Chapter 9
When Organic Chemistry rolled around again, Rosalie was going to ignore the offer that Eric had made for her to see if he was telling the truth. Part of her, the larger and more logical part, said that there was no way in hell that he could be, and that this was just a trick to make her look gullible and stupid. She took her usual place, set up her notebook, and waited for the lecture to begin. She couldn’t keep her eyes from glancing at the door every few minutes, however, because Eric wasn’t here yet. When the door opened, her heart skipped a beat. When she saw that it wasn’t him, her shoulders sagged in defeat, and she felt like the rest of the day was going to be gloomy. No one had ever affected her like this before. Could it really be some true feelings that she had for him? Infatuations and crushes meant nothing, and she’d had a crush or two, but this was different. Should she open her heart to him? As the professor walked in, she quickly pushed those thoughts out of her head. Besides, just because she was feeling this way didn’t mean that he was. She started to take notes and highlight in her textbook. Twenty minutes later, Eric came shuffling in, looking for all the world like he was just trying to be fashionably late. He failed, however, because the professor was too engrossed in his own lecture to notice him slink in.
“Hey. Thanks for not saying anything about what I told you.” She was confused. Oh, right. The social royalty thing.
“I highly doubt anyone would have believed me anyway if I had. Besides, how do you know I didn’t?” She didn’t know if she liked him to assume things about her, but then again, she was the type of person to keep a confidence, so she was caught in a catch twenty-two.
“Because the first person you would have told would be Vanessa, and she would have told the rest of the school.” Ok, so he had a valid point. So? That still didn’t mean that she believed him.
“So, about the cotillion? Do you want to go?” He brought it up. This must be some elaborate joke he was trying to pull off.
“I wouldn’t have anything to wear.” There. Not a yes or a no, just a nonchalant excuse. He grinned at her, and the impish nature of it brought a sparkle to his blue eyes that made her breath catch in her throat.
“I think I can help you there.” For the first time, she noticed that he had a large bag with him. That was strange in and of itself, because he never came to class with any supplies. He started to rummage around in it for a few minutes, as if he was checking to make sure everything was there, then pushed it behind her chair. “I wouldn’t want that to stand in the way of you believing me.” She was dying to dive into that bag and see what was in it, but she refused to give him the satisfaction. She’d do it between classes. When he wasn’t around. She went back to taking notes, and he reclined in his chair, as was his usual, giving the slacker impression he was so known for. Rosalie rolled her eyes. It became a game to her then to see just for how long she could ignore him before glancing his way. Whether he knew what she was doing or not, he never let on, but when the professor dismissed them, she heaved a sigh of relief.
“Um, thanks for this. Whatever it is.” She added the last part hastily so that he wouldn’t know that she was dying to get into that bag. He shrugged.
“See you at six in front of the library.” He straightened the collar of his leather jacket, then flipped it up as he walked down the stadium seating to exit the class. She waited for a few minutes after he was gone before taking the bag and heading back to her dorm room. She still had time before her next class, so she could look through the bag in peace. Usually, when she got home, she stacked her books up nicely and swapped everything out. This time, the books got tossed haphazardly into the corner of her desk and she flopped onto the bed with the bag. She took a deep breath, steeling herself in case there was a snake or a frog or some other slimy gross creature in the bag. The first thing that she pulled out was a shoe box. She frowned. This reinforced her idea that something gross and alive was in the bag. She didn’t see any air holes poked into the lid, though, so maybe it would be alright. Wincing, she lifted the lid slightly, trying to peek in without actually taking the lid off. It was a pair of shoes. A pair of soft pink, satin shoes. They had a little heel to them, but by no means were they hooker heels. They were beautiful.
What was he thinking giving these to her? She had nothing to go with that. Reaching back into the bag, she pulled out a small pouch. Inside of it was a rose gold necklace with a single pearl in the middle. Not exactly a choker, but a little more loose. There was no way this could be real gold…right? It was a thin band, and if it were real, somewhere on it the carat would be stamped. She flipped it over until she found an engraved section. It was 14k gold. Her eyes almost popped out of her head. Was he really giving her all of this? Could he be telling the truth about having all that money? If he was, then she would never cut it as an interest to him because there was no way that she could keep up with him in that respect. One more thing lay in the bag, and it was a garment bag, folded carefully in the bottom. Holding her breath, she pulled it out and hung the bag from her closet door. She unzipped it slowly, watching as pale pink satin in the exact shade as the shoes spilled out of it. It had one shoulder strap, leaving the other bare, and an A line shape with a small sash around the middle. The skirt flounced out like a princess dress, with little roses picked out in gold thread all along it. Tears came to her eyes at the beauty of the dress.
