A Little Heat

Chapter 1

The sun rays beat down on my face and the rest of our university's quad as I dozed in and out of consciousness. Most people sat in couples or groups with enough distance between themselves and others to still have a private moment. I was aware of my roommate (and best friend) sitting next to me; her presence was comforting towards me, confirming that it would be safe to nap in the sun. However, my groggy self became aware of a foreign digit poking itself in my face.

"Hello, Clare," Lizzy continues poking my face. "Are you alive?"

"No. Let me die and donate my body to science," I whine and turn my face away from her.

"I couldn't imagine someone else walking around with those green ass eyes of yours. It'd give me nightmares," she shudders before adding, "But for real, we got to go. Like now."

I stir a little more and try to open my eyes against the sun. Giving up, I just raise my eyebrow at her.

"There's an ultra creepy guy," I snort at her, but she continues on. "I left to go throw a wrapper away and he walked up to you, his legs on either side of you, and just bent down to look at your face. He left as I started to turn around and come back. I got a picture of him." She tried to show it to me, but I pushed her phone away.

"If I look at that, I'll never be able to nap here again." I gathered my stuff together and we got up.

"It's the guy in the black jacket on the bench," she nodded towards the café.

I looked over, but all I could tell from his physical appearance was dark hair in a clean cut.

"So," I started, dragging the word out. "Let's go home, and to reward you of being my Prince Charming, I'll buy you sushi tonight."

Lizzy essentially drug me the two blocks away to our house. It was really mine, and I paid all of the bills, but Lizzy helped out whenever she could.

My family died when I was 12. Both of my parents had traveled so much that I only saw them for a couple days every month. They were very humble about our money, but had hired a live-in nanny to take care of me most of the time. When the news had said that my parents died those 9 years ago from a boating accident, my care giver had taken me to the family's lawyer's office immediately. There, I had not only learned that my parents had three billion each stashed away separately, but also that I would be living with my godparents and their daughter whom I had never met before. Easy to say, it wasn't a painless adjustment, but I did come out of it with a new sister and life long best friend, Lizzy.

"Clare. Are you still on this earth?" Lizzy looked at me oddly, standing half a foot from my face.

"I was just thinking about the first day we met," I looked a my feet sheepishly.

"Oh," she thought for a second, "Yeah, I was a major bitch." I smile, and bite my tongue to hold my laughter back. "Okay. Before you say anything else," Lizzy held up her hands and started walking backwards, "I'm going to go get changed for dinner."

I groan inwardly at realizing how long she was going to take.

***

"Lizzy. I have been sitting on this couch for forty-five minutes! I'm going to leave without you." I'm hungry and already a very irritable person.

"Just give me five more minutes! I promise! If not, I'll buy you dessert!" Lizzy shouted back at me through the house. I small wave a victory washes over me. It's a "win-win" for me no matter what.

I start killing time on my phone and scroll through all of the social media filled with people I haven't checked up with since high school. All I need to do at this moment in time was to distract myself from the growing hunger pains... and distracted I am.

I can't help but to feel like someone is looking at me, like someone is trying to read the very thoughts that are coming through my head. Just to make myself feel better, I peer through the windows, slowly manipulating the blinds of our little reading nook. I look down at the street and immediately feel worse than before.

"Lizzy?" I manage to squeak out.

"Clare! For the love of God, I swear I'm almost done!" She leaves a colorful trail of curses under her breath.

"No, no, no, don't worry about it. We're ordering in now."