CHAPTER SEVEN #2
“So, roomie, are you wanting to go to the little party tonight?” she asks, and I take a quick glance at Chase, seeing him regarding her with cool detachment.
I look back at Vanessa’s excited face and grimace at the question.
I’ve never been to a party, much less a college one.
“It’ll be fun, that’s where all the hot guys on campus are.
” Her smile is wide and Chase rolls his eyes.
“Well, I was planning to find out about some astronomy clubs. Plus, I don’t really—”
She waves me off. “C’mon, you’re in college now. Besides, there’s this guy that I hooked up with a couple years ago who’ll be there for sure. So, come on, be my wingwoman?”
Chase exhales sharply through his nose as the other girls she was talking to turn around and smile at me, all of them waiting for a response.
The peer pressure begins.
“It’s a freshmen get-together at a frat, you should be okay,” Chase speaks up.
Vanessa looks back at me and I nod somewhat reluctantly.
He stands. “Alright, guys, let’s start to head out.
” We pack up our things and form a circle as we return to the tour.
Leaving the dining hall, the parents walk in, and I quickly wave to Mom before seeing Josh surrounded by a bunch of stuffy-looking dads.
Of course, he’s already found the other social elites.
Building after building, I can feel it. This is where I’m meant to be.
This has been my dream school for as long as I can remember.
Liam and I both loved it, him for this place having his idol as a professor, and me for it having the largest planetarium in the whole state.
There’s some sort of parade going on, and we sit in the quad, watching it go by.
I look around, picturing myself sitting under one of the oak trees doing my homework.
Maybe even coming out at night and doing some stargazing.
“Okay, you have everything, right?”
Looking back at Mom, I say, “Yes, I’m all good, I promise.”
She nods at that and looks toward the other kids checking into their overnight rooms, a wistful look on her face. “Alright, I guess this is it.”
I hug her tightly, even though I’ll be seeing her tomorrow afternoon, given that this is orientation and not me starting the fall semester yet.
“I’ll behave, and I lov—” Josh’s phone’s ring cuts me off, and he answers with his lawyer tone. He nods curtly at me as he drags Mom away, and I wave at her. Shaking my head, I swing my duffel bag onto my shoulder, walking into the room and finding Vanessa smiling brightly.
“Hey! Welcome to my dorm room. That whole side over there is yours.” I look around, trying to control my facial expressions at the pink splattered everywhere.
Everything is either fluffy or bedazzled, and I get a good look at the Hello Kitty poster I’ll be staring at tonight.
Putting my bag on the small bed, I turn right when two dresses are thrust into my face.
“Red or silver?” She switches both of them so fast, I can’t even tell which one will look good. Blindly pointing toward the red one, she holds it up a bit more and nods. She returns to the closet and comes back with a bunch of dresses that she throws on my bed.
“Don’t think I forgot about you coming with me.
” I look up, ready to protest, but she holds up a hand.
“You already said you would.” I look at the options, knowing half of these are going to ride up, considering she’s way shorter than I am.
She then starts to hold some options in front of me with a pensive expression on her face, and I look at her in confusion.
She’s obviously popular or whatever it’s called in college.
She seems really nice, yet the way Chase was looking at her made me feel a bit uneasy.
I mean, I just met both of them, and I believe in forming your own opinion.
She shrieks, taking me out of my thoughts, as she settles on a short navy dress with little sequins along the sweetheart neckline. A small groan comes out of me, but I shut up as she goes back into her closet. She comes back out with shoes that are surprisingly my size.
“I’m short, but have big feet. Hated them till now.
” I look at her in exasperation because she’s too nice, and skepticism flows through me.
Looking over at the clock, the party doesn’t start for hours, but I already feel the need to throw up or have a panic attack.
She smiles as I put the outfit together, and as much as I wanted to hate it . . .
I look nice. I look beautiful.
Vanessa tightens her grip as we stand in front of the very crowded fraternity house.
“Bianca, come on.” My heart beats rapidly against my ribs as I look at the two-story house in fear.
I thought this would be a small party, but from the outside, it looks like the whole school is here.
“Hey, it’s gonna be okay. You’re nervous.
I was too.” I nod somewhat absentmindedly.
Some of Vanessa’s friends come over, and I shake their hands, but I’m in a daze.
What am I doing here?
“Harrison, you made it!” An arm wraps around my shoulders and I flinch slightly.
Chase’s hand drops to his side instantly, and I look up at him as he flashes a reassuring smile.
“Just me, sorry to scare you.” I sigh in relief and wave him off as Vanessa chats with a bunch of other people.
“You look nice.” I roll my eyes at his compliment and he chuckles.
Vanessa then loops her arms around mine and drags me into the house as I look at him pleadingly.
He shrugs, smirking a little, and I’m visibly shocked at his refusal to help me.
She brings me to the middle of the dance floor, and I’m bombarded with the smell of sweat and the aroma of different alcohols.
The song changes to one where everyone starts to line dance, and I freeze once again.
One second, I’m fine, and the next—my dress is too short and my shoes are starting to make my feet ache.
The closeness of these other random people causes my anxiety to spike.
The world’s spinning faster than usual, and people start to resemble glowing blobs.
My breaths go in and out, and the whoosh echoes in my head.
I stumble toward the counter where a rainbow of different liquors stare up at me.
I turn them all until I finally find one that says sparkling water.
The bubbles in it cause me to gag, but at least it’s something.
I walk away, swaying slightly, trying to gain my balance, letting the fizz tickle my taste buds.
Following the chorus of thank-yous, and excuse-mes, I push through a double set of doors, hoping it leads somewhere quiet.
Success! Thank goodness.
Closing the doors behind me, I practically run to the small bench on the balcony, sipping the rest of the sparkling water, taking deep breaths. The muffled sounds of voices and music hum around me, but I manage to block it out.
“You alright?”
I flinch from the deep voice and stand a little too fast. I almost fall—my ankle rolling to the side—but not before someone grabs my hand, pulling me back up to a solid chest. I pant a bit, recognizing the tattoos I saw earlier, causing me to look up, goose bumps littering my skin.
“You,” I mutter, and he looks at me in confusion.
He glances down at how close we are before backing away to a respectable distance, but the warmth from his body leaving causes a shiver to run through me.
“Are you following me?” A side of his mouth tics up for a millisecond at the insinuation before it goes right back down into a thin smile.
He waves his finger in the air. “My roommate is in this frat.”
A blush of embarrassment zings through me, and I pop my foot, my ankle still positively throbbing.
“Oh.” The one word rings out, and while there are people talking and laughing inside, out here, it’s dead silent.
I glance up at him once more, trying to figure out what’s wrong with me.
I mean, I would remember if I ever knew someone that looked like him.
Yet, this doesn’t feel like basic recognition, it feels deeper .
. . Almost like when your heart knows and your mind is trying to catch up.
“Have we ever met?” I ask, and he pushes off the wall he was leaning against. The light hits him, making his tattoos more prominent.
He glances at me without a word, and surprisingly, given his aloofness, tilts his head slightly.
“Earlier, when you bumped into me.”
I roll my eyes. “I meant besides that.” A small smile ends before it can fully form, and I look at him, familiarity coursing through me.
His eyes are the greenest I’ve ever seen; they’re like a painter’s canvas when drawing grassy landscapes.
Sage green swirls around his irises, forest green poking through as well.
I start to connect the dots between his familiar features before I gasp, shocked.
Of course, even with all the people here, I bump into him.