things we did when no one was looking

the one with the pool

The next few days are a bit of a blur. Everyone's packed with prepping for midterm exams, and I can barely catch a good 2 hours of sleep. 

Noah comes and goes. He hangs out with Will when he finishes band practice, or some days he just comes over and we talk. Every time I see him, I'm reminded of why I started to like him, and it's completely infuriating. 

I know he's a player. I'm not dumb, I've seen the news headlines documenting his adventures every week with a new girl. So should I be happy he's showing interest, or just be wary that I don't end up like the rest of the girls. 

One night, I'm sitting at the kitchen counter, my Law textbook open, when the door opens. Already knowing it's Noah, I don't even look up. "It's customary to knock," I smile as he sits next to me. 

"Well princess, it's customary to lock your doors at night." He leans close so his chin is almost resting on my shoulder as he looks at my book. "What's this?" 

"Criminal Law 100. I've got a test in 2 days, and I feel like if I read another word, my brain will explode." The letters on the page in front of me seem to jumble together and I sigh, leaning back to rest my eyes as I stare at the ceiling. "You're looking at the future college dropout."

"Come on, V," he bumps my shoulder, tilting my chin to look at him. "You're the smartest person I know, there's no way this one test is gonna kick your ass that bad." 

"Oh, you should meet my Professor, she'd get a kick out of- hey!" He plucks my large reading glasses off of my nose and folds them closed before shutting my textbook. "Noah-" 

"Alright, we have no room for that negative attitude here, suit up baby cause we're going swimming." 

"Noah, I don't have time to swim-" I grab for my book, but he holds it over his head. "Dick," I huff. "If I go swimming with you, will you let me study?" 

"Scouts honor, V." 

"You were never a boy scout-" 

"Okay, enough of that, let's go!" He grabs my hand and leads me to the backyard, where he kicks his shoes off. "Come on, jump in." 

"I'm in my pajamas," I state matter-of-factly as he pulls his socks off and takes off his shirt. 

"Either you jump in in that getup, or we're skinny dipping, V." He smirks, knowing full well what he's making me do as he pushes his pants off. 

"Turn around, idiot." Once he does and promises not to peak, I take off my shirt and throw it aside, revealing my black bra and underwear. "Isn't the water going to be freezing?" I ask as I sit by the poolside. He turns back around and stalls for a moment before sitting down next to me, dipping his foot in the water. 

"Oh wow, yeah. Well, better get it over with." Holding my hand, he jumps into the pool. He wears a shit eating grin as we come to the surface, rubbing his hands up and down my arms to bring back circulation. "Not so bad, huh?" 

"You're a dick, has anyone told you that before?" I shiver, instinctively getting closer to him for warmth. All sorts of Kill Bill sirens are going off in my mind as he chuckles, taking a strand of my wet hair and flicking it out of my face. 

"Thousands of people, princess. Now come on, move around, get that blood flowing." He pulls back and dives under the water, swimming to the other end of the pool and back. As I watch him, I sigh and take a deep breath, floating under water. 

His energy is contagious, I begin to understand as he grabs my hand and pulls me along. I get why he's the life of the party, as everyone says. 

***

"So do you do this often?" I ask as we sit on the side of the pool, legs dipped in the water as I dry my hair off. "Force law students to swim with you?" 

"Only the prettiest," he banters back with a wink. "Hey, you're wearing it." He gestures to my neck where the necklace he got me hangs. "It looks good on you." 

"Thanks, Thurman." His damp hair falls back onto his forehead and I reach forward to brush a strand out of his face, but catch myself mid movement. As I'm pulling back, however, he catches my wrist and tugs. 

With a gasp, I fall against his chest, his pale green eyes staring at me with something I've never seen in them before. I can feel his heart beating and it's unnaturally fast. A chill runs down my back as he leans in, and it's definitely not from the water. 

But as fast as it's happening, I realize what I'm doing and pull back. "I-I have to study," I manage to stutter out, not looking back at him as I wrap myself in a towel and go back inside. 

I fall against my bedroom door, burying my face in my hands. 

3 years ago, I might have loved to be kissing Noah Thurman by my pool, but that was before I spent 3 years trying to get over him. And that was before I learned of my brother's rule. 

"Never hook up with Veronica"

It was before I read article after article about him and a new girl every week, and I learned that if he did flirt with me, it would probably mean nothing. 

Getting up, I look out my bedroom window to the backyard. He's still by the pool, watching the space where I had left. I watch as he lays back on the cool ground and runs a hand over his face, throwing his towel over his shoulder before getting up and coming in. 

I half expect him to come upstairs and rationalize trying to kiss me, but I'm relieved, and for some fucking reason, a bit disappointed when I hear the front door close.