xoxoxox

Tangled

Chapter 6: The Terror Squad

xoxoxox

The next morning I awoke feeling anxious and confused. As I showered and dressed, I wondered if perhaps it was becoming a permanent condition. I still didn’t really know what to make of Kobe or our first date. I’d never met anyone else, particularly a guy, who intrigued me so much. His behavior at the party on Friday, and during our date yesterday, had led me to believe that there was so much more to him than just that glacial, prickly pear exterior. Granted, he wasn’t really much of a talker, but as we’d stood on the deck of that ship gazing up at the stars, there hadn’t really been much to say anyway.

It was odd, though. He’d agreed to go out with me, but getting information from him was like pulling teeth. Most people would gladly take any given opportunity to sell themselves--a date, a job interview, whatever. It was human nature. But with Kobe it was the exact opposite, and that fact only served to make him more of an enigma. Was he actually hiding something, or was he just one of those people who jealously guarded their privacy?

I thought about him on my way to Jordan’s dorm, which was on the complete opposite side of campus from mine, stopping only to pick up a breve and a chai latte for Jordan from Starbucks.

By the time I reached Jordan’s dorm, I was no more closer to solving the mystery that was Kobe than I had been when I’d first woken up.

Even though I was carrying two hot drinks and feeling lazy as sin, I still chose the stairs instead of the elevator. I scaled the four flights without even breaking a sweat, but then nearly ran into Ross, Jordan’s roommate, when I was coming out of the stairwell. I had to stop so abruptly to avoid crashing into him that I almost lost my grip on Jordan’s latte.

Thankfully, Ross reached out to steady me and I managed to hold onto the cup, though some of the scalding liquid spilled onto my hand during the process.

“Oww,” I said with a wince.

“You okay?” Ross asked, peering down at me with concern from his towering height of nearly seven feet. “Sorry I almost plowed you over. I wasn’t watching where I was going.”

“It’s all right.” I waved the hand holding my breve dismissively. “It happens to me all the time. I’m like a magnet for catastrophe.”

Ross chuckled, shaking his head. “Jordan told me about a few of the incidents during chem lab. He said he’s amazed you haven’t blown yourself up by now.”

“Oh, did he?” I asked, eyes narrowing. “Well, I may be clumsy, but I’m still the smarter half of our duo, and don’t you forget it!”

Ross just snickered. “Anyway, I’ve gotta jet. He just got out of the shower, so give him a minute. Later!”

“Later.”

Feeling mildly irritated, I made my way to their dorm room, which was at the far end of the hall. When I reached it, I discovered that the door was partially ajar. Taking that as a sign that Jordan was probably finished getting dressed, I pushed it open fully with my foot.

“So, I hear that you’ve been telling your friends scandalous lies about—“

I broke off in consternation, feeling heat rush into my cheeks.

Jordan was standing next to his bed, completely naked except for a damp, white towel slung low across his hips. His hair was still wet, and as we stared at each other in surprise, I noted absently that the ends were dripping onto his shoulders. I watched, captivated, as a drop of water trailed down his chest, across his taut abdomen, and disappeared into the terrycloth material of the towel. He was perhaps a bit too thin for his height, but his body was impressive--firm and toned without being ripped like those guys on the covers of muscle magazines.

“Oh, my God, I’m so sorry!” I exclaimed, backing up a step. Inexplicably, my throat suddenly felt as dry as the Sahara. “I’ll just—“

“No, it’s okay,” he said, gesturing for me to enter. “Come in and sit down. I’ll go change in the bathroom.”

“Um…okay…” Swallowing nervously, I stepped into the room. “I brought you a chai.”

He smiled, his hazel eyes crinkling in the corners. “Thanks. You can put it on the desk, if you want. I’ll be back in a sec.”

He gathered up a pile of clothes and left the room.

The moment he stepped into the hallway, I released a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding. Whoa. That’d been crazy. I’d never seen Jordan in anything less than a T-shirt and shorts before. He wasn’t quite as scrawny as he looked in clothes.

I placed his latte on his desk and sank down onto the edge of his bed, sipping on my breve as I waited for him to come back.

A sick, anxious feeling had started in the pit of my belly and was spreading upward toward the region of my heart. I wanted to be able to talk honestly with Jordan, but I was somewhat nervous about how he was going to react to the whole situation. Would he be angry or understanding? I hoped for the latter. I didn’t want him to be upset when he heard about what I had done. It’s not as if it hadn’t happened under extenuating circumstances.

