The Devils Of Harvard

Chapter Seven

She then closed her phone and stuck it into her unbranded Chloe bag, before giving me a soft smile that I couldn't have possibly found anything but contagious to return.

"I'm Arilynn, and you are?" she says extending her hand towards me and I couldn't help but smile lightly at her.

"Nathanial, but please call me Nathan" I reply and she nods as I took her hand and gently shook it with all the politeness that had been drilled into me throughout my life.

"You can call me Ari then if it will be easier" she says with a shrug and I parted my lips at the proposition while tilting my head.

"I will stick with Arilynn, it's a pretty name, suits you" I muse smoothly and she just gives me a stare as though shocked that I'd go with the longer variation of her name.

"Thank you" she says seeming to not have anything else to say.

"Weren't expecting me to want to stick with your full name" I puzzle and she nods with a soft blush.

"No one not even my parents use my full name".

"And that is?" I pry as I spot the glasses wearing professor down the hall.

"Arilynn Hamilton. What's yours?".

"Last names are overrated. No one's last name should be the reason for treatment it should be how that person treats others" I deflect and she provides a small hum of consideration.

"I might have to start using that when people ask for my last name. I won't get really bad attempts at flirting in response" she laughs and I join in before our professor stops at the door.

"Good morning" he says before he let us in and I held open the door for Arilynn before kicking down the door stopper and heading up to the back corner of the wood paneled lecture hall. About a hundred seats were neatly pushed in and I mentally began to wonder who all would even be taking this course aside from people who truly had interest in trying to get a business degree to help make someone else's dream.

"Nathan, am I allowed to sit by you or are you wanting to be alone back here?" Arilynn ask pointing to the chair beside me as I took out my notebook tablet which the devices who purpose was documents and notes so that I would actually be able to work on school work.

"No of course you are. I'm not that stuck up, least I hope I don't come off that way" I say with a sigh and she gives a soft laugh.

"You don't" she says before other students begin to file in as it got closer to the start of the lecture. We were all also told that if we didn't get to lectures on time the doors would be locked and we'd miss that days lecture.

Settling in I then watched the door swing open and my sisters walk in, along with dozens of other students though they avoided being by me like I'd wanted. I didn't want to be linked to the Winters Family and I knew that if that could be avoided it would all go perfectly fine.

Our professor then shut the door and we all quieted before the lecture started and the whole class listened, and took notes while he introduced himself and explained what we'd be covering in the course.

Throughout the class however I caught the occasional look from Arilynn before we'd settled on having a conversation through using the stickynote feature on both of our devices to communicate without making any more noise the the sounds our stylus's made while tapping the screen.

When class ended I left the room and found that both Arilynn and I shared morning classes, leading to us talking on our way through the halls.

"Are you thinking of doing anything after graduating post secondary" Arilynn asks.

"Take over the family business, my parents worked hard their whole lives to provide for me and my siblings" I explain.

"Siblings, how many?" Arilynn asks looking at me as we walked through the halls.

"Two sisters" I reply, "both also go to Harvard this year. I'm the oldest of three children".

Arilynn sighs, "I wish. I'm an only child so I carried the weight of the responsibilities. My parents want me to go into economic, and all my pleas to go to modelling school were rejected".

"Modelling?" I muse looking her up and down and noticing she was indeed easily within the typically requested measurements that models were expected to be at.

"Yes, I always wanted to model. Even when I was a little girl" Arilynn admits before blushing and looking down and out of nothing shy of enjoying looking at her and the boosting of confidence I wanted to give her I lifted her chin.

"You have no need to hide your blush" I state as we got to the door of our next class and entered heading to the spot we had taken in our previous class.

"It was embarrassing" she defends while clutching her books closer to her chest.

"If it makes you feel any better I made mud pies at my parents beach house" I say sitting down and laying out my things neatly.

"You don't have pictures of that do you?" she laughs taking the  spot beside me.

"Yes and I won't show you to keep my dignity intact" I say and a quick half second pout crosses her lips before class starts and we are pushed to silence again though I quickly make point of scrawling a note to her and tilting the screen so she could read it.

Do you want to go for coffee after classes today?

Glancing over at her a coy smile having taken over her lips, before she nods and we start paying attention to our professors presentation to take notes.
    
    
I finished the chapter early which I didn't expect to do but you all get to see the branch I'm going to be exploring there is also a bonding moment next chapter, and a new introduction of a 'fun' character. Comment, vote, and share. Anyways

Peace✌