Chapter 64
Lisa
I wake up to warm lips pressing kisses along my back, a few damp strands of silky hair gliding across my skin. I sigh in content, snuggling my face deeper into my pillow. I focus on her lips as they place several kisses across my back, shoulder blade to shoulder blade, kissing every letter of my tattoo. U-N-K-N-O-W-N.
My chest tightens with an emotion that I can't quite decipher, the meaning behind my tattoo starting to crumble since she walked into my life.
I roll onto my side, blindly reaching out for her. My arm lazily hooks around her waist, and I realise that she's standing at the edge of my bed.
"Hi." I rasp, pulling her closer to the edge and burying my face into her stomach, smelling a familiar soap and shampoo. My soap and shampoo.
Damn it. Damn it. She smells like me, and for some reason that ignites something primal and possessive deep inside of me. She must have stolen my shower caddy and snuck off to the showers earlier this morning while I was asleep.
She giggles softly, carding her fingers through my hair. "Hi." she whispers, leaning down to place a kiss to my cheek.
I hum in contentment, feeling a sense of peace and satisfaction I haven't felt since... well, ever.
"What are you doing up?" I ask, my eyes still blissfully closed, heavy with sleep.
Her fingernails continue to gently graze over my scalp, sending a shiver down my spine.
"I still have the final for my other section of Mrs. Lee's lab." she reminds me. I've completely forgotten all about it. I groan in protest, tightening my arm around her waist. "No."
She giggles sweetly. "No? Come on, I have to go." she urges me gently, managing to slip from my hold. "And I need this." she mutters softly under her breath, her fingers grazing my wrist and hand as she slips her hair tie from my wrist.
Before it can slide up and over my fingers, I capture the small band in my fist, holding it hostage. Blearily, I blink open my eyes to stare up at her beautiful face, her cheeks rosy and hair damp from her shower. Her long caramel locks cascade over one shoulder, the ends dripping onto one of my sweaters adorning her torso.
"Not until you kiss me first." I state, tilting my lips up in offering.
A small, amused smile tugs at her lips before she leans down and presses them to mine. I kiss her lazily, lovingly, letting go of the band to cup her cheek in my hand. Savouring the kiss, not wanting it to end anytime soon, I slide my hand back to tangle my fingers into her wet hair, gently fisting the dark strands, deepening the kiss.
She giggles and hums against my lips in protest, eventually breaking free. "Lisaaa..." she whines adorably through a string of giggles, an infectious smile on her face. "I'm going to be late."
I attempt to wrap my arm back around her waist to prevent her from leaving, but she steps back quickly, escaping my hold. My arm hangs limply off the mattress and I let out a dramatic huff, causing her to laugh. I peek up at her through my lashes, watching her tie her hair up into a ponytail.
"I should be done around eleven today. Would you maybe want to meet me around that time and do an early lunch?" she asks, suddenly a little shy, making me smile.
"Of course, baby. I'll meet you outside of Mrs. Lee's office." I promise.
She smiles, a light blush spreading across her cheeks. "Okay, I'll see you later. I love you."
My grin widens. "I love you, too." I state, watching her slip out the door.
I roll over onto my stomach, hooking my arms underneath the pillow and smiling into it, satisfaction thrumming through my veins. I let out a long, contented sigh, replaying last night's events in my head, wishing that I could hold her just a little longer.
Last night was perfect, unlike anything I've ever experienced before. Sure, I've had sex countless of times, but last night, with Jennie, I craved something more. It meant something more.
Ultimately, I think what we both craved wasn't sex, but intimacy. To be wanted, touched, looked at and adored. To have our actions speak louder than words could. We wanted to be vulnerable. We wanted to be ready to complete each other. Ready to love each other like nothing else in this world could.
My heavy eyes flutter closed and I drift off to sleep for another hour or so, with a smile on my lips, thinking about her.
Chapter 65
Lisa
I walk into the science building, grinning from cheek to cheek, nothing is able to sour my good mood. I take a left down the hallway lined with the professors' offices, taking a seat on the bench closest to Mrs. Lee's office.
Five minutes later, I hear a door creek open and Jennie's melodic, cheerful voice floats down the hall as she bids Mrs. Lee goodbye and wishes her a good break. She slips out into the hall, her face breaking into a grin as soon as she spots me, with a slight skip in her step.
I stand from the bench, extending my hand out to her, reeling her in as soon as her hand lands in mine. Our chests press together and she stands on her tippy toes, winding her arms around my neck before moulding her mouth to mine.
I smile into the kiss, gripping her hips and pulling her that much closer. "Hi."
She leans back, her face absolutely glowing and eyes shining with happiness. "Hi. Ready to go grab lunch?"
"Mhmm."
I peck her lips a few more times before pulling away, grabbing her hand and threading our fingers together, leading her down the hall. Her opposite hand curls around my triceps, her head resting against my bicep as we walk out of the science building and into the chilly December air.
