“What a bitch.”
“She's talking with Killian right now,” Ian frowns tightly. “I told her that he was taken but she didn't seem to care.”
“Where's she at?” I glance around the room for the plain girl. But all I see is a lot of flesh.
“Over there,” Ian gestures with one of the cups towards the back of the hallway near the kitchen.
Sure enough, Killian is standing talking to the plain girl I completely skimmed over. Lila’s nowhere to be seen, either. But they look like they're just talking, there's no chemistry coming off of either of them.
“I think you're safe if you want the girl still,” I explain. “She doesn't look interested in Killian. Maybe Lila met her and invited her.”
Ian's shoulders droop down. “Yeah, that makes sense. She was talking to Lila for a long time in the beginning.”
“Come on, let's go say hi to her.”
Ian stiffens up. “You're not allowed to flirt with her.”
Jesus. What was I? There's such a thing as Bro Code, I would never step over that line when Ian finally found a girl he's interested in.
We walk over after I agree to keep my mouth shut and distract Killian so that way Ian can sneak in a few brownie points with the chick we apparently have physical education-turned-dance class with.
I bypass the girl completely, slapping Killian on the shoulder and effectively cutting her off from Killian’s view with my massive frame. I'm sure I look like a douchebag, but it's all in the name of friendship.
“So where's your girl at?” I ask.
“Trying to find water,” Killian answers slowly, his eyes flickering back towards the girl behind me.
“So who's your little friend?” I ask and toss my thumb over my shoulder towards the girl I can hear quietly talking to Ian behind me.
Killian gives me a funny look but doesn't respond.
What the hell?
“...I was trying to explain before,” the girl says since Killian is refusing to cooperate in my plan to help Ian out. “So I'm sorry you got confused.”
“No, it's fine,” Ian assures her. “Honestly, it should be expected on campus for people not to pay attention when writing names on cups.”
“I wasn't as interesting as the guy behind me,” the girl laughs.
“Dude,” I say under my breath so Killian can hear, “we need to give them space. They're trying to get together.”
“Alex,” Killian draws his mouth into a tight line. The guy isn't even trying to be quiet or covert like I am. Some best friend he's supposed to be.
“I'm not trying to hook up with Ian or get with anybody,” the girl answers flatly.
Okay, so maybe my whisper voice could use some work.
“In fact, I have a boyfriend,” she adds on.
“You do?” It's Ian's surprised voice that has me turning to fully look at them.
The girl has her shoulders squared like she's expecting a fight to break out or something of that nature. Her eyes are practically popping out of her head when she looks at me. She has that vaguely familiar face that I get with a lot of girls I've gone through.
Shit. I hope I didn't hook up for one night with Ian's interest.
“And I would never date someone who's friends with him,” the girl lifts her chin at me and I narrow my eyes.
“Look, sugar,” I snap, “I know you knew the score.” And there goes my big mouth.
She doesn't look insulted though, or even angry that I basically just told her she didn't make a lasting impression to me.
“Alex,” Ian snaps back to me.
“No,” the girl pats Ian's chest and shakes her head. “It's alright. You definitely don't have to come to my aid against him.”
“What's your deal with me?” I frown down at her. “What did I ever do to you?”
“It's fine,” the girl rolls her green eyes and shakes her head again.
“Maybe you should take a walk,” Killian says to me.
I laugh even though nothing that's going on is funny. Why the hell do I need to take a walk? She didn't hurt my feelings and I obviously hadn't hurt hers.
“Really, Killian, I'm okay,” the girl smiles softly at him.
“Lila needs to hurry up,” Killian mumbles before glancing around the room.
“I don't understand what's happening,” I blow out an aggravated breath.
The girl tilts her head at me again and now I'm trying to search my brain for any plain looking blonde, but I keep coming up empty.
“Did we even hook up?” I finally sigh. It's going to drive me crazy if I don't know how I forgot this girl.
