CHAPTER 31
Eve
C otton and I pay almost zero attention to the professor as she talks about the mathematical backbone of psychology. Instead, Cotton explains the pathophysiology of anger, obsession, fear, and anxiety to me in hushed tones. I know he's explaining Adam and I without coming right out and saying it.
His hand is healed now, but I still feel very bad about what I did to him.
This is a good man. A really good man. He's a good friend to Adam and they've been friends for years.
He doesn't have to be so good to me, but he is.
Cotton put himself between a knife and a man's back and I know he did it for me.
He kept the whole thing quiet and got me out of there without anyone being the wiser.
No one in that room but Adam, Cotton, and Cal know just how fucked up I really am, thanks to Cotton.
I realize I've been smiling up at Cotton when he asks, "What is it? " with a quirked eyebrow.
"Can I keep you?" I ask, keeping the big cheesy grin on my face.
"We can discuss terms. You know Cal comes in the deal and we eat a lot. Cal takes up a lot of space and I need plenty of alone time to brood."
A laugh slips from my lips, and I cover it, realizing that I'm drawing attention to us.
"I'm ready to negotiate. Let me know when you've set your terms."
"Will do, Mason. Will do."
I like the nickname. I don't even know if it's technically a nickname since it's just my name, but I like the familiarity he must feel with me to use it. When I look back over, I see that Cotton is looking at his phone with raised eyebrows.
"You know you aren't supposed to watch porn in public settings?"
He turns to me quickly as though he forgot I was sitting here.
"Uhm. Right. My bad." He lets out a forced laugh and slides his phone back into his pocket.
"Come on. I thought we just shared a moment there and now you're mushrooming me."
Cotton runs a hand down his face like he's getting too old for this shit before he says, "Do I even want to know?"
"Keeping me in the dark and feeding me shit."
"Ah yes, a mushroom. It's not a big deal. I just don't think you'll want to see it."
"Can I be the judge of what I want?"
Cotton looks at me and I can tell that he regrets trying to make a decision for me.
He apologizes with his eyes, and I accept it with mine.
A small smile graces my lips, and I hold out my hand.
He lets out a swift breath, pulling his phone from his pocket, tapping the screen a few times, and handing it over.
It takes a moment to discern what I'm looking at, but it comes into focus, and I see Adam.
It's a picture with an article attached. The Eden 411.
Eden University's Star QB Has a New Leading Lady
I look back to the picture, and I see a woman wrapped around Adam's body. My heart sinks. I feel the pieces of it clinking to the now metal floor of my stomach. This hurts. It hurts so damn bad.
"When was this?" I squeak out, unable to control the tambour of my voice.
"I'm not sure. The article doesn't say. Do you not remember it?"
"Huh?" Does he actually think that Adam told me about this?
"Are you two wrapped up on each other so often that you honestly don't remember climbing him in the quad?"
I scrunch my eyebrows together and look back at the phone.
Adam is flipping the bird to someone behind the girl.
That's what threw me off. I never knew he did that.
It's me. I'm the girl. Relief is like cool, refreshing air on my skin.
Who did he flip off? I look off to the side of the photo and I see him.
It's Alton, the guy I met in the library.
He looks pissed and Adam looks...vindicated.
That little shit. I bet he didn't expect to be caught flipping off the innocent, nice guy on the steps of the Davenport Library. Something also tells me that he won't give one single damn about it either. I go on reading the article.
Eden's very own resident bad boy captain seems to have a new love interest, or should we say someone seems to have finally kept his interest longer than the standard day.
I'm sure the same question is on the minds of many, "Who is this mystery girl?
" Look closely, folks. The love interest is none other than our very own volleyball prodigy, Eve Mason.
Eve keeps a low profile, and we couldn't find anyone to comment on her behalf, but the proof is in the pixels.
Are Adam Davenport and Eve Mason the new campus IT Couple? Go to my blog and cast your vote.
