Chapter 2
AMELIA
"Ughhh… never again. Oh God… I will never drink again. Help me."
Lila's pitiful groans echoed from the bathroom. She'd been throwing up since I woke up. I crouched beside her, gathering her hair in one hand and stroking her back with the other. She really couldn't handle her liquor. I should have kept a closer eye on her last night.
"Here," I said softly, pressing a glass of water and a pill into her hand. "Sip this, and take the aspirin. I'll make you something light."
She looked at me through half-lidded eyes, miserable but still managing a crooked smile. "Thank you… You're a savior. I love you. Marry me, baby?"
I rolled my eyes but couldn't stop the laugh that escaped. "If you've got enough strength to flirt, then you've got enough strength to get in the shower. You reek."
"I knowww," she groaned, shuffling toward the running water.
I sat back against the wall, my body tired but my mind wired. I hadn't slept a wink. Every time I closed my eyes, I heard his voice again.
Good. Keep it that way.
What did he mean by that?
Did Sebastian think I wasn't good enough for his friend? Was that his way of warning me off Dave? That had to be it. He was always protective, always entitled. He couldn't possibly mean… anything else.
Could he?
"Amelia!" Lila's voice snapped me out of my spiral. "Can you grab me a towel? I forgot!"
"Yeah, be right there."
I tossed her a towel through the half-open door. By the time she stumbled back out, showered and scrubbed clean of makeup, she looked human again.
"Better?" I asked, arching a brow.
She grinned weakly. "Slightly less dead. Still dying, though."
"Good. Because now we're going to talk."
Her smile faltered. She froze in the middle of the room, guilt flickering across her face. "Talk… about what?"
I narrowed my eyes. "Don't play dumb. You shouted at Sebastian last night. Loud enough for everyone to hear. You embarrassed me."
She winced, clutching the towel tighter around herself. "Shit. I… I'm sorry. I'll apologize to him too, I swear. I was drunk. I didn't mean to, wait, I didn't actually hit him, did I?"
I stared at her in disbelief. "No, you didn't. Thank God."
"Good," she sighed in relief, flopping dramatically onto her bed. "Because if I ruined his precious face, half the campus fangirls would've murdered me in my sleep."
I crossed my arms. "You should be thankful I dragged you out of there before you could do worse."
She peeked at me from under the blanket, a mischievous glint in her eye despite her hangover. "Admit it, though. He looked jealous, didn't he? When Dave touched you?"
Heat prickled across my cheeks, and I turned away. "We're not talking about that."
Her groan turned into a laugh. "Oh, come on. Don't think I didn't notice."
"I'm the boss today," I cut her off, pointing at the stack of papers on my desk. "You're staying in and helping me finish my assignment. Consider it punishment."
Lila whimpered, dragging the blanket over her head. "Torture. Pure torture."
But she didn't argue. She never did when I used that tone.
Still, even as I tried to focus on my work, my mind wouldn't stop drifting back to him. To the way his eyes had pinned me in place. To the weight of his words.
Good. Keep it that way.
I was determined to forget him when I walked into class that morning.
Forget his voice, the way it slid into my bones like smoke. Forget the way he stood in my kitchen last night, staring at me like he had every right. Forget how my heart still raced at the thought of him.
But then I saw Dave waving at me from the second row, his grin easy and warm.
Sebastian's warning flashed in my head like a siren.
Good. Keep it that way.
I shook it off, squared my shoulders, and slid into the seat beside Dave.
"Hey," he greeted, leaning toward me. "Please tell me you're done with the assignment already, because I'm about three mental breakdowns away from giving up completely."
I laughed despite myself, pulling out my notebook. "Pretty much done. I'll submit it tomorrow and then finally be free. You?"
He groaned, dropping his head dramatically onto the desk. "Not even close. I swear I've rewritten the same paragraph five times. At this point, I'm convinced I'm illiterate."
I snorted. "You're not illiterate, you're just lazy."
He peeked up at me with exaggerated puppy eyes. "Exactly. Which is why I was hoping maybe we could… I don't know… do it together? You could rescue me. "
"Rescue you?" I arched a brow. "Dave, it's an assignment, not a burning building."
"Same difference," he said, grinning. Then his eyes lit up. "Tell you what, meet me for coffee later, help me with it, and I'll buy you dinner after. That way you don't feel like you're wasting your brilliance on me for free."
Before I could answer, Lila leaned over from the row behind us, her voice carrying way too loudly. "Ohhh, a dinner date? Finally!"
My head snapped around. "Lila!"
She grinned shamelessly. "What?"
I turned back quickly, cheeks burning. "Ignore her. It's not a date, Dave. I'm just helping you with your work."
Dave chuckled, looking far too pleased. "Sure, sure. Totally not a date. Just a friendly coffee… with dinner after. No big deal." He paused, lips quirking. "But, you know, if you wanted to call it a date, I wouldn't exactly protest."
I groaned, covering my face with my hand. "You're impossible."
"Maybe," he admitted, clearly enjoying himself. He slid his phone across the desk toward me, screen unlocked and ready. "But I'm also serious. Let's exchange numbers. That way, when I'm crying into my coffee later because I can't figure out question three, you'll be the first to know."
I hesitated. My fingers hovered over his phone as Sebastian's voice whispered in my head again.
Good. Keep it that way.
I swallowed hard and forced a smile. "Fine. But if you spam me with memes at two in the morning, I'm blocking you."
Dave's laugh was bright and easy. "Deal. Unless they're really funny memes. Then you'll forgive me."
Behind me, Lila whispered in a stage voice that was anything but subtle: "Oh my God, it's happening."
I shot her a glare over my shoulder, then quickly typed my number into Dave's phone before she could add anything worse.