"C'mon, Rat. Let's get you home." I sigh, sliding my hand around Reed's waist after she almost trips over her own feet and takes a bite out of the floor.
"My namesreed," She slurs, gripping onto my t-shirt tightly and I thank God that her nails are short because of the way she digs her fingertips into my abs. I make eye contact with Farris and gesture with my head towards the door.
He keeps his hands off of her, heeding her request for personal space when it comes to him, but it doesn't stop his arms from reaching toward her before pulling back at the last second. I toss him my keys. "Open the door would you? I'll get her in." I tell him and ignore the way his mouth gapes open and closed like a fish out of water.
"Yeah." He grumbles, watching my every movement. Rolling my eyes, I lift Reed into my arms, one under her knees and one under her shoulders, and put a knee up on the backseat so that I can get Reed inside. I'm pretty sure she's passed out at this point, which makes me chuckle.
"Lightweight." I tease as I sit her up against the car door so that I can put a seatbelt on her and she stirs awake enough to try to snuggle her head into the corner of the door. Backing up, I shut the door gingerly so as to not make too much sound and disturb her, and make my way to the driver's seat.
The car is silent the whole ride to the dorms, other than the quiet music playing over the radio. "That guy was such a good dancer," Reed mumbles and when I look in the rearview mirror, I see that her eyes are open the slightest amount. Farris's jaw clenches in my peripheral vision and I stifle a smile that gets harder to contain as she keeps talking. "I thought for sure he was going to invite me home with him but the funniest thing happened." She says, and although her tone is amused, the way that she's glaring at Farris leads me to believe she's sobered up enough to start an argument.
"One minute we're dancing and the next...poof. The guy got spooked by something he saw. Wonder what it could have been?" She says drily but directs her gaze out the window and I know that her question was rhetorical.
"Probably for the best," Farris says offhandedly and I stiffen. Uh oh. One glance at Reed tells me that was not what she wanted to hear, if anything.
"You would say that Mr. Cockblocker."
"Don't tell me you would have actually gone home with that guy." He scoffs.
"You know what's so fun about being an adult? Whether I wanted to or not, that would've been up to me." She sticks her tongue out childishly but he doesn't laugh, the way that he's facing her without saying a word tells me that they're having some kind of staring contest.
"Next time, I'll be sure to give the guy the go-ahead. Maybe even slip a condom into his pocket." He continues to dig himself deeper and I know that he's had too many drinks tonight.
"That's enough. You two sound like children. Reed, don't taunt him. Farris, don't butt your big head into things that damn well don't involve you." I sigh, thankful to be pulling into the parking lot for our dorms. "Go ahead without me," I say to Farris, more as a command than a request. He does, albeit sulking the whole way.
Reed may be able to speak, but her motor functions are dangerously compromised and I still have to help her into her own dorm. When we get inside, it's late and I'm surprised to see that the lights are off and the room is empty.
"Lay down, I'll be right back." I lead Reed to her bed and go to get her a couple of Ibuprofen and a glass of water to leave on her bedside table, tossing her a package of makeup wipes and going through her bottom drawer for a set of pajamas. "Alright, I'll leave you to it," I tell her and she nods.
"I'm sorry. For everything. Making you babysit, mediate, etcetera." She waves her hand around the room and I put one of mine on her shoulder, gripping once before letting go.
"You're all good, Rat. Sleep tight." I say as I leave, twisting the lock to lock myself out when I go, and instead of veering toward my own dorm when I get outside, I turn back to my car and decide to take a drive. Farris needs some time to cool off by himself, and I need some time to not be the middle-man for once. Their oblivion is exhausting.
Rather than sitting in my idle car, I turn the engine over again and peel out onto the empty street. A faint yellow glow from the streetlights is the only light that penetrates the total darkness of the early morning, and although my eyes become slightly tired, I keep going without a destination.
Sprinkles of rain start to scatter across the windshield, and before I can make it to a particular beach that I had in mind, I make a U-turn and head back, not wanting to be driving in the rain with tired eyes for too long.
Almost back to the campus, I see a silhouetted figure walk underneath a streetlight. Although the presence of another person on this seemingly deserted stretch of road is odd, especially with the rain, the spotlight allows me to see what really caught my attention. Intricately braided, golden blonde hair and bare, muscular legs; the kind you get from playing a competitive sport like soccer.
Slowing down as I approach, I roll down the window when I'm sure I've recognized Charlotte by her figure from behind; even thinking to myself that the shape and size of her ass are my confirmation sounds sleazy. "Charlotte?" I call out in question, though I'm confident in my recognition.
Her head whips towards me, the loose wet strands of hair slapping against her neck as she does, and I furrow my eyebrows at the sight of her holding something to her chest that's been zipped up into a windbreaker. "Alexander?" She asks, squinting her eyes and bending down to look inside at me.
I smile. "Get inside so I can ask you questions without feeling guilty about keeping you in the rain," I yell over the sound of the downpour, only just now realizing that she'd distracted me from the fact that the rain started coming down heavier while I was busy checking her out.
Without any hesitation, she climbs in, still holding that bundle to her chest while I reach back to grab a blanket from the backseat. Our faces are so close that our breaths mingle until I right myself in the seat and I can't help but stare at the glistening, fair skin of her thigh contrasting against the dark leather seat. Drops of water caress her skin on their way, gravity pulling them down. Gulping, I turn to face the road again and drive out carefully, sneaking glances at her often, though I never allow my eyes to focus.
