Best Year Ever

by Ivy Smoak

  Gorgeous? That was an odd description for a man. Now I was picturing him in drag. “Did you get his number?”

  “That would have involved talking in coherent sentences. I didn’t even get his name.”

  I laughed. “Then he’s not exactly the new man in your life. How are you supposed to see him again?”

  “I was thinking maybe I’d just keep up my stalking game and go to the coffee shop Thursday morning. I assume he has a class on Tuesday and Thursday mornings just like I do.”

  “Not a bad idea. You’re clearly a great stalker.”

  “Oh my God, please do not make that my nickname.”

  “I would if you were actually good at it, but I was being sarcastic. You didn’t even run into the guy you were supposed to. You’re a terrible stalker.”

  She shrugged. “True. But it felt like fate, you know? I was there because Austin made me feel like shit and this guy made me feel so…I don’t know. I don’t know how to describe it. Just…it felt like he saw me.”

  She looked so happy, I didn’t want to call her out on using a lame movie line. Besides, if he truly did make her feel that way, he sounded like a keeper. What? A girl can dream. Who doesn’t want a movie star boyfriend? “So you didn’t get his name or phone number…but you got him naked?” I gestured toward her sweater and started filling a bowl full with salad.

  “He bumped into me with the door and spilled coffee down the front of me. Then he gave me his sweater to cover up the stains.” She lifted up the sweater so I could see her ruined tank top.

  I tried to hide my smile because I was pretty happy it was ruined. “Put that down, it looks like you're trying to flash half the dining hall.”

  She laughed and lowered the sweater.

  “That’s really sweet, though,” I said. “So he went to class shirtless?”

  Penny laughed. “No, he was wearing a shirt underneath of the sweater. But I did get the tiniest glimpse of his abs. I’m telling you, Melissa, it was like he stepped out of the pages of a magazine.”

  “Totally drool-worthy?”

  “Exactly.”

  “Well, he sounds almost too good to be true.”

  “I swear I didn’t just imagine him. I couldn’t have made this sweater appear out of thin air.”

  “Speaking of which, our dorm is literally two minutes from here. Why didn’t you go change real quick?”

  “I will after lunch.”

  I stared at her.

  “What? He smells so freaking good, Melissa. Sue me.”

  I laughed. “I promise to never use my awesome lawyer-ness to sue your ass.” I leaned forward to get a better smell of the sweater. “And I don’t even blame you. That smell is intoxicating.”

  “Right? I’m pretty sure I’m high right now.”

  “You’ve never been high in your life.”

  “Except for this exact moment. Be right back. I need to go get some food.” She disappeared out of the salad line and joined me a few minutes later at a table. Her plate was piled high with French fries and chicken nuggets.

  “I wish I could eat like you and stay that thin.”

  “Um…you can. That’s why I got extra.” She pushed her plate into the middle of the table.

  It was true, I probably would have stolen a few fries from her anyway. And maybe a few nuggets. But my salad was calling to me too. Just not quite as hard as the fries were calling to me. I picked one up and bit into it. Salty goodness.

  “You’ve been awfully quiet,” Penny said. “I went on and on about the guy I ran into. You haven’t even mentioned classes or anything.”

  “Trust me, my day wasn’t nearly as eventful as yours.” Sure, I could have told her about the guy with the kind smile. But I hadn’t met him. I’d just avoided him for two days straight. I could also tell her how much Connor was still fucking with my head. But that was also not a fun conversation. Whereas she was having a great day. “Tell me more about the mystery coffee shop guy.”

  “I don’t know if there is anything else to tell. I just hope I get to see him again. Or else I’ll probably accidentally pick up a bad habit of stalking Austin.”

  I laughed. “Well, I say forget about Austin. I like the sound of this new guy. Plus he smells like a million bucks."

  Chapter 4

  Wednesday

  I finished organizing my new folders and stepped back to examine my work. Perfection. If organization was the key to success, I was going to own this semester. I pulled out the closest folder and jumped onto my bed. Three more years of random classes like women’s studies and I’d be heading to law school. With a full scholarship hopefully. And a little early studying could help with that.

