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Torrid Affair(54)

By:Callie Anderson


So I got over it.

It had been four weeks since the awful news that Nate and Delaney had been together.

We had gotten over the hump and we were back to our old way of being inseparable. At times I felt Nate was overcompensating for what had come between us. I was over the whole situation and I honestly could say that I loved him even more.

We had grown in the past four weeks.

We were a stronger couple.

And we both agreed that no matter what, in the future we would talk things out before jumping to conclusions.

Finals were rapidly approaching and everyone was busy studying, but Delaney seemed different. If I had to label it, I’d say she was preoccupied. Most mornings I was up early for class, and by the time I finished with my day she wasn't in the room. We were living on opposite schedules and that worked just fine for me.

Until everything changed.

I sat in the lecture hall of my economics class. My pencils were sharpened and I was prepared for my first final. I'd spent most of the past week studying for this particular test. I knew the material. I was confident.

But my phone began to vibrate in my purse.

At first I thought it was nothing, positive it was Nate calling to wish me good luck.

But then it rang again.

And again.

And again.

My nerves began to ball in my stomach. Had something happened? Foolishly, I rushed through the exam. I skipped to every question I knew the answer for and then went back and tried my best to guess the ones I had an issue with.

My phone rang twenty-four times while I took that exam. After handing it to my professor, I yanked my phone out of my purse. I was expecting to see Nate's number on the screen, but instead it was my home phone number. My mother or father had been calling. Most likely it was my father calling to ask for money. Money I never had, but it didn’t stop him from asking. Shoving my phone back in my purse, I pulled out my laptop. If there was an urgent matter, my mother knew email was the best way to communicate.

My mailbox was empty. It wasn't an emergency.

Brushing off my mild panic attack, I made my way through the hallway and toward the common hall where most of the students had gathered for some last minute cramming sessions. It was that time of the year. Most students were high on caffeine and everyone had their faces deep in textbooks. Turning a corner, I noticed Julian sitting at one of the tables. His head was buried in a book, and there were papers scattered everywhere.

“Hey,” I greeted him.

“Hi, Brie.” He smiled back at me. Things between me and Julian had remained the same. After I kissed him and saw Nate at the door, I hopped off his lap and apologized for my actions. I blamed the alcohol. We both laughed about it and our friendship never faltered, though I knew deep down he wanted something more from me. His eyes never lied to me. “How was your exam?” he asked. His hair was disheveled and I imagined he had been up most of the night.

I sighed. “I passed.” I shrugged. “But I don't think I did as well as I hoped.”

“I have one in an hour and I'm trying to cram everything into my brain.” He threw his hands up in defeat.

I smiled at him and pushed the book closer to him. “I'll leave you to it, then. Good luck.”

“Thanks.”

I made my way through the common hall and outside. The air was warm, and late April had the trees filled with green buds. Tugging on the door, I felt my phone vibrating again. Annoyed, I grabbed it. This time it wasn't my home phone number. Instead, a random number I’d never seen flashed on the screen. The area code told me it was from back home. Hesitant to answer, I held the phone in my hand.

Was my douchebag father that desperate?

Wanting to give him a piece of my mind, I flipped the phone to answer it, but it stopped ringing. Before I could hit the call back button, I heard my name and looked up to see Chloe walking toward me.

“I need a huge favor,” she said. Her eyes were pinched together, and her hands were entwined as though she was praying.

“Of course, what’s up?”

“Do you still have your notes from when you took biology with Professor Gorve’s?”

I smiled. I'd given Nate all my notes. His tutoring excuse was complete bullshit, but even I had to admit that I took excellent notes, and I refused to let him get anything in that class other than an A. “Actually, I do have my notes. Nate has them at this moment, but I can get them for you.”

“Thank you so much, Brie!” Her shoulders relaxed. “I slacked off for most of the semester and now it’s crunch time.”

“When’s your final?”

“Monday.”

She still had a few days to study. “I'll have them to you right away.”

Chloe's eyes brightened and she wrapped her arms around me. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!”