Chapter Eight:
Lexi's POV
"Will you at least let me walk you to the door?" Bryce asks, sticking out his bottom lip in a pout.
Grinning, I nod at him before slipping out of his car, slamming the door shut behind myself. Bryce is at my side a few moments later, and he reaches down for my hand before we take off in the direction of the dorm building.
"I still can't believe that you're hanging out with her over me today," Bryce whines, guiding me through the crowd of people waiting for the elevators.
Since my floor is so close to the ground, I usually just take the stairs. Bryce is obviously aware of this as he doesn't bother joining the elevator line, instead dragging me towards the staircase. We scale the stairs in silence, Bryce still holding my hand. I know that he's upset that I'm spending some time with Kennedy today as he doesn't want to be alone with Scarlett and Anders, but I promised him that I would be home for dinner.
I don't understand why being around those two makes him so uncomfortable, considering they were supposedly friends once upon a time.
I guess that it could be because he's scared that something will happen between him and Scarlett, but that's a little bit upsetting for me to think about considering that I would hope he would be capable of trusting himself and his own actions.
We soon reach my dorm, and I strain up on the tops of my toes to kiss Bryce on the cheek before turning around to knock on the door, just in case Kennedy is inside.
Sure enough, the door comes flying open in no time and I'm crushed into a hug.
"It feels so weird to not see you all the time! I can't wait for you to be back living here," Kennedy exclaims before pulling away, placing her hands on my shoulders so that she can hold me in place.
I'm really not going to enjoy having a conversation with her about moving in with Bryce.
But then again, I still haven't even had the conversation with my parents . . .
"I definitely agree that it's weird to not be around each other so often anymore," I respond, giving her a wide smile.
She grins back before removing her hands form my shoulders, now turning to Bryce to say, "It's been awhile since I've seen you, shithead."
Bryce looks momentarily offended before he asks, "What did I do to deserve that nickname?"
Kennedy sighs, crossing her arms. I watch as she backs into the room, taking a seat down on her bed while folding her legs underneath herself.
Taking Bryce's hand, I bring him into the room as well. He shuts the door behind us and when he takes a seat down on my bed I let him pull me directly into his lap.
"You broke her heart, Bryce! She was so upset! You'd be lying if you said that you couldn't tell how badly you hurt her!" Kennedy hisses, and Bryce's eyes widen a little bit.
He slowly wraps his arms around my waist, squeezing tight.
It's as if he's scared that Kennedy bringing back these memories will make me want to flee again.
"I know that I fucked up, dammit. I'm trying to make it better, I swear," Bryce says sternly, and Kennedy's cheeks blush a little red, as if she's suddenly feeling embarrassed.
"Whatever. I just know how bad heartbreak can be," she mumbles, and Bryce raises his eyebrows at her.
"The fuck is that supposed to mean? Did you stop seeing the purple-haired kid?" Bryce asks bluntly, and Kennedy scowls at him.
Brushing her blonde hair over one shoulder, she says, "Sort of. But that's beside the point. I'm talking about my ex-boyfriend. We broke up once I found out that I would be moving to America."
She never told me that something happened between her and Nathan.
Bryce tenses, and his grip on my waist becomes even tighter as he quietly says, "I'm sorry to hear that. You could have just tried long-distance though."
Kennedy's eyes narrow at him. "Don't go there. Stop acting as if you wouldn't fall apart if you had to be away from Lexi for so long."
Bryce opens his mouth to say something else but I quickly place my hand over his, squeezing firmly in a silent command for him to keep his mouth shut.
He looks down at me with a sad expression in his eyes, and I just shake my head at him.
There's a knock on the door at just the right time.
Kennedy glances to me, asking, "I'm not expecting company. Are you?"
I shake my head at her, and so she dramatically hauls herself up off the bed before making her way across the room.
Bryce and I watch as she pulls the door open, but she only gets it about halfway open before her hands fly to cover her mouth.
As soon as she sees whoever is standing in the doorway she falls to the ground, dropping to her knees.
She begins to sob almost immediately. I'm fairly certain that words are coming out of her mouth, but the only thing that I'm able to decipher is the words 'jewels'.
