College Try

Part Four

Damian was fighting to keep his eyes on the road and his heart in his chest. Next to him sat Raven, looking so damn pretty it actually hurt to breathe, and he found himself wanting to stare at her the whole ride to the animal shelter. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye and saw a lock of hair had fallen from her bun, brushing against the curve of her cheek. His fingers itched to brush it away, but... right. They weren't those kinds of friends.

For the hundredth time that night, he silently promised himself he was doing to keep his heart intact, no matter what the cost was. He might have been head-over-heels in love with her, but that didn't mean she loved him back, and he wasn't willing to risk his own feelings just yet. Damian cleared his throat and shifted in his seat, his hands gripping the steering wheel so tight that his knuckles turned white.

"So." He needed to talk, if only to fill the silence that was growing between them. Otherwise the rest of this night was going to be painfully awkward.

Raven turned and looked at him, her lips pulling down into a frown. "What?"

"How's your senior thesis coming along?" School seemed a safe topic, so he'd stick with that. "What was it on again? Emily Dickinson?"

Raven's face fell and she turned to look at him, obviously insulted. "Do you think every female literature student does their senior thesis on Emily Dickinson?"

"I don't know. I'm not a literature student." Damian tried to sound nonchalant, as if he didn't really care, but mentally he was kicking himself. Honestly, he couldn't remember what she said she was working on, because every time she started talking about it, her eyes lit up and she got this excited almost dreamy expression on her face, and Damian got lost in her. She was easy to get lost in. He bit the inside of his cheek and looked over at her, forcing his expression to remain neutral. "You're applying to grad school, right?"

"Yeah, actually." She looked surprised that he remembered, and fidgeting with the strap on her purse, as if suddenly nervous. "I submitted my application last week. But, I have a few more weeks before I find out if I got into the program."

"You know you'll get in." Damian stared up at a red light, refusing to look at her. If he did, he knew he'd forget everything he was supposed to say to her. How in the world could she break him like this? "I don't know why you're so worried. You're the smartest, most inspired student in the whole program."

"Was that... a compliment, Damian Wayne?" Her voice was teasing, almost playful, and it made his stomach twist. Raven shifted and stared out the windshield, a small smile playing on her lips. "We've been fighting each other for the better part of four years, and you actually complimented me. Well, shit. I guess I owe Conner ten bucks."

At the sound of Conner's name, Damian frowned. He remembered Conner's soft touches and soft, lopsided smiles at Raven, and Damian shifted in his seat. Maybe there was more to their relationship. "Are you two... together?"

Raven snorted. "With Conner? No." She glanced back at him, her dark eyes searching his face. "I mean sure, he's fun and cute, and he almost out-bid you at the auction-"

Finally, Damian turned and gave her a flat stare. Of course she was going to bring that up.

"-but no." She paused, as if suddenly realizing that was a very personal question. Her eyebrows knitted together and she stared at him. "Why do you ask?"

He shrugged, hoping he looked unaffected by her or her suspicion. "No reason. I just noticed you were a bit more chummy with him over the last few parties." Jealousy, thick and viscous spilled into his chest, and Damian forced himself to breathe just to ignore it. "I thought maybe you two had hooked up or something."