Just as I'd suspected, Logan climbed effortlessly up UW's outside rock wall. His large frame moved comfortably and confidently, his muscles clenched and lifted him higher and higher, like he'd done the climb millions of times. The way his back, shoulder, and leg muscles flexed and contracted even through his sweatpants definitely drew my attention.
I wasn't sure if his ridiculous good looks, radiated confidence, or casual smile fixed on his expression were the culprits, maybe all combined, but my eyes weren't the only ones Logan drew towards him. At his height, Logan was a magnet for attention but quickly I became aware of the female-driven attention he attracted.
From the first steps out of our apartment, down every sidewalk and past every campus building, eyes pulled in our direction. And a weird, twisted sensation coiled inside my stomach when I noticed every single time when some girl's eyes lingered on him the way I looked at anything chocolate-related when on my periods.
Suppose I can't blame them, he is handsome.
A small crowd of fangirls even gathered off to the side of the rock climbing wall while Logan scaled effortless up it. He hadn't needed my help getting down but my hand reached out on instinct to his lower back. His muscles tensed at the contact but he jumped down to where my arm wrapped around him. Before his movements registered in my brain, he wrapped one arm around my shoulders and pulled me flush against him.
My breath froze in my lungs and my lips parted when he leaned down and murmured thanks into my ear. The skin below my ear pricked with goosebumps from his warm breath and my heart beat jumped from the close proximity of my body pressed into his side.
"Ahem, Ellie?" James' voice cut through my distracted thoughts and honestly I'd forgotten how he'd stood next to me during Logan's climb. "Can I ask you something?"
"Sure." I stepped away from the warmth of Logan's body, walked a few steps with James, then looked back at Logan. A small frown tensed my forehead when I saw the fangirl herd had converged on him. He wore a polite smile but a slightly pained look crossed over his eyes when they erupted in giggles.
Still hates that.
"Ellie?" James' voice drew my attention towards him.
James and I had worked the library's help desk for two years and he was the epitome of a friendly face on campus. We shared hours of conversations about books and stories of when we'd separated making out couples behind the historical stacks in the lower level.
"There's a new art exhibit at the Jacob Lawrence Gallery." He shifted in his feet but gave me a soft smile. "Well, it's actually at Meany, but I was wondering if -"
"Oh," I cut him off since I knew where this was headed, an invitation to see something at the Meany Center for Performing Arts. Hesitation rose inside me since apparently James was determined that he started this year out where he'd left off at the end of our sophomore year.
James had asked me a few times to some artsy exhibits, which always fell during times I'd tutored, then tried to stay connected over the summer break. I'd declined his long distance offer, not because he wasn't my friend but I'd worked deliberately hard to keep my life at UW separate from what had happened in California. My life here wasn't the most interesting but I cherished my time here so much that I borderline hoarded it to myself.
"I'll... umm..." I forced a smile at James. "Think about it. See you at work?"
When James nodded silently, I realized that my UW life was so much easier when I'd kept my past separate. But one look at Logan and I realized the possibility that my past clashed with my sanctum of peace existed. A sense of uncertainty rose inside me, not at any suspicion that Logan revealed anything, but just his presence was enough and I was on edge. He was a physical presence of the past I'd tried to step away from while I moved forwards and now lingered like a ghostly reminder in front of me.
Absent-mindedly, my left hand reached down and snapped my hair band. The gentle sting into my right wrist did its trick and my overthinking stopped but one thing became obvious.
I need to talk to Dr. Sterns.
My and Logan's first dinner together as roommates was actually really pleasant. We only ate the vegetable lasagna Mom had cooked this morning for us and a bowl of fresh mixed berries, but things between us felt oddly... domesticated.
"Sorry, this probably has a few too many carbs in it," I admitted with a smile at Logan. We'd pushed the table against the wall in the 'foyer' area, if the wall on the left side of the door could be called that, but far enough away from the adjacent bathroom wall that a Logan-spaced chair fit.
For now though, our bathroom supplies also sat there in a jumbled mess. The setup moved our dining chairs at ninety degrees from each other. I'd moved off our laptops onto the sofa and set the table while Logan reheated our leftovers.
"Thanks." I looked up at him when he passed two steaming plates in front of me and set them down. "At least we know you can microwave."
His only response was how his mouth curled upwards but, after a slight pause, only offered, "You'd be surprised."
"You can cook now?" I brushed past him, grabbed two glasses of water from the sink, then sat down. The table itself wasn't very big, just 3-feet by 4-feet, so we sat in pretty close proximity. I was also hyper-aware of the one-inch space between his left knee and my right.
"You heard Mom, I lived alone." He picked up his fork and cut into his lasagna brick. "And I'm still alive, so safe to assume I ate."
