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Nine
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I spent the rest of the week studying and binge-watching TV shows, more of an attempt to stop thinking about him every second. In the span of one week, my journal was nearly running out of pages. A record-setting week. I kept writing everything and everything, about nature, about Jay, about college and lectures, about Jay, about mom and dad, and then about Jay and our kisses, about Drew and yes, about Jay again. I was dying to see him once again. All these questions in my head were begging for answers, keeping me on my toes, anxious, and restless.
God, the effect he has on me.
At some point, I felt like I should talk to Drew about him but I couldn't bring myself to, knowing he wouldn't be very pleased to hear the story, given that he'd even warned me against people like Jay. Drew was that one person who knew me inside-out, my strong tower of comfort ever since childhood but this time around, he didn't seem to be the right person to talk to. Or maybe I was just afraid that he'd say Jay is bad news for me.
Vanessa and I went with Drew and Jarvis to a birthday party on Sunday. The boy's parents had rented a night club for his big day and all through the week, every kid in college had been buzzing about it. Everybody was invited. Even the third year students came so it was a pretty big party. I got a text invitation too. Carli had gone out to be with Grayson with a promise that she would show up later on. I sat with Vanessa and some other girls for a while, talking, trying drinks, and later I joined Drew and Jarvis at the pool table, watching them play.
The dancefloor was packed with sweaty people, jumping and dancing, almost sticking to one another, making out. . . everybody looked high and on drugs. I figured it's the vibe of the club that makes people behave like this. Kids drink a shot and get higher than the mountain like they wouldn't last night. Screams and electro music from the DJ, blue and red laser lights jap at my heart but I found myself getting bored in such a turbulent place.
"Hey, look! Nathan is finally here. I've been looking for him," Vanessa gushed under her breath as she took another sip from the red cup in her hand.
"Who's Nathan?"
"Are you serious? Nathan from third year? He's like the hottest guy in campus like. . . seriously. You don't know him?!" Out of euphoria and infatuation, she crumples the cup in her hand, causing the liquid to squirt down her arm.
I moved away and gasped at her, "Are you serious?"
"This is what he does to me. I really can't."
In the next minute, I found myself checking out Nathan with Vanessa. He was handsome with the face of a heartbreaker and tall, but funnily, I further found myself comparing him to Jay. Vanessa was nearly passing out next to me, hand on her heart, while I watched Nathan even harder and tried to seek out that something, that core element which was supposed to capture my heart, that I found in Jay the very moment I laid eyes on him. I just didn't find it in Nathan. And then I wondered where Jay could be.
I hadn't thought of Jay's look at all before. I'd say Nathan had the kind of a beautiful face that's quite irresistible and arresting while every speck and feature of Jay seemed to cut and tear you into shreds with the way he looks at you, speaks to you, with the way he breathes. . . and the fact that he exists wouldn't leave you until he has disarmed you to the very last bit. Even the mere thought of him had my heart racing. I didn't want to admit it but I knew I missed him.
Vanessa and I stalked Nathan on Instagram for a while as she sighs and cries over each of his pictures. Carli finally arrived with Grayson and she spotted us at the table. I went to get us drinks and when I came back, I accidentally knocked into, out of all the people, Nathan, spilling the drinks all over his shirt.
"Oh, no! I'm so sorry! I didn't see you! Really sorry. I'll go get some tissue for you."
"No. That's alright."
He looked at my face for a moment and slowly tilts his lips to form a cocky smile. He looked even better up close, catching me dazed for a second. Vanessa wasn't just saying. He was truly attractive.
"Sorry again."
"No worries." He shrugged and removed his shirt at once, suddenly standing half-naked in front of my eyes, broad chest, and all that eye-candy stuff.
What the fuck.
"I haven't seen you before," he said in a sultry tone, blinking deliberately as he stepped closer to me.
I leaned away. "First year."
"I'm Nathan."
