Page 49 of Awakened in September (Sleepless November Saga 4)

And oh, how right she is.

WALKING INTO SOCIOLOGY CLASS, my eyes immediately meet Kayleigh’s. She smiles brightly and looks back down at her phone. Jordan calls for me but I simply nod a hello at him and go to sit at the seat I’ve been occupying the past couple weeks, right next to Kayleigh.

“Hey.” I greet her.

She bites her lip innocently. “Hi.”

I reach over and release it from the grip of her teeth. “What did I tell you about that?”

A small laugh leaves her mouth but she doesn’t respond. Instead, she looks at something past me. I follow her eyes and find Jordan coming towards us.

“Hey man. Everything ok?” He asks. I give him a confused look. “Why are you sitting up here? The projects are over.”

I glance at Kayleigh and she snickers, distracting herself with her phone. I turn back to Jordan and shrug. “I can see the board better from here.”

It’s clearly a lie, and he doesn’t buy it. He raises his eyebrows as he looks from me to Kayleigh and back again. When I know that she isn’t paying attention, I wink at him. Realization washes over his face and he nods.

“Ah, alright. Well I’ll see you around, then.”

“Later.”

Just as Jordan walks away, Professor Bradley comes into the room and starts the lesson. I groan softly and Kayleigh elbows me. I feign being hurt but she simply rolls her eyes with a small grin. I slide my foot behind and around hers, linking our ankles together, and focus on the lecture.

By the time class is over, Kayleigh and I slowly make our way out of the building. It’s as if neither one of us wants to leave. When we get near the door, I stop her.

“When does your last class get out?”

She thinks for a second. “4:30, why?”

“I want to take you out.”

Her eyes widen. “Like, on a date?”

I chuckle. “Well don’t look so repulsed.”

“I-I’m not. I just didn’t expect it.” She seems like she’s about to agree, but then sighs. “I can’t tonight, though. Bree was still pretty torn up this morning and I need to be there for her.”

The reminder is like a hard punch to the gut. In my excitement of finally getting what I’ve wanted, I completely forgot about the girl I left in pieces. As much as I want time alone with Kayleigh, I understand she needs to be a good friend right now.

“Okay, babe.” I lean forward and kiss her softly. She melts into it and moves her mouth against mine. Sadly, it’s short lived. “Text me?”

“Of course.”

THE REST OF THE week seems to go the same way. We see each other on campus for a little while, yet, it’s nothing close to long enough. I ask her to hang out almost every day but she’s always needs to go console Bree. On Friday, I find myself on the phone with Brandon – whining like a little girl. He snickers into the phone, amused by the fact that I’m finally hung up on someone.

“So, wait, she turned you down? Even after you broke up with Bree?”

I sigh, remembering her words but hating hearing it put that way. “Yeah

. She said she doesn’t want to be just the next girl I cheat on.”

“Ouch.” He hisses. “Did you try explaining to her that she’s different?”

I scoff. “Yeah, that would have gone over really well. Oh, don’t worry about that. You’ve hated me for almost two months now but I’m crazy about you. Are you kidding? I want her to date me, not run for the hills.”

He’s quiet for a second. “H?” His tone is smug, and I can almost hear his smile through the phone. “Did you just hear yourself?”

I think back over my words and groan loudly. “Ugh, stop.”

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