Valentines

Valentines - Chapter One

Chapter One

 Layla

“I hate College,” I said to Chace as we walked through the heavy double doors.

“It’s half terms in a week,” he replied.

“Is that meant to make me feel better?”

He shrugged. “Not really.”

 “Well at least you’re honest. Can we take the lift? I can’t be bothered to walk today.”

Chace pressed the button for the lift and turned to me. “Did you get out of the wrong side of the bed this morning?” His hazel eyes were alight, and I was pretty sure he was going to say something to annoy me. “Ah, I know your problem.”

Frowning, I turned my back on the stupid red cut out hearts that were stuck to the wall of the lift. Screw Valentine’s Day. “Enlighten me,” I said sarcastically.

“You woke up in the wrong bed.”

“Brad Pitt just won’t leave that ho.”

He frowned. “Not really what I was thinking.”

The lift opened, and I walked out, looking back at Chace over my shoulder. “I know.” That was half the problem.

Chace and I had known each other since we started the same course at College, seventeen months ago. We had a kind of thing but not really a thing, thing. It was a little complicated, but basically we fooled around when drunk but sober we were just friends. And it annoyed the crap outta me. It seemed like he wanted more, he hated the guy I had coffee with a few months ago and was delighted when I said I wasn’t going to see him again, but he’d never asked me out.

I sat down at the back of the classroom and Chace sat next to me. No one else had turned up yet which was strange; we were usually the last ones in.

Chace looked at me confused and swept his hair over his forehead. “Is it the weekend?”

“Would the College be unlocked if it was?”

He frowned. “I don’t know. They have part-time courses; don’t they do those at the weekend?”

“Shut up!”

He chuckled as I pouted and pushed a stupid red foil heart on the floor. Do they really need to stick them to the front edge of all the damn tables? Needless to say since my non-relationship with Chace, I wasn’t a very big fan of Valentine’s Day, or anything else to do with love.

“Not a fan of V day then? You didn’t hate it last year.”

That’s because I didn’t like you, like you last year.

“Nope. It’s overrated. The only ones benefiting from Valentine’s Day are card shops – Clinton’s are cashing in this week – and florists.”

A few others walked in the room then, startled to see us in first, but they quickly took their seats.

“Wow, okay.” He sat back in the seat and stretched. I tried to ignore his plain black T-shirt rise up to reveal a slice of toned stomach, but I couldn’t help taking a peek. Chace wasn’t body builder muscular, but he was toned and defined, and I wanted nothing more to run my hands between the contours of his six-pack again. I didn’t appreciate it nearly enough when we were fumbling around drunk.

“I wonder who thought Valentines up?” Chase asked, frowning.

I shrugged, not wanting to talk about it anymore. I didn’t care how stupid Valentine’s Day came about I just wanted it to be over already.