"Yeah. I know. I mean. . . um. I've heard of it. . ."
"Stalking me, huh?"
"No! Absolutely not. It's just that. . . a lot of people know you."
"Is that so?" He stepped even closer to me and I was sure he was definitely flirting with me.
I gotta get out of here.
"I guess? I gotta go. See ya." With that, I turned on my heels and went back to the bar to get the drinks again.
Having nearly caught stalking him, my heartbeat raced inside and it definitely didn't help when a palm slammed down on the bar right in front of me, accompanied by Jay's voice right above my head, awakening my sleeping senses.
"Lola."
I jumped, sucking my breath in loudly, and came eye to eye with Jay's consuming eyes, trained on me hawk-like. Any hawk-eye should do well frightening me but ironically, I felt over the moon at the sight of them. Seeing him again after so long, out of the blue, unexpectedly, hiked my spirit all at once but I tried not to show it. I wouldn't say the party had been fun for me previously.
"What are you doing here?" I asked him.
"I'm here to make sure college kids don't misbehave and burn down my place."
"Your place?"
With a small smirk on his lips, he replied, "I run this place."
Hardly believing it, I looked around at the club. It was a big place and it certainly didn't look like someone as young as Jay would run it.
"No. You don't run this place."
"Ask him?" He motioned to the bartender.
"He runs this place," the bartender said.
"Okay?" I slowly nodded to Jay, accepting my defeat.
Wearing a faint smile, he settled down on a stool. I did too while the bartender poured us drinks.
"So, you own this place?" I asked him again.
"No. Ricardo owns the place. I'm only running it for him."
"Okay."
Grasping the glass in his hand, he placed his elbows on the counter, leaned forward and stared directly at my face, inches away as if he was going to whisper something right above my lips. I held my breath and let them out slowly, trying to get used to the proximity between us.
"How have you been, Lola?" He asked in a low drawl, soft, and calm.
"I've been good."
"I haven't seen you for days."
"Yeah. What have you been up to?"
"Running errands."
"For days?"
"It happens. I returned just this evening with Fabio."
"What kind of errands take that long?"
A small smile appeared on his lips again and he returned with a slight shake of his head, "I can't tell you everything, Lola."
"Secret business, is it?"
"Hmm. Could be. Does it scare you?"
"I don't know. Should I be?"
He looked away and stared at the glass in front of him, thoughtfully running the pad of his middle finger on its rim. "You could be. But you're brave, right?"
"Not always."
Without further questions, he simply stared at my face for long moments like he always did. And as always, it made me very nervous.
"Don't stare at me like that."
"Did you want to see me?"
The question instantly made me blush. I remained quiet and stared at him tongue-tied, the throbbing in my chest rising rapidly. It hadn't been very stable since he appeared anyway. Of course, I had been dying to see him but I didn't have the gut to tell him that. I swallowed while he watched my face meticulously, not letting a single breath slip from the watch of his intense gaze.
"Why do you ask?"
"I could be curious."
"But you're not sure? I don't have to answer if you're not that curious, right?"
With a soft laugh, he took my hand from the table and got down from the stool. Without further exchange of words, he led me into the crowd and I followed suit. We ran into Vanessa who, tipsy and shouting over the music, asked me where our drinks were. But when she saw that I was with Jay, she zipped her mouth shut and swallowed all her questions.
"Oh, alright. I'll just go get them myself. Have fun!"
"You too. I'll see you later."
"Sure." She winked openly and pointed her forefingers back and forth between me and Jay excitedly. She was definitely drunk.
In the next minute, I followed Jay up the stairs and came to the lounge area overlooking the dancefloor. Occupied with expensive couches and champagne glasses on the long stretch of dark tables, people looked less sweaty up here and less drunk as they chattered and laughed. The height even seemed to drown out the ear-shattering blast of the music below.