  But as soon as I opened up my corresponding color coordinated textbook, my mind flashed to the handsome stranger. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t dreamt of him last night. All day I had kept looking over my shoulder, hoping he’d magically appear. I was becoming more of a stalker than Penny. I glanced out the window of my dorm. There was a perfect view of the basketball court where I had first seen him. But it was empty tonight.

  Why was he stuck in my head? I closed my textbook and grabbed my laptop. After several random group searches on Facebook for Hot Men of the University of New Castle, University of New Castle Basketball Club, and University of New Castle T-shirt Society, I turned off my laptop. I couldn’t find him. I knew nothing about him. Hell, it was possible he didn’t even go here. He could even be in high school or something. I shuddered at the thought. I may have been jilted by my ex, but I wasn’t about to rob the cradle. Why was I even thinking about this? He didn’t look like a young teen.

  “I’m losing my mind,” I said out loud. Saying it in the empty room made me feel even crazier. Before I could dwell on it, though, the dorm room door flew open. Perfect, I needed a distraction. But as soon as I saw Penny, my own problems disappeared. Penny looked like she was about to burst into tears and I had a terrible sinking feeling in my stomach. God, what did Austin do this time? Next time I saw him I was going to karate chop him in the throat. “What happened to you? Are you okay?”

  “He’s a professor.”

  I stared at her and blinked. That wasn’t at all what I thought she was going to say. And I had no idea what she was talking about. “Um…who?”

  “Professor Hunter.”

  I laughed. “Professor is kind of in his name. I don’t get your point. You mentioned that you had him the other day when we were buying books. It’s not like he took you by surprise.”

  “It was him, Melissa.”

  I felt so dense. I had no idea what the hell she was trying to get at. “I’m sorry, I feel like I’m missing something?”

  “The guy from the coffee shop is Professor Hunter.”

  “Whoa, what?” I shoved my book to the side and jumped off the bed. “The sweater guy?” I pointed to the sweater that Penny had folded and left on her desk chair all day. The intoxicating smell had permeated our room and I hadn’t minded at all. I was serious when I had said he smelled like a million bucks.

  “Yeah, the sweater guy.” She tossed her backpack down on the ground. “Jesus, what am I going to do?”

  Oh my God, that’s so awkward. I swallowed down the words instead of voicing them. “You’re going to do nothing.”

  She shook her head. “Obviously I’m not going to do anything. I meant like…what am I going to do when I see him three times a week? I’ve had…inappropriate dreams about him. How can I possibly act normal?”

  I laughed. “Did you not act normal today?”

  “No.” She sat down on her bed. “He took attendance and we were supposed to stand up and say an interesting fact about ourselves. I’m pretty sure he called me five times before my legs finally listened to me. And I said, ‘Unfortunately, you'll need another of me for my thoughts.’ I didn’t even follow the instructions!"

  “You said that? Honestly he was probably relieved he didn’t have to hear the same old thing like all the other students revealed. I�
��m sure it was fine.”

  “A girl in the front row laughed at me and called me weird.”

  “Then fuck her. What did he say?”

  In a deep voice she said, "A penny for your thoughts. Well I guess I'll have to bring my piggy bank with me on Friday.”

  I smiled. “That’s cute. If he wasn’t your professor, I’d say he was flirting with you.”

  “But he is my professor. God, I’ve had inappropriate dreams about my professor.”

  “Yeah, you’ve already said that. And who cares? Haven’t we all?”

  “Um. No. Wait, you have?”

  “I had a crush on one of my teachers in high school. I dreamt of kissing him dozens of times.”

  “Okay fine, but you never stole his sweater and embarrassed yourself in class and got the freaking chills when he touched you, Melissa. This is all sorts of fucked up.”

  “Wait, he touched you?”

  “When I collided with him yesterday. And when he touched my arm today to get my attention as I was leaving,” she said in a quieter voice.

