Code Blue

Lexi vs. Pop Quizzes

I set my alarm for six in the morning, wanting to get up and go for a run before Quinn broke from her dreams. So I slept in my workout clothes and tied my shoelaces and hair back in the dark and silently crept out of the room, strapping my phone to my arm with my room key so that I could jog to music which would keep me pumped up.

Running always cleared my head. It gave me a chance to detach from the world for a bit, something which I sorely needed after the events of Friday night. I wasn't entirely sure what I was feeling when I first told Quinn that I was going to head back to our dorm because I thought I'd had too much to drink, but after we'd exited the party because she'd insisted on coming with me, and I'd allowed the cool night air to sharpen my senses, I realized what I felt was anger.

Anger that I'd allowed myself to get attached.

My mission from the very beginning had been clear: get close to Max and discover what he knows about his father's criminal activities, and up until I actually met Max, that seemed simple enough. But being around him had clouded my senses and I'd allowed my emotions to get the better of me. I couldn't deny that I was attracted to him, but I had to learn to control my wants, because thus far, pining for him wasn't doing me any good.

Seeing him pressed against another girl had made me sad and the fact that I had any reaction to him being intimate with someone else at all made me angry, because it meant I was developing feelings for him. And having feelings for the subject of my investigation would only end in disaster.

So I needed to regroup, rethink. I needed to find a way to be close to Max which still allowed me to be emotionally distant. The easiest way I could think to do that would be just to be his friend, which would be a whole lot easier now that I had the visual of him pressing his lips to another girl's neck to keep me from developing feelings for him again. Perhaps she had been a blessing in disguise. Because she had allowed me realize that my emotions towards Max were only getting in the way. If I was to truly complete this mission, I needed some clarity of mind.

Panting, I placed my hands on my hips to catch my breath when I reached the gazebo in the middle of the memorial garden on the edge of campus, a destination I had discovered a week ago and intended on returning to during all of my morning jogs as long as I was at this school.

"We keep meeting like this."

Startled, I whipped around, my fingers clenching into fists as an immediate fight response after I'd pulled my earbuds from my ears, only to find Trevor staring at me with raised eyebrows, most likely wondering why I looked like a boxer at the beginning of a match.

"Easy there, tiger," he laughed, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his navy zip up hoodie as he pushed himself off the bench into a standing position. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"You didn't," I insisted, relaxing my fingers and shaking my hands out to my side as my heart rate began to slow. "What are you doing here?"

My words came out sounding much more accusatory than I intended, but if he was offended, he gave no indication, instead shrugging his shoulders and rocking forward in his trainers. "I come here on my morning run. What about you?"

"Same," I eyed him suspiciously, crossing my arms over my chest. "I haven't seen you here before."

"I am a little early today," he admitted. "I couldn't sleep last night."

I tilted my head to the side, my suspicion replaced with genuine curiosity. "How come?"

He paused for a moment as he contemplated his answer. "I don't know. Just feeling unsettled, I guess."