He couldn’t go all out for just a cruel joke, could he? If he was giving her all of this expensive stuff, just to embarrass her, people would ask where a slacker would get the money for it. If he had been telling the truth, he wouldn’t want anyone to dig into that question very far. She put her head in her hands. He was giving her all this proof that what he was saying just might be real, and yet she was doubting it. No one had ever been that nice to her before, and she was just too gullible for her own good. Ugh! What was she going to do? Meet him at the library, or calmly return it all in the next class they shared? She was staring around the room, looking for some kind of inspiration as to what she should do, when her eyes fell on the clock. Shit! She was going to be late for her next class! She threw the right books in her bag, locked the door behind her and tore out of the dorm at a run.
Eric had been just outside the dorm, waiting to see when she’d come back out. He knew that she wouldn’t take the bag with her to her next class, and he knew that her innate curiosity would make her rifle through it as soon as she could. When he noticed that she came out at a run, he patted himself on the back…figuratively. He’d made her late for class. He considered that a point on his scoreboard. She was so tight lipped with her head stuck in her studies that he couldn’t really see himself with her mousy type of person, but if he could get her to loosen up a little, then she just might be a great girl for him. He hadn’t really thought about it before, but when he’d been taking her home from the party, he’d seen some glimpses into her that he’d never seen before, and he’d liked it. Maybe he should start getting rid of the slacker reputation and start going after her for real. He shook his head. No, it couldn’t be that serious. He barely even knew the girl.
He saw Blaze and Vanessa heading towards the dorm out of the corner of his eye. Ducking behind the tree he’d been leaning on, he hid himself as best he could. Blaze was annoying. No matter how many hints he gave her that he wasn’t interested, she just wouldn’t stop. He wasn’t sure whether or not she’d picked up on the possible, maybe, kind of attraction between himself and Rosalie, but if she had, he knew that she would make the poor girl’s life hell. She was the type of girl who didn’t care about anyone but herself, and when she wanted something she went for it. The pushiness was really getting old, and he’d even canceled on his friend Rob a few times, just because he knew she’d be there. It was like having a stalker that he couldn’t get rid of.
As he walked back to his car, he couldn’t help but feel some excitement towards his sister’s stupid party. He’d been dead set on not going, but now that he had an excuse to get Rosalie out with him, he really should do something nice for her to let her know. Maybe some flowers or something. She was one of those romantic saps that loved flowers. He headed towards the little mom and pop flower shop at the edge of campus.
Rosalie managed to get into her seat just before the professor walked in, and as she sat there breathing like a winded rhinoceros, she managed to get her notes out and ready, like she did for every class. Unfortunately, this time her mind was nowhere near anything that even remotely resembled the topic of the chapter they were studying. She was thinking about that beautiful pink dress, hoping against hope that it would fit her, and that she wouldn’t look like a sausage in it. She was blushing, even as she thought about it. If he had taken the time to know her size, get her something that she would like, and buy her expensive jewelry, then it had to mean that he was noticing her, right? Unfortunately, this wasn’t exactly something she could talk to Vanessa about, because it would blow his cover. The cover that she was beginning to believe more and more. Furthermore, it would just cause more animosity between her and Blaze, and that wasn’t something that she needed. That girl had a stare to her that would curdle milk, and she wanted to make sure it was never aimed at her. Her daydreaming must have translated to her face, because the professor chose that moment to ask her a question that she didn’t even hear.
“I’m sorry, could you repeat the question, please?” Her cheeks flamed as she listened to the laughter of her fellow students. The professor indulged her, however, and when she heard the question, she breathed a sigh of relief. That one she actually knew. Answering it quickly and with more detail than necessary, she felt a little more than just satisfied when the giggled stopped and the rest of the class went back to what they were doing. Ha! I can still pay attention, thank you!