started with a lie ➳ raura revised

Chapter Forty-Eight

On the train, we stay next to the door. It's too much of a hassle to even go through the crowded mass. Our destination, the dorms, is two stops away so there's no point in attempting to find a seat.

"Are you going to the fair?" he asks, holding onto a pole connected to the seats next to the door.

The doors open as we slow to the next stop. People get off, pushing through and me out of the way. Daniel brings a hand to my waist and pulls me so close our chests are touching, but it does the trick since people pass without shoving into me.

"What fair?" I say, looking up. My hands are loosely pressed against his chest and I can feel him breathing as his stomach rises and falls. Maybe we're a bit too close.

Daniel begins biting his lip and looking away, his cheeks turning a light pink. "I-It's for clubs and stuff, I hear. Tanner said it started at, like, four."

"Oh, really?" I ask. "I guess I'm going then. I need to get more involved with school and maybe even find a hobby. Volunteering at the hospital isn't enough. Maybe this fair will inspire me so much that I'll be able to major in something!"

He grins down at my excitement. "Maybe."

I smile back and a moment of silence stretches long between us. For a split second, the train's not there. I don't hear the awkward silence of forty passengers. I don't feel suffocated by the close proximity of just about everyone. All I see are Daniel's hazel eyes and lazy grin. He smells like chocolate and I can feel the heat from his hot chocolate since he's holding my waist and hot chocolate at the same time. I feel warm and it's not just from the temperature.

What the hell? This is Daniel.

My lips move to form words and I'm about to say something. I don't know what I'm trying to say but it doesn't get out since the train stops again and the doors open.

"Our stop," Daniel says and eases away from the pole and me, stepping out.

I feel a random sense of loss but ignore it as I follow after him. On the sidewalk, Daniel keeps his distance, walking a couple feet ahead of me. I don't know why but I don't argue, feeling some strange need to keep the distance like there's a secret, unspoken vow lingering between us.

"Do you want to just come up to my dorm so I can change into another shirt?" I ask Daniel, jogging ahead to walk side by side. "I got a coffee stain on this one in the morning and it's been bothering me all day."

Daniel looks down at me, my shirt, and then a blush takes over his face. "I...I don't know if I should—" "I'll be five minutes top! I'll buy you a donut."

At the mention of a donut, Daniel straightens and turns to me. His excitement is evident on his face but he quickly tries replacing it with a more nonchalant look. Over the month, I've found his weaknesses. "I mean," Daniel says, groaning. "If you must insist."

"Yay!" I say, pulling him faster to my dorm building. "Let's go, Diabetes Daniel."

I shut the door behind him when he enters my dorm. It's a bit of a mess. Both Giselle and I haven't made our beds today and our clothes are mixed and strewn across the floor. I think I see a neon pink bra of mine in direct eyesight on my bed. My eyes widen. I never should've let Giselle drag me to go "back-to-school" shopping.

"Daniel, oh look, donuts!" I say, pointing somewhere randomly. His head turns and I jump on the bed, throwing the bra under my bed.

"What? There aren't any—what are you doing?"

I prop myself on my elbow, posing. "Seducing you."

He rolls his eyes. "Wow, you're hilarious." Daniel slips o his backpack and puts it on my chair. "Hurry and change. I don't want to get caught by the Nazi."