Page 10 of Weak Side

Placing my hands in the pockets of my jeans, I shrugged, holding back a cheeky grin. “That depends.”

Her glare narrowed. “On...?”

“On if you snore.”

Her small nose wrinkled, and I winked at her. “See ya at home, Bryant.”

An exasperated breath caused a cloud of mist to float from her parted lips, and I smiled deviously as I walked back to my car.

6

Claire

I tookthe long way to the dorms from Dean Chiffon’s office, which only added forty seconds onto my trip, but the need to wind down before being trapped in a small space with Bexley U’s most popular hockey player was the most pressing thing at the moment.

My head was throbbing from stress. I rubbed my temples gently as I let the cool air seep into my car from my open door—because every time I used my window, it got stuck, and the last thing I needed was to wake up and have rain or snow covering my seat. I hadjustgotten the smell of mildew out of the carpet from the last time that had happened.

“Why aren’t you answering your phone?”

My hand flew to my heart as I jumped in my seat. My seatbelt locked up as I turned and looked at Chad, who had pulled up right beside me in his black BMW. “Gosh, Chad! You scared me.”

A short chuckle came from him as he began rolling up his window. He stepped out of his car a moment later, placing his black-rimmed glasses on the dash before shutting his door, seemingly waiting for me to exit mine.

There was no,“Hey, baby. How was work?”Instead, it was a deep scowl and an annoyance flowing from his stance that I could sense the second I met his eyes.

“Where have you been?”

I crossed my arms over my Bex shirt. “I could ask you the same. You were supposed to help me move into the dorms, remember?”

He rolled his eyes, and the feeling of loss caused me to stare at the pavement below our feet. It hadn’t always been like this with Chad. I could still taste the tender sweetness of his mouth on mine from years ago, when he was gentle with me and kind. Now, he was only like that when he wanted something from me—like the security of a girlfriend who he knew was selfless.

Standing in front of him, I was reminded of the situation I was in. Every time I felt a brush of his skin against mine, a faint threat came soon after, reminding me of the war zone that I often forgot I was in the middle of. My mom’s face flashed before mine, and the thought of ruining everything she worked so hard for was like a shot to my chest.

“Claire.” The impatient sound of Chad’s tone snapped me out of my stupor. “You know that I’m busy. I told you I might not be able to help you move in.” I said nothing as he checked his watch. “Where have you been? Did you just get off work? It’s a little late to be working, isn’t it?”

A soft laugh left me. “It’s only eight, Chad. Some of us have to make money.”

He rolled his eyes. “One day, you won’t have to worry about money. You’ll be living under my roof.”

“Actually…” I treaded lightly, feeling unsteady on my feet. I cringed internallybecause I wasn’t as docile as I acted. I was only like this with Chad, and I hated to admit it, but I knew he liked me like this. He enjoyed having the upper hand, and he enjoyed thinking I’d have to rely on him one day. He and his family scoffed at my dreams of having my own career. It honestly didn’t get more anti-feminist than that, did it?

The sound of cars pulling into the student parking lot left my ears as the words spewed from my mouth. “There was a mix up at admissions, so they put me on a male floor.”

“What? What do you mean?”

I crossed my arms over my chest as a gust of wind surrounded us. I paused before ripping the Band-Aid off. “I mean…my roommate is a guy.”

His brow furrowed, and his thick dark eyelashes fluttered as he took in the information. “You’re rooming with a guy?”

I nodded. “Yeah. And you know I can’t afford to live off campus.”Remember? We already chatted about this, and you turned me down when I suggested we move in together.

“Definitely not,” he agreed. “So…who is it? Do I know him?”

“You probably know of him.” I put my back to him and began grabbing a box from my backseat, knowing that I was unfortunately stuck rooming with Theo. Disappointment ran through my veins, but I was so used to the feeling that it was like my blood type. “He is the star hockey player of Bexley U.”

Chad rubbed his jaw, seeming impatient. “You know I don’t follow sports. They’re a waste of time.”

The one thing Chad and I had in common? Neither one of us was big on sports. It wasn’t that I thought the game was silly or fruitless, because that would make me a hypocrite, thinking someone else’s passion wasn’t important, like Chad often did with mine. But I’d admit, I had a bitterness for jocks. Between my mother’s distasteful whispers in my ear from the moment I could ask about the absence of my father and the popular jocks I had to put up with in high school, I wasn’t a fan.

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