Ireland Luv

Chapter 7

"Emma!" Ruby's elbow nudges me right in the rib, causing me to look up and snapping me from a daydream.

"What?"

Ruby glances between my pencil and me, rolling her eyes. My notebook is filled with scribbles of tiny music notes. I can't concentrate, I just keep doodling and thinking about kissing Killian yesterday. It was one kiss, but it was of the earth-shattering variety.

"I said this song is beautiful...?" Ruby's worry line is on display down the center of her forehead.

Becoming more aware of my surroundings, I realize that my song choice is now playing against the scene. The guitar strumming as the train pulls away raises the hair on the back of my neck. Once again, Sam Smith has me caught up in my feels.

"Thanks."

I sink down in my seat as Ruby continues to eye me with speculation. She and I both know I'm not acting like myself. If this had been any other song, or if I hadn't met Killian, all of my attention would be directed towards this assignment and taking notes about everyone else's choices.

"Are you okay?" She bites at her lip and places her hand on my arm.

The tip of my pencil snaps and I notice more doodles on the page than before. Realizing just how spaced out I am, I lay the pencil down to stop myself.

"I'm fine, just tired. I was worried I would not find my song in time."

This is true; I cut it close this time and that can't happen again. What if he had kissed me before I found the perfect song? There would have been no concentrating to be had. I may as well have called it quits over the internship and handed it off to someone else.

"Well, you don't have to worry. You totally won this again. Half the girls in the room are crying."

Ruby laughs to make me do the same. Instead, I force a smile and stare back down at my paper, picking my pencil back up to continue doodling small music notes and now mixing them with little hearts.

We kissed.

Every part of me wants to see Killian again tonight, but I also feel like I shouldn't. We are setting ourselves up to fail. He lives in England, for Christ's sake. I'm still basking with this is my first time out of Maine. Three weeks... that is all the time we have. We said nothing about the kiss after it happened. Maybe he understands—like me—that this could never work. Then I recall us cuddling on that couch after the kiss—his lips pressed against my hair as he held me—and it felt right. It seemed like that was our conversation without saying one word.

"You really look like you need sleep," Ruby agrees with my previous statement of being tired. "Maybe don't push yourself as hard with this next one."

"I'm fine."

The lights of the room come back on, causing me to blink rapidly to adjust to the brightness. Half the room is staring at me and my friend was right, most of the females look like blubbering messes.

Whoops.

"Excellent choice, Miss Swan," Professor Booth calls out over the classroom. My face turns the color of a tomato with his compliment. "Just like last time, folks. Voting will end tonight at seven. This week, you will work on opening credits. This will be due Thursday. You have two down and two to go, people! Make it count! Class dismissed."

"Let's go get coffee." I don't look up from my book bag to know she is still filled with worry. It's loud and clear in her tone. "We haven't been hanging out and I miss you, Em. Four weeks left of school means four weeks left for us."

She's right. I've lived with her for four years, and once finals are over, I'm losing my roommate. Who knows where either of us will end up after graduation? I cannot ignore her this entire trip, and I would feel terrible if I did.