A/N: Hi everyone! Hope you're all having a good week. Here's the newest installment on Star's story. By the way, how do you like the name Star? I've always wanted to name a character Star but I haven't really found the right fit for it. I like this one. Anyway, enjoy!
***
Switching roommates was easier said than done.
With the school year having just started, I couldn't switch until spring and there was already a waiting list.
When I mentioned it to Kendra, she just shrugged and tuned out.
I didn't think she was going to get in my way because she probably wanted me out of her hair as much as I wanted her out of mine. While that hasn't happened yet, she wasn't changing anything. In fact, she'd only been getting worse. I suspected she was getting back at me for interrupting her 'wild ride'. It didn't surprise me. Kendra enjoyed spiting me.
I forced myself to practice patience. I wasn't desperate. Close but not quite there yet.
I was walking across the quad one late afternoon to get to Uni-Save, the drugstore the student union owned and ran just at the edge of campus. I worked a mix of evenings and weekends at the cosmetics counter. It didn't pay much but it gave me more work experience and a little extra spending money.
"Feeling better, my little salsa-spewer?"
I froze at the voice—familiarly low and throaty with that permanent hint of humor—and looked up to find mossy green eyes gazing down at me from a considerable height.
Unimpeded this time by a woman literally trying to get under his skin, Wild Ride Julian had quite an intimidating build. Standing maybe six-foot-three or four, his shoulders were broad even under that well-worn black leather bomber jacket, the rest of him lean, long and deceptively languid. His dark hair was a little windblown, a slight flush slashed across his straight nose and sharp cheeks.
"A little better now except for the occasional nightmare about a pair of lovers trying to test the structural integrity of my bed," I answered, trying to get around him so I could continue my walk before this became a full-blown conversation. I felt an overpowering urge to thank him for cleaning my sheets and my bed and I didn't do gratitude well—especially to someone who caused such opportunity for gratitude in the first place.
"Were you fantasizing about me?"
I stopped at the teasing in his voice and glared at him. "It was a nightmare—not a fantasy. And you shared screen time with Kendra."
His brows pulled in together. "Who's Kendra?"
Seriously?
Looking at him though, I realized in dismay that he really didn't remember her name. And Kendra thought it was that special.
Poor girl, I thought but then I realized that maybe Kendra was just as unconcerned about the names of the guys she hooked up with. Sure, most people would think the girl had her heart set on flowers and hearts and a happily-ever-after but maybe Kendra didn't give a flying fuck. She took what she wanted just as much as the guys probably did. It wasn't a one-way-street, after all.
Sometimes, a lay is really just a lay.
"Oh, you know. She's just another unmemorable, interchangeable girl in your harem," I said lightly even though the statement sounded razor sharp. What did I care? "I just wish you'd provide facilities for them so they don't intrude on other people trying to live normal lives. That and maybe some health care plan. You know, in case they get into some really deep shit with you."
I bit down on my tongue.
While that crass slip aggravated me, it seemed to have amused Julian because his eyes lit up and his smile widened.
"If I did amp up the benefits package, would you be tempted to join?"
"I would in an undercover mission to destroy your reign and save the female population from further shame and dissolution caused by you."
He wrinkled his nose, as if contemplating what I said for a moment. "Hmm... I don't really recall anyone complaining."
"You'd hardly recall it if you can't even remember half the girls you've slept with," I retorted, shifting the strap of my bag and reminding myself that I had to be somewhere. "Anyway, I've got to go."
My abrupt dismissal glanced off him like a stray raindrop because the second I veered left, he just matched my step and placed himself right in my way again. I took in a deep breath and narrowed my eyes at him.
"It was truly a scintillating conversation but I really have to go. Not just because I have a part-time job I can't skip, but also because I know better than to stay within two feet of you for more than five minutes. You're trouble. You've already caused me enough grief and you haven't even tried to get into my pants yet."
His mouth curled up, his eyes sparkling. "We can remedy that right now."
I snorted. "I don't intend to cure what intelligence I have."
"It might cure the more than palpable hostility you're directing my way."
"Glad you can pick it up clearly and not mistaking it for some kind of mating call. You're not a lost cause yet."
Julian's brows furrowed and he looked undecided whether he found me amusing or annoying. "I get that I rudely invaded your space. And that you had to walk in on all of that. I'm sorry."
