I Loathe You

1- pillow

Hayden's POV

"So, how was the blind date?" Enzo asks, before taking a massive swig of his water and sitting next to me.

"Ugh, absolutely awful," I start. "Hey, Pamela?" I call out, and she glances over from the other bench.

"What?"

"No offence, or anything, but I'm never going out with any of your cousins ever again," I say to her and Enzolaughs.

It was the worst date I've ever been on. Don't get me wrong, he's very nice, but he was... too into me. Seriously, he'd dismiss all the questions I asked him and just wanted to talk about me. I mean, I don't blame him, but it was almost obsessive.

"He's nice, just a bit creepy... at times," I say cautiously, not wanting to offend her. He's her family, after all.

Pamela laughs. "Okay, but you owe me one after having me go through all that effort."

"I sure do," I say.

"Enzo! Get back here, ass-wipe," I hear a voice calling from the basketball courts.

I roll my eyes in disgust.

It's Levi. Unluckily for me, he's part of our friend group so I kind of have to put up with him.

"That's my cue," Enzosays.

I give him a worried look, and he immediately sighs when he sees that I do so.

"Hayden-" he starts.

"You have to stop putting so much strain on yourself. Doctor West said it could be dangerous if you keep doing that," I say to him with genuine concern.

"Hayden, stop. I'll be fine."

I raise my eyebrows at him, as if to say, "are you for real?" His bright red face and clear struggle for breath tells me otherwise.

"Would you at least tell them?" I ask.

"Soon, I promise," he responds with a pained half-smile before he runs back to Levi and the other guys.

***

I walk back into my dorm room after my morning run and toss my headphones onto my bed. I need a shower.

I go into my bathroom, locking the door behind me.

Still out of breath, I undress myself, throwing my sweaty clothes into my washing basket. I hate to admit, but I am one of those people who enjoys cold showers. They're oddly refreshing.

I let the cold water run down my body for a few minutes, before I begin my seven-step shower routine. Yes, seven-step. I have two types of showers. The seven-step shower and the thirteen-step shower, which only ever happens once or twice a month.

Around fifteen minutes later when I'm done, I walk out of my bathroom and almost jump out of my skin.

"For fuck's sake, Levi!" I scream, as I throw a pillow at him.

He catches it.

"A pillow? Wow, I'm so scared. That could've killed me, Hay," he says, sarcastically.

I roll my eyes at him. "Piss off. Why are you here?" I say to him, angrily.

"Relax, why don't you? Enzo said he left his charger here yesterday after board games night so I'm picking it up."

Oh.

"You couldn't knock?" I ask, walking over to the plug socket to get Enzo's charger.

"I did knock! About ten times, actually. But you didn't answer so I let myself in," he says, with fake sass, taking Enzo's charger from me.