He entered the room a few minutes later dressed in loose-fitting jeans and a button-up white shirt. In the back his hair was long enough to touch his collar, but his jagged bangs had been trimmed so that they just barely brushed his cheekbones.

I watched silently as he crossed the room and grabbed his glasses off the desk. He put them on, pushing them up the bridge of his nose with his forefinger, and turned to look at me.

“So, to what do I owe the pleasure?” he asked, leaning back against the desk.

I chewed my lip uncertainly. My stomach felt as if it had been twisted into knots. “Oh, Jordan, I am on a shame spiral!”

He blinked at me. “What?”

“You remember what I told you on Friday? About Jennifer trying to set me up?”

He straightened, his eyes narrowing slightly. “Yeah?”

Unable to hold his gaze, I looked down at my breve, agitatedly twisting the lid just to occupy my hands. “Well…I did something stupid that night…and now I need your advice…”

“What do you mean? What kind of advice?”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jordan move over to his roommate’s bed and sit down.

“Okay…so, you know that guy Kobe from my work, right?”

“Umm…that asshole guy? The one who you said was mean to you all the time?”

I nodded with a wince. “Yeah…him…”

“What about him?”

“Well, Jennifer and I went to this frat party on Friday night and he was there…” Sighing, I forced myself to stop fidgeting with the cup and continued, “Anyway, I got really drunk…and I found him asleep in the basement…and, well, long story short…IkindofkissedhimandpretendedtohaveacrushonhimtogetJenniferoffmyback…”

I said the last portion in such a breathless rush that it came out more like one long word than a sentence. In the silence that followed, I finally made myself look up at Jordan.

He was staring at me with an inscrutable expression on his face. “Care to repeat that in English?”

This time I kept my eyes on his. “I kissed him. I pretended to like him to get Jennifer off my back. I even went on a date with him last night…”

I watched Jordan’s gaze grow more disbelieving with each word that passed my lips. By the time I finished, he’d looked away from me. He was staring unseeingly at his blank computer screen, and I could tell from a muscle ticking in his jaw that he was clenching his teeth, something he only did when he was worried or upset.

“Jordan?”

He jerked slightly, as if startled, and glanced back at me. His eyes looked several shades darker than normal.

“I kept trying to tell him the truth while we were out,” I said, feeling the need to explain myself. “All day yesterday I had planned to tell him the truth, but when it came down to it, I couldn’t work up the nerve. He’s…not what I thought he was. I didn’t know how to tell him without insulting him. And now I just…I don’t know what to do…”

I got to my feet and went over to put my drink on the desk next to Jordan’s untouched chai. “I’m stuck right now. I don’t want to lie to him or Jennifer…but if I just go on two more dates with him, I can be out of this entire mess.” Reaching up to flick my bangs off my forehead, I looked at Jordan again. “Do you think that maybe I should just…I don’t know…not say anything and go out with him a couple more times? Or should I tell him the truth and hope he’ll still go out with me anyway? I mean, he might actually like me, right? I asked him out and he said yes. That has to mean something. Maybe he’ll understand…”

“Aidan…” Jordan looked poleaxed. He shook his head, as if trying to clear his thoughts. “You kissed him…”

“I--”

“You have to tell him the truth,” Jordan interrupted firmly, his mouth set in a grim line. “I mean, you’ve never said anything good about this guy…and now all of a sudden you’re going to date him just to pull one over on your best friend? How selfish is that? I don’t like the guy, but he deserves to know your real motives. If at that point, he agrees to go out with you anyway, then that’s different. But this…it isn’t right…”

“Jordan…it’s not…I do want to tell him…” Frustrated, I started to pace the middle of the room. “I just don’t know how to tell him…at least not without the risk of possibly hurting his feelings…”

“Why do you care about his feelings?” Jordan asked flatly. “I seem to recall you saying that you couldn’t stand this guy. Now you’re worried about hurting him?”

“He’s not like I thought he was,” I said, stopping in the center of the room. “He was nice to me. He took me on a mini-cruise, for Christ’s sake, and he paid for everything even though I was the one who asked him out. Maybe he’s not a total jerk, okay? He’s decent.”