It surprised me to realize that he looked and sounded like he meant his apology. Nevertheless, there'd been more damaged than just the sanctity of my bed and my sanity.
I started to leave.
"Hey, wait—"
His hand caught my wrist and I yanked it away, startled by the touch.
I scowled at him. "My roommate hasn't been an angel since day one but she's now giving me hell for interrupting your exploratory probing of the only hidden depths she possesses. I'd really like to get through the remaining three months of the semester without wringing her neck—at least until my dorm transfer is approved and I can get the hell away from her. I don't need more crazed women coming after me and making my life more difficult, and if anyone's running around with a trail of them behind him, it's you."
I was panting at the end of the statement and I flushed at realizing just how much I'd let my mouth run off with me.
I snuck a glance at him, prepared for either his furious glare because I was so presumptuous or his smug grin because I hit the nail in the head. What I wasn't ready for was the concerned frown that creased his face.
"Do you want me to talk to her?"
"No! Are you crazy?" I laughed a little incredulously. "You're going to make her hate me more. As far as she's concerned, I interrupted your conversation the last time you were together."
Julian actually looked embarrassed.
"If she's giving you problems, why don't you stay with a friend until your transfer?" he asked completely without humor.
I shrugged. "I don't have any. I didn't come to college to make friends."
When he looked at me like I'd sprouted two heads, I threw my hands up in the air. "What's with the strange, judgemental look? Not everyone needs friends."
When he kept looking at me like I now had a third head freshly sprouted, I sighed out loud. "Friends can be distractions. Often, they can be very bad influences and I don't have room for either. I have one shot at this and I'm going to make it count, no matter the price."
It was very odd to have this conversation with someone who was practically a complete stranger. Yes, he cleaned up my puke, washed my sheets and made my bed, but I didn't really know him except that he might possibly have an incredible upper torso from the vision that kept flashing in my head every time I thought of him, and that he'd screwed my roommate's brains out—on my bed. That point still grated.
"You can rent another place."
I grimaced because I hated making this admission. "I don't have the extra money to sign a lease on an apartment—especially one I'm only going to need for a few months."
"Sublet from other students already renting an apartment. It'd be cheaper."
"They probably have all the roommates they need. Not many people have dropped out or have been kicked out yet, you know?" I countered curtly, having been through this exercise with myself already. "Besides, I don't even know how to find out who's got a free room at this point in the year. I don't know anyone who can hook me up quickly enough."
If I thought I'd run into rooming issues, I would've made the necessary connections but one could only do so much in anticipating curve balls. I was supposed to be walking into a life free of any curve balls.
"Post it on the student bulletin," he suggested, motioning to a row of cork boards by the small covered waiting area where students waited for the bus that came in and out of campus. "People put all kinds of ads there. There's also an online version of it but old school is still the way most people go. You might find something. You never know."
There was a collage of posters and notices practically layering over each other. I didn't like the idea of leaving my info for the world to see but I was more dubious of the possibility that my ad could actually be read in a sea of many others.
"Don't you need prior approval before posting anything there?"
Julian smiled at me in amusement that almost seemed fond. "If they ever check, which they don't. You're really a strait-laced kind of girl, aren't you?"
I shrugged. "Only when it serves my purpose and my primary one in college is to not get kicked out—that means not breaking the rules."
But I can bend them. To a point.
The truth was, I normally wouldn't blink an eye about breaking the rules—if it had more incentive than sticking with them. I haven't quite decided yet on this whole rooming issue.
"The most you'll get is a small reprimand," Julian reassured me. "You're clearly a freshman and everyone will think you don't know better."
I observed the student bulletin again and saw a couple people scanning it. "Good point. I can just bat my lashes out of a real punishment." I turned my gaze to him and demonstrated the same sweet naïveté by peeking through my lashes at him. "You won't tell, will you, Julian?"
He blinked in surprise before his face broke into a smile. He shook his head in disbelief. "You're good. You're really good. You can definitely turn up the charm."
I smiled back. "Most people are predictable. For a second there, you wanted to see how it would be if I really smiled at you, if I were sweet to you—and I gave you exactly that. You believed it for a moment but then you quickly realized, no way, this girl who puked her dinner at me when she caught me screwing her roommate on her bed couldn't possibly like me that much. And you're right—I don't. But now you're intrigued and you're wondering what it would take to win me over because you're sure that given ample opportunity to exert your charm on me, I wouldn't be able to resist. And now that the incentive to win and prove your point is there, you're going to do what you can to keep me latched on to you. And now that you're interested, you can be of use to me."