That can't be right . . .
Jewels? Maybe she said 'Jules'.
Where have I hear that name before? It's not very common, but I could've sworn that I've heard or met someone with the name.
Oh my God!
Jules! Her ex-boyfriend from France!
Bryce seems to be extremely confused by the situation, but despite the fact that I know more about what's going on than he does, I think that I may be even more confused considering that as far as I know, Jules still lives in France.
"Who the fuck is that?" Bryce asks, and I elbow him in the side to keep his mouth shut as I'm hoping to hear some of this conversation.
I don't know why I bothered, because when Jules kneels down in front of Kennedy, taking her face in his hands, he begins speaking in French.
Duh, Lexi. They're from France. It's their native language. Why ehe heck would they speak English to each other?
Although I've taken French class at school for the past several years, Jules' words are too quick and his accent is too strong for me to understand a single thing that he had just said.
Meanwhile, Bryce is smirking at my frustration.
Stupid trilingual bastard.
Watching as Jules and Kennedy embrace, both of them still kneeling on the floor as Kennedy remains a sobbing mess, clinging to her ex-lover, I lean up to whisper in Bryce's ear, "What did he just say?"
Bryce gets a cocky grin on his face before he whispers back to me, "He told her that he missed her. And he called her an angel."
I nod, training my eyes back on Kennedy and Jules, listening as Kennedy rapidly responds to Jules in French as well.
Glancing back towards Bryce, he sighs loudly before telling me, "She just said that she missed him too."
I give him a grateful smile as I continue to watch Kennedy, finally able to understand her words when softly, she says, "Je t'aime plus que tout."
"She just said that she loves him more than anything," Bryce whispers and I just nod at him, not bothering to explain that I could figure that much out.
Before I know it, they're kissing.
Kennedy is still crying though, and since this is clearly such an emotional moment for them, I look away.
Staring up at Bryce I find that he still looks slightly perplexed. I spin around in his lap so that I'm facing him before explaining, "That's the ex-boyfriend from France that she was just talking about."
Bryce's eyes go absurdly wide. "I can't tell if you're joking or not."
One stern shake of my head is all it takes to convince him, and so he lets out another sigh as he looks back towards Jules and Kennedy.
Jules is back on his feet, helping Kennedy up off the ground. I notice that her cheeks are flushed a deep red, but I'm more focused on taking in Jules' appearance.
His eyes are a bright blue, such a vibrant colour that they nearly appear purple. His hair is a rich shade of chocolate brown, and he's wearing a black sweater and blue jeans.
Our eyes meet, and he pulls Kennedy into his arms before saying to me. "Hi. I am very sorry if I interrupted anything. My name is Jules."
Though his English is fluent, he has an extremely thick accent.
Wanting to be polite, I stand from Bryce's lap, taking a few steps towards Jules and Kennedy.
"Hi. I'm Lexi, Kennedy's roommate," I say, shaking Jules' hand after he held it out for me.
Kennedy is too busy running her fingers up and down Jules' chest, regarding him with teary eyes as if she can't believe that he's really here right now, to acknowledge me at all.
I don't blame her though, as if Bryce and I were in a similar situation of not seeing each other for such a long time, I'm sure he would be the only person in the room that mattered.
Kennedy eventually regains some of her composure, finally speaking again, but clearly not to me yet as she says something in French once more.
Bryce's chest is immediately pressed against my back, and in rapid French, he says something to Kennedy that I can't make out.
Jules looks up from me and towards Bryce, raising an eyebrow as I watch Kennedy's whole body go rigid.
"You speak our language very well. Not like the average English-speaker," Jules comments, and Bryce snorts.
Kennedy cuts in before Bryce has a chance to actually respond. "You've spoken perfect French this whole time?" she asks incredulously.
Bryce chuckles a little. "Bien sûr. It's as though I'm from Canada or something," he drawls.
Kennedy's eyes shoot to me instantaneously, and I'm sure all of the phone conversations that she's had in French while I was in the room are flashing through her mind as she asks, "Do you secretly speak French too, Lexi?"
