Page 18 of Damnation
I shake my head. “It’s nothing.”
“You sure? Because I’m getting a pissed-off vibe from you, and I have no idea why you’d be pissed off. If anything, I should be the angry one.”
“I’m not pissed off; I’m just…” I pause, chewing on the inside of my cheek. I groan in frustration as I run a hand through my hair. “I’m anxious about the situation with my mother and how I haven’t found a solution to the housing problem yet, that’s all. And the mood at Tiffany’s house is tense, and it’s making me uncomfortable.”
To be fair, all of this is true. To be completely accurate, though, I’m not brave enough to tell him about the jealousy that is eating me up. Thomas’s expression changes, softens, and I feel even more guilty.
“So who was that girl?” I ask abruptly and regret it immediately.
“Which one?” he replies, calmly sipping his Sprite.
“The one you were talking to outside, under the tree,” I hiss, resuming my search on the laptop in an attempt to hide how bothered I am.
“Oh, she has a class with my sister, I think. They’re handing out flyers around campus.”
“Seemed like she really enjoyed talking to you.” I force a smile as I turn to face him.
Thomas just stares at me without speaking before a sly grin creeps over his face. “You jealous?”
I snort loudly. “Oh, please. No.”
He exhales a guttural sound, much like a laugh, and nods. “Oh yeah. I believe you,” he mocks. I give him a murderous glare and think about how much I’d like to strangle him. Fortunately for him, he decides to stop teasing me and changes the subject.
“Find anything new?” he asks, pointing at my laptop.
“All the scams you could want, as usual, and a few affordablelistings. Literally just a few” I sigh, demoralized. I close my laptop irritably and stick it back in my bag. “On the other hand, I do have appointments in an hour to see two other rooms on Roosevelt Drive and a studio apartment in one of the university buildings on Walnut Boulevard.”
“Do you have a ride yet?”
“I can walk; it’s not far.”
“I’ll go with you.”
“Thomas, no. Seriously, there’s no need. I don’t want you to feel like you have to drive me all over. Also, I like walking, you know? It calms the nerves. You should give it a try sometime,” I tell him, smiling.
He gives a snort of amusement before taking a bite of his cheeseburger. “It’s cute when you interpret my statements as questions.”
I should have given up before I started—nothing I say is ever going to make him change his mind. “Do what you want, but know that you don’t have to—”
I don’t even have time to finish my sentence before we are joined by two boys. They are both tall and sturdily built, with that innate self-assurance that athletes always seem to have. One of them—the blond—is wearing a hockey jersey and carrying a helmet. The other, with brown hair and no helmet in sight, toys with an extinguished cigarette. They greet Thomas with slaps on the shoulder, and he responds in kind.
“What’s up, man?” the brown-haired one asks before they both take seats around the table.
“Aren’t you gonna introduce us to this new little gem?” the blond adds. And when he smiles at me, there’s a spark of familiarity. I’ve seen that smile somewhere before.
Thomas lets them hang for a little bit but finally introduces me with his jaw tight, as though he hates doing it. “Ness, this is Blake and Vince. Guys, this is Vanessa.”
“‘This new little gem’?” I turn my gaze on Vince. He nods, smiling a mischievous smile that highlights the light sprinkling of freckles on his nose. I can’t tell if he’s making fun of me or trying to be my friend.
“Since when do you screw freshmen?” Blake blurts out with a“couldn’t care less” smirk.
I almost choke on my own saliva. “Excuse me?”
Thomas glares at him, his fingers clenched around his can of Sprite. “Don’t be an asshole,” he warns.
“Pardon him, Little Gem. What you have to understand is, our Blake here has a lot of rough edges. He’s more of a proto-man, a sort of missing link, like the kind you’d find being exhibited in a zoo.” Vince gives Blake a mock reproving look. “How many times do I have to tell you, that is not how we address young ladies.” He pats the top of Blake’s head and looks at me as if to say,There, I’ve put him in his place.
Blake himself doesn’t even try to apologize. He shoves Vince away with his shoulder and gives me a look of arrogance and superiority. What is his problem? Thomas puts a reassuring hand on my knee and rubs it.
