Moving In With The Enemy

Chapter 42 ~ "I Know This Is Hard"

"So Annie, how was your Thanksgiving?" Mark asks from the couch and I feel my cheeks turn bright red. I was making dinner before my shift at work tonight, it was Tuesday. Everyone was back from vacation, we were almost to the exam period and I was getting excited to be done with the term.

"It was good." I answer, pressing my lips together. I cut up a tomato to put in my quick salad, thinking about all of the memories that flow through my head while I do.

"Woah, look at that face." Dustin teases. "What happened?"

"Nothing." I shrug.

In reality, a lot had been going on. Walker was trying to speed up the fast track to the two of us dating. He'd been working with the tech guy he'd found more this afternoon and he showed me his ideas and what would happen. If it all works out, by the end of exams, we should be in the clear.

I had my back-up interview this morning with Doctor Elliot. I was originally really nervous that he just didn't want to see me that badly. But, when we ran an hour over because he was so excited to hear more about what I was researching I started to feel differently. He apologized up and down for the scheduling conflict when in reality, it had actually been the reason Walker and I had managed to work out our feelings for each other. 

He said I should hear by the end of exams if I'd been selected. Everything was falling into place on that front too.

Currently, the hardest part of living here right now, was that I wanted to be with Walker all the time. I wanted to kiss him, have him close. I know it bugs him too, we're trying to be good about it, even when we're alone just so it's not more unbearable when we're not.

But I was on edge, I was worried about getting found out before then. Not just because of the video, but I didn't know what my roommates would think. Or anyone else for that matter. I didn't want to ruin anything by the two of us having feelings for each other.

"Hey." I hear Walker's voice as he walks into the living room. "What's going on?"

"I think Annie did something exciting this weekend." Dustin insists. "She keeps turning red whenever we bring up Thanksgiving."

"Does she?" Walker asks, turning to face me and I feel myself blush again. I look away from his gaze, feeling it burn. God, how would we keep this up for over two weeks?

"That's what Dus thinks." I shrug, clearing my throat and putting my cutting board and knife into the dishwasher. I put a bit of dressing on my salad and the three of them finally seem to leave me alone.

"Can you believe we're nearly done the first term of fourth year?" Mark asks, blowing out a tense breath. "It's nuts."

"True." I shrug and Dustin switches on the TV and passes Mark a controller. They're about to start up a mean marathon of some video game. This was the last week of classes before exams and the two of them never had much work to do.

"When do you work Annie?" Mark asks and I sigh.

"In about forty minutes." 

"I'll give you a ride." Walker says, leaning on the peninsula, only a few feet away and I feel my body break out in chills. Mark and Dustin didn't seem to notice, they were focused on something else and it wasn't the first time Walker had offered to do this.

"You don't have to." I shrug. "I've made the walk before."

"I was planning on going to the gym around then anyway." He shrugs. "Let me know when you want to go, alright?"

I nod silently and he smiles, standing up and going back to the living room. I sigh out a laboured breath, watching him walk away. God this is hard.