I laugh, shaking my head at her. "No. Bryce is just kidding. Not all Canadians can speak French," I explain and Kennedy lets out a sigh of relief, joining me in laughing a little bit.
"Who are you?" Jules suddenly asks Bryce, whose hands find my waist as he tugs me back towards him in a protective gesture.
"Lexi's boyfriend," he responds bluntly, and Jules looks between Bryce and I for a moment.
"You seem like very different types of people," Jules comments, and Bryce lets out a frustrated groan.
"Why does everyone feel the need to shit on our relationship?" he asks, turning me around in his arms so that I'm now facing him.
I give him a smile and a small shake of my head, silently pleading for him to just save this conversation for later, when we're alone. He certainly doesn't seemed thrilled by this idea, but he seems to get the message as he purses his lips together, keeping his mouth shut.
"Do you guys want some time alone? I haven't gotten a chance to show Bryce around campus yet. I could come back in half an hour and we can work out our plans, or I can give you two the day alone," I offer, and Kennedy looks to me with a grin on her face.
"A little bit of time alone would be wonderful. You're the best, Lexi. I owe you," she says to me, and I take Bryce's hand in mine, guiding him out towards the door.
Jules takes a seat down on Kennedy's bed, and as soon as he's no longer looking at Bryce and I, I wink at Kennedy before mouthing the words, 'Have fun.'
She sticks her tongue out at me, and just as Bryce and I are about to step out of the room the door is pushed open the rest of the way by someone in the hallway.
"Kenz? Are you in here? Why is the door open?" Nathan asks, freezing in the doorway upon seeing the sight in front of him.
I can see the hurt in his eyes as he scans the dorm room, his gaze flickering between Jules and Kennedy.
Kennedy's hands are shaking as she raises them up to cover her face once more. She shakes her head to herself a few times, staring right back at Nathan as tears begin to pour down her cheeks again.
I wish I knew how to help her right now. I'm so damn sad for her, knowing that she was just so happy to see Jules again but is now crushed as she's forced to face the reality that she had been seeing someone else since then.
"Kenz? Who is he?" Nathan asks, his voice quivering even more than Kennedy's hands.
"Nate . . . this is Jules. He's my ex-boyfriend. He still lives in France. We broke up less than a year ago when I found out that I would be moving to attend school here," Kennedy whispers and Nathan steps farther into the room, past Bryce and I.
Kennedy and I make eye contact once more, and it's enough for me to tug on Bryce's hand, gesturing for us to leave the room.
We keep quiet until we're completely out of earshot from Nathan, Kennedy, and Jules, and the first thing Bryce says is, "What the fuck? We were just talking about the guy and then he fucking teleports from another goddamn continent? Are we in some shitty teen movie or something?"
I can't stop myself from giggling as we take a break from walking, pausing just before we reach the staircase. Bryce leans against a bare expanse of wall, and when he opens his arms I step into his embrace.
"I really have no clue how this all happened. It's completely bizarre. I feel so bad for Kennedy but I think that it would probably just make everything even more messy if I were to stay. I know how much she loves and missed Jules, and I think that his visit will make her really happy. I don't know what she's going to do about Nathan, though," I sigh, and Bryce begins to rub soothing circles against my back.
"This isn't your mess to clean up, Blossom. I know that you want to help your friend out, but you're doing the right thing by giving her space, baby girl," Bryce whispers, and I look up at him.
"You really think so?" I wonder, my voice faint.
Bryce nods, a smile ghosting his lips before he presses a kiss to the crown of my head.
"Let's go get some fresh air. I'd love to take a walk around your campus with you," he then suggests, and I beam up at him.
He somehow always manages to say the right thing.
A/N: I swear I don't love the drama, it loves me ;)
I have two things that I have to say and then I'm going to go and start writing the next chapter ASAP.
1) To clarify: Lexi and Bryce DID NOT do anal in the last chapter. Just a different position. Sorry for any confusion. Lol.
2) I posted character aesthetics in the first author's note of Something There. They've been up as of September 26th, 2019, so if you began reading Something There before then, go check them out now!
Who do you think Kennedy will choose? Nathan or Jules?