"Hey, Tristan."
Skylar motioned to the seat beside her, red lips grinning hopefully as she looked at him. But instead of joining her, he went for the seat next to mine, the one my bag was on. He pulled the chair out, grabbed my bag, and stashed both bags on another chair before sitting down. Right next to me.
A subtle tension hung in the air as Skylar's lips pursed, her gaze darting between Tristan and me. She'd clearly wanted him to sit next to her, there was no way he could have missed that. Cassandra cleared her throat at the awkward atmosphere. I wrestled with my own emotions, suppressing the tiny spark of satisfaction that dared to race through me.
My body stiffened as his chair pivoted slightly towards me, our knees brushing against each other. I half-expected him to shift away, to put a stop to the contact, but he didn't. I frowned at the sight of our knees touching. If he wasn't going to pull away, then I should, right?
I didn't.
"How are we doing today, ladies?" Tristan drawled as he casually slung an arm over the back of my chair.
My fingers sought out the flash drive nestled within the zipper pocket of my hoodie, deliberately brushing aside his actions and tuning out the ongoing conversation between him and the girls. An unexpected jolt surged through me as my upper back brushed against the warmth of his forearm, that small touch sending a shiver down my back. I shifted my position ever so slightly to the right, resulting in the heel of his thumb resting against my shoulder. Before I could lean forward, his thumb stirred to life, tracing a gentle circle against the fabric of my hoodie.
Caught off guard, I sucked in a sharp breath, my startled gaze darting in his direction, but he was preoccupied with listening to Skylar. She recounted her week, something about basketball, and other details that I failed to catch.
As Skylar's words ebbed away into background noise, the world narrowed to that single point of contact — by the soft, rhythmic sweep of his thumb across my shoulder.
"Are you nervous for the game tomorrow?" Skyler's question broke my trance, and I looked up to see her resting her chin on her palm and beaming at Tristan.
Game? Tomorrow? Football, I recalled. His thumb's movements came to a halt, nearly burning a hole through the fabric of my clothing.
He shrugged, eyes becoming hooded as he threaded his fingers through his wavy hair. "Nah. We've got this in the bag. We always do."
My attention turned to him as I searched his face. Something in his tone made me think he didn't believe a word he was saying. Sky and Cassie didn't pick up on it, only joked and gave him words of encouragement, but I had caught that pause, that slight hesitation before he spoke. And the little hint of skepticism when he said they had it in the bag, like he thought they didn't. I couldn't help but wonder why he felt like that.
"Well, our group of girlfriends will be traveling to the game. It's in Boulder, right?"
Wait, did she just say Boulder?
"Yeah. Tomorrow evening. Thanks for coming to support us, it's always nice to see fans at away games." He cocked his head and smiled, a stray lock of hair falling into his eyes.
"Are you kidding? Half of the college is gonna be there, doesn't matter if it's an hour away." Skylar chuckled.
"And you?" Tristan looked down at me, "Will you be there?"
I tilted my head back to meet his stare. "It's not really my thing."
Did I imagine the disappointment in his eyes? Had to have.
"Of course it isn't," He muttered, pulling his arm back and his whole demeanor changing. I blinked, surprised by his sudden shift in attitude. Was it because of what I said?
"Should we get started? I'm sure this one's getting impatient." Tristan jerked his thumb at me, smirking when the other two laughed.
I glared at him before placing my flash drive on the table. "Here's all of my research. I've put it in a report format and created a separate folder with all of the info that should go on the PowerPoint exactly as is. It's referenced and everything. I've even included a few images and videos that I think would go well with the PowerPoint. You don't have to use them, though."
"Oh wow, way to make me look incompetent. I just brought the raw research." Cass laughed softly, tucking a copper strand behind her ear.
"That wasn't what I wa—"
"She's joking, Hoodie girl." Tristan gently tapped my knee with his own.
"Right... I knew that."
Cass gave her research in and Sky showed us the beginnings of her PowerPoint, which was pretty simple and to the point. The last girl I worked with gave it butterfly transitions and heart borders. I much preferred this. Tristan showed us the list of interview questions he'd composed.
"I also asked a buddy to let us interview him. He works in one of the Psych clinics and they're known to pay college students to participate in their research. He also said he'd get a few participants to answer our questions," Tristan said.
Cass agreed to put the final report together once Tristan was done, and both she and Skyler promised to email us the finished product by next week Wednesday.
"If you need any help with the PowerPoint, just let me know, yeah?" Tristan said to Skylar.
Her eyes sparkled, "I'm probably gonna need help at some point. How about you come over to my place on Sunday and—"
"I have to go to the bathroom, so I'm gonna pack up and head out," I announced, my tone clipped.
Everyone looked surprised when I stood up suddenly, the chair legs letting out a loud screech against the tiled floor. Tristan frowned and leaned back, surveying my odd behavior. Avoiding his eyes, I quickly rushed to pick up all of my things. I went to grab my bag and realized it was where Tristan had put it, next to his own. His bag, a maroon sports bag, had several keychains — a mini rubber football, the number thirteen, a resin stick-figure family, and a plastic dog paw. My eyes lingered on them as I pulled my bag onto my back.
