Bad News Read online

  “That’s it.” She calls. “No dry humping involved?”

  I hold the door ajar with my foot. “None, but he told me I was the one.”

  She wrinkles her nose. “The one? Oh sure, like he hasn’t told any girl that before. You know what–”

  I close the door on her voice and make my way to the communal showers. I typically come down here with Fallon, because I hate coming alone, but this morning I felt too lightheaded to care about being alone. My head feels fluffy and weightless with thoughts about Hunter and how he makes me feel so adored. My feelings about him overwhelm me. In the best way.

  I enter the bathroom and see there are already three girls at the sinks brushing their teeth. When they see me, they all glance at each other, then huddle in. I know they are talking about me, and I feel a flush of heat rise on my cheeks. I want to die on the spot. That, or walk out of the bathroom and never come back. I swallowed, ignore them, and place my sweat pants, hoodie and underwear in the lockers. I put my head down and lock myself behind the shower door. I wait a moment before I turn the water on so I can listen to their conversation.

  “I hear she went out with Hunter Holland last night. How did she manage to get someone like him?”

  “She must give it up easily.” The other girl says, and they all laugh.

  “Wouldn’t you for Hunter? God, did you see him on the track the other day? I only go to the field to watch him run.”

  I hear the door close as they leave, and I am frozen. Give it up easily? That’s what people think of me just because I went on a date with a guy every girl wants? I feel sick and even worse, I feel like I shouldn’t see Hunter again because I can’t deal with rumors, or anyone talking about me. I hate that girls think they have the right to judge before they know the facts. Why don’t they take the time to come and ask, instead of spreading lies? Don’t they realize the impact it causes? What ever happened to women supporting one another?

  I wash and get changed in record time, then head back to my dorm. Fallon picks up on my behavior, even though I wish to go undetected.

  “What’s up, Lou? Did someone leave a shit in the toilet again? I mean, can’t they take half a second out of their lives to use the goddamn flush.”

  I shake my head, pick up my hairbrush and focus on detangling my blonde locks.

  “Lou?” Fallon now sounds a little worried, so I open my drawer to find my hair dryer. I’m about to blast it until Fallon pulls the plug from the socket. “What happened?” She’s serious now, and I am backed into a corner and have no choice but to tell her.

  I flap my hand, acting all casual like I can dismiss what happened back there, but I can’t. Because I can’t stop thinking about it. “Oh, it’s nothing.” I go to push the plug back in, but Fallon takes the dryer out of my hands.

  “Tell me.”

  I roll my eyes. “Girls, being girls, that’s all. Talking about me and Hunter.” Now I have said it out loud, it sounds worse. I hate that there was, in fact, girls bitching about me. Me. A girl who has never said a bad word about anyone in her life. A girl who just wants to go through college happy, with zero drama and study her ass off. Is that so bad?

  Fallon clutches at the hairdryer. “Those dirty little whores. Who was it, Lou? I am going to kick some college girl’s asses.” Fallon throws on her jacket, ready to start a war. I am flattered that she wants to stick up for me, but I feel it will only make things worse.

  I pull on her arm. “It doesn’t matter. I’m just going to ignore them.”

  Fallon glares at me, nostrils flaring. I’m not sure whether she’s mad because I won’t tell her who they are, or because she doesn’t get to hit anyone.

  “Ignore them? No way. No one gets to talk bullshit about my girl.”

  I look down at the floor, exhaling harshly because I want the anxiety that has crept its way up my throat to step the hell down. Why am I letting those girls get to me? “It just hurts, ya know? It hurts because I did nothing to warrant those bad words.”

  Fallon relaxes after a beat. “Lou, listen to me,” she takes my hand in hers and switches from a raging bull to a sweet little rabbit. I won’t tell her that, though. “You are the kindest girl I have ever met. You don’t deserve bitches to talk shit about you like that. You have given them no reason at all to hate you, they are just creating their own little drama out of jealousy.”

  I brush her off. “I know that. I do.” I shake myself out of it. “You’re right, let them talk.” Life is too short to be anything but happy. And it is certainly way too short to worry about girls who will forget about me tomorrow. “I think I’m going to study at the library with Axel today, want to join?”

