My thoughts for the rest of the afternoon are a mess. I keep wondering why Tanner turned so cold toward me after we kissed. Surely he's not jealous of Ben? He doesn't even like me.
He's also made it clear that he likes to sleep with as many girls as possible, and I wouldn't put it past him if that's all he was after, as he was trying to do the exact same thing at the restaurant. Only that time I didn't let him succeed.
I rub my temples, wondering how I let myself get in such a sticky situation.
"How are you doing?" Zara asks, hugging my side, clearly knowing where my mind has drifted off to.
Since arriving back at my dorm room with Ben, Zara was quickly filled in on my "rendezvous" in the psychology aisle with Tanner.
I shake my head, annoyed that my thoughts have taken me back to the library again. "Fine."
"You need to forget about that asshole. I don't know what has gotten into him, but the next time I see him, I'll make sure to kick him in the balls for what he said to you."
"You don't need to do that."
I'm beyond grateful for her wanting to look out for me, but the last thing I want is for her to fall out with Tanner as well. I'd feel beyond guilty if I came between their friendship.
"Just give the word, and I will. That boy needs to come down a few pegs," she winks.
"Is she always like this?" Ben asks with an amused expression on his face while leaning back on Zara's bed on the other side of the room.
"All the time," I drawl.
"And you wouldn't want me any other way," she sing-songs.
Ashamedly I nod my head. I wouldn't.
An alarm sounds on Zara's phone, and she slides the bar across silencing it. "Right kids, I have to get down to pole class. You can order pizza for eight as I'll be walking back at that point."
"Extra pepperoni?" Ben jests, knowing that Zara hates that topping.
She quickly flips him the bird before throwing her gym bag over her shoulder. "If you put any pepperoni on my pizza, I will throw it at your face."
"Fine. Salami it is," he goads further.
Zara rolls her eyes at his jibe. "Seriously, Leah. I don't know how you survive an entire day with him."
"Me neither."
Ben holds his hand over his chest as if he's in pain, but his laughter shows me he's not taking any stock in what I say.
I look at my two new best friends and give a small smile. I love how easily they can get me out of a funk and help me sit back and relax. I never expected to find two people who I could be so close with, especially in such a short period of time. Now I couldn't imagine my life without them being in it.
Zara bends down and gives me a quick embrace before opening the door, connecting to the hallway. "Au revoir, guys," Zara salutes before slamming the door behind her.
Ben doubles over on her bed, howling with laughter. I giggle along with him, entertained by the tears streaming down his face.
Even though I love spending time with Zara, I'm glad I get to have a bit of downtime with Ben outside of class.
"What do you want to do for the next two hours?" he asks me breathlessly.
"We can watch a movie on my laptop if you want? I downloaded Grease the other night."
I power down my phone and put it on my desk, so I don't get any interruptions during the movie.
"That's Toby's favorite. He'll be so jealous when I tell him," he smiles happily.
"Awe, I still can't wait to meet him. When is he coming back home for a visit?"
"Not sure; maybe Halloween. I'm visiting him next week." He looks off to the side with a twinkle in his eye.
"Right, while you fantasize about your man, I'm heading to the bathroom," I tell him as I rise off the bed and head for the door.
I exit the room and walk the short distance down the hallway to the bathroom. I hope Ben doesn't need the bathroom tonight as technically he's not allowed on this floor. Though saying that, it didn't stop a girl showering with her boyfriend in the early hours the other day. I had the fright of my life, while the guy found it hilarious and blew me a kiss.
When I get back to the room, I find Ben sitting on my bed with my laptop on his lap.
"Found it," he tells me, turning the screen to face me where I can see the opening scene of the beach.
"Ready, Danny?" I quip.
"Ready, Sandy."
I flip the light switch off and pull the drapes on the windows so that the only light in the room is coming from the laptop. As I walk back to my bed, I decide to turn on my fairy lights so that the wall is cast in a low glow above us.
"Very cozy," Ben notes.
"Just trying to set the mood," I joke.
When I'm finished, I plop down on the bed next to Ben, and we soon find a comfortable position with my head resting against his shoulder. I can feel his curls brush against my cheek, tickling me, so I push them away and snuggle in closer to him, settling in for the next few hours.
We're halfway through the movie when a tremendous banging emanates from the door, causing both Ben and me to look at the door in unison.
"It's probably the volume," Ben wonders aloud.
"I guess it is a little high."
I quickly turn the volume down on the laptop, hoping the disturber will go away.
BANG-BANG-BANG
"I've turned it down as low as it can go!" I yell.
"Leah, open the door. I want to talk to you."
My stomach instantly drops, and my eyes go wide as I recognize the voice. "T-tanner?"
"Yes, Tanner. Who else would it be? Open the door!"
