Chapter 14 - Josette
809 Words
"You b***h," she sneered, catching me off guard. I knew she didn't like me; her hatred ran deeper than I'd realized.
"Don't think Evander gives a f**k about you. You're just a pity case to him, and once he's done with you, he'll discard you like trash." She finished, her voice dripping with malice, and turned to leave. I stood there, my mouth wide open, wondering what the hell just happened.
I finished up and went back to the table to find Trish seated in my seat, her hands on Evander. What the hell?"I hope you don't mind, Evander and I have a lot to catch up on." She flashed me a sweet smile; her perfectly manicured nail traced patterns on his arm.
I threw her an equally sweet smile, trying to hide my annoyance. "Go ahead. I was just leaving." As I reached for my food tray, she 'accidentally' spilled her iced tea on me.
"Oops." She mock gasped.
Evander handed me a napkin, and I frantically dabbed at the spill, my face burning with embarrassment. My white shirt was now completely see-through and clinging to my skin, revealing my black lace bra underneath.
I felt something placed on me, and I looked up to see that he'd taken off his jacket and draped it over my shoulders. I blushed for a whole other reason now. The black t-shirt he had underneath clung to his broad shoulders, his muscles flexing as he moved.
I glanced at Trish, whose eyes were shooting daggers at me. If looks could kill, I'd be six feet under by now. Guess it didn't go how she planned it.
She probably thought I'd run crying, but I had other plans. If I were leaving, I would be taking him with me.I looked up at Evander, and my eyes were wide with an innocent look. "Could you take me home?" I asked, batting my lashes.
"Of course." He replied, grabbing my bag and placing a hand on my lower back to guide me out of the cafeteria.I resisted the urge to glance back at Trish to let her know that I'd won this round. But I wasn't in a competition with her. Evander and I were just friends, after all.
I stepped out of the bathroom to find him checking out my picture frames. I bit my lips nervously as I watched him pick up a frame, his eyes scanning the photo of me and my parents."Nice pics." He said, dropping a frame he picked on the table.
"Thanks."
"There are not many pictures from when you were little?"
"No, my mom said she lost them a while ago." I answered.
"Too bad. He smiled. "I bet you were adorable when you were little."
I stood there awkwardly, my cheeks burning. I wasn't really good at taking compliments. To break the silence, I remembered the jacket I clutched and held it out to him. "Here's your jacket."
"Keep it."I looked up at him, surprised.
"You don't want it back?" I asked.
He shook his head, his eyes locked on mine. "You look better in it than I do."
I blushed again. At this rate, I was as red as tomatoes. "Thank you." I managed, hiding my face with my hair. I peeked at him through the dark strands, meeting his eyes.
"Well, I'll get going now." He said, nodding toward the door.
"Actually." I started, clearing my throat. "I'm not sure if this is me taking advantage of our friendship, but I could really use your help."
"You can take advantage of me anyway you want." He said, and we both froze at the hidden innuendo. Then he rushed to add. "I didn't mean it like that."
Oh! That was disappointing, but as much as I wanted to take advantage of him, I reminded myself that we were just friends."Of course." I forced a smile. "We're just friends."
He nodded, but I could sense his disappointment. I pushed the thought aside, telling myself I was reading too much into it.
"So, what do you need help with?" He asked.
^^^
Later, sprawled on my bed, textbooks open but mostly done, we watched a cheesy romance movie that I chose. My parents were home, so we had to be extra quiet. My dad would absolutely lose it if he found out I'd snuck a guy into my room. It wasn't that they were super strict, but they liked to pretend I was still their innocent little girl. Like I wasn't practically an adult already.
I felt my eyelids growing heavy, and before I knew it, I was fast asleep. I was vaguely aware of him shifting closer, his arm wrapping around me. It felt so natural, and I snuggled in deeper, inhaling his familiar scent.
But when I woke up the next morning, he was gone.
- Writer
