Zara's POV
"Zee, say the word 'go' and I'll smash these fresh tomatoes on them. Don't ask me where I got them-just say the word."
I dragged my gaze away from my boyfriend, Bruce, who's got his tongue halfway down some girl's throat in the middle of the hallway, and looked at my best friend Ava. "It's fine. Let's just get to class."
"No it's not fine. Isn't he supposed to be your boyfriend? Just because you didn't let him get his way with being intimate with you last night like he wanted, and he's already—"
"Ava." My voice is sharper than I meant it to be. I glanced at Bruce again, my stomach twisting, before forcing a small smile at her. "I'm fine. I don't need this right now."
She didn't look pleased by my words, then lifted the bag in her hand. "What do I do with the tomatoes, then?"
A laugh slipped out before I could stop it. "I don't know, Ava. But we're not hurling them at anyone. Let's get to class."
I didn't wait for her to respond and started walking, but she halted me.
"History is this way."
I turned slowly to find a little smile playing on her lips. My eyes flicked toward Bruce and I saw him still engrossed in his PDA with the girl. I swallowed hard and grabbed Ava by the hand, hoping to walk fast enough not to be noticed. Not that I was in the wrong here.
"Don't do anything stupid," I whispered to Ava as I dragged her along. I held my breath as we passed him, and I was just about to sigh in relief having successfully walked by without being noticed, when I felt Ava's hand slipped from mine.
I turned just in time to see Ava launch the nylon full of tomatoes at the back of Bruce's head. For a glorious second, I was sure it was going to land and maybe even burst. But he shifted at the last moment, and the bag smacked the wild-eyed girl he was kissing, right in the face with a wet thwack.
Oh no.
Oh no no no no.
I hadn't noticed her from the back before, but I sure did now. The unlucky girl who'd just taken a tomato bag to the face was none other than Eve, the head of our department's daughter. Pretty. Popular. Untouchable.
No one messed with her and walked away unscathed… even if they moved to another city. There were too many stories about her, and none of them ever ended in the offender's favor.
Ava and I locked eyes. She had to be thinking the same thing I was.
Eve let out a high-pitched shriek, peeling the tomatoes off her face so she could see clearly.
"Who did this?!" she yelled, scanning the crowd that had gathered with their phones out, recording every second.
I jumped in fast. "I'm sorry, that wasn't meant for you—"
"It was meant for this dumb-ass cheater," Ava cut in, swinging her bag at Bruce.
The urge to yell at her to stop was overwhelming, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from Eve, who was still glaring at me with enough anger to melt steel.
"It was a mistake," I tried to tell her, but she turned and started walking the other way.
I wasn't sure which was worse. Eve not saying anything, or my best friend still hitting Bruce like she was the one who had gotten her heart broken.
I grabbed Ava's hand and pulled her away from the crowd and their cameras.
When we finally got somewhere quiet, I let her go.
"I told you not to do anything stupid."
"I didn't do anything stupid… on purpose. My cousin was simply unfortunate."
I opened my mouth to say something but stopped when her words registered in my head. "Wait—cousin? How come you never told me she was your cousin?"
"You never asked. Zee, you don't have to worry about her. I'm going to talk to her and explain the situation."
That didn't pacify me one bit.
"And what about you? I clearly told you not to do anything stupid."
"Again, it wasn't stupid. I only meant…"
"Ava, you might think that you were looking out for me by doing that, but you weren't. What Bruce did hurt me, yes, but what you did hurt me more. You know how hard I'm trying to cope here and stay low. I've managed to avoid situations like that all through last year. You think I was stupid to let it go? That it didn't hurt me when the boy I thought cared about me dumped me right after he had sex with me and took my virginity last night?"
Ava's eyes widened. "Why did you leave that information out, Zara?"