  “Damn, I feel like he was flirting with you.”

  “Melissa, this isn’t helping.”

  I laughed, trying to pretend it was a joke. But I wasn’t joking. His cute response and the touching? A girl could only take so many signals. “Right,” I said, trying to ignore my instinct. “Did anything else happen? When he got your attention at the end of class?”

  “He apologized for spilling coffee on my shirt yesterday. I promised him I’d bring back his sweater. And I blurted out that I didn’t realize he was a professor. Because he’s young and sexy. I didn’t say that last part of course. And he said something weird about how he likes when students think of him as a peer because it fosters better learning. The whole thing was so awkward.”

  “Awkward, huh?”

  “Yeah. Awkward.” She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

  I laughed. “Awkward or hot?”

  She frowned at me.

  “Can we just take a minute to talk about the fact that he’s teaching oral communications.”

  “Shut up.”

  “I mean…what are the odds…”

  “Ugh.” Penny smacked herself with a pillow and fell back on her bed.

  I laughed, walked over to her bed, and pulled the pillow off her face. “Seriously, Penny, everything’s going to be fine. You’ll return the sweater on Friday and the whole thing will be done with. It’s not a big deal at all.”

  “Do you think he knew I was a student?”

  “Probably. You were dressed like a little old woman yesterday in your rain boots but your face is very young. And your tits.”

  She laughed. “I don’t know why, but it really felt like he flirted with me yesterday. I must have just imagined it though because you’re right, he must have known I was a student. I was even wearing a backpack.” She bit her bottom lip. I could tell she was holding something back, but I didn’t press her. Besides, I knew what it was. She wanted to jump her hot professor and couldn’t. It was bad luck that the first guy she was interested in after Austin wasn’t available.

  “Did you realize that he was older?”

  “That’s the thing. He’s not that much older than me. I mean, he can’t be. He doesn’t have any wrinkles or anything. I thought that maybe he might be a grad student. But a professor? I’ve only ever had old professors.”

  I laughed. “True. Or you know…middle-aged. They’re not all ancient.”

  “Fair enough. Can we go back to what I’m going to do again? I don’t think I can face him another day. I’m going to drop the class.”

  “That’s a bit extreme. Why don’t you stick it out a few more days? Return the sweater. See if you stop getting wet around him?”

  “You’re not helping.”

  “It’s not an invalid point. But beyond that, take the time to figure out if you still can’t handle seeing him three times a week when the drop/add period is almost over. No reason to rush it.”

  “Yeah. I guess.”

  “Any word from Austin?” It was a bad day when I was holding out hope that Austin would cheer Penny up.

  “No. Could you hand me my backpack? I want to get started on some assignments.”

  She was already in her unmovable state of self-pity. “Do you want to walk around campus or something instead? People watch and make up funny stories for them? Get some fresh air and a fresh perspective?” Hearing my words out loud made me want to roll my eyes.

  “No, not really.”

  I sighed. I didn’t have the energy to argue with her. A night of wallowing didn’t sound half bad to me. I grabbed her backpack and noticed a neon green flyer sticking out the front flap. “What’s this?” I pulled it out before she had time to respond.

  “Nothing,” she said.

  My eyes scanned the flyer. Sigma Pi. I suddenly had my answer. Or at least, a clue to solving the puzzle of who the handsome stranger that kept smiling at me was. I had been looking at his strong chest yesterday instead of the words scrawled across it. But Sigma Pi looked really familiar. I felt like those two words had been written on his shirt. They were even printed in the same shade of impossibly bright neon green as the flyer. “We’re totally going to this,” I said.

  “Why? I don’t even really know the guy that asked me.”

  I completely lost my train of thought. “Someone asked you to this? Like on a date? You left that out of your very detailed retelling of today’s events.”

  “Yeah, well it didn’t seem that important given the fact that I accidentally developed a crush on my professor.”

  I laughed. “Tell me about the guy.”