Fabio, Pascal, and some other people sat crowding around a table stashed with money and cards. Pascal, eyes drowsy with a stick of smoke in his lips, rubbed his forehead indecisively while the rest waited eagerly with laughter for him to reveal his cards. I assumed he was heading for a dead end. Jay and I stood by the railing and peered down to the crowd below.
"We could see everything from up here."
"Yeah. I was watching you from here."
I turned to him with a small frown on my forehead, asking for an explanation. With a slight curve on his lips, he went to the table and poured two glasses of the sparkly drink for us. I turned 18 only two months ago but I knew champagne as much as water. Mom and Dad always drank it at home and ever since I turned thirteen, I'd been allowed to take a sip from Mom's glass. Later when I finally hit sixteen, I was fully given the approval to drink a glass with them and only at home. So, I've been drinking it for a long time now and I loved it.
He watched me drink it and then stated, "You're not new to champagne, are you?"
"No. I drink it with my parents."
"What do your parents do?"
Here comes the part I hate.
Once I drop the facts, people tend to see me as that privileged, protected cotton ball who knows nothing about life and hardship, as if I've only been attending high-end parties all my life, shopping, and all that good stuff. It was also true in a lot of ways and I was embarrassed about it too. But I wasn't entirely only that.
My parents tend to take things too far with the idea of keeping their eyes out for me, handing things to me. Sure they were only trying to make sure I get the best but it didn't work too well when I wanted to make friends. Nobody was really my friend, except Drew. And sometimes, even Drew came as another set of my-parents, always going on about protecting me. I had an elder sister, Gwen, but she was six years older than me so, she graduated high school and left home when I was twelve. I had to grow up without her.
Anyway, I didn't answer Jay for a while but he waited, keeping his eyes on me, so I said, "Mom teaches in a university. Dad represents our District. He's a Democrat."
"Your mom teaches in a university and you don't go there."
"No."
"Why?"
"Because Mom's there."
His face finally split up to give the widest smile so far. Pascal appeared on my other side, blowing the smoke from his mouth in the air. Jay reached over my shoulder and pushed Pascal's face away from me.
"Don't smoke this way."
"It's just weed!"
"So, turn that way before I kick your ass."
"Alright."
I gave him a curious look and he explained, "Even the smoke could get you high."
"I didn't know that."
He leaned forward on the railing just as he did at the bar below and faced me again, up close.
"So, would you like to come home with me tonight? My place."
I didn't freak out but I stopped breathing. All at once again, my heartbeat picked up its pace. I felt my mouth open to answer him but I couldn't exactly form a sentence.
"Um. . ." My empty hand went up to my nape to scratch it as I pondered over it. "I don't know. I have classes tomorrow. I shouldn't even be partying tonight but. . ."
I stopped rambling when I saw him staring at me like he couldn't believe what I was saying. There was amusement in his eyes as he listened to me rattle on about college and why that's the reason for me to not stay over at his place. Apparently, he hadn't many friends who actually care about college and it amused him how attached I was to attending classes and getting my degree. For some reason, I got embarrassed.
I had half-expected him to laugh at me but instead, he said, "No problem. I'll drop you off to your dorm."
That sweetly surprised me and I found myself smiling back at him. "Okay."
Returning the smile, he came closer and latched his lips on mine. My eyes fell shut at once and the touch of his lips took my breath away. I opened my mouth and let him kiss me deeper. My mind whirled like a raging wind at the raw taste of his tongue on mine, strong and passionate. I held my breath and tried to block out the sounds threatening to come out from my throat but they made through. I couldn't suppress them when it's Jay I'm with.
Kissing me harder, he moved away from the railing and stood straight while my arms went around his neck, spilling the drinks from my glass to the floor. In the middle of the night, in the club, he wrapped his arms around my waist, pulled me closer to his body and we stood kissing each other. At that moment, nothing else mattered but us and the raging fire between us.
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Hope y'all enjoyed this chapter!
You'll find the next two chapters on Inkitt, and stay safe! ❤
Love, Hermyne