Monday morning, I was still carrying a hangover. The amount of high a kiss can give you was beyond my understanding. My thoughts got hijacked by the remembrance of Jake's tantalizing touches. Even though a day had passed, the mere memory of it left me breathless.
I was scared is an understatement. I was terrified. There wasn't a single word in my mind to call it other than a crazy fantasy. A lot of new possibilities were forming up in my heart ever since Jake showered me with those tender touches and that breathtaking kiss. God, I felt giddy the whole time. It was probably fate that brought us together.
For the first time, I had written a whole chapter on a kiss. Every word I wrote laced in so much passion that I could feel the sensation of Jake's lips once again on mine. Jake was a jerk, no doubt about that. But when he was with me, he was a passionate and caring guy who knew exactly how to treat his girl.
His girl, a smile crept on my lips with the thought. I settled at my usual place in the Mathematics class with my heart thumping wildly against my chest. No! It wasn't due to the anxiety of the test. It was the excitement of facing a curly black-haired guy. When did I start behaving like a high school girl?
My eyes were fixed at the entrance the entire time. A frown appeared on my face as students kept filling the theatre room, but there was no sign of Jake.
"Hey, Amy! all the best for the test. I hope my notes were helpful." Elijah greeted me with his usual sweet smile. He took the seat beside me, which I was saving for Jake. But of course, if Elijah wanted to sit beside me, I wouldn't tell him not to.
"All the best to you too, Eli. And thanks for the notes. They did help me a lot." I said, returning his smile. I couldn't help but feel terrible about it. After all, if Jake wouldn't have prepared notes for me. Only Elijah could have been my salvation.
"Let's start with the test, shall we?" Professor Barlet's announcement pulled me back into the class. I kept tapping my feet and fiddling with the pen. My patience was slowly wearing out, and disappointment started crawling on my skin. 'Why has he not come to the class yet?' I thought, and the frown on my face deepened.
Twenty minutes into the test, Jake hadn't appeared for it. I willed all my concentration to stop thinking about him and complete the test. Jake might join in the last fifteen minutes, and he would still score an A, but I might probably need fifteen more minutes to come anywhere near to that. I shook my head and put my mind into Calculus.
The test ended, we handed over our papers and headed outside, yet there was no sign of Jake. He missed the test, and the thought that it might impact his grades made my mood distorted. On Saturday night, when he left, I could sense trouble in his eyes. There had been some reason why he didn't show up for the test, and I wanted to know what it was. More so when I was getting anxious to meet him. As the day came to an end, that feeling only grew stronger.
Me: Where are you? Call me.
I sent a couple of such messages to him but didn't receive even one response. Why was he not responding? I was getting restless as the evening fell, and I was back in my dorm. The day started on a dreamy note but was turning into a nightmare. Maybe I was getting way too much excited for just a kiss. 'Just a kiss for him, but it was your first kiss,' my subconscious boomed.
After pacing the room for god knows how much time and rearranging my dresser, I finally realized none of them were calming me down. The thought that he might be regretting the kiss and avoiding me knotted my stomach. But then why would he miss out on his test for a kiss if it meant nothing. Just as I was struggling with mental turmoil, Leah walked into the room. She threw her bag on the bed and looked towards me with knitted brows.
"Hey girl, what's wrong? You don't look very well." She asked, giving me a quizzical look. Even a kid could tell by looking at my face that I was a mess. All thanks to Jake.
"Nothing, just a little worried about the test results." I tried sounding as genuine as possible. I still couldn't tell her about Jake and me. But one of those days, I had to, which I knew would be one of the worst days of my life.
"Okay, if you say so." She said with a shrug. "If it's any relief, my test wasn't that good either. I'm most definitely not getting an A."
"Neither me," I responded briefly. My concentration was still on the message I had sent Jake earlier. There wasn't any response yet. I took a side glance at Leah, and a possibility popped up in my mind.
"Um...Leah, can I ask you something?" I asked, and she nodded. "Did you see Jake today? He wasn't there for the test, and I didn't see him in any of the lectures. So-so I thought maybe you-" I trailed off, biting my tongue. I hoped she couldn't catch the desperation in my words. The last thing I wanted was to fight with my roommate over a guy.
"Why are you asking about Jake?" She frowned.
I opened my mouth and closed it. I didn't know how to answer without drawing any suspicion.
"Anyway, I don't know where he is or why he didn't attend the classes today. Must be busy with one of his many girls." She rolled her eyes and buried her head on her cellphone. By looking at her pouting face, I could tell she wasn't very thrilled with the idea either.
"Yeah, probably," I mumbled, gulping down the invisible lump in my throat. Leah's words scalded my skin. The words Jake said after kissing heaven out of me showed he wanted me. If his words had any truth in them, he wouldn't be out there with other girls. Or maybe he would. We weren't in a relationship or something.
'He wouldn't do that to me, would he?'
