Page 23 of Stalked By the Linebacker

“Go to your dresser, bottom drawer on the left-hand side.” I blinked, completely confused. “That’s where I put my pj’s.”

“I know, but you––“

“What?”

“Will you just go look!” she bossily demanded. I rolled my eyes but did her bidding.

“Blanca, there is nothing in––“ The words died the moment I felt something in the back of my drawer. “Blanca?” I whispered, and she rolled her eyes playfully. “What did you do?”

“Take it out!” I pulled the soft material out and set the phone on top of my dresser as I stared down at the fabric in my hands.

“It’s a dress,” I whispered. I shook it out to get a better look at it. It wasn’t just any dress either. “Blanca, how did… I mean, when… how is this possible?”

“I don’t know if I’m surprised or disappointed it took this long for you to discover it back there,” she teased, not answering me.

“Blanca!”

“When Ma and I moved you in, I slipped it in there hoping you might find yourself needing a pretty dress.” Warmer, fuzzier emotions washed over me. I blinked once, then twice, taking in the dress. It was a soft yellow with delicate blue flowers printed all over it. I knew exactly why it looked so familiar.

“Blanca,” I whispered. “It’s the one I saw.”

“That you said was too much and didn’t let me help you buy for graduation?” she filled in the blanks. My nose stung. Tears threatened to fall.

“Blanca, this is too much.”

“Hardly. I went at the end of summer, and it was on sale. It was less than twenty.”

“Still! That’s money you could have?—”

“Spent on my best friend so she could have something brand new and just for her for once? Yes, I did,” she cut me off.

“Blanca––“

“Just say thank you and let’s not get mushy because when you do, you cry, and you need to get ready to go on a date.”

“You really think this is a date?”

“Only one way to find out.” She winked.

From there, we talked about how I should do my hair and makeup before we ended the call, and I hurried to shower and shave. All the while feeling like the luckiest girl in the world because I seriously had the best friend in the universe.

CHAPTER 6

HECTOR

My fuckinghands were sweating with nervous energy I couldn’t shake off. I glanced down at my phone and sighed with relief.

At least I knew Libby was still in her dorm room. Or at least her phone was. I’d woken up in the middle of the night and had gone into her cell and made sure her location was shared with me. It was creepy and pretty much past stalker status, but it had helped make sure I knew where she was in case she ever needed me.

I ran my fingers through my hair and glanced at myself in the reflection of her mirrored dorm elevator. I needed a cut about a month ago. But between practices and summer courses and being so fucking obsessed with Libby, I didn’t have time to sleep, much less get my hair cut.

I brushed the longer strands out of my face and rolled my neck. I still couldn’t believe I’d called my sister for help. After dropping Libby off, I’d called Blanca and wondered if I’d possibly fucked everything up. My sister was a wildcard on a regular basis. Maybe because she was a middle child or because, as my mom liked to say, she was a true Gemini. I still had no idea what that meant. But I’d called her because it wasn’t like Libby had a whole lot of friends on campus, and the girls I knew were the girlfriends of the guys I played with and were no longer on campus. Libby had mentioned she was worried about what to wear. Not that I cared. She could have worn a paper bag and still been the prettiest girl I had ever seen. Yet I knew girls. I had two younger sisters and was raised by a single mom. I knew firsthand how much they cared about what they wore.

All I wanted was to make sure Libby felt comfortable. I worried the moment she opened the door, she would be dressed in the big plush robe my mom had bought her and would have come up with some kind of excuse to not go. Not that I cared if we went. I just wanted to spend time with her.

The elevator door dinged and opened. I walked down the long hall, straight to her dorm. With a deep breath, I knocked on her door and waited. Part of me was prepared to wait all night for her to answer the door, not that I thought she would actually do that to me. Just as I was about to knock again, the door started to open, and everything slowed down.

She pulled the door back, and I couldn’t take my eyes off hers. She wasn’t wearing the huge glasses that normally covered her face. Her eyes stood out even more. Libby was the most beautiful girl with them. But without them? Without anything hiding her face, she was incredible. I soaked in every detail, cataloging everything. The light makeup she had put on. Where a lot of girls put it on to hide this or that, all the makeup had done was highlight the beauty I had fallen for when I’d seen her at the diner.

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