"You're frightening," he said with an expression that seemed half-horrified, half-impressed. "I've never met anyone so calculating before."
"Just what a girl wants to hear from a guy who wants nothing else from her but a quick, no-strings-attached screw," I said sweetly.
"Maybe I don't want to sleep with you."
I eyed him skeptically. "And you'd be lying. I'm not saying that out of vanity but from sheer perspective on your reputation. According to my roommate, you're Prescott's most sought-after attraction dubbed as Wild Ride Julian."
He looked disgusted. "Now, you're just hurting my feelings."
I snorted. "Good. You could use a little pricking of your pride."
"I don't mind it but I mind the nickname," he said with a shake of his head. "I actually hate it."
Enjoying his discomfort a little, I reached out and clapped a hand on his arm, trying desperately not to notice that it felt solid and hard under the buttery leather his jacket's sleeve. "Then don't work so hard to earn it."
When he just glowered at me, I laughed and stepped back. "Well, I've done my one good deed for the day, encouraging you to live less abominably. I'm safe from the fires of hell for a little longer."
"And I'd be happy to lead you right back on the path of sin," he said with a rakish grin. "By the way, what do I call you? It's Star, isn't it?"
I couldn't help being amused at his nerve, no matter how appalling I would find it under normal circumstances. "Call me the-girl-who-will-never-sleep-with-you. Sounds about right, don't you think?"
"You're brutal," he said although he was smiling.
"Thank you. Glad you can appreciate it." I flashed him one last smile before tipping my imaginary hat and turning to go.
He didn't stop me this time and I didn't look back.
I've learned not to look back a long time ago because I had no time for regrets.
I crossed the narrow road and stopped by the student bulletin, scanning the cluster of ads.
There was the usual collection of band concerts, poetry-reading nights, exhibits, lectures, etc. Then there were the random ads for stuff on sale, fortune-telling sessions, tanning salon discounts, and many, many others.
Why not?
It couldn't hurt. I'd leave the ad up until the end of the week. Then I can't say I didn't try.
Taking a notepad out of my bag, I folded a sheet in half and wrote on it as legibly as I could, wondering for a moment if I was making a terrible miscalculation.
Needing a room to board for three months only—something close to campus with all utilities included at a reasonable price. I'm nice, tidy and more than willing to stay out of your way. Email me at starmatthews@prescott.edu
I borrowed a pin from a bottom corner of another poster and tucked my note on a less cluttered section of the board, right next to a bright red and yellow announcement about a marathon this coming weekend. People's eyes would hopefully stray out of that poster which would first grab their attention and wander down to mine.
I walked away before I could change my mind.
I took well-weighted risks but it surprised me just how quickly I decided on that one, all because of some cute guy's coaxing—a talent he used way too often.
If it paid off, I'd have another thing to thank him for and that made me wary.
I have a feeling that a guy like Julian called in his favors when the time came, and in a form I wouldn't and couldn't repay.
***
So, what do you guys think? I enjoyed their banter (as I usually do between my hero and heroine) and it's probably one of my favorite things to write in stories. I just love the back and forth and when reading other books, I always find myself gauging the chemistry level of the pair on how good their dialogues with each other are.
Anyway, let me know what you think. Hope you're all having a good, exciting lead up to the holidays.
P.S. This song isn't a perfect fit for the chapter but it is for the kind of guy Julian initially represents. I think we've all met a heartbreaker or two in our lifetime. They're very irresistible but you've got to be smart with your heart with them.
XOXO!
-Ninya
♪♪♪ Chapter Soundtrack: Here's To The Heartbreakers by Katy McAllister♪♪♪
You think that it is over,
When did it ever begin?
Don't pretend like he was ever interested.
He may have had you fooled by,
The way he looked into your eyes.
But no he really looked right through, through it all.
He could swear he never meant it,
Act like you're overreacting,
But he's the tool who shouldn't have been acting.
How are they the ones attracting us?
[CHORUS 1]
Here's to the heartbreakers
Who are so good at hiding all the evidence of them pretending.
All along who were we kidding?
I could find a man and not a boy.
Yeah you'll see what you're missing.
Yes I'm fine now, thanks for asking.
Here's to the fakers
Here's to the heartbreakers!