"Are you okay?" Cassandra asked.
I looked at her, eyes wide. "Of course I am. Why do you ask?"
"You seem... off."
"I'm fine. Just need to go to the bathroom. I'll see you guys Monday."
"See you!" Skylar called out to me.
Tristan stayed silent, but I could sense his gaze following me as I moved away. I stole a quick look back, only to find his intense stare fixed on me. Our eyes locked, causing my steps to falter and I nearly tripped over air. Shaking my head to break the spell, I quickly averted my gaze and focused on the path ahead, determined to keep my composure as I continued to walk away.
°•°•°•°
I formed a makeshift bowl with my hands and splashed the water onto my face, needing a distraction, but the cool water did nothing to calm the storm of emotions raging through me. There was a distinct pang gnawing at my stomach and it felt suspiciously like jealousy.
How could I be jealous?
"What is wrong with me?" I whispered to my reflection.
However, the mirror only showed me a disheveled blonde, her face red and damp with baby hairs sticking to her wet skin. It revealed nothing but a hot mess.
"Pull yourself together, dammit!" My voice reverberated throughout the compact bathroom.
"Are you okay?"
A soft voice startled me and I pivoted around to face whoever it was. When I'd first come in, I had checked to make sure I was alone. I must not have heard her come in.
I was met with a small, delicate-looking woman. Her pale orange dress hung loosely on her slender form, her wrists so thin I'd probably be able to circle them with my fingers. She seemed to linger in the shadows, her hands clasped together as she held an air of wariness. Or maybe she was just shy.
Maybe it was her weak and sickly appearance, but I relaxed, letting out a soft sigh. I managed a faint, friendly smile.
"I'm okay. Just..." I didn't know what to tell her, couldn't find the right words to describe the chaos whirling around inside me.
"Boy troubles?" She moved closer, emerging from the shadows, and I finally caught sight of her pretty hazel eyes. Her straight dark fringe almost concealed them entirely.
I hitched a brow, "I guess you could say that."
A gentle puff of laughter escaped her thin lips. "It's complicated, I take it?"
I smiled, "I guess you could say that too."
I grabbed some paper towels from the dispenser and dabbed at my face before any more drops could fall onto the front of my hoodie.
"I understand. I had a rough relationship with an ex too." Her eyes flickered towards the door as if to check if he was about to storm in and attack her.
A surge of surprise coursed through me as I realized I could relate to this strange young girl. However, the thought of someone mistreating her ignited a fire within me, and I couldn't help but feel a mix of protectiveness and fury. He must have been a monster to prey on such a weak woman. Or maybe he was the reason she was like that. It made me nauseous to think about it.
My chuckle carried a bitter edge. "Tell me about it. I'm pretty sure I hit the jackpot with my terrible ex. It was bad enough that if I ever saw him again, I'd gut him."
Her eyes widened in response. "You would?"
"Definitely."
"He must have been awful."
"He was. Really awful." I scanned her delicate frame. "I'm Hannah." I smiled and offered my hand to her.
She looked down at my hand before slowly offering me her own. As I'd thought, her hand was small and dainty, but they were also surprisingly rough with callouses. I wondered what she did to warrant those.
"I'm... Beth."
"It's nice to meet you, Beth." I shook her hand gently before letting go. "Did you need the bathroom? Were my crazy ramblings disturbing you?"
She laughed. "Oh no, it's okay. I thought I'd check on you because you didn't look so good. I thought maybe you needed some help?"
"That's really sweet of you, Beth. But I promise I'm fine."
"That's good." She looked down at her feet, suddenly shy and unsure of herself.
"I should go. I have things to do at home, like laundry."
"Oh, okay. You should definitely get to that."
"Then I'll see you around, maybe?" I shrugged with a smile.
She returned my smile, "That would be nice."
I bid her goodbye and walked out of the girl's bathroom, passing two girls wanting to enter. As I passed a friend group at a table, I heard one of them say, "Can't wait for the game tomorrow. It's gonna be epic. But we have to win this time. Last week was such a bummer."
"Beckett won't let us down again. He'll wipe the floor with those fuckers, you'll see," Someone else said, passion in his voice.
As I walked away, an idea began to form in my head. Reaching for my phone in my jeans pocket, I unlocked it and scrolled down to my contacts. I quickly found his number and pressed dial. He picked up after the first ring.
"Hey, so I have an idea..."
°•°•°•°
I do try to make everything I write mean something so that hopefully there won't be any plot holes or pointless chapters. I also want people to think back and go, "Oh! So that's what was really happening!"
The next chapter's gonna be a long one.
Do you guys dip your oreos in milk? Because I do and I've just found out that everyone thinks that's stupid. Was I the only one who saw the ads? Plus, I think the milk enhances the flavor.
Happy reading!
Brooke