AN: Welcome back! I'm glad you're still here. Enough of that, let's get started.
Chapter 2
Before long, school kicks into full swing. Fiona is probably the best roommate I can ask for. We get along and feel comfortable around each other, which is not hard because of how down to earth she is. I can tell her anything and she usually understands or asks questions if she doesn't.
She had been through rough times herself. Her mom passed away when she was 8 and her brother, 12. Their dad took it pretty hard and threw himself into work. With him gone all the time, her brother stepped up and started cooking meals, splitting the household chores with Fiona. They took care of each other. She doesn't talk a lot about her dad, although I know she does love him. It's clear her and Chris are very close to each other still, as he calls every few days to check on her. I guess old habits of looking out for each other, die hard.
Fiona and I are grabbing coffee at the nearby coffee shop before we start our day full of classes.
"I think I am handling this college thing pretty well." I say, smirking at my coffee, daring it to disagree.
"Yeah sure, if you call thriving off of deadlines and coffee doing pretty well." Fiona says, using air quotes.
"For the last time, I'm not a procrastinator, I just work better under pressure." I argue as we leave the coffee shop.
"Yeah, okay." Fiona teases.
"Oh hey, are we still on for karaoke tonight? I am so looking forward to a little fun."
"Oh, I...uh. I forgot. My brother is coming to visit me tonight." Fiona looks at me guiltily.
"Invite him! Come on, who can say no to karaoke?" I plead, not letting anything put a damper on my evening out.
"Lots of people." She says as I fake glare at her. "I'm kidding! I'll invite him."
"See you later!" I say in a sing song voice, turning away to rush off to class. Ugh, I am a procrastinator.
Later that night, Fiona and I are heading downstairs to meet her brother, who is driving us to the karaoke bar. I am so relaxed and happy that I am finally getting some fun in. Between classes, papers and studying, fun tends to come last on my to-do list. We walk out the doors, and I freeze as my eyes land on a gorgeous man, leaning against his car. I quickly shake myself out of my stupor as Fiona suddenly squeals and runs to the mystery man, throwing her arms around his neck and squeezing him before turning to me.
"Callie, this is my brother Chris. Chris, this is my awesome roommate."
"Nice to meet you." I say, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, suddenly self-conscious.
"Likewise." He said meeting my eye, giving me butterflies. I take a few moments to study Chris. He is tall with an average build, though you can definitely see muscle definition. He has his sleeves rolled almost to his elbows showcasing some amazing forearms. His hair is wavy blonde and had the 'I woke up like this' look. Guys always get so lucky with that. I stopped at his eyes, they were a beautiful, striking, blue color with a small twinkle in them. Judging by his smirk I can tell he caught me checking him out.
"Let's get this party started!" Fiona hollers.
I laugh at my friend and climb into Chris's car as we head to the bar.
I am having a surprisingly good time. Fiona sang a couple songs with me, the bartender slipped us a few shots, and Chris turns out to be good company. Soon karaoke is over, and a DJ sets up. Fiona and I dance and giggle at ourselves. I haven't let go in so long, since before my dad passed really. I never allowed myself to fully enjoy things. But tonight, the alcohol is flowing, the music is good, and I have some pretty cool people to hang with. I excuse myself to the bathroom and as I wash my hands, I look in the mirror. Flushed cheeks, tousled hair, I look happy. Not paying attention when I leave the bathroom, I run straight into someone's chest.
"I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention!" I cry out, looking up into a pair of striking blue eyes.
"Chris." I breath.
His hands are on my waist and mine are on his chest. And his chest feels so strong. My lips slightly part as my body takes in his presence and my eyes are drawn to his lips. He gently moves a piece of hair behind my ear and the next thing I know, he's kissing me.
And I'm kissing him back!
Tingling heat spreads throughout me and I sigh as our kiss grows deeper. He pulls away and takes my hand, leading me out the back door and around to the side of the building. He takes my face in his hands and kisses me hungrily, making my knees buckle. Chris holds me up and pushes me against the building. My hands are on the back of his neck, my fingers playing in his hair. He pulls me in close as my hands start roaming over his body. Off to the side a car alarm starts blaring, breaking us from our spell.
"We better get back in there before Fiona organizes a search party." Chris says to me. All I could do was nod my head and he grinned at me and walked back inside. I stood there for a moment, coming down off the high. Suddenly it hit me like a ton of bricks.
I made out with Fiona's brother.
I head back inside to the bathroom and straighten myself up. When I walk up to our table Fiona and Chris are in the middle of a lively conversation. When Fiona sees me, she can tell something is off and asks if I'm okay. I tell her I'm just getting sleepy. She laughs at me, joking about the gallon of coffee I drank earlier coming back to bite me in the ass. But being intuitive and just a plain good friend, she asks Chris if we could leave.
Back in our door room, showered and donning our pajamas, Fiona pushes me to find out what was wrong earlier.
"Oh, after coming out of the bathroom I ran into this cute guy, got all flustered and embarrassed myself. Plus, I really am sleepy." I cover, not wanting to lie to Fiona but omitting some information at the same time.
"Well lucky for us there are no classes tomorrow! Don't wake me until noon girl!"
"Goodnight Fi. I had fun tonight."
"Me too. And two of my favorite people got to meet. I'm so glad you got along with Chris."
"Me too." I respond, thinking she didn't know just how well we got along.
--
I wake up from some weird dream about handing in all my assignments to the wrong professors and see that the clock says 4 am. I groan and roll over trying to go back to sleep. But my mind is spinning with what happened between Chris and I earlier. We had just met, but the electricity I felt when I bumped into him is undeniable. Usually I am not so reckless. I don't make out with people I just met. And Chris is Fiona's brother. Fiona is amazing and she speaks so highly of him. Plus, it was cute that he was always checking on her and visited as often as he could. It showed he cared. Why wouldn't I like a caring person? And he's sexy as hell.
Wait, no. I can't think like that.
I need to focus. I had made out with my roommate's, no, my best friend's brother. Uh, so embarrassing. But, I can't deny the draw I felt pulling me to him. I mean the chemistry was so right. Focus, Callie! What if Fiona found out and our friendship changed? What if she doesn't want to be my friend anymore? I finally drifted back to sleep and awoke the next afternoon. My mother is coming to visit so I must get showered. I push all thoughts about last night's activities to the back of my mind and focus on enjoying my mom's visit.
--
AN: It's getting started. Please feel free to comment.
What's your go to karaoke song?
YOU ARE READING
Real Connections
Romance*Story on pause while undergoing editing* After watching her father die a year and a half ago, Callie starts her first year at college. She quickly becomes friends with her roommate, Fiona. Once Callie meets Fiona's protective big brother, Chris...