"So whatcha got there?" I ask and receive a sheepish smile in return. Setting whatever it is down on her lap instead of holding it up against her chest, she slowly unwraps her windbreaker to reveal a tiny bluish-silver form, the coat short and wet with massive paws for its size.
"I was walking home and was frightened by a rustling in the bushes. She was whining as well and I couldn't leave her." Charlotte says as if she's justifying her decision, looking down at the thing. "I'll have to find her a home tomorrow, I guess." She says, sounding so sad that my palms start to ache as if they have a direct line to my heart. My grip tightens on the steering wheel.
Charlotte snuggles the blanket around herself and the puppy and looks adorable doing it. Thankfully, we're close to the dorms and I pull into the parking lot, offering to take the puppy from her so that she can unlock all of the doors and she reluctantly accepts my help, obviously not wanting to let the shivering thing out of her arms even as she struggles to pull her keys out of her pocket. "Thank you." She smiles and then we're both running through the rain; I clutch the whimpering puppy safely to my chest like I'm carrying a football to the end-zone.
We're quiet in the hallways of the dorm, and when we get into the girl's room, Reed is passed out face down on her bed. Worried, I walk over and gently turn her over with one hand, pulling the blankets over her. Charlotte has wide eyes when I spin to meet them. "Why don't I stay here with her while you take a quick shower and change," I say, stepping closer and brushing the backs of my fingers along the chilled skin of her arm. She has goosebumps covering every inch of exposed skin and her teeth are chattering. I can't seem to stop myself from looking at her, from touching her.
She nods, her eyes softening. "Thank you so much. For everything. I owe you." She says and turns around, gathers her clothes from her dresser, and walks into the bathroom before I can think of a response. I sit on the edge of her bed and unwrap the puppy a bit to get a better look. The silver coat looks even bluer in the faint light from Charlotte's lamp, and I gently stroke her trembling forehead with my fingers. She looks like she might be a pitbull or a boxer, which may be why she was abandoned. The thought makes me sad.
"Who could ever leave you? Such a sweetheart." I say softly as she closes her eyes and settles on my lap, though her shaking never stops. By the time Charlotte gets out of the shower, I'm laying back on her bed with the puppy on my chest, half asleep.
"I'm sorry that I'm keeping you up." She says quietly, glancing at Reed who lets out soft snores that are reassuring considering her drunken state when I left her.
"Not at all. Warmed up?" I ask and she nods shyly, tucking her wet hair behind her ear. It's odd to see it down with no braids or hair ties anywhere. A beautiful blonde waterfall. "What do you think about giving her a bath? At least rinsing her off with some warm water?" I ask and she nods.
"I will. You go ahead. I can't keep you as much as I wish I could." She says and her eyes widen the instant the words leave her lips. The smile is impossible to hide as I look down at her attempt to hide her blushing cheeks.
"Guess your wish is about to come true," I say, leading the way to the bathroom which ends up being a mistake when I swear I almost pitch a tent in my shorts from the overwhelming—in a good way—smell of what must be her body wash or hair products surrounding me in the damp, steam-filled room.
Only one of the two of them is shivering, but she's not the one that I desperately want to unwrap right now. Charlotte runs the water and makes a shallow bath while I get the puppy out of the windbreaker and hold her carefully against me before testing the water and attempting to set her down.
She immediately begins to freak out. "Is it too hot?" Charlotte whisper-shouts at me, eyes wide open but both of us can feel that the water is only warm. The puppy is frantic and only when I press her soaking wet body to my side does she calm down. Sighing, I pass her to a confused-looking Charlotte before quickly tugging my damp shirt over my head with one hand, draping it over an empty towel rack. My shorts and socks are next, and I purposefully don't make eye contact with Charlotte as I remove those, feeling all too aware of where we are and the fact that her eyes are on me.
Then without hesitation, I step into the tub in only my tight black briefs while Charlotte gapes. "Run the water a little more, would you please?" I ask, finally looking up and she closes her mouth, nodding and doing exactly that until the water just covers my thighs and the puppy's paws stay wet on my lap. I scoop water from my hands over the silver coat, slowly and carefully but she seems to be fine as long as I'm with her.
I hear an audible gulp and turn my attention back to Charlotte just in time to see her eyes dart away. "I'm gonna get..." She trails off and walks out. I think about teasing her, but realize how unfair that would seem considering she believes that I'm the one with the power in our dynamic. My reaction to hers is delayed and I smile; it's one thing being told that Charlotte is into me, but it's completely different when I can witness her flustered in action.
"It's the abs and puppy isn't it?" I joke when she returns with two towels, laying them on the counter. Biting her lips together doesn't work to stifle her laugh and she looks at me solemnly.
"I'm transparent." She says, but the tension seems to have been broken and she kneels beside the tub, helping me to warm up the puppy with water and lots of petting. After a few minutes, her voice breaks the silence. "I don't want to find her a home tomorrow." Her voice breaks and I look up to see that her beautiful eyes are glistening.
I reach out and drip water all over her floor as I cover her hand with mine. "We don't have to do anything tomorrow."
"Will you come back, then?" She asks and even if her accented voice wasn't full of hope, how could I say no to her?
"First thing in the morning," I promise.
"Maybe not first thing." She laughs and the sound feels like a hand, prying open the fist clenched around my heart after hearing her almost in tears.