  “There isn’t much to tell. And he didn’t ask me on a date. It was a casual invite.”

  “Okay. Well, how’d he ask you?”

  “He was sitting next to me in Comm class and heard my embarrassing interesting fact. He tossed a penny onto my desk and said he’d pay for my thoughts any day.”

  “Swoon-worthy much?”

  “I don’t know. I was preoccupied with Professor Hunter.”

  I laughed. “What’s the frat boy’s name?”

  “Tyler.”

  “And...? What does he look like? Is he hot?”

  She smiled. “He’s cute. He has blonde hair and blue eyes and a nice smile. And he seems nice and funny.”

  “All good qualities. He’s also not a professor so that’s an immediate win. Will you please take me to this party with you tomorrow night?”

  Penny laughed. “You can go by yourself. I need to study.”

  “Classes just started. You won’t have any tests or papers due for ages. Come on. We need to let loose.” I need to see my mystery man. Please.

  “Maybe you do. I certainly don’t.”

  “Please? I really really want to go. I need this.” I hadn’t meant to say that last line. I still had all these awful feelings in the pit of my stomach about Connor. And I didn’t want to focus on him. “This is supposed to be our best year ever, remember? Our best year ever should start with a bang.”

  “Okay, I’ll think about it.” Penny reached out for her backpack that I had been holding hostage.

  I’d take that. I handed her the backpack. A maybe from Penny could be easily nudged into a yes with a little persuasion. Now I just needed to figure out what to wear to meet the guy I was stalking. I mean, crushing on. God, I didn’t know what I meant. I just hoped to God he wasn’t randomly a professor too.

  Chapter 5

  Thursday

  I was bubbling with nervous energy all day. It was basically the exact opposite of how Penny was behaving. She barely touched her food at lunch and she kept glancing at her phone. A part of me wondered if she had actually given her number to her hot professor. But I knew she would have told me if she had done that. Which meant she was still hoping Austin would text her back. I got it. I really did. For a full 24 hours there, she thought she had found her dream guy. Only to find out that he was updateable. I’d p
robably go back to someone like Austin too after feeling that disappointment.

  I wasn’t letting my mind go there. Tonight I was going to finally talk to my frat boy with the kind smile. And tomorrow I was going to wake up and feel no remorse about Connor. After all, the best way to get over someone was to get under someone else. It was basically my freshman year motto. One conquest at a time to heal my heart.

  It was partially my nervous energy that had made me go for a run and partially the fact that I wanted to look my very best for tonight. I had collapsed on the green a couple of minutes ago from exhaustion. And now I had my shoes kicked off and I was staring up at the clouds as my heart calmed down.

  Even though I was beat, I was still nervously drumming my fingers in the grass. Maybe it wasn’t nerves. Just excitement. I honestly hadn’t pursued anyone since last semester. I had been a celibate little angel all summer because the last thing I wanted was to be tied down to my hometown any more than I already was. Tonight I was going to go wild. Let my hair down, both literally and figuratively.

  My phone rang beside me and I turned my head away from the clouds to look at the screen. I immediately sat up and grabbed it. “Hey, Mom,” I said with probably the biggest smile plastered to my face.

  “Hi, sweetheart. How are the first few days of classes going?”

  “Good.” I slid my bare feet through the grass in front of me. “But I miss you.”

  “I miss you too. Which class do you think you’re going to like the most?”

  “I have no idea. I keep trying to get a head start on some of the readings, but my mind keeps wandering,” I answered, probably too honestly.

  “Is something wrong? If you need me to send some money…”

  “No. No, that’s not it.” I hated when she offered to send me money. But there was another way that she could help me. I just couldn’t think of the best way to phrase my question. “I’ve been in a bit of a funk since seeing Connor.”

  “That’s understandable. You were together for years. How long was it again?”

  I pictured him asking me out on our first date. He had leaned across his desk in sophomore English class and asked if I’d rather just watch the movie with him instead of reading the book. For the record, I read the book too. I always read the book. “Almost three years,” I said.