  Fallon twists her hair into a bun, but I notice the cheeky grin she’s wearing. “No thanks. I’m off to give Chase Marques a lap dance.”

  “Oh,” I’m amused as I plug my hairdryer back in the socket. “I didn’t know you could lap dance.”

  Fallon deadpans. “It means I’m going to fuck him in his lap, Louisa!”

  “Oh.” I swallow. “Right.” Then I frown, feeling like I’m missing something. “What about Rayne? And I thought you only liked girls?”

  Fallon sprays perfume on her neck. “I like dick on occasions.”

  I can only groan.

  ***

  I feel a tap on my shoulder forcing me to peel my eyes away from my textbook.

  “Sweetie, I’m closing up in ten minutes.”

  I push my reading glasses up my nose and smile at the librarian. “Could I stay here a little longer? I won’t be a nuisance.” I have been in the library all day and all night. Axel left two hours ago, then I studied with Dexter for an hour, one of Hunter's friends. He isn’t at all like any of the ‘Rogues’ he’s sensitive, smart and shy.

  “Because it’s you.” Mary winks then leaves me alone as she potters around.

  I’m about to get settled again when I feel another tap on my shoulder. I glance around, wondering why Mary is back, but it’s not her.

  “Hey, Blondie.”

  “What the…” I take off my glasses.

  “Hey,” he chastises me, taking the glasses out of my hands and slipping them back on my face. “Don’t take them off just because of me. You look sexy in those.”

  I take them off anyway and sigh. “Hunter, what are you doing here?”

  Hunter looks at me like I’m stupid. “Uh, if you’re asking why I’m in a library, Lou, I think you and I need to talk.” He turns, pretending to look through the books on the shelves. He’s kidding, I know he is.

  I humor him. “I hear Lady Chatterley's Lover is a good one.”

  Hunter closes a book and places it back on the shelf, then turns to me with a mysterious glint in his eyes. “What about Hunter’s Lover? The hotness would be flying from the pages in that one. Ya know,” he bends down, face to face with me, “making girls panties wet and all.”

  I gulp, and he stands up straight again to allow me some breathing space. I’m not sure I particularly want space. I am imaging him out of the blue T-shirt and jeans he’s wearing.

  I push away my thoughts and joke with him. “Seriously, what are you doing down here? I came here for peace. You’re kind of ruining that.”

  “So aggressive.” He pretends to act shocked, and pulls out a chair opposite me. “Can I join you?” I nod. Hunter sits down and scoots closer. “Dexter told me he’d been down here with you,” he raises his brow. “I hope studying was all you were doing.”

  I gape. “Seriously?”

  “He is a good-looking sonofabitch.” He laughs at the seriousness of my face. “Who wouldn’t? Although, I did get jealous over the fact that Dexter had spent time with you. The time that could have been mine.” He’s serious now, and I kind of like that he gets all alpha. Is that the right word? Alpha? Whatever it is, is hot, and it gets me hot.

  “Do you read a lot?” Hunter asks, looking into my eyes like he’s reading me.

  “All the time. I don’t have a life.” I laugh, bowing my h
ead down again, then I realize what I’ve said, and it may make me sound boring. “I’m totally kidding. I do have a life.”

  Hunter smirks. “Ever thought about doing those things in books instead of just reading them?” He looks around, then he has an idea and clicks his fingers. “Like The Great Gatsby, now he had a boss life.”

  “Hunter, his life would be impossible to live. We have to live in the real world.”

  He gazes at me, and I can see his mind going too deep, getting lost in thought. “Do we, though? What if the real world is painful? Ask yourself why you read books? Is it purely out of enjoyment, or is it because you find it easier to live in fantasy?”

  “Fantasy?” I frown.

  “Yeah,” he leans back on his chair. “Where there aren’t any fuck ups, no emotion, no heartbreak.”

  “Hunter,” I laugh. “Books are full of all those things, and when I read, I go through that too.”

  “But those emotions aren’t real Lou, they aren’t yours, are they? It’s much harder when they are yours.”

  I don’t know where he’s going with this. Maybe he’s trying to tell me something. “Are you okay, Hunt?”