“I can’t believe this,” Jordan said with a laugh. “You’ve been talking shit about Kobe since the beginning of the semester. You guys have even placed bets on him. And now, after only one date, your opinion of him has suddenly pulled a total one-eighty? He paid for dinner, so that makes the guy a saint?”

“That’s not what I’m saying, Jordan.” I glared at him. “Kobe is no angel, I know that for a fact. But he wasn’t mean to me. He didn’t shoot me down when he had the chance. I think that says something about his character.”

“Well, I think you’re just deluding yourself,” Jordan said softly, his voice frostier than I’d ever heard it. “I can’t understand how you could say no to me and then go out with that cold-blooded asshole…how you could kiss him the same day you told me that Jennifer would never believe that you and I were a couple…”

“That isn’t fair. I had good reasons for--”

“Aidan,” Jordan cut in before I could finish. “You came to me for advice, and I gave it to you. I know that you’re just going to do what you want anyway, so why are we even having this discussion?”

“But, Jordan, I--”

“Look, you should go. We have a game tonight, and I have a few assignments to finish beforehand.”

I snapped my mouth shut with a frown. This hadn’t gone at all like I’d hoped. Maybe he hadn’t been the right person to talk to about this, but there wasn’t anyone else I could go to. I’d known there was a chance he would get upset, but I’d never imagined him getting so angry with me. He’d never spoken to me in that icy, abrupt voice before. That was more Kobe’s style than his.

“I’m sorry, Jordan,” I said finally, meeting his gaze. “You’re my only friend other than Jennifer. I didn’t have anyone else to turn to for help…”

He stared at me for a long moment, his wounded eyes making me feel as guilty as if I’d just kicked a puppy. “Do the right thing, Aidan.”

I nodded slowly, then turned and left the room.

xoxoxox

My meeting with Jordan made me miserable for the rest of the day. I made it through work without incident, although Jennifer kept shooting me strange looks throughout the night. Luckily, Kobe got off about an hour after I started, so I didn’t have to deal with his presence while I agonized over what Jordan had said.

By the time my shift was over, I’d decided that I had to talk to Kobe tonight. Jordan was right--I should tell him the truth. It was wrong to go into this under false pretenses.

On the walk back to the dorm, I asked Jennifer for his room number.

She arched a brow at me. “You mean you went on a date with him and you still don’t know where he lives?”

I looked at her incredulously. “Hey, I’m no psyhco stalker, man. It’s not like I followed him home.”

Jennifer rolled her eyes. “No, but you could have asked. What about his phone number? Did you get that at least?”

The expression on my face made Jennifer sigh.

“Oh, Aidan, you’re hopeless.”

“Are you going to give me his room number or what?” I asked, feeling annoyed.

“It’s 428. But why do you need it right now?”

“I’m going to see him after I change.”

“Oooh.” Jennifer gave me a knowing look. “And why exactly would you be visiting him this late at night?”

I glared at her. “Get your mind out of the gutter. It’s nothing like that. I just need to talk to him…”

“Mmm-hmm…”

“Oh, shut up.“ I shook my head, exasperated. “I’m just barely getting used to the sensation of a guy’s tongue in my mouth. I consider that a huge step. I’m nowhere near ready to let him stick anything anywhere else.”

Jennifer laughed.

“Besides,” I said, shoving her playfully. “We’re not all sluts like you.”

xoxoxox

Once we were in our room, I changed into a tank top, loose-fitting lounge pants, and a black hoodie. I put my hair into a messy ponytail, slipped on my flip-flops, and headed to Kobe’s room in the east tower.

The towers were connected by an underground tunnel which housed the laundry and maintenance rooms. It was dimly lit and creepy. The only sounds were the occasional clang of a pipe overhead and the echoing slaps of my flip-flops striking the concrete.

I rushed through the tunnel, helpless to prevent myself from occasionally throwing a paranoid glance over my shoulder. It was after midnight on a Sunday, so the entire area was deserted. It reminded me of something from some cheesy, teenage slasher flick. I halfway expected Jason Voorhees to jump out at me from behind one of the closed doors, “chi chi chi, ha ha ha” theme music and all.

All of this, mixed with my anxiety about talking to Kobe, had me totally on edge by the time I reached the opposite end of the tunnel. I automatically bypassed the elevators and started up the stairs, my reason for ordinarily avoiding the east tower forgotten in my distraction.

