Colton's POV
I would be having a much better time if my eyes weren't trained on the door like it held all the answers in the world.
The party had started about an hour ago and I had spent the whole time searching for Emery. It didn't help that she had been non-committal about the whole thing. I had even tried to bribe her by saying I could give her my part of the research papers to see if she would show up.
But in reality, I just wanted to see her outside of class and talk to her about anything except the assignment. Our next class with Dr. Nappor was in the middle of the week. And that felt like a lifetime away.
Of course, on the other hand, I also didn't want her to show because I sounded like a pansy ass the last time we spoke. She had made some passing comment that she didn't know me, and my big mouth had to confess that I wanted her to. She looked flustered after that and bid a hasty goodbye. I had scared her off. Emery had no idea where that had come from. Hell, I didn't know where that had come from.
I was all out of sorts since the moment I had stepped into the library and my sights settled on Emery.
I was pissed, fucking enraged to see Caden cornering her. I knew it was no coincidence to see him asserting authority over women, but more so, I knew he had picked Emery on purpose.
I had a bad feeling since that day at practice to see him popping back up on campus. That feeling only amplified when I caught him watching Emery and me in the cafeteria.
He was harassing her to get a reaction out of me and it was working.
If she hadn't been there I would have knocked him on his ass in the library like I had wanted to do that day in the locker room. It would have effectively given him exactly what he wanted. But in that moment it felt like it was worth it. He was getting bold by daring to step on campus repeatedly. And now he was focusing his attention on Emery.
My knee bounced restlessly at the thought.
My eyes went back to the door, almost willing it to open. It had been revolving all night long as more guests showed up at the frat house for the party. It was a full house tonight with everyone crowding around the pool table or in the kitchen, refilling their cups.
The living room floor was a sea of bodies as they all mingled amongst themselves.
Yet for the first time in a long time, it felt empty to me.
My gaze glanced at the door again as if in reflex. I pinched the bridge of my nose, annoyed with myself. That was it. I had to get out of here. It felt like I was suffocating inside. A run might help to clear my head.
I stood from the stool I was perched on when the walls of the two story house rattled.
I turned toward Ryan who was trying to untangle himself from the two women sitting on either side of him.
He strode over to me with purpose. "Not this shit again," he stated. The walls shook even more noticeably. He threw his hands up. "I mean tonight of all nights. We have guests," Ryan reiterated through clenched teeth as he gestured around us.
Luckily no one else seemed to have noticed anything off yet. But that wouldn't last long.
Maybe it was a good thing Emery hadn't shown. She didn't need to see this.
I shook my head. "He must be having one of those days. You know how he gets," I grumbled.
Ryan's hard stare pinned me in place. "That doesn't mean I understand it."
Unfortunately, I did.
I let out a deep breath and turned toward the basement. "He'll be a mess. Let's go clean him up before he comes up here looking like something straight out of a horror movie."
Ryan nodded in agreement.
"Colton," a breathy sigh sounded behind me. I knew that voice. I had been dreaming about hearing it all day.
I looked over my shoulder to see Emery's big, doe eyes staring back at me. Her lips were lifted in the corners at catching me by surprise.
"You came." I smirked.
I heard Ryan grunt from beside me. Whatever I was planning on doing before might as well have been forgotten.
Kennedy stood at Emery's side as she watched the party-goers dancing to the music around her. My gaze drew back to Emery.
"Yeah, well..." She shrugged. "I couldn't pass up the chance to get my hands on those reports."
I grinned. So she did take the bait. Emery was a tough nut to crack but slowly, I was starting to understand more and more about her. Piece by piece.
Ryan cleared his throat loudly, catching my attention. He nodded his head to the side, gesturing down to the basement.
Yeah, yeah, I know. Dammit.
Emery caught the movement with a narrowing of her eyes. "Is everything okay?" she asked.
The tone of Emery's voice drew Kennedy's attention away from the party and onto us.
"Yeah, of course." But I didn't sound so sure. The shaking of the walls rattled as what sounded like a body being thrown against it vibrated through the whole house.
Grunts sounded as the music skipped, alerting everyone to the commotion.
Ryan, without a second glance, threw open the basement door and slammed it behind him as he raced down the cobblestone steps. A crash sounded below, followed by yelling and more bodies colliding with the wall. Good lord, they were going to bring the whole house down if they kept this up.
Emery and Kennedy shared a look.