The question kept ringing in my head as I tried sleeping it off. Although, I didn't get any sleep that night or the next night. Jake ghosted me for three days straight, and by Wednesday, all my patience had worn out. I needed to see him, find him, and ask him what was going on. He couldn't just bail out on me, not like that. The least he could have done was respond to my texts and calls. Deep down, I knew something was wrong, and I had had enough of his creepiness.
I guess it was time for me to give a little visit to his frat house and bang on his door if I had to.
~~~
Wednesday evening after my classes, I had made up my mind. I was finally going to track down the jerk. All I needed was the right person who could help me.
As I barged inside the house, a group of probing eyes snapped in my direction. Without sparing them a glance, I headed up the stairs to Jake's room. I spotted a couple of guys hanging around the place and a few girls too. It mostly appeared that they were having a mid-week party at the house. A sudden wave of anxiety hit me with the possibility of finding him with another girl. My palms were sweating as I turned the knob on his bedroom door. To my surprise, I found it locked.
"Well, well, well! Look who we have here," a known voice startled me. I turned towards the source and found Chris standing with a smirk plastered on his vicious face. The sudden flashback of our last encounter reeled in front of my eyes, making me grit my teeth.
"Get the hell out of my sight, Chris. If you still have some dignity left, leave me alone." I blasted, clenching my fists. I was not in a mood, and his presence added fuel to my anger.
"You are giving me a lecture about dignity, and here you're knocking at Jake's door at this hour of the day. It seems like you have finally decided to be one of his playmates." He sneered.
Blood rushed into my head, and I shot him a warning gaze. "You-" Before I could yell at his stinky face, Seb appeared beside me. He was clad in a tailored black suit and looked like he had landed straight from a board meeting. His brown hair gelled up smoothly, giving him an office look.
"Didn't I tell you to stay away from her?" Seb warned with a tightened jaw. His appearance was still calm, but I could sense the tension in his eyes. Wow! Why did he keep warning everyone to stay away from me?
"And here comes another one of your saviors. I seriously don't get what do these dudes see in you." Chris mocked, giving me a sly smirk. I hated the guy with all my guts.
"I think you forgot the kick I delivered on your shin last time. If you don't fuck off right now, I will gladly give you a remembrance." I sassed, raising my brow. The way his lips flattened showed my words hit him real hard.
"You heard her. Now leave!" Seb said, giving him a cold glare. As soon as Chris left the hallway, Seb shifted his attention towards me. "What are you doing here, Amy?"
I glanced towards Jake's closed door and heaved a deep breath before answering Seb. Maybe, the only right person who could help me was Seb. "I'm unable to reach out to Jake after Saturday night. He missed the Calculus test as well, and I haven't seen him around since Monday. I thought he would be here, but his room is locked."
Seb closed his eyes and sighed, running a hand through his perfect set of hair. "I think I know where he might be."
"You do?" I asked, almost squealing with excitement. But looking at the creases on his forehead, that excitement almost turned into nervousness.
"I will go check on him but first, let me drop you back to your dorm," Seb said, already walking down the stairs.
"I'm coming with you," I announced while following him out of the frat house. I wanted to go with him and see where exactly Jake had been for the last few days. Call it curiosity or concern. I had to meet him. Otherwise, I would get one of my panic attacks which I hadn't gotten since I joined the College. The threshold had reached, and I was on the verge of falling.
Seb stopped near his car and turned towards me with a deep frown on his face. "Look, Amy, I know you are worried about Jake, but I don't think it's a good idea for you to come with me. I will inform you as soon as I find him." He suggested shaking his head a little.
"I don't understand. Why can't I come with you?" I asked dubiously.
"You just can't."
"Well, in that case, I will go with you. You are not my guardian Seb. I can make my own decisions. I know you are concerned and all but you have to know that I need to see him." I argued, looking down. I knew I sounded like a brat, but at that moment, all I wanted was to see Jake. It had been crazy three days not knowing what he was doing or where he was.
"Alright, I see you aren't going to give up. You can come with me, but it's better if you stick to my side. It's the last time I'm listening to you." He breathed.
"Thank you, Seb," I smiled at him.
Seb pulled out his black suit jacket and extended it towards me. My smile dropped, and I looked at him, stunned for two seconds. When I didn't move from my place, he carefully wrapped it around my shoulders. Then opened the passenger seat for me. I turned my head away, still a little flustered, and quickly stepped inside the car.
"Where's this place?" I couldn't help but ask him. The anticipation was killing me, and I could already feel my pulse increasing. "And why are you dressed in a suit?"
"I had an interview today," he responded casually, hitting the road. "We're going to club Inferno." He added.
A club, Jake had been fooling around in a club while I was going crazy about him. What an actual jerk! I felt like a fool to even argue with Seb. And what was with the name of the club 'Inferno' as in hell?
"A club! sounds so much like his choice of place." I scoffed, looking outside the window.
"It's not just a club. It's Inferno. It's not a place where you choose to be unless you're crazy like Jake." Seb sharply replied.
His words arose curiosity within me, and I was so ready to join the crazy like Jake.