You may also be wondering who Adam is giving the middle finger salute to and why.
As always, your favorite campus sleuth has the deets.
Adam is saluting Alton Manchester, heir to the Manchester Hotel fortune.
Why is the bad boy so angry at the hotel heir?
Well, that could be that he was caught up close and cozy with Ms. Eve Mason only moments before this picture was taken.
Only time will tell the outcome of this love triangle, but one thing you can count on is your favorite campus sleuth to bring you the fresh hot gossip all along the way.
Until next time and the time after that, Campus Sleuth is out.
I'm not sure how to process everything I've just read. I suddenly wish that Eli was still coming to pick me up. My hands feel like needles are pricking them all over and my face feels...bigger. I can't explain it.
"Mason?"
Cotton's soothing voice brings me back to myself. I quickly reel in my composure and respond, "Yeah."
"You okay?"
"Of course. I just...hmm...that's a lot."
"So, you remember it?"
Oh, that's right . The last time I spoke, I acted like I didn't remember what happened in this picture. Cotton is visibly concerned.
"Yes. I just didn't realize he flipped Alton off. It threw me a little."
"He'll be lucky if Adam's done with him. Did he touch you?"
There's menace in Cotton's normally smooth cadence. This is the first time I've heard it and the first time I've seen this look in his eyes. He's upset, maybe even angry. Cotton is as scary as Adam. Wow. I wouldn't have guessed that. He's supposed to be the reserved one.
"No. He di- well yes, but not really. He touched my elbow. It was nothing. He's actually a really nice guy."
Cotton rolls his eyes. "Yeah, I'm sure he's nice." He puts a weird emphasis on the word nice.
I'm starting to see that this trio of friends, Cal, Cotton, and Adam, adhere to some kind of intense what's mine is yours and what's yours is ours kind of bro code.
I'm too busy processing what this article means for my anonymity to worry too much about poor Alton.
I sincerely doubt there's anything that I could do to protect him from these three heathens anyway.
I texted Eli as soon as I got to school this morning and let him know that I drove myself, so I wouldn't need a babysitter pickup.
Big Bear: Ah come on, Evie Bear. It wasn't like that.
Suuuuuure it wasn't. But whatever. I don't care now. I get to spend some much-needed one-on-one time with my BB. I still can't believe that Adam is okay with this.
The amazing aroma of Dorito Chicken wafts to me as soon as I enter the apartment. My mouth waters.
"Hey honey, I'm home." I drawl out.
"In the kitchen." He calls back like the good little house bear that he is.
"Mmmm, it smells so good in here!"
"I added a little something extra this time. We'll see if we want to make it a permanent thing or just stick with the OG."
"You know I don't like change." The grimace on my face is meant to show my disdain for the alteration to a good thing.
"First off, don't knock it til you've tried it. Second off, you didn't have me and V in your life and then you did. Awesome change."
He does have me there. He makes the best points. Although, I have to admit that Cotton makes some good ones too. They would really get along.
"Alright fine, lay it on me."
"Patience, young Padawan. All good things take time."
I laugh quietly and smile.
"So." Eli starts and I know I'm about to get hit with the mother of all third degrees. "Tell me about this Adam."
I let out a long, slow breath aimed up at my hairline.
"He's...I don't know. He's very different. He's intense."
"Good intense, or it's time to utilize these sniper skills intense?"
"Definitely good intense. It's just my first real relationship, you know, and he's made it quite clear that it will be my last. He was actually confirming that fact within days of our first meeting."
"That's it. That's all I needed to fucking know."
He throws his floral tea towel onto the counter and attempts to rip off his apron that says boobies at the top and features various birds on the front, including the blue-footed booby, the masked booby, and the Abbott's booby.
He gets his head tangled in the neck strap and becomes increasingly more frustrated before saying, "Fuck it.
