume he was talking to Micah. He wasn’t wrong, but Micah wasn’t the reason I was burrowed in Brayden’s arms. I pulled away from him, not willing to let Micah get yelled at for something he didn’t do.
“Parker, it wasn’t him,” I said, reaching to stop him from going after Micah.
“Wait, Lailah,” Brayden said, trying to grab for me.
When I grabbed onto Parker’s arm, instead of a spark like the other two, a jolt of power almost knocked me off my feet. I gasped as my hand locked around his arm, unable to let go.
“Fuck, Lailah, what’s happening?” Parker looked at me with a worried expression.
I tried to let go, but no matter how I demanded that my hand release its hold, it wouldn’t listen to me. Brayden came up behind me and placed his hand on my shoulders and started to knead his thumbs into my shoulder blades.
“Take a deep breath, Lailah. You need to calm down, breathe in through the mouth, out through the nose,” he said calmly, resting his head against mine, so he didn’t have to talk very loud. “That’s a girl, nice easy breaths.”
I tried to follow Brayden’s direction and breathe the way he wanted, but the shuddering breaths came and went as they pleased.
It was more the feel of him and his touch that seemed to calm me down.
I relaxed into him, and once I was able to do that, the strange energy flowing through me stopped, and I could let go of Parker’s arm.
Brayden pulled me back to him, and he wrapped his arms and body around me, trying to get as much contact as he could.
He kept talking to me in a calming voice, relaxing me further.
Finally, I let go and closed my eyes, drifting into darkness.