I lightly touched her wrist, gaining her attention. Sweat had started to bead around my brow. "Why don't you both go get a drink? I'll be right back. I just have to take care of something and then I can show you around."
I didn't wait to see if she took my advice as I raced down the steps after Ryan.
I ground my molars. Dawson picked the wrong night for this. There was never a good time for it but he was really pushing the boundary right now and taking it too far.
By the time I made it down the staircase, Dawson had already pinned a guy against the wall again and was letting loose.
I didn't know who he was sparring with, but the guy getting pummeled wasn't putting up much of a fight. His arms were laying limp by his side as if he no longer had the strength to hold them up.
Ryan was trying, to no avail, to pull Dawson off of him by yanking on his arms, but he was relentless.
I lunged forward to help by grabbing his swinging arm and with Ryan on his other side, we were able to push him back.
The guy pinned to the wall slumped forward on the cold tile.
Dawson heaved heavily between us. He was shirtless, his skin slick with sweat which did nothing to hide the many bruises, cuts, and scars littering his skin.
"That's enough Dawson!" Ryan harshly whispered.
I wasn't even sure he could hear over the pounding in his temples when he got like this.
Battered and bruised didn't even begin to cover it.
"What the hell is going on?" Emery cried out behind me.
I blanched to see her and Kennedy standing there, wide eyed and ashen.
Dawson took that moment to collapse on his knees between Ryan and myself. His body was spent.
Kennedy raced forward and bent down in front of Dawson's hunched form.
I turned to see Emery near the guy crouched on the floor as she checked his pulse.
Ryan's jaw clenched further in hysteria. "Dammit Dawson, I have had it with your shit!" He bent down, eye level with him. "You can't keep doing this. Enough is enough! You could get expelled from the university if they find out. Whatever sick pleasure you get out of this is going to come with a hefty price." Kennedy had been dabbing at Dawson's brow that was steadily bleeding, but paused through Ryan's tirade.
Her eyes narrowed in on Dawson, who seemed barely able to hold up his head.
I felt Emery's eyes on me. Her brow was puckered, wrinkling her forehead when I turned to look at her. She held my gaze for only a moment before turning her attention back to the guy on the floor, stirring to life.
I could only imagine what she thought of all this. My chest felt heavy. Where did Dawson even find these guys?
Her lips were pursed as she said, "His cuts aren't deep." Emery prodded the red spatters along his abdomen. "They barely broke the skin but they need to be wrapped or they could get infected." She lightly peeled back his closed lids to check his pupil dilation. "I don't see any signs of a concussion but he should still be monitored over the next several hours."
I nodded. "He can stay here for the night. We have the room and bandages to wrap him up," I assured.
I moved to her side to help him off the floor. He grunted the whole way as Ryan stepped in and took his weight.
"I'll get him upstairs," Ryan replied, briskly.
Emery moved to stand behind Kennedy who was still wiping at Dawson's bleeding brow.
"He needs stitches," Kennedy remarked. Her eyes swept down his bare torso. His evident six pack was less impressive by the many bruises in various stages of healing that marred his body.
"And x-rays," she continued. Her hand brushed down his rib cage causing Dawson to gasp. "He could have a broken rib that lodged itself into a lung or any other vital organ." Kennedy turned to look me straight on. "He needs to go to a hospital."
Dawson stood up abruptly at that. His hand reached out, wrapping around her wrist that was dabbing at his eyebrow. "No, no hospital. I'm fine."
Kennedy set her shoulders back, determined. "You're not fine. You can barely stand on your own. You need to get checked out. You're going."
His lips smirked in challenge. "Who is going to make me? You?" He towered over her by at least a foot.
Kennedy's lips thinned. "I'll call 911 and bring them to you. That way you can't get out of it. And they will be more than happy to take you in, willing or not."
I rubbed my chin. She was smart. I'd give her that. Dawson's narrowed eyes made me think he was coming to that same realization.
Emery watched over Kennedy's shoulder. "He's not wheezing. That's a good sign that he didn't break a rib or puncture his lung. She is right though, he definitely needs stitches under his brow."
Dawson adamantly shook his head no.
"Dawson, look, if they say you need to be checked o---"
Kennedy cut in before I could finish. Dawson's eyes never trailed far from her. Emery and I might as well have not even been in the room. They were laser focused on one another.
"Does this have anything to do with the illegal underground fighting you just participated in?"
