Page 4 of That's Too Pucking Bad

I spot a small campus store and decide to grab something quick—chips and a soda. Classic. It’s probably all I can afford until I find a part-time job. Maybe I’ll ask Maya later if she knows about any jobs on campus. She seemed nice enough, though I still can’t figure out if she’s rich like the rest of these people or just pretending to be.

Heading back to my room, I kick my shoes off and sit on the bed, cracking open the bag of chips. My phone buzzes again. Another text from Collin. Ugh.Do I really want to deal with this right now?

I glance at the screen, reading his messages.

Collin: Hey, how’s it going?

Collin: I feel like you’ve been distant lately.

Collin: We should talk.

Yeah, no thanks. I’m not doing this today.

I throw the phone beside me and lean back against the wall. Collin’s been my neighbor since forever, practically my whole life. We started dating in middle school if you could even call it that back then. Holding hands and awkward kisses in between classes—that kind of thing. But now, it’s different. He wants more. Morematurestuff, as he calls it.

I’m just not ready for that yet.

I’ve always had this idea in my head about how my first time would be. Something romantic. Special. Like, candles, maybe some soft music, a guy who actually knows what he’s doing. Not some rushed thing in the back of a car becausehe’s readyand I’m apparently too slow. But that’s the problem—Collin’s impatient, and I’m starting to worry that’s all he cares about anymore.

I shake my head and pull up Pinterest, scrolling mindlessly through wedding dresses and cute couple ideas. It’s kind of pathetic, but hey, a girl can dream. Then I switch to the half-broken Kindle app on my cracked screen, squinting to read the latest chapter of this romance novel. I can barely see half the text, but I’m determined to finish.The guy in this book would never pressure the girl. He’s rich, sexy, and has an accent. Total fantasy material.

I crunch on a chip and lose myself in the book. So much better than thinking about Collin right now. The heroine is in some billionaire’s penthouse, falling head over heels for him, and I’m grinning like an idiot. Who cares if it’s unrealistic? It’s a hell of a lot better than my real-life drama.

And then—someone’s standing over me.

I freeze, looking up and seeing this tall, blonde dude. Muscles for days. What the hell? He’s wearing a tight black shirtthat shows off every inch of his biceps, and his green eyes are locked on me. No way this guy is real.

He reaches into my bag of chips and grabs a handful.

“Hey,” he says, like we’re old friends or something. “You’re new, huh?”

I blink, still trying to process the fact that he’s not only standing in my dorm room but also stealing my snacks. “Uh, yeah. I just got here.”

He grins, popping another chip into his mouth. “Thought so. I’m Caleb. Caleb McCabe.”

Oh. My. God.

“Remy,” I manage to say, finally sitting up straight and fixing my glasses. “I’m… Remy.”

“Yeah, I got that part. So, where’s Maya?”

“She left earlier,” I say, still thrown off by this whole situation. Who is this guy, and why does he think it’s cool to just… eat my chips?

He shrugs, like it doesn’t matter. “Tell her not to miss tonight, okay?”

“Okay. What’s tonight?”

He smirks, like I’m supposed to know. “You’ll see. Come as her plus one.”

“What if I don’t wanna go?” I ask, crossing my arms, trying to act all casual. But it’s hard when he’s towering over me like that, muscles bulging out of his sleeves and everything.

“Oh, you’ll want to come,” he says, winking. “Trust me. Plus, you’ve got great taste in chips. I think you and I are gonna be friends, Remy.”

Before I can even respond, he walks out, still munching on my snacks like he owns the place.

I stare at the door, wondering what just happened.

Less than five minutes later, Maya bursts through the door, looking a little winded but still all smiles. Her eyes landon me sitting on the bed, and she freezes for a second like she wasn’t expecting me to be here.

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