I sit frozen in terror. The last thing I want to do is open the door and see his face. I can't believe he just showed up here. How the hell did he get in the building anyway? Perhaps he waited outside until someone came by and opened the door. After all, it is like a conveyor belt at times.
I'm about to suggest to Ben to ignore him and pray that he'll go away, but it seems he has other plans. He presses pause on the movie and hands me the laptop, jumping off the bed and striding over to the door. As soon as he has the door open wide enough, he shouts in Tanner's face, "What the hell do you want, asshole!"
Tanner's expression quickly turns from shock to anger. "I'm here to talk to Leah. What the fuck are you doing here?" he spits, poking Ben hard in the chest.
Ben leans back from his touch, while his feet remain rooted to the ground, refusing to give Tanner access to my room. He then shrugs his shoulder with a careless attitude. "We're hanging out."
I know I should probably get up or say something, but my mind is going into overdrive. Just seeing his bare, tattooed arms makes me remember how not that long ago, they were gripping me in the nicest way possible, and how his sweet breath tickled my skin as he lavished me with kisses on my neck.
I pinch the bridge of my nose, forcing myself to rid my brain of these images. He was a jerk to you afterward. You need to remember that!
"Move out of my way before you regret it," Tanner threatens, taking a step closer to Ben, squaring him up.
"Leave Ben out of this!" I snap, finally finding my voice.
Tanner takes his eyes off Ben and looks at me on the bed, scanning me from head to toe. His eyes stop on my left shoulder, so I glance down to see what he's staring at and realize the strap on my light blue camisole is hanging loose down my arm. This, along with my slumped appearance on the bed, could easily be misconstrued as something else. As I bring my eyes back to his cold, hard face, I notice that he's reached the same conclusion as I have. His nostrils flare in and out fast, and he looks like he's close to losing it. I slowly shake my head no, trying to convey the message to Tanner that Ben didn't do that. Yet it seems he doesn't see my signal or is too far gone to process it. All of a sudden, Tanner grabs Ben and pushes him up against the door.
"Ben!" I scream out, leaping off the bed.
I grab the back of Tanner's shirt and try to force him off of Ben, but he's too strong to move. "Tanner, let him go! He's done nothing wrong!"
I notice a few other doors have opened on the floor, with some sticking their heads out, while others stand motionless in the hallway, paused from whatever they were doing. But right now, I don't care if everybody's watching as Tanner is holding my friend up against the door.
"He's clearly trying to get into your pants. You're in a fucking dark room with him on your bed," he growls.
That's it! "He's gay, you moron! He's not trying to seduce me."
Tanner's face falters, and he lets go of a red-faced Ben. I shove past Tanner and place my hands on either side of Ben's face as I assess him. "Oh my God. Are you okay?"
"That was unexpected," he mumbles, rubbing one of his shoulders.
Tanner clears his throat behind me. "Leah I-"
I look over my shoulder and glare at him. "Don't! I don't want to hear your excuse!"
Every second that he stands there just makes my blood boil more.
"I want you to leave. Now!" I say, pointing to the door.
I notice some of the girls' faces on the floor as I stare past him, and a few of them scurry back into their rooms, probably alarmed by my murderous glare.
"Not without talking to you first."
"You're crazy if you think I'm going to talk to you just after what you did to Ben."
"Please?" he whispers.
I feel Ben reach for my hand, and I turn back to look at him.
"Do you want to, Leah?" he asks, his usual kindness kicking in.
"No. Yes. I don't know," I shrug. I honestly don't.
"I'll tell you what, I'll go wait outside so you can talk. I won't be far away."
I nod my head, agreeing with him. "Sorry. I know I'm being a pain in the ass."
"You're not a pain, Leah. If time is what you need, then I'll go with it. Where's your phone?"
I nudge my head to the desk, and Ben goes over to it and picks up my phone, turning it on. He comes back to me and places it in the palm of my hand.
"Any trouble, call me. I won't be too far away."
"Okay."
He stops to pick up my key from the wall hanger and then turns to Tanner. "You better not upset her even more, asshole," he says, hitting him with his shoulder on the way out.
When he leaves the room, it immediately feels as if it's dropped a few degrees, and there's an eerie silence that neither of us knows how to fill. I hug myself, trying to remove the goosebumps, and shuffle from one foot to another.
All I know right now is that Tanner's presence angers and confuses me at the same time. What could he possibly have to say to make up for earlier?
Without saying a word, Tanner goes to sit on Zara's bed, so I sit opposite on mine and stare back at him. I search his blank face for answers, but I get nothing back. Aware of the fact that poor Ben is waiting for me to invite him back in, I break the silence and speak first.
"Talk."
How do you think there talk will go? Do you think Tanner regrets what he did to Ben?
Thank you for reading! Please vote ⭐ and comment ❤️. These little stars mean a lot.
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