“Kind of,” she shrugs and looks around the room. “I should go find Lila.”
The crestfallen look on Ian's face is a sucker punch to the gut. “Look,” I immediately say, “Ian's a good guy.”
“I'm sure he is. But like I said, I have a boyfriend and I'm not interested in anyone you're friends with,” she shrugs.
I'm not buying the whole I have a boyfriend spiel. She seems like the kind of girl that would have told Ian that the minute he asked her here instead of coming with a friend. But damn, why does she make it sound like I'm a bug beneath her shoe?
“I'm sorry for the confusion, Ian.” Hell, she looks meaningful when she looks at Ian, though.
“It's fine,” Ian says ruefully. “Partners still?”
“Of course.” At that she grins at him, and I can admit she has a great smile.
She might be a plain-Jane, but she's got one of those infectious smiles that make even the corners of my mouth twitch.
“Oh shit!” Lila’s voice cuts in through the crowd as she barrels in between me and whoever the hell this girl is that I can't remember. “Everything good?”
“Does everyone know you don't like me?” I ask her. “I don't know what I did to be treated like a pariah, but I'm sorry.”
“Oh,” the girl deflates.
Well, shit. I don't apologize very often, so that was a big thing coming from me. But she didn't even accept it.
“It's not that, Alex,” the girl shakes her head at me.
It's the first time I've heard her say my name and everything in my body feels like pin pricks are starting to cover every inch of my skin. Never before has a girl elicited this kind of response from me, and all she did was say my name.
“I'm sorry,” the girl flicks her eyes towards Ian before looking at Lila. “This was stupid. I knew this would be a bad idea.”
Lila glares at me before returning to the girl. “No, it seems to be going fine. And it was bound to happen sometime.”
“Running into me?” I blanch. “Shit, Brittney,” I say, because ha I know your name too, “am I that big of an asshole?”
Brittney chews her bottom lip while staring at me for a few long seconds.
“Bro,” Ian shakes his head. “I was wrong.”
“No,” I say. “You're not wrong for liking a girl who you didn't know was unavailable. It's fine.”
Ian keeps shaking his head, “That's not what I was wrong about. Well, that too, but it's not what I meant.”
“Would someone stop speaking in fucking riddles and tell me what the hell is happening?” I demand. “You're giving me a fucking headache with all this.”
The girl steps forward in an instant, reaching up and pinching the bridge of my nose and twisting it slighting towards the right. A tingly sensation travels through the area and the small headache stops pounding behind my eyes for a brief moment before the girl lets go.
“Sorry,” she winces. “Force of habit.”
I don't think I know anyone who would walk up and pinch the bridge of someone else's nose just to help with their headache. No one sane, at least.
“Don't freak out,” Lila points her finger at me. “I mean it, Alex, don't go all Hulk-rage and start going off or flipping shit.”
Just to clarify, I did that once four years ago. Sometimes it really sucked when you've known your friends for so long that they bring up th
e past.
“Fine,” I roll my eyes. “Whatever.”
“Oh,” Ian's face suddenly drains of color looking at me. “Oh shit.”
“What now?” I sigh.
“I really should have put two-and-two together,” Ian looks at the girl. “I'm sorry.”
She waves her hand at him in dismissal and starts hedging her way out of our little group that we made in the hallway.
“Is no one going to answer me?” I demand.
“Alex Hunter,” Brittney sighs, “Lord of the center of attention.”
“I don't think it makes me the center of attention to want to know what the hell your problem is with me,” I point out in frustration.
“You didn't do anything to me,” she shakes her head. “It wasn't about you.”
What planet was this chick living on? She starts telling Ian she can't see him because of me, a guy who doesn't even remember her, so yeah, it definitely seems to have to do with me.
“Alex, let her go,” Killian says firmly.
“Come on, Grace, I'll walk you out,” Lila says and shoots past me towards the girl.
The girl whose name isn't Brittney.