"Jake can cook," I pointed out after a few bites. "But during the season he does a meal delivery service because of the time."
"A few of the guys did that," Logan replied casually.
"But not you," I pressed.
"Not me," he vaguely responded and focused his interest on his lasagna.
"You're being very... suspicious." I pretended I narrowed my eyes at him. "What are you hiding?"
He only smiled and exhaled sharply like my teasing accusation amused him. After a few bites, he said, "This is really good."
"Nuh-uh." I pointed my fork at him. "Don't change the subject."
He only took more bites until his plate was empty, wiped his mouth, then took a long, slow, and deliberate drink of water. My eyes watched as his throat bobbed slightly, then lifted back to his eyes once he set his glass down.
"Fine," he stated in a flat, slightly annoyed tone. "Yes, I learned how to cook. Not as good as others -" He paused, grabbed his bowl of fruit, and poked his fork into a strawberry. "- but I managed okay."
"You taught yourself?" My lips pulled into a smile because that development seriously impressed me. After he confirmed with a silent nod, I added, "That's... really cool."
Handsome, athletic, and he can cook. Really is a freaking white unicorn.
He couldn't have surprised me more than when he admitted, "It fell under the category of my self-improvement areas."
Self-improvement? Him - How... Huh?
My lips parted open but before I responded, he winked and playfully added, "Don't tell my roommate though because I made a deal that she's doing the cooking."
"It's the least I can do." I reached out and rested my palm on his forearm. "The money thing, I -"
"I get it," he cut me off with a small, almost wistful smile. "You don't have to explain."
His words sent a wave of comfort through me that I hadn't realized I needed but still appreciated once I felt them.
"Thanks, Logan." His gaze dropped to where my hand still rested on his arm, so I released it back to my lap. After I coughed slightly at the dryness in my throat, I grabbed my water glass and took a few sips. "You must've done something right if you gained twenty pounds and still look like... this."
"Like what?" He leaned his tall frame back in his seat and grinned because he knew exactly what I meant.
Now I took my turn, shoveled in a few bites, then chewed slowly, but his eyes watched me carefully the entire time. So, just for payback, I sipped my water slowly and painfully, but his weighted gaze never changed.
"You know what I mean." I finally set down my water cup then shifted my eyes over him quickly.
"Yup," was the cocky response. "But I want to hear you say it."
"This." I reached over and poked my index finger into his closest bicep, which was rock hard even while his arm was relaxed. "And this is your left arm, not even your throwing one."
"And?" He only raised his eyebrows and looked expectantly at me.
"You're in ridiculously good shape." I scoffed and finally caved in defeat. "I won't pretend to know what prep you need to play college football but you look..."
The way his gaze intensified and darkened a shade of blue set off a flutter of nerves in my stomach. My cheeks burned warmer the more my mouth vomited. "...Really good."
He sat there silently, just looked at me with the same weighted intensity. Something obviously ran through his mind and my cheeks heated the longer he looked at me. My heart might have also taken a break on regular beats and suddenly the rest of my dinner deserved my full attention. The silence between us, only filled with the soft sounds of my chewing, thickened the longer I felt his gaze on me.
Once I'd inhaled the rest of dinner, including my fruit bowl, I finally sat back in my seat and slowly dragged my eyes upward. He'd propped his elbow onto the table and rested his chin on his fist. Based on the smirk he wore and gleam in his eyes, I doubted how his bicep muscles now tensed with definition was a coincidence.
"I need to take a shower," was all he finally said and stood up. "Before class tomorrow."
"Class, right." I blinked a few times until my thoughts cleared. "My first one is eight, so yeah, I need to shower too. And set up the air mattress."
"I'll get the dishes, of course." Before I answered, he scooped up everything in front of me, piled our dishes together, and nodded at the bathroom. "But go ahead and shower. I'll blow up your mattress."
"Really?" I looked up at him. "Thank you. I was expecting some comment about showering together."
"If that's what you're suggesting..." He flashed me a smile.
"Your words, not mine." I returned his smile with a grin and stood up. "I'll work on your meal plan stuff for this week, then go to the grocery store tomorrow. If there's anything you really like or don't like then let me know."
He paused on his way into the kitchen, where a slow grin spread across his face. The longer he grinned at me, the more heat flushed over my cheeks and up the back of my neck. He definitely noticed the effect he had on me, since his voice was back to full-on cocky when he said, "My tastes haven't changed, Ellie."
After he disappeared with a chuckle, my only response was how I cupped my now molten-temperature face in my hands.
This boy is going to be the death of me.