It'll be more embarrassing for him to get his ass handed to him by a man wearing a booby apron. "
"Whoa there, booby master. It's not like you're thinking.
Yes, he's intense and I might even say aggressive, but I feel that way too.
I'm just more wary than he is. He's laying it all out and just very open about how he feels.
I want to be in this with him though. I'm not being pressured. I promise."
Eli looks me over. He's pensive and worried. "I worry about you, Evie Bear." His voice is soft and hesitant.
"I know you do. I appreciate you. I really do.
" Just thinking about Eli and Vaughn makes my heart swell.
"The thing is that, now, I have more people who give a shit.
You and V are my family. It's just that now I have friends too.
There's Adam of course but I wouldn't call him a friend.
He's....he's just...I don't know. It's all so intense.
" I don't know how to process this relationship for myself.
I certainly don't know how to explain it to someone else.
"Then I have Cal, Cotton, and Ada. I've even become friendly with some of the other girls on the team. "
It feels good to talk about my friends. There have been so many times in my life that I felt friends just weren't in the cards for me.
"I've learned so much about myself and I've grown more in the past month than I have in the past five years combined. I don't know exactly what's happening, but I do know that it was meant to happen and that it's good for me."
Eli is smiling now. He has this big brother look on his face like he's happy that I'm happy, but he also wants to rip the throat out of the guy who's been sharing my bed.
He turns back to the stove, which looks so tiny compared to him, and puts both hands down on top of it. "I'm happy for you, Evie."
"Thanks, BB."
Eli bends down to open the stove with his floral tea towel in hand. As he's pulling the Dorito Chicken out of the oven I say, "Since we're sharing, what's going on with you and V?"
He turns quickly to look at me. "Is there something I should know about?" There's more worry in his voice.
He loves Vaughn so much. The mere thought that something could be wrong is sending him into a tailspin. Quickly, I try to reassure him, "Nothing. There's nothing to worry about. We had a conversation recently about the future and I know she sees you in hers."
He visibly relaxes at this. "Yeah, she's in my future. There's no one else for me."
"So, what are your plans for future deployments?"
Understanding blankets his face. "Ah, I see. Is she ready for me to retire?"
"I didn't say that. I just asked what your plans are. Retirement is a conversation for you and V. I'm just curious where you see yourself in five years."
Without hesitation he says, "Loving V. Being with her as much as she'll allow me to be. Maybe having a couple of little Vaughn/Eli mixtures running around."
With fake incredulity, I snipe, "I didn't hear my name in that future."
Laughing, Eli comes over and hugs me tightly in the way that only he can. "You're family, Evie Bear. Wherever we go from here, we go there together."
"Good. Are you ready for your present, then?"
"Evie." He uses his scolding tone on my name. "You rented the bar for the party. That's more than enough."
"Oh. Okay. Well, if you don't want it then-"
"Now hold on there. I didn't say I don't want it. I was doing that fake 'you shouldn't have thing'. You know it's really rude to call me out on it."
I clap my hands together. "Good. It's the jar I showed you." I hold it behind my back and present it to Eli with theatrical flair once I'm standing in front of him.
Eli accepts the gift, looking it over without opening it.
"They're origami stars. You can open one anytime that you need a pick me up. They're guaranteed to make you smile."
He gives me a quizzical look.
"Open one. You'll see."
He twists the lid and reaches a meaty hand inside the jar, pulling out a single star. It takes him a couple of tries to successfully unfold the paper without tearing it. As he reads the message, tears well up in his kind eyes.
"They're all like this?"
"Some variation of it, yeah."
"I love you, Evie Bear. Thank you. Thank you so much." He hugs me in the way that only a Big Bear can.
The message:
Today, while Vaughn and I were busy burning bacon, Vaughn said, "Eli makes the best bacon. I miss that bacon every second of every day." It's possible that you had to be there and see her face to get the real meaning behind those words, so I'll clarify it for you, BB. You're the bacon.