“I guess…if you like the type,” I mused, trying to keep my cool.
“If…?” Beth cried. “You mean the well-dressed, gorgeous, movie-star type that is polite and interested in you? You mean that type?”
Kim laughed. “You are being ridiculously calm about this, considering while he was here you had the personality of a clam.”
“I did not!”
“She could have shot coffee out of her nose and he still would have stayed,” Beth giggled.
“He’s not cute. He’s angelic,” I sighed, dwelling on every detail of him.
Kim joined Beth’s giggling and all three of us erupted in laughter.
Over the next few days, every time I stepped off campus I watched for him. Beth and I went for coffee more than once, and I was shamefully preoccupied. I would answer when prompted and nod my head in the acceptable places of conversation, but we both knew I was anticipating my next moment with Jared.
I couldn’t believe how annoying I’d become over a man I barely knew. I was not one of those girls who became wrapped up in such things, and truth be told I lost patience easily with those that did. When I caught myself searching for him in every store, every restaurant and coffee shop I frequented, a scolding was in order.
Five days of this ridiculous behavior paid off.
The sun disappeared behind the horizon as Beth and I waited by pump four of Eastside Shell gas station. I yawned out of boredom, listening to the pump clicking with every dollar put in. Beth wrinkled her nose at the smell and I mirrored her expression.
“What?” she asked.
“Nothing. I just love this smell and you look like you just took a whiff of an Oklahoma pig farm. Bringing back harsh memories?”
“Hilarious.” She looked up and a large grin spread across her face.
“And I thought you were going to be a poor sport,” I said, surprised at her expression.
“Hi, Jared,” Beth said, smug.
I flipped around and there he was, standing on the other side of the pump looking just as stunned and elated as I felt.
“This is getting spooky,” Jared said.
“Hi to you, too,” I said, letting my delight to see him show.
“How are classes going?” he asked.
“Good. How’s business?” I smiled. I’m getting better at this, thank God, I thought. I finally felt somewhat normal around him.
“It’s a good day,” he said, smiling his incredible smile. It absolutely was. “That’s a nice car,” he gestured with a nod.
“Thanks.”
One of the few grandiose things my father had purchased for me was my white BMW. He had bought it as a graduation present, and aside from the Peridot and diamond ring he had bought for my sixteenth birthday, it was my most prized possession. Normally I didn’t put much stock in the ostentatious things my father purchased, but this was special; it had been given with the proud-father expression that I relished.
“Going somewhere?” I asked.
“Why?” He cocked his head, confused at my question.
“You look like you’re headed to a hot date or something.”
He laughed. “No…no date. How about you? Anyone forcing strange cuisine on you this evening?”
“I don’t do that for just anyone,” I said, raising an eyebrow. I was impressed with how I sounded, so much braver than I felt.
He beamed. “Is that so?”
I pulled my receipt from the gas pump and looked at Beth, who pretended not to watch. He walked over to me, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
“How would you like to put that to the test, then?” he asked.
“Is that a challenge or are you asking me to dinner?” I prompted, looking him square in the eye. I didn’t know where my sudden courage and sass came from, but it was less humiliating than the gaucheness I demonstrated the last two times I had seen him.
“Both,” he smiled. He leaned against my car, just inches from me. I tried to seem relaxed, although my heart was pounding in my chest over his proximity.
My face twisted into a frown as I realized my dilemma. “I have study group tonight.”
He didn’t look ruffled, to my chagrin. “Maybe next time.”
He walked back to his Escalade and left without another word. I flipped around to Beth and she ducked into the passenger side. The door slammed behind me as I sat next to her.
“What was that?” Beth asked.
“I don’t know.”
Beth’s eyes widened in disbelief. “You passed up a date with him for study group? You’ve wanted to run into him for a week!”
“I can’t just break my plans anytime he asks me out. How would that look?” I insisted, frowning at the thought of him thinking I was that accessible.
Beth shrugged. “Who cares?”
I started my car. “Beth! Be serious. He won’t give me his number,” I shoved my gear shift into drive and pulled forward, “and he just shows up out of nowhere and asks me out.”
“You’re nuts! You like him. He asks you out. You tell him no? There is something wrong with you, Nina!”
Back at Andrews, I had to deal with it from both sides.
“What is wrong with you?” Kim shrieked.
“Ugh! Not you, too!”
The smugness on Beth’s face radiated throughout the entire room. “I told you.”
“I have to study. You two are studying tonight,” I reasoned, mostly to myself.
“I wouldn’t if I had a date,” Beth said, crossing her legs on her bed.
“I bet you would if said date asked you ninety minutes before study group,” I rebutted.
“Okay,” Kim said, spreading her arms between us. “Nigh’s right. Prose before bros.”
Beth rolled her eyes as she packed her various study items and I folded my notes and stuffed them into my coat pocket.
Kim snapped her fingers. “Let’s go, ladies. I don’t want to close The Rock down at 2 A.M. like last time.”
We headed to the John D. Rockefeller library, ducking our heads to hide from the bitter wind. Just as we crossed the street, the snow began to fall in large flakes. The dead grass crinkled under our feet as we cut across to save steps. Beth begged us to drive, but Kim insisted we walk so she could smoke.
Beth hooked her arm around mine. “Brown needs to generate some type of small transportation system to get us from here to there more easily. Like a trailer hitched to a four-wheeler.”
“Yes, Oklahoma, let’s hire a hay rack ride. Brown needs culture,” Kim deadpanned.
Beth narrowed her eyes at Kim. “It was just a suggestion. I’m freezing.”
“Don’t listen to Kim, she’s not even wearing a heavy coat,” I said, my teeth beginning to chatter.
“You two are babies, gah!” Kim groaned.
“It does sound like a hay ride,” Beth giggled.
When we arrived, our study group was already waiting on us. Carrie and Tracey — from the basketball team — sat on one couch. On the adjacent couch sat Kim’s friends Justin and Kristi. Lisa, a pre-med student, barely noticed our arrival, and beside her was someone I recognized right away.
Ryan had a head full of dark hair and he was barely taller than I. Because his t-shirt was a bit tight, I noticed his athletic build. His baseball cap was pulled low over his eyes, so I could see only his perfect, white smile, and a deep dimple on his left cheek. The other girls in the group seemed to appreciate his presence.
“Look at you, being all responsible!” Kim said.
“Josh was going to come, but he ended up going on a date,” Ryan explained, pulling up his cap to display his bright green eyes.