I was halfway up the stairs between the second and third floors when something whizzed passed my head, brushed my shoulder, and hit the ground beside me with a loud splat. I felt something cold splash against my bare toes and pant-legs, and instinctively jumped aside with a shriek.

Laughter from overhead drew my startled gaze and I looked up to see two guys leaning over the railing. They were sneering, obviously amused by my terror, and I noticed that they were holding what looked like fist-sized, multi-colored balls.

Abruptly, I snapped out of my shock. “What the hell is the matter with you, fucktard?! I could have fallen down the stairs!”

“Looks like we’ve got a live one,” one of them mockingly.

“Well, you know I like ‘em feisty,” the other said with a chuckle. “Isn’t that right, Johnny?”

My eyes widened when I realized he was looking at something behind me. Before I could turn around, I felt a hard body press against my back and sweaty fingers encircle my right wrist in a vice-like grip.

“Yep,” a voice said, too close to my ear for comfort. “I love a girl with a backbone.”

“Oh, no,” I whispered, feeling the blood drain from my face. “The Terror Squad.”

“That’s right,” said the voice behind me, pressing closer. “You didn’t think this was called Terror Tower for nothing, did you?”

Wincing, I tried to pull away from him. “Let me go.”

“Not a chance.”

“Yeah, we haven’t finished with you yet,” said one of the guys above me.

“Well, I’m on my way to see my boyfriend on the fourth floor,” I lied in my snobbiest voice, wishing my hair was down so I could toss it like Jennifer would. “He already knows I’m on my way, so he’s bound to come looking for me if I don’t show up in the next few minutes.”

“That’s all the time we need,” the guy behind me sneered in my ear, his hot breath washing over my cheek.

I cringed, trying to tug my wrist out of his grasp. “Let me go, you asshole!”

He just laughed, his grip tightening until I cried out in pain.

While he squeezed my wrist and pressed himself against me, my mind raced, searching for a way out of the situation. My flip-flops weren’t sturdy enough to do any damage, so I couldn’t stomp on his foot. The only option I could see was elbowing him in the stomach with my free arm and running like hell. That was, if I could manage to pull my other arm out of his grasp.

As agitated as I was, I didn’t really stop to think about where exactly I’d be running to. I was trapped on the stairs between him and the other two guys. There really wasn’t anywhere for me to go, but I wasn’t about to stand here placidly while these guys terrorized me.

Without another moment’s hesitation, I jammed my elbow back into his stomach with all my strength and yanked my right arm forward.

He doubled over with an, “Oof,” his fingers slipping off of my wrist.

Panicked, I took the opportunity for what it was worth and starting hauling ass up the stairs.

I didn’t recognize my mistake until I felt something squishy strike my abdomen with a moist smack.

Caught off guard, I screamed, my hands immediately flying to my abdomen. I looked down in horror, my eyes widening when I realized that my tank top and hoodie were dripping wet.

Something red and rubbery was clinging to the black material of my hoodie. I pulled it off with trembling fingers, my cheeks flaming red with embarrassment and rage when I finally made out what it was.

Water ballons! It was after midnight, and three guys had me trapped in a stairwell, and they were throwing water balloons at me, of all things. The situation was so preposterous I almost wanted to laugh.

Almost. The urge fled as swiftly as it had come as I felt another balloon fly passed my head and explode against the wall beside me. Cold water splashed over my face and hair, and before I’d had any time to react, another balloon struck me right in the chest.

I shrieked, stumbling back, and felt myself enveloped in a tight, unyielding hold.

“Let me go!!” I yelled, struggling against his grasp.

“Shut up!”

I opened my mouth to scream again, but the sound was cut off halfway when he clapped a damp palm over my lips.

“I said, shut up, you fucking cunt!”

He pushed me against the wall roughly, keeping his hand over my mouth.

I whimpered, feeling tears of anger and humiliation fill my eyes as he pressed himself against my backside, grinding me into the wall.

“Do you like that?” he hissed viciously into my ear. “I bet you do, bitch. You’re nothing more than a stupid, little slut, aren’t you?”

I could hear the other two laughing scornfully as I squeezed my eyes shut, feeling hot tears leak out onto my cheeks. He was holding me so tightly it felt like I couldn’t breath. My lungs were burning. My heart was pounding in a violent, triphammer rhythm, the sound echoing through my skull.

