Page 64 of Wreck Me

“I know, it’s absolute crap. I can’t fit all the elements into the limited space the professor determined for this first floor bullshit design.”

He looked up at me and grinned. “Wow, you’re really stressed about this, huh?”

“I’m useless at it, that’s why.”

“You’re being too hard on yourself. There’s a lot of good work here. You just need a little help understanding better functional layout. I can see you’re trying to make it too pretty and going with style over function. That comes later. You need to get a handle on the fundamentals first, before you go out there with your designs—well too far out there, you still want to have a little fun with it.”

“Okay, yeah,” I said, taking his words in.

I went to reach for the paper, but he snatched it up. “We’re not done.”

“We’re not?”

His eyes darkened. “We’re not in many ways.” That darkness retreated as he tucked the drawing into his bag. “But in the case of this, I’m going to help you.”

“I don’t need you to do that.”

“But I am.”

“And you’re taking the drawing so I have no choice?”

“More like you’re leaving me no choice but to employ harsher methods.”

“Excuse me?” I snapped.

“Because of all this standoffish and denial bullshit?”

“I—”

“You don’t like to display anything that’s not an unaffected persona, completely unaffected by anything or anyone, a machine, really. Hate to break it to you, but you’re actually a human being.”

“As if you’re one to talk with that shutdown, robot thing you’ve got going on.”

“Exactly. So I can recognize it in you. And the difference is, you don’t want to be that way. In fact, I’d go as far as to say that you hate it. You don’t want to be trapped or shoved in a metaphorical box with constraints… you’re a free spirit. And all this that you’re doing here is clipping your wings. One of the reasons you lost control last night is from all that repression.”

I held up my hand. “I already had a similar conversation with Caleb this morning.”

“And you listened to what he had to say and you agreed to let him help you. I’m just asking that you do the same here with me.”

“You want to be my friend, is that what you’re actually going with?”

“Why not?”

I leaned forward and lowered my voice, “You don’t have to sugarcoat it. If you want another wild fuck from me, at least have the balls to admit it.”

“I think a wild fuck is understating it just a tad.” He pointed at the marks all over his neck and unzipped his hoodie a little to show me more on his chest. Just what I’d been trying to avoid noticing since he’d sat down. I’d covered my own ones up with makeup, so at least there was that. “Wouldn’t you agree?” he asked, coyly, and in that know-it-all tone.

“It was in the heat of the moment.”

“Yeah, I know,” he said, zipping his hoodie back up. “You used me.”

“What?”

“No hard feelings, I told you to.” He licked his lips. “And it was a hell of a ride, one that I wouldn’t trade for anything.”

“Don’t get any ideas. I’m not looking to repeat it.”

“I wouldn’t imagine so. At least not yet. I’d wager you’re rather sore right now.”

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