Page 77 of Promising You

“Yes, we can go.”

When we get back to campus, he walks me to my room as he always does.

“I know it’s not sleepover Saturday, but can I stay with you tonight?”

He leans down and kisses my forehead. “You never have to ask me that. You can stay with me every night if you want.”

“I think I’ll just add Fridays for now.”

When we get in bed we kiss, but he doesn’t take it any farther. He knows I don’t want that tonight. I just want to be near him, tucked inside his warm, safe arms.

Leave it to Blake to ruin yet another evening. But as awful as it was, the night ended with Garret and me having a really good talk in the car. A talk which took our relationship to an even deeper level. That happens a lot with us. Bad stuff happens and each time it does, we seem to grow closer, not farther apart. It’s another thing I love about us.

CHAPTERNINETEEN

The restof the weekend we stay on campus. I don’t want to risk going into town and running into Blake. Decker texted Garret and said Blake was only home for the weekend and was flying back to San Diego on Sunday night. I assumed Blake wouldn’t be back here until spring break, but I guess when you’re rich you can fly home as much as you want. And apparently you can get away with whatever you want, too. Attempted rape. Selling drugs. I’m sure Blake’s done even more bad things and yet he gets to go on living his life without any type of punishment. Sure, he got kicked out of Moorhurst, but now he’s at some private college in San Diego. It’s hardly a punishment.

On Monday I see Carson at physics but I manage to avoid him. On Tuesday at chem class I realize I can’t keeping avoiding him, so I sit next to him like I always do and try to act like last Friday night never happened. He doesn’t say much, but he looks at me differently now. Like he feels sorry for me because of what he heard and saw at the party. And I hate that he looks at me that way.

When class ends I race out of the room and down the stairs, not putting my coat on until I get outside. I don’t want a lecture from Carson about how Garret is dangerous and aggressive and violent—all things I know he’s thinking after seeing Garret try to beat up Blake.

After lunch, I go to lab and arrive just as it’s starting. Carson’s already there setting up the equipment.

“Do you want to get the reactant or do you want me to?” Carson’s holding up a beaker that he’s already filled with one of the chemicals in the experiment.

“I’ll get it.”

He watches as I go to the table that has the other chemical we need, then continues to watch me as I walk back to our station and start the bunsen burner. Why is he watching me so closely? Is he thinking about the attempted rape?

I really wish Garret hadn’t told him about that. I know Garret didn’t say it to embarrass me. He was mad and he was trying to explain his behavior that night. I get that. But I still wish he hadn’t said it.

“So how did things work out with Sierra the other night?” I ask, hoping to take Carson’s mind off whatever he’s thinking that’s causing him to look at me that way.

“Good. She introduced me to some people. Mostly friends of hers from high school. That prep school Garret went to.”

“Yeah, a lot of people from that school ended up going here.”

“I heard some interesting stories about him.”

I pour the reactant into the beaker and start stirring our chemical mixture. “People shouldn’t talk about him when he’s not around. It’s rude. And just so you know, Sierra has a history of lying. She makes up stories that aren’t true.”

Carson checks the lab book. “We need to let this sit for 5 minutes. We’re not supposed to stir it.”

“Oh. Oops.” I take the stirrer out and set it on the counter.

“I’m sure Garret’s already told you everything anyway, so it’s not like you don’t already know that stuff, right?”

The way he says it, it sounds like he’s implying Garret has these deep dark secrets from high school that I don’t know about. He acts like I’m this naive little girl who has no idea what she’s gotten herself into by dating Garret, which totally pisses me off.

Talking about it will just cause us to fight so I change the subject. “What did you think of Sierra?”

“I don’t want to date her, if that’s what you mean. She’s not my type. She seems superficial. All about her looks and money.”

“That pretty much sums her up. Did you meet any other girls at the party?”

“Nobody I’d want to go out with. But I did meet a girl last week. We went out to dinner Saturday night. She’s on the tennis team. Kerry Mitchell. Do you know her?”

That explains the girl I’ve seen walking around campus with Carson. I only saw her from a distance so didn’t recognize her.

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