more for us | grayson dolan (book two)

five

The loud thumping of my heart is the only movement I can feel in my body. The hallway around me is completely silent, which gives me space for my sulking thoughts. I have been standing in front of this closed wooden door for about ten minutes now. The words Laura Koch are neatly engraved on the front of it.

Meeting with a guidance counselor was absolutely horrible. The woman basically informed me that I need my professor's approval to drop out of a course. Once you're registered, Juilliard's class policy is pretty much locked down. The rules and regulations for this university is extremely strict, but I need to respect that and obey their decisions.

I have never been so level-headed in my entire life. The old me would throw a fit and try to sneak my way around their stupid rules. I would give the snobby woman an attitude or backhand comment. Dammit, what the hell did Grayson Dolan to do me? He broke down the walls of my hard exterior and made me a more compassionate person. Not that I mind, my outlook on life has been way better since we first started dating. It's a mix of growing up, taking responsibilities, and being in love. Those are three deadly combinations.

I need to stop getting side tracked and take action. The word fear never existed in my vocabulary until my senior year of high school, but now it's something that always pops up in my brain. The trauma I've experienced is something that never disappears, I just try to cope with it as much as I can.

Taking a step forward, my heart skips a few beats and picks up at an even faster pace than before. My knuckles gently tap on the door, but it's probably not enough for her to actually hear. Nervously gulping, I use more force against the hard material. The knock is more aggressive, so it definitely should grab her attention.

"Come in." Her voice shouts from the other side.

Turning the handle, I slowly begin to push the door wider. Laura is sitting at her desk, writing down something on a post-it note. Her head tilts up and I completely freeze. My body is half in the hallway, half in the doorway.

The tint of hazel in her eyes widen once she's sees me. Her mouth hangs low in a small gasp. "Stella, uh, come in."

I awkwardly step into the room and shut the door behind me. Gripping onto my bag, I take a few steps toward her large desk. The office is spacious, with a nice view of the courtyard.

"Have a seat." She motions toward the chair in front of her.

"I'm not staying long." I clear my throat while my eyes wander around the room.

There's plants sitting on the windowsill along with little knick knacks. She has a framed picture of a beautiful piano, which is in black and white. It takes up a large portion of the wall behind her desk.

My eyes shift to the frames surrounding her computer. There's a photo of her in a wedding dress, smiling next to a tall man with brown hair and blue eyes. The smiles on their faces are wide and happy. He doesn't look problematic. His designer suit shows that he comes from a great line of wealth.

The next picture is the four of them in fancy clothing. Violet's grin makes me sick as she stands next to Laura. The son is tall and has black hair, he's in between his sister and father. I blink a few times to capture the full imagine. My mother is in a light yellow gown while Violet is in a short pink mini dress. Both of the men are in suits. It must have been for an event or a party.

"Stella?" Her voice snaps me out of the black tunnel consuming my thoughts.

"Huh?" I rip my eyes away from the frame to look back at her. She notices my stare, and looks down at the picture before clearing her throat.

"I asked what you were doing in here. Did you need something?" She folds her hands together while standing up straight.

"I need your permission to switch out of piano history." I inhale a sharp breath.