"Okay..." I absently rubbed my left palm over my cheek and pulled up my phone. While my laptop started up, I scrolled through my phone apps until I found the meal planner one I'd used for Logan. The most recent file, a plan from nearly three years ago, opened up and I skimmed over it.
"Probably better than starting from scratch," I admitted to myself, then went to the calorie counter app and updated it for Logan's new weight. After a moment, the modified recommendations popped up.
Fifty-one hundred calories per day... An even bigger small family.
A smile tugged across my lips as I jotted down some hand-written notes. While I worked silently, a rush sound of water ran through the wall on my right side. My eyes lifted and after a few minutes, I realized Logan must have stepped into the shower.
Does he even fit?
My smile widened at the mental image of Logan's large frame crammed inside the cramped bathroom space like a sardine. On one side, the sink and toilet practically touched. The 5ft long bathtub was more suited to my short legs. For now, I'd replaced the shower curtain with my UW themed one. Along with the kitchen gear, Mom had bought it for me as a birthday present before my sophomore year.
Since the pedestal sink was very charming but offered no storage space, Logan and I set up a makeshift storage area next to the dining room table until we found a better alternative. I was so engrossed in my meal scribbles and what grocery items I needed for them that I missed how the bathroom door had cracked open.
"Hey Ellie?" Logan's voice called out, which snapped my head up to attention. I looked over, saw the open door, and walked cautiously towards him.
"Yeah?" I breathed in a mouthful of steam and propped myself against the bathroom door frame.
"Can you grab another bottle of shampoo? I ran out and didn't want to walk out in just a towel."
I wouldn't have minded that.
I blinked my digressed thought away and looked up at him. My shower curtain hung on the bar, which sadly was right about Logan's chin-height. His blue eyes peered over the bar at me, but my gaze was instead fixated on the twelve-inch portion of clear plastic that made up the top of the shower curtain. With it, I had a direct view of Logan's bare chest and shoulders. Steam swirled around him and my face warmed from how mesmerized I was at the droplets of water that splashed onto his corded shoulder muscles, then cascaded over his sculpted pectorals.
"Stare at me like that too much and I'll make you join me." His laugh dragged my attention back up to the grin across his face. "Although fair warning, I barely fit but I'd make room for you."
I took a sharp breath in and walked backwards until I hit the wall for the kitchen with my right heel. The contact grabbed my attention, so I walked back to the storage area and grabbed a bottle of his shampoo. Before he flipped open the shower curtain and gave me a flasher's view, I shoved the bottle inside and marched out as quickly as my feet moved. I shut the door again but not before his chuckles hit my ears.
"This boy..." I muttered, double-checked my backpack was ready for tomorrow's morning classes, then grabbed my phone and sat down on the air mattress. Logan had fully blown it up by the time I'd showered, then we'd moved the sofa against the wall and I'd draped a flat sheet and my purple UW comforter over the top.
The mattress groaned and crunched under my weight, which I rolled my eyes at. I skimmed over my phone and answered a few random text messages, namely updates on my parent's trip home. They'd stopped in Northern California for an overnight hotel stay but wished me good luck to start my junior year.
In addition to my parents' words of how proud they were of me, I purposely ignored one particular message.
Harper: Slept with Adonis yet?
That's not going to solve any of... all this confusion running through my head.
Before I thought too much about my current metal state, I set an alarm on my phone, rested my phone into the front pouch of my backpack, then pushed it aside. I'd just settled my pillows and lifted up my comforter when Logan emerged from the bathroom in a T-shirt and sweats. His huge, bare feet thudded on the floor when he came into the living room, where he rubbed a white towel over his head and looked down at me.
"What time is your first class?" I asked him.
"Nine," he replied, tucked his towel around the back of his neck, and grabbed the ends in his hands.
"Okay, I'll try to be quiet." I mentally thanked myself at how I'd laid out my clothes for tomorrow in a pile next to my bag.
"It's okay if you wake me up." He knelt down and his upside-down face came into view. He frowned and the corners of his mouth turned downwards. "I still don't like you sleeping on this."
"I'll be fine," I assured him and nestled myself down like that proved I was comfortable, although I really wasn't. "This is way better than the junky sofa and just until the new one arrives."
"Right." His continued frown showed he was completely unconvinced. Before I said anything, he leaned forwards and turned my brain into mush when he gently pressed a kiss onto my forehead. My mouth couldn't have gaped any wider when he pulled back and smirked.
"Told you I couldn't wait," his voice was smug while he stood up. "Good night, Ellie."
Since I couldn't form a coherent thought, let alone a snarky response, I just nodded. After the sound of his feet padded away and the bedroom door quietly clicked shut, I just pulled the covers over my head in surrender.