Chapter 13

Alex

For once that entire semester, I couldn’t wait to get to Cost Accounting on Monday. I arrived early, expecting to see Lily there on time as usual. I needed to talk to her. She avoided my texts all weekend, apologizing for Bret’s asshole behavior on Friday. I thought about going to her dorm and making her talk to me, but I wanted to give her some time to cool off. Bret embarrassed her, and there wasn’t much I could do at that point other than apologize. We had a great time up until my brother came into the room. We both did. That would happen again, only if she’d talk to me about it.

“Everyone take your seats,” Tarrington said to the class.

I glanced at the door. Lily was always on time for class. Was she going to skip today, so she didn’t have to see me? That seemed unlike her. And it worried me that she was more upset than she led on.

“That means you, Mr. Fuller,” Tarrington said.

I shoved off Lily’s desk and headed over to my own.

“Excuse me,” Lily’s voice said from the doorway.

I sat down in my chair, whirling around to see her rushing into the room.

Tarrington moved out of her way. Her head was down as she made her way to her seat. Tarrington gave her a questioning look but didn’t mention her tardiness. Since she was such a good student, I was sure he’d let it slide this time.

I tried to catch her eye, but she didn’t even glance in my direction.

Yup. She was still pissed.

I crossed my arms over my chest, watching her. She couldn’t ignore me forever. I knew she was curious about me just as much as I was about her. She’d slip up at some point and look at me.

“Your assignments from the other day have been graded,” Tarrington said, returning to the front of the classroom. “I’ll hand them back at the end of class. There are several of you who should look over the last unit before continuing. We have three more units to go over before the final and all of these concepts build on each other. Now, let’s start with this weeks lesson.”

I pulled out my notebook and pen. Lily and I already did a lot of work together so I didn’t want to disappoint her by not taking notes in class. I had a feeling she’d try to break our deal, and I needed to show her that I was taking all of this seriously, including her.

After class, I packed up my things and headed to the front of the classroom where Tarrington already had last week’s assignments in his hands. Of course Lily was first in line. I wouldn’t let her go that easily.

I shoved passed a few of my classmates while keeping an eye on Lily exiting the room. Tarrington flipped through the assignments, taking his sweet time. I pushed to the front and tried to keep a calm expression on my face. Knowing Lily, she probably sprinted out of there to avoid me. I’d have no problem catching up with her, but I didn’t want it to come to that. Chasing girls wasn’t my thing. Usually, it was the other way around.

“Very good, Mr. Fuller,” Tarrington said, handing over my assignment. “I see you followed my advice.”

I glanced at the paper with a big red A on it. My breath caught in my throat. I was expecting a passing grade, but not one this high. “I did.”

“Keep up the good work,” he said and then moved onto the next person.

I shouldered my bag and jogged out of the room. Lily was already heading out the front doors when I found her.

I ran down the hall and reached her, just as she took a step outside.

“Lily,” I said, panting.

She let out a small yelp and clamped a hand over her mouth. “Alex,” she said when she regained her composure.

“Look,” I said, showing her my assignment.

A smile crossed her lips and then immediately disappeared. “Looks like you don’t need my help anymore.”

She turned to leave, and I grabbed her arm. “Wait.”

“What do you want?” she asked, pulling out of my grip.

“This is just one assignment,” I said. “I still need you.”

She shook her head. “That’s not a good idea.”

My insides twisted. I couldn’t let her see how she affected me, not when being with her helped my grades improve. “We had a deal. We make a good team.”

She frowned. “I gave you all the skills you need to pass. I don’t—”

“Please,” I said. I hated the way my voice sounded. Begging wasn’t my thing. “I’ll do anything.”

“Fine,” she said, looking away from me. “But we have to keep things professional.”

I fisted my hands at my sides. “Okay.” If she was over it that quickly, I would show her that I could do the same. I had to pass Cost Accounting to graduate on time. Maybe she had a point. If I was going to continue with her, I couldn’t give into my impulses like that. I regretted losing control and moving too quickly at the party. I didn’t take advantage of her, but I was more involved than she was. It was best to keep our relationship in the friend's zone for the time being.

“Meet me at the library tomorrow afternoon,” she said and then walked away from me.

I stood there, looking after her until she turned the corner of the student center. It was only then that I could breathe again. What had I gotten myself into?

For the next two days, we studied together at the library. I attempted to turn on my charm again to loosen the tension between us. She didn’t fall for it. I reminded myself of our deal and became the perfect gentleman for the rest of our time together. It was hard. Every moment we were together, I thought about the night we spent in my room. No girl ever clung to my memory the way she did. It was all I could do not to kiss or touch her when she sat so close to me.

The day before an exam, Lily and I studied hard at the student union. The library was packed in the afternoon’s as we were so close to the finals. When I asked her if she wanted to study at my place, she flat-out refused me. Just when I thought we were doing okay together, the other night came back to haunt me. I hoped she was still willing to uphold my part of the deal and attend the last event of the season at AKA. I wanted her there more than she knew.

Friday was the first day that I left Cost Accounting after an exam feeling good instead of terrible. I knew all the answers on the exam, and I had a good feeling I passed.

After class, Lily lingered by the door, waiting for me. We walked together down the hallway toward our next classes.

“How do you think you did?” I asked.

She snorted. “The better question is how do you think you did.”

“I think I did well. Better than any other exam.”

“Well, you deserve it,” she said.

I held the front doors for her as she thanked me before walking out. “What a relief. For a minute there, I was worried about not passing this class.”

“You don’t have to worry anymore,” she said. “If you nail the concepts on this test then the final should be easy enough to pass.”

“That’s promising,” I said.

“I should be going,” she said and started to walk away from me.

“Wait,” I said. “Let’s have dinner together before the party tomorrow.”

“Like a date?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Like a thank you dinner,” I said, careful not to push her away too soon. Of course, it was a date, but she was as skittish as a reindeer since the previous weekend. “On me.”

“That would be all right,” she said, chewing on her lip again.

“Great,” I said. “I’ll text you the details later.”

“Sounds good,” she said a little more upbeat now that the awkwardness had passed.

“See you later, Lily,” I said, squeezing her hand.

“Bye,” she said, staring at our hands.

I released her first, not wanting to make it weird again and she waved at me and headed off to her next class.

I grinned. I couldn’t wait to be with her alone when we weren’t studying. I missed that smile of hers, and I was determined to bring it out again.