The girl whose face suddenly clicks in my mind.
The girl whose voice sent a shockwave through my whole body.
She might have blonde hair now, and wear plain clothes, something to not be spotted in, but it suddenly becomes abundantly clear that I've just spent the past five hours in a house with my ex-girlfriend.
And then I Hulk-rage.
Chapter Three
Grace
That definitely wasn't one of my finer moments. At all.
I was supposed to be confident and cool now that I was older. Instead all I've heard are bits and pieces of gossip this morning revolving around Alex apparently throwing a coffee table halfway across the living room at the house we were partying at last night.
I clutch my bag tighter against my side as I go into the Union.
Lila said we could meet up for lunch and that nothing would happen. But when I come around the corner of the Union towards the seating area, I realize just how wrong that is.
Because Alex is sitting there with his arm draped around some girl in too small of clothing. The frown marring his face makes it obvious that even from half-hiding behind a wall, I'm not as invisible as I like to think I am.
“Okay,” Lila chirps from beside me. “Let's go in.” She stops to lean around my shoulder. “Who are we staring at?”
“Nobody,” I answer quickly.
“Trust me, it's all going to be fine,” she loops her arm through mine and starts to tug me towards the table. “Now that it's out there, you don't have to hide on campus.”
I don't know, hiding on campus seemed like a pretty decent idea to me. “I have a class with him in the morning. I was hoping to have at least one day of peace.”
Lila rolls her grey eyes. “Peace is definitely something you won't get around here.”
Apparently not.
We sit down the table a little ways. I'm pretty sure Killian, who decided to sit next to me instead of his girlfriend, is trying to play buffer.
I don't even get why. I broke up with Alex all those years ago. It can't still bother him. Unless his ego didn't let him forget it, that is.
“So this is the gang,” Lila explains while pointing at several people. “Gage, who's basically the baby of the group. Jackson and his girlfriend Nina are down there by you-know-who. And then you already know Ian and Killian.”
“Which one is you-know-who?” Gage leans forward to ask, glancing down the table.
“None of your business,” Lila sighs. “He's also the nosiest one.”
“I'm not nosy,” Gage scoffs. “I'm just interested in the conversation.”
“That didn't involve you,” my best friend points out.
“You said my name, therefore I'm involved.”
“Gage,” Killian says flatly and the poor guy across from me zips his lips and starts to pout.
“You know, you can sit next to Lila,” I tell Killian. “I promise it's okay.”
“It's just easier this way,” Killian shrugs and goes back to eating the food on his plate.
I turn to Lila and frown. “Honestly, it's fine. It's going to be super awkward, but it's not like I won't have to deal with it on my own in class tomorrow. So you two playing bodyguard is a bit ridiculous.”
“I wouldn't call it playing bodyguard,” Lila says.
“Then what would you call it?”
She worries her lip before responding with, “Concerned best friend.”
“You realize you're being ridiculous, don't you?” I ask.
Lila levels me with one of her many stern looks. “Well, I just don't want you to have to deal with Alex by yourself until you have to.”
“I broke up with him,” I stress. “Why does no one remember that?” Goodness, this is starting to get ridiculous.
“Dude,” I hear Gage scoff from across the table before he leans forward to capture Alex’s attention. “You dated Grace?”
I lied. Now it's ridiculous.
“What?” Alex blinks slowly, almost like he's trying to process a question that was asked in gibberish.
“You dated Grace,” Gage repeats, pointing towards Alex and then towards me.
“Oh,” Alex doesn't even bother sounding amused. His voice is just flat sounding when he adds, “Yeah, I guess so.”
I guess so. Not Yeah, we totally dated for two and a half years, because apparently that's just too damaging to admit out loud.
Lila scowls at Gage, but Gage just keeps looking at me funny.
“What?” I ask when the staring doesn't stop.
“It's just,” Gage tilts his head from side to side, “you're not his type.”
