Beg You to Trust Me (Lindon U #2)(27)
I want to tell her no, but I feign a smile and accept the much-needed caffeine along with the straw she passes me. “Yeah, I’m good. Not sleeping well, that’s all. And thank you.”
We fall into step on our way to Intro to Comm class. “Did Becca have to go into the station again? I heard a fire alarm going off in the building next to me. I guess someone set a paper plate on fire in the oven trying to heat up chicken nuggets in the middle of the night.”
I blink with the straw halfway to my mouth for the first sip of salvation. “Are you kidding me?” Even though my family had people who cooked for us most times, even I knew better than that. What’s next? A fork in the microwave?
Olive shakes her head, looking as exasperated as me. “I wish. Did Becca have to respond to that one? I guess the RA put out the flames with an extinguisher, but the department had to inspect damage for insurance purposes or something.”
My mouth waters when I finally get some of the coffee, my tastebuds exploding with the sugary flavor. “Heaven sent,” I repeat, nudging Olive with my shoulder. The girl beside me has become the closest friend I have at Lindon. Our mutual love for The Voice, chicken tenders, and fries helped us bond after picking up said fried food from Reavers and binge watching the newest episodes of the singing competition together. She helps me with my makeup, hangs out just to be lazy, and gossips about anything happening on campus. Our friendship is easy, uncomplicated. “And, yeah, she went to it.”
“How are you two?”
I choose my words carefully, because Olive may know about the strain between me and my roommate, but she still likes Becca to some degree. I don’t want to stoop to my roomie’s level and talk out of pettiness or expect Olive not to like her simply because my roommate can’t stand me. “We’re the same as usual. I don’t think it’s going to get better at this point. But what can I do?”
Olive holds the door open for me, and I wait until she slips through before we head toward the stairs leading to the basement where our class is held. I tug the zipper up on the hoodie I slid on over my white tee and stifle the shiver that creeps its way through my limbs as we enter the huge room with desks lining the outside of it in a semi-circle formation. “I don’t think I’m going to survive this winter if I’m already freezing now.”
It’s only October, which makes my friend snort next to me. “You’re in for a ride. In about three weeks, we’ll start seeing single digit temperatures and then you’ll probably regret ever leaving California.”
I make a face at that, thinking about all the reasons I left. For freedom. For independence. To prove to myself that I could handle things on my own. Not that I’ve done particularly well in that department so far. “We’ll see.”
We drop our things in our normal seats and sit while a few other students shuffle in. I keep forgetting Olive is from Vermont. She’s used to colder weather. When she told me that her, her nieces, and her nephews enjoy going hiking through the woods behind their houses after the first snowfall, I thought she was going to pee herself from how hard she laughed over my horrified expression. Then she may have actually peed a little after I admitted I’d never seen snow in real life before. Only in movies.
Olive fiddles with her pen for a few seconds before looking over at me. “Hey, so I was thinking about something.”
“What?”
“I know you said you don’t do parties.” The coffee I’m drinking suddenly feels heavy in my mouth as I swallow it. “But Aliyah mentioned that there was another bonfire coming up and I kind of want to go to this one. I normally wouldn’t ask you or even consider going, but there’s this guy I like who I’m positive is going to be there. And it’s not technically a party, so it’ll be different than the other ones you’ve been to. It’s outside, which means way more room to mingle. It’d be the perfect opportunity for me to try making a move.”
My eyes shift from her to the coffee, which I now realize is a bribe. Eyes narrowing suspiciously, I lower it to my desk. “Did you buy this to soften me up?”
She looks apologetic. “You skipped out on the last bonfire that Ali brought up, so I was hoping if I gave you caffeine and then asked, there’d be a better chance of you agreeing. But I’ll understand if you say no. I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”
Despite the bribery, I can tell she means that. I’m about to speak when she cuts me off to add, “Oh! And Ali told me that Becca and Dee won’t be there because there’s something going on at the fire department. It’d just be me and you, most likely. Ali hasn’t decided if she’s showing up without the others, but if you’d prefer not hanging with her, then it’ll be us all night. If you say yes. You know I won’t ditch you.”
I do know that she wouldn’t ditch me like the others which is the only reason I’m actually considering this. A bonfire at the end of October, though? “Who’s hosting it?”
Olive nibbles her lip. “The hockey team. But the football team will be there,” she continues, voice a notch or two lower than before like she senses my reasoning for asking. “Which draws a pretty big crowd. They sort of run in the same circles since they all play sports. Lacrosse players will probably make an appearance too. I know Patrick Malone made a move on you, but he hasn’t since, right? I heard somebody told him to leave you alone, so I’m sure he’ll be preoccupied if you’re worried about him. He’s the captain, so he’s going to have to keep his guys in check.”