Campus King | 18+

Chapter Fourteen

Hannah

I shot a quick wave in Sarah's direction as I breezed past the front desk. I didn't stop for a chat, mainly because she was in the middle of flirting with a cute Korean exchange student who I recognized from my Chem lectures. With a playful wink thrown my way, she returned her focus to the conversation.

The library was a towering four-story structure that catered to a wide range of academic needs — a public seating area, private study rooms, computer stations, and, naturally, a sprawling collection of books. With the library's age and reputation, it even opened its doors to the public, so long as they played by the rules. But in practice, it was mostly college students who populated its walls.

I made my way upward, taking the elevator until I stepped onto the third floor. It was the designated area for chatter without worrying about being too loud. Passing by rows of world history records, I eventually arrived at the clusters of tables arranged in a circular pattern at the center. Scanning the area for familiar faces, I wanted to ensure I wasn't the first to arrive.

And there, sitting together and talking, was Skylar and Cassandra. Cassandra was in her signature attire — flannel and jeans, her hair braided into an intricate French braid, but Skylar was definitely a lot more dolled up today. Her hair was meticulously curled in pretty loops that hung down to her shoulders. Hooped earrings dangled from her ears, and a splash of bold red lipstick framed her radiant smile. Her ensemble — a white crop top paired with high-waisted jean shorts — was completed with her trusty sneakers, albeit in a dark blue this time. Before I had thought she was more handsome than beautiful, but not today. Today she was pretty.

I sarcastically wondered why. Wouldn't have anything to do with the only male member in our group, would it?

In the last two lectures we had together, Skylar and Fuckface flirted up a storm. She was a lot more serious about it than he was, with him only reacting to her administrations, but I still wanted to punch him in the face. I thought I'd be happy about that, but I always left the classroom in a foul mood.

Unnoticed, I approached their table, catching snippets of their conversation.

"He still hasn't replied to my messages so I'm not sure if that's actually his number," Skylar's voice carried over to my ears.

"It could be that he's really busy. Give it a little more time." Cassandra squeezed her friend's hand in reassurance.

"I guess." Skylar sat upright, pulling her hand from Cassandra's. "I could always just ask him. When do you think those two will get here?"

"I'm here," I announced, swinging my bag onto an unoccupied seat and taking the one next to it. This way, no one would be tempted to sit next to me.

"Oh, hey." Skylar smiled. It lost a bit of its luster when she looked around and didn't see the one person she actually wanted to see.