I almost snort. Almost. But I'm the new Grace, the one with confidence and poise. And then a cup of water gets spilled across the table and lands in my lap.
“Oh shit,” Lila breathes through her teeth and starts patting my knee with a napkin. Thank God it didn't land anywhere embarrassing.
“It's okay,” I manage to get out while giving the girl that Alex is smirking at an evil look. “I'm sure her ignorance of how not to hold a cup correctly is fairly normal.”
That seems to get a rise out of the girl as she stiffens and glares back towards me. “Are you calling me an idiot? It was an accident!”
“I’m sure it was.” Even I’m not that good at hiding the sarcasm pouring out into my voice.
Killian taps his fingers on the table and turns his head to stare at Alex. They must be having some silent conversation because Alex heaves a giant sigh before dropping his arm from about the girl and picking up his lunch to toss away. His little companion is pretty quick on her feet to follow him.
“So is it always this awkward between you two?” Gage asks.
“Would you quit being nosey?” Lila huffs.
“I can’t not be nosey when something like that happens in front of my face. I’m not that good at ignoring it,” Gage tells her.
Ian, who’s been silent this entire lunch, finally speaks up. “I take it this is how the rest of the year is going to go?”
“No!” I interject before anyone else can speak for me. I turn to stare at Lila. “I told you that I didn’t want to be around the football group. I knew this was going to happen.” Shoving my chair away from the table, I stand up to leave this mess behind. “Alex holds grudges the same way as he did before, so clearly nothing has changed. I’m not going to force him to be around me when he doesn’t want to be. So just let this idea that everyone can coexist peacefully go.”
“Grace,” Lila frowns but I hold up my hand to stop her.
“Seriously, I don’t want to deal with drama the rest of the year. I have enough on my plate as it is,” I say.
With that, I’ve got nothing left to say so I turn and leave the Union without having eaten anything.
It’s not ideal to dance on an empty stomach lik
e this. The pure power that has to be put into every step just makes you feel queasy by the end. But dance was always my release when I had to deal with something frustrating.
Thankfully, the dance hall is open all day and conveniently located right by the Union. There’s no one currently occupying the room that I’ll be in tomorrow morning. I drop my bag by the door and kick off my shoes. Shorts and a tank top aren’t the ideal choice of dancewear. In fact, my old coach would have a field day if I came to any dance class with this on.
Walking towards the center of the room, I crack my neck before pulling out my phone and scanning through music until I find a piece that I could easily get into. There’s a tryout later on this year for dancers to study at a ballet company.
The music picks up on the bass thrumming and I spin in a circle just to land sharply on the point of my toes at the very end. Contemporary dance, to me, is about being able to feel the emotion and portray it in a way that others can visually see it being performed.
I drop my toes and close my eyes, trying to figure out my next move. It’s not often that I’m at a loss of what to do. Sometimes it just feels like moving fluently comes easy and other times it's too hard to connect.
“I thought you were going to dance,” a shrill voice comes from behind me.
I turn to look at the doorway. It’s Mrs. Voit, standing there looking at me in a calculating way.
“That is what you were going to do, wasn’t it? With that little twirl of yours?” she goes on.
“Uh,” I manage to force out, “yeah.” Smooth. Real smooth.
“Why did you hesitate after?”
“I was thinking.”
“Why were you thinking?” she raises an eyebrow and walks further into the room. “It’s not the dancers job to think, but to feel. You think too much and your turns will be off, the movement will become jerky. You have to feel it to be able to be flexible.”
“Ah.”
“What kind of dancer are you?”
“Contemporary,” I finally say softly. “So I should know how to feel it.”
“But you’re thinking.” It’s not a question, but a statement.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Try again.” She points towards where my phone has just cut off the song and takes a small step away from me. “Do it again, don’t listen to your head. Hear the lyrics and tell me a story. Try to feel it this time.”
The Wrong Girl_Hanson University_Book Two Page 2