"And I know you feel the same way. I drive ya mad, don't I?" He asks, letting out a small chuckle. I look up at him and shake my head, denying the truth, before looking back down. "You wanna know how I know that?"
A Van McCann fan-fiction
The door creaks open at around 12:00. Anna comes in, using her phone flashlight to guide her way to through the room. She must think I'm asleep by now.
"Hey, I'm not sleeping. You can turn the lights on," I say lightheartedly. My mom and I have been texting for a little while, putting me in a better mood.
"Oh my god, Peyton! You scared me," she says, turning on the light switch and holding one hand over her heart. I blink as my eyes adjust to the bright light. "I thought you came back up here to sleep, you missed the best part of the party," she frowns.
"I guess I just got tired of partying. I'm not usually a party type of person," I say. "Anyway, you and Bondy?" I add, raising my eyebrows at her.
"Oh, stop it!" She says while putting her hair up into a messy bun. "Nothing compared to you and Van. Tell me, where'd you to go when he brought you outside?" She returns the same eyebrow movements that I gave to her.
"Van and I are actually nothing," I roll my eyes. "I don't have any feelings for him," I add this part bluntly.
"What?" She asks, surprised, and sits on her bed, across from my bed. "You two were totally eyeing each other. Don't think we didn't see. What happened?"
"He has a girlfriend. I saw them together on his home screen," I state. "Emily, the girl he kissed during spin the bottle."
Anna sighs. "Really? Are you sure they're dating? They could just be friends," she says.
"I don't think so, Anna. They have to be more than friends. The way they look at each other, and act around each other. And Van's screen saver is a picture of them, for heaven's sake!" I say with a sigh. "It's fine, though. I came to college to learn, not to date boys." I tell this to Anna, but I mostly said it to reassure myself.
"Aw man," Anna says. "I was really hoping you two would hit it off or something. I didn't know he was already dating." I could hear genuine disappointment in Anna's voice. It's crazy to me how nice she was, even though we only have known each other for a few hours.
"I'll be okay. There are other fish in the sea, right?" I say, trying to lighten the mood. Anna seems just as unhappy about Van as I do, if not more upset.
"Yeah, you're totally right," she smiles. "I'm glad you are so positive. It's admirable, honestly."
"Says you," I scoff, jokingly. "You're literally the nicest person I've ever met."
"Oh, shut up," she says.
"See what I mean?" I laugh. "Nicest person ever."
She rolls her eyes. "Whatever," she says. "I better get some sleep. I'm pretty tired." Anna lays down in her bed with her clothes still on and her makeup still done. I'm not sure how she's comfortable like that, but she seems to be fine.
"Okay. Goodnight," I say. I shut off my phone as well and plug it in, placing it on the bedside table afterward. It would be good for me to get some sleep too.
•~~~~~
The bright light wakes me up in the morning. Anna and I must have forgotten to close the curtains last night, letting the California sun shine right into our dorm.
I roll out of bed and make my way to the bathroom after grabbing some clothes. I change into a red and black striped sweater and light washed jeans with a pair of converse to top it all off.
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Today was the last day before classes actually started and I have absolutely nothing to do. I wash my face and toss my hair into a messy ponytail, deciding against putting any makeup on, mostly out of pure laziness.
Anna is awake and on her phone by the time I come out from the bathroom. "Hey!" She says, excitedly. "Bondy invited me over for breakfast at his and Van's dorm. He says you should come."
"I think I'm going to stay here, actually. I want to catch up on a few things and make sure I'm set for school tomorrow," I explain to her. Of course, I was lying, but I didn't want to tell her that I just don't want to be around Van.
"Aw, okay. Well if you change your mind, they're room 240," she says. She grabs a T-shirt and a pair of jean shorts from her suitcase which she had yet to unpack and runs to the bathroom, coming out a few minutes later.
"If anyone asks, I didn't sleep in the outfit I wore yesterday," she says.
I nod my head. "Of course not. Why would you ever do something like that?" I say, the sarcasm evident in my voice.
She laughs. "Okay, See ya later. Stop by if you get a chance!" She says, walking out the door and shutting it behind her.
I sit back down on my bed and grab my old laptop which was ten years old now. Sure, it was kind of slow, but it still worked. I respond to a few random emails from people back home and listen to some Arctic Monkeys.
My peaceful time to myself is interrupted by a knock at the door. I push my laptop off my lap and jog to the door. It must be Anna forgetting to bring her key.
I open the door, but instead of seeing Anna, I look up to see Van, his blue eyes looking back at me.