My vision grew hazy, my head started to spin, and I felt like I was on the verge on passing out when the laughter stopped abruptly and I heard a familiar voice speak behind me.

“If you value your life, you will let her go right now.”

Never in my life would I have ever thought I’d be so grateful to hear that icy tone. But it wasn’t his normal frigid voice. This voice was soft, colder than ice, and as deadly as the lifeless eyes of a shark.

The guy who was pressing himself against my back released me as if he’d been scalded.

“Sorry, Iceman,” I heard him say nervously. “We didn’t know she was yours.”

“Get the fuck out of here before I rip your dick off,” another voice said. This one was deep and feral, almost a growl.

I heard a scramble of feet and peered cautiously over my shoulder.

The Terror Squad was gone. Only Kobe stood directly behind me. Raymond, Jennifer’s ex-boyfriend, was standing a few steps up. His was the second voice I had heard. It fit him perfectly. He had the huge, bulky frame of a linebacker with monstrous biceps and thighs nearly as thick as tree trunks. He was so massive that I’d been somewhat afraid of him when we first met. Now I was so relieved to see him that I nearly started crying.

Wordlessly, Kobe held out a hand to me. I turned around to face him fully and took it.

He glanced at Raymond. “Thanks. I’ve got it from here.”

Raymond nodded, then lumbered up the steps, his heavy footfalls resounding through the stairwell.

Kobe’s steel-colored eyes met mine. “Are you all right?”

“I…I don’t…I’m not…”

“Come on.”

I let him guide me and somehow, without really seeing where I was going, I managed to make it into his room and over to his bed before I burst into tears. Covering my face with my hands, I sank onto the edge of the mattress and cried, my sobs bordering on hysteria.

“You m-must think I’m s-so stupid,” I stammered in a muffled voice. “It was just a j-joke, right? They just threw some water b-balloons at me…and he didn’t do anything more than grind himself against me…b-but I was so scared…I was so afraid that he m-might actually h-hurt me…”

I heard a movement and eventually forced myself to lower my hands. I didn’t really want to see the expression on his face, I knew it would probably be disgust at my weakness, but I wasn’t a complete coward.

I opened my eyes to see Kobe standing in front of me. There was no aversion on his face, nor was there any sympathy. His gray eyes were completely dispassionate as they stared down at me.

“Here,” he said, holding out a white bundle. “I’ll step out of the room while you change into this. Your shirt is soaked.”

“Th-Thanks.” I accepted the bundle from him with trembling fingers.

True to his word, he turned on his heel and left the room.

Once I’d heard the door click softly shut, I got to my feet and stripped off my tank top and hoodie. I shook out the material he’d given me and discovered that it was a plain white T-shirt.

Tossing my wet clothes onto the floor, I pulled it over my head. It was huge on me, falling nearly to the middle of my thighs, but the fabric was soft and smelled clean.

I took a moment to calm myself, forcing my choppy breathing into a more normal rhythm, and then went over to open the door.

Kobe was leaning against the opposite wall, one knee drawn up. He straightened upon seeing me and crossed the narrow hallway.

“Sorry it took so long,” I said as he entered the room. “Where should I put my clothes?”

He inclined his head toward the front of the room. “Just lay them flat on the radiator over there.”

I followed his instructions, finally taking the time to glance around as I did so.

He had been lucky enough to get one of the rare single rooms (there was only one every other floor). It was slightly smaller than the one I shared with Jennifer, but he had it completely decked out. His desk and dresser were set up against the window. His full-size bed was pushed up against the right wall. Across from it, he had a small entertainment center complete with plasma television, DVD player, and surround-sound speakers. Beside the entertainment center was a waist-high table upon which sat a mixer, a set of turntables, and a variety of other expensive-looking equipment, including a laptop and a pair of Bose headphones. Beneath it I could see nearly a dozen stacked crates filled practically to overflowing with both vinyl records and CDs.

“Whoa,” I said, kneeling down to peer at the titles. The sheer quantity of albums was enough to temporarily distract me from my earlier trauma.

“This is quite a collection.” I looked at him over my shoulder. “Do you just do this in your spare time or are you actually a DJ?”

“Both.”

