Page 49 of Tops
The secret hallways ran adjacent to all the halls inside Bottoms. Every time I got to a wall, the press of my hand would open a doorway leading to access points to the regular halls. I scribbled notes in my books about each painting that covered one of these access points.
After spending several hours making notes and learning the paths, I returned to my bedroom. Since I didn’t have anything better to do, I would spend my free time learning everything I needed to roam these hallways like a ghost.
15
Not His Turn
“Readyforclass?”
My head whipped upwards at the sound of Nik’s voice. He stood inside my room with his hands crossed over his chest but a wide smile across his face. This was the first I had seen any of them since my time with Tanner on the roof. He had not checked in with me daily, not even through text.
When I was pouring over the secret passageways last night, Colten messaged me to let me know he would be unable to see me until the following weekend. Nik hadn’t spoken, texted, or seen me since our time together during movie night. I had started to worry that he was upset that I had sex with Colten when he wasn’t there.
“Yeah, sorry. I’m not usually so terrible with being on time,” I said as I put the notebook back on my side table and grabbed my backpack. At least I didn’t need to change today, since I dressed in a pair of my own leggings and an oversized sweatshirt.
“It’s a rather warm night. You might want to go with something less bulky,” Nik suggested. He was still standing there observing my movements like a cat watched a mouse. Prickles of electric current seemed to float through the air between us. His presence in the room with me was something I felt deep inside. Still, my unfamiliarity with these types of arrangements made me pause.
“I’ll deal with it,” I sighed. “I don’t want to make us any later than I have.”
“We’re not late,” Nik said with a smile as he stepped closer. I could feel the pull inside me, growing increasingly impatient. Nik stopped, but smiled. “I came over early, considering all that’s happened since we last saw each other. You don’t seem keen on answering my messages.”
I didn’t need a mirror to know that my face displayed a complete look of confusion.
“Give me your phone,” he smiled like he had a secret and extended his hand palm up, awaiting his demanded offering.
I handed it over without hesitation. At least it would prove that I hadn’t received any messages from him, and I was not the asshole in this situation. He took my phone, opened the secure email app, and then maneuvered me to the group chats.
“Here,” he said, handing my phone back, only to show me an entirely separate area full of different chat rooms. The group chat thread was full of unread messages from each guy, outlining their daily schedules for me. There was also an individual area for more direct messaging.
“This is seriously way too complicated. I didn’t even know these things were here,” I muttered as I scrolled through the group chat. My finger stopped on a picture of myself that was posted to the group from Tanner. I was naked except for the blindfold covering my eyes, the picture shot from below. Clearly, this was the night’s end when I lost my virginity.
Even though I knew the image had been taken from a phone, it was both artistic and erotic. I barely recognized myself and felt a blush creeping up my cheeks. This wasn’t the only image, either. As my finger scrolled up, I saw image after image of myself from that night. Nik had seen all of these. My eyes moved up to shyly look at him. He smiled, which made me flush in more places than my cheeks.
“I thought you were all too busy,” I said meekly as our eyes locked.
“We are busy, Vanessa. This is why we have messaged you with our schedules. That way, you can fit us into your life depending on our availability. That’s how this whole sharing concept works.”
“Wasn’t it strange that I didn’t respond?” I asked, looking at the time before putting my phone in my pocket. We had about thirty minutes until we were supposed to leave.
“I thought you might have needed some space. You have a lot going on right now,” Nik said. His voice was soft, and I could tell he meant it, but there was still a fire in his eyes.
“In the future, you might want to invest in some messages read technology,” I laughed out awkwardly. The jitters of anxiety were a common sensation coursing through my veins, but what Nik made me feel was something more like sticking my tongue on a car’s battery.
“Were you starved for attention?” Nik said as he took half a step toward me, shrinking the small space between us.
His blond hair was styled more casually today, sticking up at odd angles. Nik smiled, revealing his perfect teeth, making my heart ache at just how attractive he was. The black button-up shirt he wore fit him perfectly and highlighted how well he trained to stay fit for work.
I wanted to lick jelly off his stomach.
“I, um,” I started, wanting to ensure that little thought didn’t pass my lips. “I just figured you were all busy.”
“Why don’t we,” Nik said, eliminating the rest of the void between us. I looked up at him as my chest brushed against his. My breath caught as I waited for him to kiss me or finish his sentence. “Go sit on the bed and look over everyone’s schedules.”
The air in my lungs deflated along with my mental fantasy that Nik was about to kiss me. There was something about his lips and his smile that just made me want to taste him. Nik moved past me, heading to sit on my bed while I was left reeling for a moment. I needed to get my head back and stop thinking about sex. We had to leave for class soon; there wouldn’t be time for fooling around.
I sat next to Nik on the bed, holding my hands together in my lap while he clicked and scrolled on his phone, showing me the section titled, “Schedules.” Colten was busy through the week but had the entire weekend free. Nik was free in the evenings most days, but a highlighted note said he frequently got calls into work in the evenings and might need to leave quickly. Tanner’s schedule was a mess of appointments and various blocks of free time with no discernable pattern.
“This is all a bit much,” I sighed, trying to make a mental map of all the different schedules. “I don’t have anywhere to go or anywhere to be other than class with you. If any of you are available and want to spend time with me or entertain me, you are free to message me, or hell, just keep showing up at my door,” I said, laughing lightly. The idea of scheduling out times didn’t settle well with me. Even if this wasn’t a relationship, I did need to know they wanted to be around me.
