Page 116 of Stitches

“Times have changed.”

“Not for me.” Bryce gave Church a measured look. “I can handle shit, Church. You may think I’m soft and weak, but believe me, I know what I’m doing.”

Church eyed him for a moment while I waited with my breath held.

“Stitches has therapy. Ashes has therapy. Sin has…well, he’s busy with his knife today. I can take her,” Asylum said.

“Fine. Bryce. Straight to your dorm. You don’t leave. The door remains locked. You make sure nothing happens to her or I’ll fuck your world up.”

“OK,” Bryce answered evenly. “You have my word.”

Church turned to me and kissed me roughly before releasing me.

“You come with me,” he said to Asylum who gave me a wink.

“Next time, firefly. Perhaps we can flit off together to the woods?” He smiled knowingly at me, making me blush. Church frowned at Asylum’s words which only made me nervous. The last thing I wanted was Church flipping out over me meeting Mirage in the woods.

“I want her home by eleven,” Church instructed Bryce, his glare hard and piercing. “If she’s a fucking second late, I’ll kill you to rid me of your problematic ass.”

He didn’t wait for Bryce to reply. He turned on his heel and left us standing there.

“Best be off. You two have fun. Bryce, not too much fun. Mind your manners and your words.” Asylum cocked his head and licked his lips. “The wrong words might get you into trouble. Or so I’ve been told.” He pointed at his head and let out another wild laugh before leaving us alone.

“I don’t know how you put up with all that,” Bryce said once they were gone. “If you aren’t insane, they’d drive you to be.”

He took my elbow and led me outside into the cold Michigan air. Snow was falling and it made it hard to see in front of us. As fast as we could, we made our way across campus to Bryce’s dorm.

My phone buzzed once we were in Bryce’s room. I pulled it out and looked at Cady’s message on the screen. She’d been keeping her distance since everything with Adam had happened. She’d hugged me and sobbed, apologizing for him speaking about me the way he had. I knew she was genuinely upset and sad over it, and that in turn upset me because I hated when she was hurting.

Cady: Want to hang out? We can paint our nails. I can come over if you want. Or you can come here.

I looked to Bryce who had just locked the door behind him and was going into the small cupboard he had I knew he kept food in. He gave me privacy, turning his back on me. Quickly, I snapped a photo of him and sent it back to her, so she knew I was busy.

Cady: OK. Another time. He’s a nice guy. Have fun. Message me if you need me. XO

I darkened the screen and sat on the edge of Bryce’s bed. He was always so tidy. Nothing was out of place and there wasn’t a lot of decoration in his room. No photos of his family or anything, but judging by what I knew of his home life, it wasn’t great. His father hated him and thought he was gay, which made no sense, but unfortunately, some people were just cruel in that respect.

“OK. I have butter popcorn, cheese popcorn, and what I think is ranch? I’m not sure. I got it from the kitchens, and it wasn’t labeled but smells suspiciously like ranch.” Bryce held out several bags of popcorn to me.

I grabbed the butter one, making him chuckle.

“I also have mini muffins I liberated from the kitchens as well as these pre-packaged chocolate cupcakes. Pretty sure they’re knockoffs of the good kind, but I’m sure they taste just as good.” He brought out a handful of wrapped mini muffins and cupcakes and dropped them onto the bed with two bags of chips. When he finished that, he got us two bottled waters and moved to his bed where he slid up and patted the spot beside him, remote in hand.

I got comfortable next to him, grateful he seemed to like a lot of fluffy pillows, and settled in with the snacks.

He turned on a sci-fi release that I’d been wanting to see, and we sat in silence, watching it for the two and half hour long run time.

When it was over, he yawned and stretched and got to his feet. I watched him at his window.

“It gets dark so early now,” he commented, staring out into the darkness. “It’s not even seven yet. We have time for another movie, unless you want to talk.” He wandered back to me and lay in his spot, rolling to face me.

I rolled too so I could face him and stared into his eyes. He was pretty. I knew he worked out, but it was only because life on campus was boring. He wasn’t as big as my guys, but he could still be intimidating if he didn’t smile so much and always had a bright outlook on things. His copper-colored hair was a mess of waves and curls atop his head. If I squinted my eyes, he reminded me of what I’d envision an angel to look like. Fair, porcelain skin, sparkling hazel eyes, pouty lips, messy curls, a soft touch and sweet words.

I sighed.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, staring back at me.

I gave the slightest shake of my head, watching as his tongue darted out to wet his lips.

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