With one last glance at the crates, I stood and brushed off my knees. “Sorry to be so nosy. I’d noticed that you’re into music, but I had no idea how much…”

I moved over to the bed and sat down again, nervously drumming my fingers on the tops of my thighs as I looked around. A mid-sized refrigerator and microwave sat at the end of the bed. Beyond them I could see his closet and all of the clothes hanging neatly inside.

“So…do you just DJ at parties or…?”

“Sometimes.” He went over to his desk chair and spun it around to face me, then took a seat. “I also spin at Nitro from midnight to two several nights a week.”

My eyes widened in surprise. “Really? After you’re finished at Lawry’s?”

He nodded.

“You must have a lot of energy,” I said with a laugh. “Between classes and work, I barely have enough time for homework, let alone anything else.”

Kobe stared at me for a long moment. I did my best not to fidget, but the intense scrutiny of his gaze was starting to make me uncomfortable. I knew I probably looked a mess. Whenever I cry, my eyes swell and my face turns a splotchy purplish-red that clashes horribly with my hair. What can I say? I’ve never mastered the science of crying prettily. That seemed to be a talent only models and actresses possessed.

“Why are you here, Aidan?” he asked suddenly.

Unsurprised by the question, I bit my lip, remembering. I had come to confess. It was the right thing to do, as Jordan had said. But as I sat there on his bed, wearing his T-shirt, with those steady gray eyes on me, I couldn’t bring myself to do it. He’d saved me from The Terror Squad. He’d been thoughtful enough to give me something to change into after he’d noticed that my clothes were wet. That, combined with my growing fascination with him, was enough to hold me back.

“I wanted to see you,” I answered eventually.

“You saw me at work,” he stated flatly.

“Yes, but I wanted to talk to you…”

He leaned back in his chair with an unreadable expression. “About what?”

“Anything,” I replied, trying my best to look earnest. “Everything.”

He tilted his head, his steel-colored eyes moving over my face. “Why?”

“I like you.”

“So you’ve said.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “Prove it.”

I gaped at him. “What?”

“Actions speak louder than words,” Kobe said simply. “If you like me, then show me.”

I just stared at him, incredulous. How dare he? Who did he think he was? And after what I had just been through. Why should I have to prove anything? Never mind the fact that I’d been lying when I’d originally said it in the first place. He didn’t know that. And, given that fact, he had a very strange way of treating girls who liked him. I couldn’t tell if he was just naturally suspicious, or simply looking for someone to stoke his ego.

“My word isn’t good enough for you?” I frowned, feeling anger build inside me and knowing that it wasn’t entirely directed at him. “Why should I have to go out of my way to prove anything to you? You haven’t given me even the slightest clue how you feel about me.”

“You started this.” Kobe’ s eyes were fixed on mine. “You kissed me, remember? You asked me out.”

“Well, then,” I said challengingly. “Isn’t that enough proof for you?”

An unnamable emotion (amusement maybe?) passed over his perfect features. “I suppose so.”

“Then maybe you’re the one with something to prove,” I said, my eyes flashing as I lifted my chin.

“Well, if you put it that way, I guess I am.”

I watched curiously as he got to his feet and started walking toward me.

He stopped right in front of me, so close that I had to crane my neck back to look up at him.

“So,” he murmured, leaning down so that his face was level with mine. “How do you suggest I do that?”

“Um,” I said nervously, instinctively moving back as he braced his hands on either side of my hips.

“Well…” Trailing off, I swallowed thickly. He was close, his lips just a hairsbreadth away from mine. I could feel the warmth of his breath on my skin, but unlike with the guy in the stairwell, it didn‘t make me shudder in revulsion. It made a strange, shivery sensation pass through me. “I…I don’t know…”

“I do.” With those two words, he leaned forward and captured my lips with his.

The touch of his mouth sent what felt like a lightning bolt through my body. I whimpered at the first sensuous sweep of his tongue, my lips parting automatically.

He kissed me long and slow, savoring my mouth like a juicy Georgia peach.

At first I kissed him back timidly, then with more confidence, my fingers coming up to toy with the baby-soft hair at his nape. This felt nice, more than nice. He tasted good--not like Hot Sex anymore, but something minty and sweet.

Eventually, when the need for air forced us apart, I pressed my forehead against his and said, “You’re only the second boy I’ve ever kissed…but I think I could get used to kissing you…”

I felt a tremor go through him and pulled back to look at his face in alarm.

