The Silicon Valley Connection

5 | faith - paradise corner

My eyes dart straight to Sol when Aidan and I enter with the food. Thankfully, she understood and got up to help me before anyone else had the same idea.

"Wanna talk about it?" she offers quietly. I nod, and once we place the food down on her desk, I grab my room key.

"We're gonna go find some more utensils and plates," I mention to the rest of the group.

Marcus glowers at us suspiciously. "Both of you? You women really do go everywhere with one another."

I shoot him a dirty look and flip him off. "Whatever, Petersen."

Once we're out of earshot and sight, Soledad swivels her attention to me. "I already had a suspicion, but when both of you came back, your expressionless face said it all. So, what did Nichelle do this time?" she asks with a disappointed sigh.

      Not wanting to make it too much of a big deal, I shuffle past her and sift through the drawers, looking for forks, leaving her to rummage the cabinets for plates. "I have a feeling she was trying to play matchmaker."

      Soledad pinches her nose and groans in frustration. "Her trying to set people up is how we lost our roommate the first time. I swear, she can be such a romantic sometimes, especially when it doesn't concern her." Her hands grasp my shoulders. "Look, Faith, I understand that you're her friend through Marcus, but if you ever need assistance talking her down with some things, just know...Kacey and I are here."

      "Thanks. I appreciate it. I really do. To be honest, I'm not that upset, just taken aback by the fact that Aidan practically leaped at the opportunity to go."

      There's also the fact that I will soon be dating one of the hottest guys on campus...theoretically speaking, of course, just to disprove his stupid conundrum. But I don't need to worry them about that yet...and hopefully not ever.

———

"Finally, we can actually eat," Marcus complains, and his stomach rumbles in agreement.

      "Oh, cut us some slack. We ran into Ryanne on our way back, and let me tell you, she was not very happy about me leaving her and Hunter dumping her on the same day," I retorted.

Aidan shook his head while piling food on a paper plate and lowered himself onto a floor pillow. I take the only open seat, across from him and directly in my line of sight whenever I dare to look up from my assortment of white cards.

Real nice. I take a bite of my food and place a card face down.

And wonder how long this detour is going to take.

4:37 a.m. While my roommates are probably having the best dreams, my insomnia has me wide awake on my back, staring at the wooden planks that support the bed above me.

I sigh, throw the already messy covers off me, and move silently towards my dresser, careful not to bother my slumbering friends. Then, grabbing a sweater to cover my tee and a pair of joggers to replace my pajama shorts, I make my way towards the roof.

Kacey mentioned that we lucked out getting this dorm room close to the stairwell because there's apparently this amazing mini patio above our floor where a maximum of five people can just gather and relax. I've also heard that San Francisco has some beautiful sunrises, so I brought a book to wait it out, because why not?

I tap my student ID card on the sensor at the door, and a faint click sound prompts me to slide the door open. Oh my god. She wasn't kidding. Tie-dye hammocks and cabana chairs were stationed in various areas on the artificial grass that covered the entire surface area of the rooftop and made a slight crunch under my feet as I walked.

Layers of white and pastel-colored lights intertwined with artificial leaf vines hung from the gazebo and around the wooden pillars that surrounded the lounging furniture. A sleek, black, Griffith Observatory-caliber telescope sat on a mobile tripod near the steel railing.

Slightly paranoid about how it can be accidentally tipped over, I cover it with a drop cloth and wheel it over to the mini bar's sidewall, safe from the edge. Compact fridges were stocked with beverages: from beers to water bottles in each of the four corners of the outdoor pavilion, creating a paradise-like feeling. I toss my slides into the wicker basket at the door and fall into a nearby hammock, the swing-like bed practically swallowing me whole.   

"So, it looks like you found Paradise Corner, huh, Shortcake?"

      I close my book lightning-fast, folding the corner of the page in a hurry. There's only one person I know who has that bothersome nickname for me, no matter how true it is.

aidan

I take a seat next to her in the hammock before she has a chance to object.

      "I hate you," she grumbles, trying to scoot away from me, but it's pointless because she just ends up sliding back to my side like a magnet.

      "Hmmm. Hate's a strong word, Faye. Let's try something more...appealing."

She looks me up and down and clicks her tongue. "I hope you're not expecting me to say love, then?" Her voice and words slice through my heart deeper than I expected them to.

"Well...not yet anyway," I point out. "That's the whole point of our hypothetical dates, is it not?"

She reopens her book, flipping to her most recent page, and I try not to cringe at the dog-eared corner, lurking and practically begging to be smoothed out.

"Don't remind me," she mutters, not even bothering to acknowledge me.

Uh uh. Like hell you think that this is going to be easy for you. I peer over her, pressing half of my chest on her shoulder, successfully scoring her attention for a short time. I rest my chin on her shoulder. "So, answer me this. You despise the very thought of relationships, but you read contemporary romance novels? Something's not adding up here."

She shoots me an offended look. "I'll have you know, there's a difference between a fictional and realistic romantic connection, and I just happen to prefer the former."

"Oh, is that so?" Before she has a chance to protest, I snag the book from her hands, with my index finger as a bookmark, but slowly remove it while she stares at me in horror.

"You wouldn't fucking dare," she warns.

I match her serious gaze. "Try me."

Amid reaching to reclaim her book, the weight in the hammock shifts, and she's on top of me; the ends of her jet-black hair brush my nose delicately like morning mist breezing across my face, and her deep brown eyes laser focus on mine. One palm lands on my chest while the other grips the steel stand that holds the hammock together. My arm instinctively wraps around her lower back, steadying her as the swaying ceases.

My gaze stays solid on Faith for the remaining seconds that the hammock is still in motion, refraining from gliding my hands along her waist. Or pulling her to where our bodies are in complete contact, with nowhere to go but toward each other.

This...massive pull...I can end it right now with something I might regret. She can end it right now with the same power, but neither of us moves.

Until the clock reaches zero.

———

I'm the first one to compose myself to a certain degree, throwing a confident smile that I'm so

used to together and reaching to brush a strand of hair from her face with my free hand. "You know, there's no need to be so rough if you want to steal a kiss so badly, Faye," I say coyly.

She shoves herself from me, and the curl falls back in front of her eye; her signature glare returns, and I laugh out loud, repositioning myself back into a sitting spot.

"Guys like you are the exact reason why girls favor the fictional ones and why this," gesturing to the space between us, "is completely experimental."

I fold my arms. "So that day we met was just coincidental?"

She turns her head, flashing me a smug smile before getting up to leave me alone with the sunrise. "Precisely."