Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
DAY 49
New York University was pictorial in May.
The inclement weather was subsiding, the temperatures resided at a relaxing seventy degrees, and the blue sky cascaded the airspace as far as the eye could see. Perfect conditions for taking the long walks to each class, enjoying the rays of sunlight that washed over her skin. Honey Daniels had fallen completely in love with her campus over the last year - she felt as though this is exactly where she was meant to be.
It is where her parents had hoped she would go.
It felt virtuous to accomplish the things that her parents had wanted for her. In a sense, it was as though Honey was making them proud, still. Her father was determined that Honey deserved to attend the school with the best Journalism program in New York City.
"Honey Daniels, what is this I hear about you bailing on your date with Parker on Friday?"
And then vexatious people like Corinna Stevens had to go and ruin the content bubble surrounding Honey by speaking.
Honey blinked crossly up at Corinna, aggravated that she even cared so much about Honey's dating life in the first place, as she proceeded to suck in a deep breath before conjuring up some false story about not feeling well that night.
"I ended up not feeling the best-"
"But we totally rescheduled, so it's not a big deal," a voice finished Honey's sentence for her, making her glance over curiously at the person it came from. She could only assume that the figure towering over her desk with short, curly brown hair and stunning emerald eyes was none other than Parker Jensen himself. His eyes were the first thing she noticed, his height being the runner up - this guy was tall.
Corinna seemed slightly peeved, shooting him a narrowed look, as she scrutinized the way he was sending her a tight-lipped smile. The pair exchanged awkward, taut glances before she flicked her blonde hair over her shoulder and twirled around on her heel to stalk off.
"Don't pay attention to her," Parker urged gently, turning his attention towards Honey as Corinna walked away, his rigid smile melting into a genuine, toothy one now. "I don't."
Brushing a strand of hair behind her ear, Honey cleared her throat softly as she looked up at Parker apologetically, wishing that this entire confrontation could have been avoided altogether. "Parker, I'm really sorry about Friday night. I feel awful about-"
"Don't sweat it, Stevens practically forced you into it anyways," he reassured her coolly, swinging his bag over his shoulder as he plopped down into the chair next to her. "She can be a bit pretentious."
The fact that Parker was so considerate made Honey feel even worse about not answering the door at all that night. He seemed like a genuinely nice person, someone that was probably good for Honey, the pristine guy that had the looks and the amiability. A person who would take her out on dates, have friendly conversations with her, someone kind.
The total opposite of Steve Rogers - who she couldn't make herself stop thinking about no matter how hard she tried to.
"You're being too nice," Honey laughed gingerly, dropping her gaze to her intertwined hands that rested in her lap. "It was totally rude of me to leave you hanging like that, I'm sorry, really."
"What do you say we grab some coffee one day after class?" Parker suggested with the smile that appeared to never falter. "It doesn't have to be a date, we can just talk. I should've asked you to do that to begin with."
Honey would be lying if she said that Parker Jensen wasn't incredibly cute, but how could she even begin to focus on that when all she could think about was the look on Steve's face as he was on top of her the other night?
It was as though the angel on her shoulder was encouraging her to say yes, give herself the opportunity to make a genuine friend or even find someone who treated her the way she knew she deserved to be treated, but the little devil on her other shoulder was also encouraging her to say yes - only so Steve Rogers would find out and she could indulge on the punishment that would soon follow.
Being Honey Daniels was difficult these days.
"Coffee sounds nice."
Still unsure of her motives behind even agreeing to this at all, Honey lifted her head to flash Parker a tiny smile, which was immediately reciprocated with one of his own. Nodding his head understandingly, his smile deepened, revealing the faint indention of dimples on his cheeks that left Honey contemplating which reason she was doing this for.
"It's a da- plan," he corrected himself teasingly, taking his bottom lip into his mouth as he stifled a small chuckle. "I'll see you around, Daniels."
"Yeah, see you," she breathed, swallowing the lump in her throat that had formed while she was fawning over his mannerisms that she yearned to see in Steve.
Steve Rogers would quite literally be the definition of a perfect human being if he treated Honey nicely, normally. The phrase "you can't have your cake and eat it too" had never been deemed more true than this very moment. But Honey really wanted that cake, every piece, every last crumb. So perhaps she would go to any length that she could to try and have every piece of the Steve Rogers cake, even if that meant going out with Parker Jensen in an attempt to make him jealous and quite possibly very angry.
What could go wrong with a jealous, angry Steve Rogers?