Dawson choked on a laugh. "You must be joking," he grumbled. "We were just messing around."
"I know what I saw!" Kennedy argued. Her free hand pointed at his bruises that seemed to be darkening by the minute. "And these bruises tell me what I need to know. You've been doing this for a while now. They're not a good look for you."
"You should see the other guy," Dawson grunted.
"I did," Kennedy quipped. "I wasn't impressed."
Dawson swallowed as he stared at her through his lashes. "No hospital," he repeated.
Kennedy huffed, exasperated. She turned to Emery for help, who turned to me.
Great, I didn't know what to do. Dawson was my best friend. I wasn't going to force him to go if he didn't want to. It would have been the smart thing but he had survived worse. I knew that without a doubt.
"Aren't you training to be a nurse? Can't you patch me up?" Dawson asked. How had he known that? He knew Emery was because we were partners in class together but I hadn't mentioned anything about Kennedy being in that class.
Kennedy's brows arched. "Yeah, the key words being 'in training'. I'm not fully certified yet."
Dawson shrugged unconcerned. "It's good enough. We have a first aid kit upstairs." She paused, contemplating.
"You can't be serious!" Emery admonished. "She could blind you with one wrong swipe of the needle since the cut is so close to your eye."
"I'll do it," Kennedy said.
Emery whirled on her. "Kenny!"
Kennedy shook free from Dawson's hold who seemed reluctant to let her go.
She pulled Emery to the side with her. "I can do this. I've done it before. My medical bag is in the car. After I retrieve it, do you want to take my vehicle back home so you don't have to wait on me?"
Emery shook her head adamantly. "I'm not leaving you!"
"I'll be okay. I can find a ride home as soon as I patch him up."
"I can give Emery a ride home," I offered. It was the least I could do after what a shit night this had turned out to be for all of us. "This way you can keep your vehicle and leave whenever you are ready."
Emery opened her mouth to argue but sighed in defeat when she looked at her friend. "Fine, but only because I know there is no changing your mind once it is made up." Emery hugged Kennedy close before parting. "I'll see you when you get home."
Kennedy nodded before turning back to help Dawson.
"I'll send Ryan down to help you get him to his room," I said to her as I walked with Emery to the stairs. I turned back to Kennedy before we disappeared from sight. "Thank you...for helping him."
Emery was quiet as I drove her home. The only thing she had said since we left the frat house were directions on where she lived. I was familiar with the neighborhood she spoke of. It wasn't far which meant I was running out of time with her.
Tonight had not gone at all like I had hoped. I just had to ask her to come tonight to show her that not all students were problematic like Caden.
That went over well.
My hands kept clenching around the steering wheel in frustration. The silence was deafening and I couldn't stand it anymore.
"So, you and Kennedy live together?" I asked, just wanting to break the tension growing like a weed between us.
"Yeah," she spoke, still looking outside the passenger window. "We have been roommates since our first year of college though I met her my final year of high school. We just hit it off then and we've been friends ever since."
I took a left at the light, turning on the road that would lead up to her house. I couldn't look but I would have sworn I felt her eyes on me. The cabin was too dark though to be sure.
"What about you?" she asked. "Do you know Dawson well?"
"Well enough," I replied. "He and I go way back."
I sighed heavily.
I might as well address the elephant in the room because it was just going to nag at me all weekend like a festering sore if I didn't. "I know you have questions. The Dawson you saw back there isn't the one I grew up with. But at the end of the day he is a good guy. He's been dealt a shitty hand lately and he just isn't playing his cards right. What happened tonight isn't a regular occurrence with him."
"I saw the bruises!" She jerked around to face me in her seat as I slid my truck in park against the curb of her house. "Some of those are weeks, maybe even months old, Colton. Tonight wasn't the first night he got into a boxing match." She undid her seat belt and opened her door.
I got out quickly, thinking she was going to rush off just like that, but paused when I saw her leaning against the hood of my truck, waiting for me.
The front porch light was on and there were two vehicles parked in the driveway as I walked to where Emery stood.
She wouldn't meet my eyes when she spoke. "I've made plenty of mistakes through the years which is why I'm not quick to judge. I've been on the receiving end of judgement enough to know better than to use it on everyone else." Emery toyed with her keys between her hands.
After taking a deep breath, her eyes collided with mine. The dark liner she wore made her grey eyes appear silver under the glow of the moonlight.