This time the amusement on was clearly written on his features.

“You’re laughing at me.” I pushed at his chest, feeling indignant. “Don’t laugh.”

He pulled away and settled beside me on the bed, lips curved upward in the tiniest hint of a smirk. “Sorry. It’s just…you’re cute, especially when you’re angry.”

I turned to glare at him. “Are you being condescending?”

“No.”

I eyed him suspiciously. “You tricked me, didn’t you? By asking me to prove that I like you, I mean. You just wanted to rile me up…or maybe you were just trying to sidetrack me…”

He merely looked back at me, his gray eyes lighter than I’d ever seen them.

“You’re a jerk, you know,” I informed him in the haughtiest voice I could muster.

“Yeah, well, you like me anyway.”

I couldn’t think of a comeback for that, so I turned huffily away, but found that somehow I was grinning despite myself. I was starting to wonder if perhaps I did like him. He was one surprise after another, and everything that I learned about him just fueled the fire of curiosity burning inside of me.

“They won’t bother you again,” he said after a long moment.

I glanced at him sideways. “Thank you for rescuing me. I’m not sure what I would’ve done if you hadn’t shown up…”

He shook his head dismissively. “They need to be stopped. They’re going to go too far one day.”

“Hasn’t anyone complained?” I asked with interest. If they’d been pulling stunts like this since the beginning of the semester, it seemed odd that the university hadn’t done anything about it yet.

“Yes, but most people don’t. Probably too scared of retaliation.”

“Well, that sucks, because they’re a real bunch of assholes.”

Kobe smirked slightly.

“Why don’t they mess with you?” I asked, arching a brow. “They seemed terrified of you, actually.”

“Raymond and I have had a few run-ins with them in the past,” he said simply. “We’ve never lost.”

Hmm. Well, that was interesting. I’d never really pegged him as the fighting type. But, then, he did have that frosty, “I’m going to rip out your spleen and shove it down your throat” look down to an art.

“How did you know what was going on?” I questioned, absently reaching out to toy with the hem of the shirt I wore.

“Everyone heard the screaming. Raymond and I are the only ones who ever actually do anything about it.”

I bit my lip. So, Kobe had hidden knight in shining armor tendencies, and I wasn’t the first damsel in distress he had rescued. How interesting. He really was a fascinating specimen.

“Do you want me to walk you back?” he asked, jarring me out of my thoughts. “It’s getting late.”

My gaze went to the clock on his desk. It was nearly fifteen minutes after two.

“Holy shit!” I exclaimed, bolting upright. How could two hours have gone by so fast? “Jennifer’s probably wondering where the hell I am.”

Kobe slid off the bed and went over to the radiator to grab my clothes. “You can just keep the shirt,” he said, handing them to me. “Ready to go?”

I nodded and he led the way out of the room.

We walked to the east tower in silence. When we reached my room, I unlocked the door and glanced up at him. “Thanks again.”

Smiling shyly, I started to turn away, but his voice stopped me before I could open the door.

“Aidan?”

Biting my lip, I faced him again, wondering if he wanted another kiss. Not that I’d mind, of course. He apparently knew what he was doing. No need to worry about gagging or throwing up with him. I was kind of starting to like the whole kissing thing, actually. It seemed to be very enjoyable when done properly.

“I’m spinning at Nitro at midnight on Tuesday,” he said abruptly. “Do you want to come? I can have you put on the list.”

“Yeah.” I grinned up at him. “I’d love to see you in action. Can I bring Jennifer, too?”

“Sure.”

“Great!” Impulsively, I leaned up and pecked him lightly on the lips. “I’ll see you Tuesday, then…”

He nodded. “Good night, Aidan.”

“’Night!”

As he started down the hallway, I pushed open the door and noiselessly slipped into the room.

It turned out there was no need to try to be quiet, however, when I glanced over my shoulder and saw my best friend sitting up in her bed, awake and eyeing me with a knowing look on her face.

“You were gone for a long time,” she said with a smile. “Might I ask what you were doing in Kobe’s room for two hours? And why, pray tell, you’re wearing one of his shirts?”

“It’s a long story.” I kicked off my flip-flops, tossed my damp tank top and hoodie into the hamper, and went over to my bed to slip under the covers. “I had an encounter with The Terror Squad in the stairwell. Kobe and Raymond saved me.”