  He shakes himself out of his trance. “Yeah so… more on this… uh never.” He takes my hand. “So, tell me, sweet, shy Louisa, do you have a fantasy?”

  I smile. I know he’s only trying to diffuse the conversation. It just got deep, and I don’t know why. What is Hunter hiding?

  “Do you?” I ask, resting my chin on my knuckles. I am already invested.

  Hunter has a mischievous look in his eye. He leans forward, his eyes staring at my mouth. “Right now, I am fantasizing about your lips.” His fingertips brush along my bottom lip. “Let me kiss you, Lou. I want to know what you will taste like against my tongue.”

  “I… uh…” I am lost for words. Staring like a deer in headlights, like a wimp who has never been asked to be kissed before. Only I have. But not like this. Not by someone who looks like Hunter. He makes my cheeks fill up with heat, he makes my heart hammer against my chest letting me know it’s there. I clench my thighs together because the thoughts I have in my mind is causing an ache between them.

  I watch his lips purse; his eyes stare into mine and hold on to hope. If our first kiss is going to be in a library full of books about first kisses, then I want to show these books that I can first kiss just as good as them.

  “Romeo and Juliet’s first kiss was…” I freeze, shit, I am thinking out loud when I thought I was still day dreaming.

  “What?” Hunter chuckles looking a lot confused. And yeah, I have killed the moment. “Are you comparing what our first kiss will be like, to Romeo and Juliet’s? Because if we must go there, then I say Spider Man and Mary Jane’s upside-down kiss knocks them out of the park.” I sag, relieved to the high heavens that he’s playing along.

  Hunter leans in again, ready to kiss me, but I shoot to my feet. “Mary will be around any second.”

  Why am I stalling this?

  Hunter takes a step towards me, but I take a step back, and I don’t know why. I want this. I’m looking up at him. It’s like I’m looking right into his soul, just like he’s looking into mine. I am breathing erratically. I rubbing my swearing palms on my thighs. I am nervous. I’m excited, and I have these crazy tingles running down my legs and gathering right in the middle of my thighs. He’s making me wet, wet I tell you!

  “Do you want me to kiss you, Lou?” His eyes roam down to my mouth, and I watch his tongue dart out to wet his bottom lip. It’s like he’s wondering what my lips feel like. Now his eyes are back to mine, and I am mute.

  “Like, um, now?” I glance around quickly. “Right here?”

  Hunter steps into my space, closing the gap between us. “Right here.”

  “Right now?” I breathe. My eyes are in line with his lips. I can’t look away from them. I won’t.

  Hunter nods slowly and places his hand on my cheek. “Right now.”

  “Like, in this library?”

  Hunter laughs and hangs his head. “Lou, you’re not making this a very romantic moment right now.”

  He’s right, I’m not. I need to loosen up and relax. “Maybe you should act like Romeo?” No, Lou, you’re still acting weird.

  Hunter doesn’t flinch, though, he smiles. “What, and try to make you believe I am worthy of your kiss?”

  I am impressed he knows a little about how Romeo tries to persuade Juliet that he deserves her kiss. And now I am still thinking things I shouldn’t.

  I draw my brows together and take another step back. “Are you saying you’re not?”

  Hunter shakes his head before glancing into my eyes. “I am not worthy of anything where you’re concerned. I know I’m bad for you, but you are so good for me. I should stay away, but that doesn’t mean I will leave you alone, Lou. I can’t. I really can’t. If you don’t kiss me now, or even tomorrow, I will wait. Wait until you’re ready to give me a chance.”

  Oh, lord, he’s like my very own Romeo. And that was romantic as hell. I step forward, and he automatically places his big gentle hands on my cheeks.

  “I think you’re definitely worthy of a first kiss,” I say. He so is.

  Hunter is leaning in, and I’m forgetting to breathe. “Give me your lips.” He demands. I push up on tiptoes, offering my lips. Hunter’s thumb brushes over the plumpness of them, then he bends and plants his lips on mine. He kisses me, just a small peck at first, then the second one is longer, where he lingers, groaning only slightly. My eyes are closed, my head feels giddy, and I almost forget to kiss him back. Then when I do, I don’t know how I can’t see the sparks that I feel flying from my body. Our lips move, sliding gently across each other’s. Easily. Softly.