"How did the final go?" I ask as we walk across campus.
"Good. Everyone passed and left me a good review for Mrs. Lee."
"That's great, baby." I state, kissing the top of her head.
"Yeah, I'm just glad everyone passed." She sighs in relief, knowing that it will reflect well on her and prove her teaching capabilities.
I hum in acknowledgement, happy for her. "Of course they would with you as their TA."
She gives me a grateful smile, planting a delicate kiss to my arm, making my heart melt.
"How are you feeling?" I ask softly, changing the subject, my thumb rubbing circles into the back of her hand.
She looks up at me with confusion, a small knot forming between her brows.
"After last night." I clarify.
"Oh..." Her eyes light with realisation. "Uh... good." she says, suddenly becoming shy.
I can't help the smile that tugs at my lips, finding her so adorable.
She clears her throat, desperate to change topics. "How was your morning?"
I refrain from making a crude joke about missing and only thinking about her while she was gone.
"Good. Really good, actually." I admit, breathing out an airy chuckle, an uncontrollable, goofy smile making its way onto my lips. After I got up and got ready, good news upon good news just fell into my lap this morning.
"A lot happened while you were gone."
She arches a brow, a curious smile teasing her lips. "Oh?"
"Mhmm. I'll tell you over lunch."
She continues walking towards the school's cafeteria, her body jerking and stumbling backwards, her hand still in mine when I unexpectedly turn right, heading towards the parking lot.
She lets out a little noise of surprise. "Where are you going?"
"To get some real food." I state.
After the waitress leaves our table to go fill our orders, Jennie scoots forward in her seat, crossing her arms over the table top. "Well, what's your good news?" she asks, bouncing with excitement and interest.
The smell of grease hangs in the air and the soft sizzle of the oil in the fryers behind the counter increases in volume when they drop another load of fries in. For lunch, I decided to take Jennie to the popular burger joint off campus to celebrate the end of finals week and reward ourselves for not only making it through finals, but for also making it through all the other unexpected bullshit thrown at us.
I comfortably recline back in the booth, debating on where to start, still feeling the ecstasy of the high I'm currently on or rather have been on since last night. I swear, it feels like I've hit the jackpot and luck is finally on my side.
I decide to list all my good news the way I received it this morning, in chronological order. Normally, I'm never one to enjoy phone calls, hell, half the time I don't even answer them, but today they just kept rolling in, one after the other, with good news. I didn't even have a single spam caller.
"School called me this morning..." I start off, watching her expression sober. I know she knows what's coming, and I'm hesitant about her reaction.
At the end of the day, I know rat boy was her friend, no matter how shitty of a friend he actually was. But the two were close, not as close as he would have liked, but whatever, they were in a fairly exclusive, tight knit friend group with Rosé. I know ultimately she has to feel confused and betrayed, and maybe even a little sorry for him, even though he should receive zero sympathy whatsoever. He did the crime, therefore he should suffer the consequences. But I know her brain and emotions work differently than mine.
"He's being expelled." I say flatly, trying not to show any emotion and gauge her honest reaction. Her expression is almost stoic and neutral as she absorbs the information.
I go on to explain that the school caught him on camera pulling the fire alarm and sneaking into my room. They brought him in this morning for questioning and he squealed like the little rat he is. He confessed that Somi approached him and originally came up with the plan to pull the fire alarm and sneak into my room to mess with my alarm clocks, making me miss the lab final. He said she paid him to execute the plan with her.
Apparently, when he snuck into my room he swapped out the batteries of my alarm clock with nearly empty ones, and that explains why my clock was working the night before and wound up dead the next morning. He also managed to hack into my phone that I forgot on my desk when Jennie and I walked out, confessing to going into my settings to put my alarm on silent.
While Taehyung is for sure being expelled for getting caught, they are still working on a case of action for Somi since there's not much solid evidence against her, only rat boy's word. But I won't doubt she'll get what's coming for her, eventually. I can't imagine rat boy not putting up a fight to drag her down with him.
"Then I got another call after that from the local police department." I continue carefully. "They asked if I want to press charges."
Her eyes briefly flicker with worry and suspense.
"I told them I'd think about it." I admit.
Admittedly, I want to press charges, but they're not quite certain on what I can go after him with yet because he broke into my room that's technically campus property and only stole a thirty dollar hoodie from me. It's a bit complicated and I'm not sure if it's really worth the time and hassle. Plus, I wanted to get Jennie's input before I did anything.
She looks conflicted but a little relieved. Again, I understand there's some sort of a friendship attachment there, like it or not, and she's the type that's too nice and probably feels almost guilty about the guy being psycho over her.
"Hey." I reach over the table to grab her hand in mine. "You okay?"
She stares at our conjoined hands for a moment, unblinking. "Yeah... no... I don't know." she admits, shoulders sagging. "I honestly don't know what to feel."