“What did they do to you?“ Jennifer looked at me in concern. “Are you going to go to the campus police?”

“No.” I shook my head. “Kobe said they wouldn‘t bother me again, and I believe him.”

“But what happened exactly?”

“They attacked me with water balloons.” I winced at the memory. “Then one of them grabbed me and pushed me into the wall. He was grinding himself on me when Kobe and Raymond showed up. Thankfully, the guys were terrified of them and ran off. Then Kobe took me to his room and gave me this shirt because my clothes were soaked.”

“And then?” Jennifer prompted when I stopped speaking.

I shrugged. “I saw his record collection and we made out for a little while.”

Jennifer stared. “You made out for a while? You, Miss I’ll Never Kiss Another Boy Again? I thought the other night was just a drunken fluke.”

I stuck my tongue out at her. “I’m reevaluating my stance on that, actually.”

“I’m sure,” Jennifer said with a snicker.

“Anyway, he asked me out again,” I said in my most casual tone. “He invited me to Nitro to watch him spin on Tuesday. So that’s date number two.”

“Nitro?!” Jennifer repeated in surprise. “Wait a second, he spins there? He’s a DJ?”

“Yep, that’s what he said.”

“Wow. Who knew?”

“Have you been to Nitro before?” I asked, nestling into my pillow.

“Only once.” Jennifer glanced over at me. “It’s the hottest club around here. It’s almost impossible to get in if you’re not on the list.”

“Well, we’re going to be on the list.”

Jennifer arched an eyebrow, looking hopeful. “We?”

“Yes, we.” I smirked at her. “I asked if I could bring you along.”

“Awesome,” Jennifer squealed. “I knew there was a reason you’re my best friend.”

If I hadn’t been so sleepy, I might have worked up the motivation to throw my pillow at her. “Consider yourself lucky.”

She laughed, reaching out to turn off the lamp beside her bed. “We’re going to have so much fun. I can’t wait.”

“Me either,” I murmured, snuggling deeper under the covers. I hadn’t really been thinking about it when he asked, but seeing him on Tuesday meant that I’d only have one more date left to complete my side of the deal with Jennifer. Maybe I didn’t really need to tell Kobe after all. How would he ever know? And, besides that, telling him might ruin the tentative friendship (relationship?) we had formed. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be Kobe’s girlfriend, but I didn’t really want to piss him off or hurt his feelings either. I definitely didn’t want things to go back to the way they’d always been between us. If I just kept my secret, no one could possibly get hurt. Maybe we’d even be able to stay friends after the three dates were finished. One could always hope.

As I drifted to sleep, thoughts of him, and the relief I’d felt when I’d heard his voice in that stairwell, came back to me unbidden. Kobe…

xoxoxox

I have fanart! Check out the picture Mephistophelian (a.k.a. Yumegatari) drew for me. It’s totally adorable. (The link is in my profile.)

I’m not entirely sure how satisfied I am with this chapter. :( You guys have no idea how many times I edited and revised it. That’s part of the reason I took so long to update. That and the fact that it’s a whopping sixteen pages long. I hope that its length makes up a bit for its tardiness.

For those of you who celebrate, I hope you had a fabulous Christmas!

Please review! It would help me to know what people thought about this chapter since I spent so much time working on it.

Thanks so much to justcallmebubba, Lena Niccolas, Kon, bluz, Right or Ryn, Shina Laris, Esquirella, codyismypup, Trishcbury, Void Delirium, Susan Ann, cbprice25, Mephistophelian, votter, okey-dokes, rain-walker, Tatiana Moore, TheIncredibleFlyingWolf, Dreaming in Negative, devil’s-fav-angel, Fork-In-Your-Eye, starXcookie, In.the.Wardrobe, Xonea, FamousOneLiners, kannecat, and “hi” for reviewing! (For those of you who asked questions in your reviews, I did respond via the reply option on FictionPress, but since the alerts aren’t working, I’m not sure if those responses got sent out either. If you did ask a question, but didn’t get an answer, feel free to email me. The address is in my profile.)

(BTW - Since the alerts on FictionPress are less than reliable, I was thinking about creating an email group to alert you all when this story is updated. If you want to be added to the list, just send me an email.)

Harper