"Because I was scared you'd react in a way that would ruin my clean slate! Gosh, Ava, it's my final year. You of all people should know what this means to me. What it means not to ruin my chances of graduating. What if your cousin does something to ruin—"
"She won't," Ava cut in quickly. But that did nothing to make me feel better.
"Just forget it," I muttered, turning and heading out.
"Hey… where are you going? We still have class."
But I didn't bother turning back. There was no way I could go to class now. I needed a cold shower.
With that thought, I called a cab.
**
Somehow, I made it all the way to my building without breaking down. That alone felt like a win. Maybe this was what adulting and maturing felt like.
I was digging out my key card when the door across the hall opened and someone stepped out. I recognized her immediately — Mrs. Eliana, late sixties, silver hair always tied back in a neat bun. She was the closest thing I had to a mother figure, something I hadn't experienced in a long, long while.
She was also the first person to welcome me when I moved in to my apartment, showing me how to work the temperamental heater and insisting on helping me carry my groceries upstairs. Whenever she cooked, she'd make an extra plate because her kids and grandkids rarely visited. She said she hated seeing food go to waste, but I knew she just liked making sure I was fed.
A few months ago, she had a bad fall and started using a cane. But seeing her now, balancing a covered plate in one hand and the cane in the other, it was clear that it hadn't slowed her down.
"Mrs. Eliana," I called, walking toward her. "What are you doing out here? You're not supposed to be walking around too much."
She gave me that mischievous little smile of hers. "And let the food get cold before I deliver it? Never."
"Why are you even cooking in the first place? I thought your children hired someone to take care of you?"
"Yes, and she's doing a good job. But we have a new neighbor, and I thought I'd cook and deliver this myself to welcome her."
I remembered the stacked moving boxes I saw outside the building earlier before class. I hadn't thought much of them at the time.
I took the covered plate from her hands. "Why don't you go inside and rest? I'll hand this over for you." It wasn't really a request, and she knows it. There was no way I'm letting her stress herself while I was standing right here.
She thanked me and nodded toward the door directly across from mine. "That's where she lives," she says. "She probably just moved in, and I thought she might be too tired or stressed from work to cook tonight."
Mrs. Eliana is truly the sweetest. I waited until she was safely back inside before I turned to the neighbor's door.
I knocked once and waited, a polite smile tugging at my lips. The hallway was quiet and for a moment, I wondered if anyone was even home. Then I heard the faint shuffle of footsteps approaching from the other side.
I opened my mouth ready to greet her as the door opened, but the words died on my lips when I came face to face with my new neighbor.
It wasn't a lady, it was a breathtaking looking man sculptured by the gods. He was taller than anyone had the right to be, a loose towel slung low around his waist. His white hair was damp, droplets sliding down as he patted his face with one hand. He looked like he was in his late twenties or early thirties.
For a moment, I forgot to breathe. He was, without a doubt, the most handsome man I had ever seen. I used to think Bruce was the best-looking guy on campus, but this man was something else entirely.
Warmth that had nothing to do with the weather crept up my neck as my traitorous eyes drifted down to his torso.
Then he opened his mouth, and the spell shattered.
"Is this what you do? Go around eyeing what's under people's towels? My eyes are up here, Miss."
My awe was instantly replaced by irritation. But I tried to mask it because I had indeed been staring a little too long.
"Uhm.. I'm Sorry. I was sent to give these to you…"
He let out a deep chuckle, cutting me off.
"But of course. You see a good-looking man move in and just can't wait or even pretend to hide how thirsty you are. Tell me, is it money? Is that why you're here? Well, I don't hand it out to cheap sluts, so run along."
He moved to close the door, but I caught it with my shoe. The anger I'd been swallowing since the breakup and everything that happened at school finally boiled over. I shoved the plate into his hands and slapped him hard across the face.
Before he could even blink, I leaned in with a sweet smile. "Bet you've never met a slut as crazy as me, dumb fuck."
Then I spun on my heel, marched to my door across the hall, stepped inside, and locked it with a satisfying click.