I rub my thumb back and forth over the back of her hand. "I get that."
She opens and closes her mouth, trying to form her thoughts into words. "I just can't believe it. I can't understand why he went to all that trouble to set you up and to betray the trust that I had in him as a friend." she says eventually. "I really thought he was my friend. I guess I just feel a little shocked and confused right now."
I nod sympathetically. "If you don't want me to press charges, I won't." I promise her. I don't want to cause her any more distress for my own vengeance.
"No..." she says with uncertainty. "He broke into your room and purposely did those things. He knew what he was doing was wrong." she says, as if convincing herself of the fact, but I can still see the internal battle behind her eyes, still debating if the title friend trumps foe.
She sighs sadly. "He intentionally tried to hurt you... and me." She swallows thickly, feeling betrayed. "He should have to face the consequences."
"We don't have to make any decisions right now." I inform her. "We can think it over for a few days."
She gives me a grateful look before pulling her hand from mine, leaning back to give the approaching waitress room to set down our plates.
"On a lighter note." I say, perking up and picking a fry off my plate, popping it into my mouth. "Coach called me this morning."
She looks at me, puzzled. "He did?"
I grin, taking a big bite of my burger, chewing and swallowing before I continue. "Yeah. He called to let me know a scout from the west coast called him the other day to discuss about me."
Her eyes go wide, voice raising a few octaves. "Really?"
I wipe my hands on a napkin. "Yup, said they're really interested in me, and coach gave them a great review and verbal resume for me to really drive home their decision. He said I have a high chance of getting drafted next year."
"Lisa, that's amazing!" she states, eyes warm and proud.
"Thanks, baby. According to coach, they're coming to watch me play after the break and plan on sitting down with me to talk."
Her eyes sparkle with happiness. "That's great news!"
"And that's not all of it..." I confess, excitement buzzing through my chest. When I said the good news kept coming this morning, I meant it. "I got another call from testing services."
Her head jerks back in surprise, confusion written all over her pretty face. "Testing services?" she asks, slight alarm in her voice.
"Yeah, since I missed the lab final due to reasons that were out of my control, they're giving me a chance to take it instead of receiving a zero." Not that taking the lab final was weighing heavily on my mind. Honestly, I was more worried about getting Jennie back to even think about not actually taking the final. "I have an appointment at the testing centre at two in the afternoon."
She looks at me baffled before guilt washes over her face. "Oh my gosh, Lisa. I didn't even think about you missing the final." she worries, knowing a zero would really tank my final, overall grade.
"I didn't either." I chuckle, waving my hand dismissively. "Zero or not, I'd still pass the class. Barely, but I'd still pass."
She looks at me disbelievingly. "Huh?"
I grin. "Final grades for the class were posted this morning on the online portal. My barely passing, overall grade obviously isn't set in stone anymore with my now tentative zero for the lab final, but for the final in lecture, I got a B+."
Shock and excitement light her eyes again. "No way!"
"What can I say?" I shrug casually, taking a sip of my soda, smirking around the straw. "I've got a kickass tutor."
With an excited little squeak, she stands and slides into my side of the booth, her arms wrapping around my neck. "I'm so proud of you!"
I wrap my arm around her waist, hugging her back. "I couldn't have done it without you, baby." I whisper sincerely into her hair. Leaning back, I capture her lips with mine, kissing her briefly. I grab her plate and drink from the other side of the table, sliding them over in front of her, not wanting her to leave my side of the booth.
She settles in next to me, my arm draped around her shoulders as I watch her pick up her phone and log into her student portal to check out her final grade. No surprise, she finishes the class with an A+.
"Great job, baby." I praise, kissing the top of her head.
"So wait..." she pauses, looking over at me expectantly. "Since we both got the grades we agreed to for the bet, does that mean we're going to Florida?"
Shit. I completely forgot about that.
As much as I don't want to go to Florida, a bet is a bet. And the look on her face... the hope and excitement in her eyes... I'd be a complete dick if I told her no and went back on my word, crushing her dreams of going to the state I've grown to hate due to my traumatic childhood.
I sigh, forcing myself to smile despite the unsettling feeling in my stomach. "I guess so. Pack your bags, Finch, it looks like we're going to Florida."
And just like that, the smile on her face makes it worth it.
Maybe going back won't be so bad with her. It'll be nice to have a little get away and see her experience the beach for the first time, something I know she's ecstatic about. I think I can manage to set aside my bad memories for her for a couple of days. Go and make new, better memories with her.
"But first I have to pass the lab final. Think we can squeeze in a quick study session before two in the afternoon?" I ask, my grin sharp as I waggle my eyebrows suggestively. "A little anatomy refresher with you would really do me some good."
Her cheeks burn red at my innuendo, and she swats me in my chest with the back of her hand. I just laugh, leaning over to kiss the side of her head. "I'll take that as a maybe." I tease.