  Hunter’s fingers are in my hair, and I place my hands on his pecs. The feel of my hands on his chest must ignite something inside of him because he pulls me closer on a groan and slips his tongue between my lips. I remember to breathe as I enjoy the sensation of his tongue sliding gently across mine, our lips kissing, our hands slowly feeling. I am lost, that is until I hear a cough. I pull away immediately, but Hunter doesn’t let go so easily. I detangle myself from his hold and turn to see Mary with crossed arms. Shit. Mary!

  “You two wanna stop locking lips and make your way outside?”

  Hunter groans rudely, but I can’t look at Mary. I apologize, grab all my study books, MacBook and walked ahead. I don’t look back at Hunter who is following behind me until we were safely out of the library.

  I turn to face him and deadpan. “I won’t be able to look Mary in the eye again.”

  Hunter pushes me up against closed library door. I gasp when his lips meet my neck, and he glides his mouth up my skin and into my ear. “I want you more than anything, Lou, and it's taking all the decency that I have left to stop myself from making love to you right now.”

  Love? Making love?

  My mouth dries up; my eyes go wide. “No, they’re not my usual words, I get it,” Hunter thinks I’m shocked because of his choice of words? “But you’re special,” he folds my hair behind my ear. “If I stood here and told you I wanted to fuck you so bad you wouldn’t be able to make your way to classes tomorrow, then I would be treating you like the rest of them, and you are definitely not like the rest of them.”

  If it’s possible, I think my mouth has a drought. I think my heart has stopped. If his dirty words can stop me from walking to my dorm, then only God knows what his ‘love making’ will do to me. I want to move, I want to get back to Fallon and tell her everything, but I’m torn. I also want to stay in Hunter’s company because he makes me laugh, he makes me feel comfortable –80% of the time. I like being around him. He is special.

  “Earth to Blondie.” He snaps his fingers in front of my face after my minute of silence.

  “Sorry,” I blink. My phone starts ringing so Hunter puts distant between us. I take it out of my pocket, see that it’s Fallon calling, but let it ring. When the ringing stops, Hunter takes my phon
e out of my hand. I know he’s scrolling through my contact list, and I am cringing because I know he’s looking for his name. He must have reached what he knows must be him, because his thumb stops scrolling and he glances at me. His brows rise, and his lips twitch, but he doesn’t smirk. He types something in, then smirks and hands it back to me.

  “Text me tonight, okay?”

  “Yes, sir,”

  Hunter glances at someone walking down the corridor behind him, the back to me. “And if you want to sext or even send naked–”

  “Definitely not.” I push him away from me playfully, and he backs away with his hands in the air.

  “Just a suggestion.”

  Hunter walks me to my dorm, and it takes all my power to stop him from coming inside. I tell him Fallon is home and that she will have his balls, and after last time, he doesn’t want to stay around to find out if I’m kidding or not. I open my door when he’s halfway down the hall.

  “Text me.” He demands.

  I roll my eyes, salute, and crash into my dorm. I close the door and press my back up against it, holding my MacBook to my chest. “Holy fu–” I don’t swear, but I’m so close because everything that happened with Hunter has been crazy.

  “Fallon?” Fallon isn’t in, so I try to call her back. When she doesn’t answer, I quickly change into my pajamas and jump into bed. Why am I excited to text Hunter? I love this feeling. It’s giddy and fun, and new. I scroll through my contact list, looking for Hunter, but what I find makes me grin like a school kid. It reads ‘Best first kisser ever’ I text him smiling.

  Me: Hi Best First Kisser Ever. If this is Hunter, I may have the wrong number.

  I laugh to myself and press SEND. I don’t have to wait long for a reply.

  Best First Kisser Ever: Wrong number? Don’t make me come back to your room and spank yo ass, which you may like. Just saying.

  Spank my ass? He’s not serious? I feel his text is slightly leaning towards a sext, and I don’t know how to respond to that. Although, I feel more confident texting him, rather than speaking face to face. At least I can’t stutter over text.