I grab my phone—for no other reason than I need to set an alarm—and notice a text from my new friend.
Maddox: I was wondering when you’d text me. Did you know colleges are considered one of the best places to flirt?
Carson: Where do you come up with all your facts?
The phone starts vibrating in my hand and I stare at it like I’m in a one-sided no-blinking contest. He’s calling me? Boys never call me. Well, to be fair, neither do girls. I never had many friends and certainly never anyone who I felt comfortable enough to talk to on the phone. It’s the twenty-first century. We should be limited strictly to texting.
I glance over to make sure my door is shut and locked before sliding to the floor to take the call. For some reason, sitting on the floor gives me a peaceful sense of privacy against prying ears.
“Um…hello?” I’m a squeaky, confused mouse. This will be the first and final time he calls me.
Why am I such a freak?
“I thought this would be easier than texting you all night.” His voice comes through the phone like hot caramel—sweet and tempting.
“You think we’re going to be talking all night?” I’m incredulous which makes me sound lame. Why can’t I be sultry and seductive? I should call a sex hotline just to listen to and mimic their voices.
“Only if I can convince you to stay up past your bedtime.” There’s laughter in his voice and despite it being at my expense, I want to keep hearing him laugh more than I want to breathe right now. I’m pathetic. My first crush and I’m already giving up my life for him. I understand Juliet so much better now.
“I’m eighteen years old. I don’t have a bedtime.” Though, if I’m being honest with myself, I can’t remember the last time I was up past eleven o’clock. But it’s not a strict rule, it’s just how I prefer to live my life.
“So, tell me something that is true about you.”
I rack my brain and can’t come up with one interesting detail about myself. I also feel like I’m on a job interview and if I don’t say something extraordinary, I won’t get the position. The position to, what? Be his girlfriend? He’s a stranger!
“Last year I got to walk the red carpet at an awards show and met a bunch of famous people. I’m talking Jennifer Aniston, Jim Carrey, a couple bands and singers, no big deal.” I may be fabricating the story a little bit.
That ‘red carpet’ was more of a path through Madame Tussauds’ wax museum in New York. And yes, all those celebrities were, in fact, wax models. Though, I did see Rachel Ray from a distance before her show taped, so that’s something.
“You know, Carson, I think we’re going to get along just fine.” He chuckles like he doesn’t believe my story, and I don’t blame him. But we spend the next hour and a half talking about anything and everything and it’s the best time I’ve had in my entire life.
Carson
Wednesday couldn’t come fast enough. Maddox and I talked for another two hours on the phone last night and now I feel like I know him. Butterflies flap their incessant wings in my belly as I sit in my seat in Psych waiting for him to show up.
I pull out my notebook and pen, chewing on the end as I wait. I’m trying not to look desperate by glancing over my shoulder every two seconds, but the temptation is strong. The classroom is filling up and some random dude tries to sit beside me, but I tell him the seat is taken.
It’s utterly absurd. I barely know the guy and I’m already saving him a seat. He could already be here, sitting beside someone else, sharing his fun facts with a new girl. It’s only day two of this class and I’m already asking him to sign a marriage license.
Professor Ellar walks in with a broad smile and her blonde hair pulled into a sleek ponytail and Maddox still isn’t here. My heart sinks.
“Good morning, class. Glad to see most of you came back.” Crap, what if he dropped the class? Wouldn’t he have told me?
I sink into my seat as Ellar starts up the PowerPoint. As the computer boots up, the doors to the lecture hall open and shut and half the class turns to look at the disruption. I stay firmly rooted in my seat and instead pull out my phone, ready to text Maddox to see what’s going on.
“Sorry I’m late. Traffic was a nightmare.” The auburn-haired fox slinks into the seat beside me, a lazy smile perched on his perfect pink lips.
“I was afraid you weren’t coming or dropped the class.” I bite my lip, uncomfortable with sharing the truth of my feelings. Most girls don’t wear their hearts out in the open, at least not when they barely know the guy. But I’m treading new waters and I’m not a normal girl. I’ve never been crazy over a boy before. I don’t know how to react, but honesty has never bitten me in the ass before.
“I would have told you if that were the case. Besides, I have a great fact I have to share with you. One I couldn’t just tell you over the phone.” His hand grazes my knee and the contact leaves goosebumps on my exposed flesh.
“Must be good then. What is it?” I lean in close to him, whispering as our professor starts with the basics about Pavlov and conditioning.