"I know Dawson is your friend but you should really think about getting him some help. I don't know what he is going through but he isn't handling it. Not if he is turning to getting the crap beat out of him to feel something other than what is eating him up inside. I see cases like this all the time at the hospital. He will continue to spiral. There are so many resources that could be beneficial in getting him help."
I rubbed my hand down my face roughly. "I've tried. Over and over again. He won't go talk to anyone. He won't even talk to me." And the more I would push, the more he would shut me out.
I basically tip toe around his troubling choices and hope that one day he doesn't push it too far, because this way at least allows me to still be there for him.
I felt a soft grip on my shoulder where Emery rested her palm. "You can never be at fault for trying too much. There is never any regret in that."
"He has been through a lot. Boxing is his way of letting it out. He isn't going around beating people up. Those he spars with join willingly." He didn't fight to unleash pent up anger. He did it to forget for a little while. Sometimes I wondered if the pain was the only way he could feel.
It wasn't healthy but I knew why he did what he did.
I blew out a harsh breath. "Man, tonight did not go how I planned. "
Her head tilted to the side in surprise. "You planned out tonight?"
"Not like this, no. I had hoped to break some of the ice between us and get to know each other. I feel like I walk on eggshells around you."
She seemed taken aback. "Why is that?"
"Because you don't like me!" That had been obvious from the first moment she laid eyes on me. And it was frustrating because that hadn't been my reaction to her at all.
She was wound so tight and serious all the time. I didn't know how to act around her which made me nervous I'd say the wrong thing. Emery was so guarded and secretive. It made it even harder to work with her when we knew nothing about each other and I felt so unsure of myself.
That is what I wanted to accomplish tonight. The getting to know each other part. But that went downhill in a hurry. Everything kept falling apart the more I tried to impress her because I was trying too hard.
Her face fell, making me feel even more like shit. "What made you think that?"
"You," I replied honestly. "That first day, you looked at me like you tasted something bad."
Emery swallowed as her hand fell to her side. "You're right," she exhaled. "That day wasn't my best. I don't hate you, Colton. Far from it. I don't warm up to people well, it's true. And I am sorry I made you feel that way. That was never my intention." She turned to the sound of scuffling inside her apartment by the front window.
Someone was in her house and my neck tensed. She looked back at me unconcerned so whoever was in there, she knew.
But my neck did not relax.
"I've been on my own a long time so it's hard for me to rely on other people because more often than not, they let me down."
Yeah, been there myself a time or two. "You can count on me. I promise."
Her lips twitched as she tried to fight a grin and failed.
My brow arched in curiosity.
"I've seen where your promises get me," she teased. "To a party with the promise of getting our research papers." Her arms opened wide. "And here I am, still with no papers."
"Ugh." I cringed. Emery's laugh filled the void of the night.
"Those damn papers." I shook my head . "I'll have you know they were ready and waiting for you on my nightstand. They were all part of the plan that I had. I was going to show you around and then pick your brain a little with the hard hitting questions. Like what's your favorite color? White bread or wheat? Team Cap or Team Iron Man? You know, the important stuff. "
I smiled as her giggles intensified the longer I ranted. Her hand went up to her chest as she laughed.
It was cute. "And then give you the papers at the end to really seal the deal that I am responsible," I continued with a chuckle. Her laugh was infectious.
There was a voice that mumbled inside her house again. Emery sobered as she made her way to the front door, pushing the key in the lock.
Her voice was light and whimsical as she spoke over her shoulder at me. "So, knowing my favorite color is the key to getting to know me?" she mocked.
My lips split wide in a grin. "It can't hurt." I shrugged.
She unlocked the door but held it closed behind her as she looked back at me.
Her eyes squinted before her face relaxed and a full smile swept over her lips. "Yellow, wheat bread, Team Cap all the way."
I stood there on the sidewalk for a few seconds after she had slipped inside and the door shut behind her.
There was a feeling unfurling deep in the pit of my stomach. I didn't know what it was but I knew I didn't want it to go away until I figured out what it meant.
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Thank you so much for reading and checking out my book.
Please don't forget to vote.
Team Captain America or Team Iron Man?
What is your favorite color? Mine is blue.
And I guess here you can vote for your favorite type of bread? White or wheat?
I unfortunately can't eat bread as I have Celiac Disease and I miss it every second of every day. Especially rolls. Man, I could throw down some rolls. Rolls were life.