In the three years Ade spent at Eastford, he's learnt two things. First and foremost, don't shit where you eat. And, in the event you do, clean up afterwards. He believed so thoroughly in this that when he spotted Grace in the aisle of the lecture hall, he planned to say hello. He certainly didn't owe it to her, of that he was sure, but what would a little kindness cost him?
Unfortunately, the moment he lifted his chin in greeting, she growled. Ade startled and crashed into Ryan who glared at him for all of two seconds before dashing, headfirst, for the last two available seats at the back of the hall.
"You saw that right?" Ade muttered beneath his breath while they sat down.
"Saw what?" Ryan began to rummage through his backpack.
"Grace."
He glanced up for all of two seconds, stared at her and shook his head. "Nope."
"She fucking growled at me," Ade hissed.
"So?" Ryan pulled his laptop out of its sleeve and set it on the narrow bench beside his water bottle. "I doubt this is the first, or last, time a girl will growl at you."
"Yeah, but I l thought we were good," Ade said.
"Seriously?" Ryan snorted.
"What did I do now?"
Ryan typed in his password then turned to face Ade while his laptop booted up. "Apparently, she caught you in the library with someone," he said, eyes gleaming with the tell-tell sign of trouble.
"Caught me?" Ade scowled. Caught suggested some kind of secrecy, shame, a feeling Ade hadn't experienced since his aunt caught him googling boobs aged thirteen. Caught suggested wrongdoing, a charge he wholeheartedly rebuked, especially as his library exploits were none of Grace's business and he'd made that perfectly clear from the outset.
"Last week," Ryan said nonetheless. "In the basement."
"Who told you?" Ade's scowl deepened.
"Abi."
Shit.
"How does she know?"
Ryan shrugged. "Who cares?"
"I—"
Dr Hutchins cleared his throat; the room fell silent, while Ade's mind continued to race for Ryan, he quickly realised, had a point. Tenuous at best, but a point. Regardless of how Abi came to be armed with such damming information, there was no chance in hell she hadn't already deployed it and filled Miriam's head with lies. Lies, Ade feared, Wes would only corroborate.
He was done for. Ruined. His one shot with Miriam blown to bits by a truth so twisted it might as well have been a party promise from whatever hopeful government was currently drumming up support. Unless he changed the narrative.
When the lecture finally drew to a close, Ade sprung out of his seat and dashed towards Grace. She caught his eye and released an audible groan while shooing her friends away. "Can I help you?" she frowned.
"Yeah." Ade itched the nape of his neck and offered his most disarming smile. "What are you doing now?"
Her eyes narrowed, immersed in a disgust so intense it shot out and grazed Ade's first defence. "Are you kidding me? After everything, you think you can still sleep with me."
Ade's head jerked back. "Sleep with you?" he spluttered. "I want to talk to you. Maybe buy you a coffee."
Her eyes widened a fraction. "Coffee?" she asked, glare flagging.
"Coffee," Ade promised.
Licking her lips, Grace shrugged and slipped her bag over her shoulder. "As long as you're buying."
They made their way to Grind, the campus coffee house, while making minimal conversation. Ade asked a question, Grace offered an answer in two sentences or less, sometimes resorting to noncommittal sounds that made Ade want to abandon his mission entirely. Then he remembered Miriam, the ice he'd slowly begun to chip away, and he hunkered down.
"Oat milk latte, right?" Ade asked when they entered the store.
Grace's posture changed, unfurling almost. "You remembered?"
"Of course." It hadn't been hard; she spent most of her time moaning about his lack of oat milk whenever he allowed her to stay past her welcome. "I'd never forget."
A smile, small and fleeting, crept onto her face. "I'll grab us a table," she said before hurrying off and making a beeline for the set of armchairs in the far-left corner.
When it came time to order, Ade asked for Grace's latte and added a black americano for himself. Both small, lest she got any big ideas. The drinks were quickly prepared, and, once he'd collected the steaming mugs, he headed towards her.
She placed her phone face down, folded her hands and arched a single brow. "What do you have to say for yourself?"
Ade's jaw tensed. "I wanted to apologise," he said, surprised he didn't choke on the words. "I might have given you the wrong impression about what I wanted."
"Might?" she scoffed.
"Fine." He considered holding his hands up and quickly decided against it. "I did give you the wrong impression. You're amazing, honestly, but I'm just not looking for anything right now, and to suggest I am is to lie." He paused then glanced up at her from beneath his lashes. "And I would never lie to you."
Grace was silent. Unnervingly so. Then, as quickly as she dismissed him earlier, she said, "Thanks for telling the truth."
"It's the least you deserve." He finished his coffee in a single gulp, too excited by Grace's burgeoning smile to note the pain and began to stand up.
"Going so soon?" Her smile slipped.
Ade sat back down and placed a hand over hers. "Sorry," he said with a stroke, "I have a tutorial in ten minutes."
She checked her watch, glanced at the ceiling, and sighed. "I guess I'll see you around."
With his good, albeit self-interested, deed of the day complete, Ade headed back home. If Grace took the bait, any reputational damage would be rectified. If not, he was a week behind in his master plan, but give him fifteen minutes alone with Miriam and he was sure he could convince her to see things his way. The right way.
When he entered the front door, the unmistakable scent of baked goods slammed against him. It was accompanied by laughter, and the promise of Abi who, when he reached the kitchen, groaned.
"What's he doing here?" she asked.
"It's my house, Abisola, or have you forgotten?"
"It's my house," she mimicked.
"Can you two at least pretend you like one another?" Daniel groaned.
"Maybe tomorrow," Abi said.
Daniel shook his head and dropped a kiss to her cheek. "Today, Abs."
She rolled her eyes. "Only for you."
He beamed down at her; Ade wanted to gag, the sensation building while Abi rolled onto her tiptoes and puckered. Daniel kissed her nonetheless, forcing Ade to stalk towards the sofa. He collapsed onto the plump cushions and closed his eyes, blocking out the happy couple's laughter.
"Careful!" Abi shouted; her voice was accompanied by the unmistakable thwack of a smack. "Grace will kill me if these turn out crap."
Ade scrambled into an upright position and peered over the sofa like a meerkat. "You know Grace?"
Abi's head snapped. She shot Ade a glare before returning her attention to Daniel who carefully transferred the still hot cookies to a large tupperware.
"Grace?" Ade repeated himself. "How do you know her?"
Abi rolled her eyes but said, "She's president of the book club."
"Seriously?"
Abi nodded then body checked Daniel and took over transfer duty. "Why do you care anyway?" she muttered. "I thought you liked Miriam."
He didn't bother dignifying her with a response, and instead clambered off the sofa and headed to his room where he collapsed face first. If Grace was the president of the book club, and Miriam a member, there was no doubt in Ade's mind that she'd heard the rumour. The only question was if Grace would rectify her mistake or if Ade would have to do it for her.
~~~
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