AFTER THERE'S YOU // ZESSA

Chapter 17: I've Been Looking For You

"What's wrong?" I say into the phone.

"I'm just – can, can you just come to the dorms please?" Steph says between cries.

"Yeah, I'll be right there," I say, hanging up and pulling out of the parking garage.

What could have happened that's gotten Steph so upset? Are her and Tristan fighting again? That girl loves him so much and can't seem to function without him at times.

...Is that how I was with Hardin?

I park my car in the student lot and run up to our dorm room. Opening the door, I find Steph on her bed, cheeks stained with black tears and cellphone in hand.

"What's wrong?" I ask, closing the door and sitting next to her on the bed.

"Just... just this whole mess," she sobs.

"What mess?" I say, trying to keep my voice as calm and soothing as I can.

"I don't want to get into it. Basically, me and Tristan had a big fight. We just seem to be fighting more and more and it scares me. I don't want to lose him, Tessa," she cries, wiping the tears from her face.

"I'm sorry, Steph. I'm sure you guys will work it out, though. You're great for each other," I hum, gently smoothing down her hair.

"Can you do me a big favor, actually?" she says, looking up at me with big sad eyes.

"Yeah, of course," I answer quickly.

"Can you please come with me to the party tonight? I know I said I didn't want you to go to parties, but Tristan invited me before... this happened," she breathes out. "I want to go and talk with him to make sure everything is okay, but if it isn't, I don't want to be there by myself. And you know Molly won't give a fuck," she says, still crying.

I really don't want to go to another party, but I can't refuse Steph when she's this upset. Especially since I'm staying at her place for free.

"Sure," I nod.

"Thank you so much Tessa, you don't know how much it means," she says, smiling at me through her tears.

I lean in and give her a hug, hoping I don't regret my decision.

-

"Thanks for driving, Tessa," Steph says from the passenger seat.

We just pulled up to the frat house, parking on the grass next to an assortment of other cars. I can already hear the loud music thumping through my car door. A group of people sit on the porch laughing and drinking from their signature red solo cups. Another group, not too far from where we're parked, take turns chugging beers and cheering each other on.

"Well, let's go inside," Steph says, stepping out of the car in a tight purple dress with black biker boots. Only she can pull off something like that. I, however, am wearing a pair of jeans, converse, and a plain white t-shirt. There's no way I was getting dressed up tonight, especially if Zed wasn't here to ward off any creeps, and Steph was too busy arguing with Tristan to notice.

I texted Zed earlier that I was going to the frat party, something he didn't exactly seem thrilled about. But, he told me to have fun and keep an eye on Steph's drinking, since she has a bad habit of ending the night face first in a toilet bowl.

Walking in, I see the usual frat brothers, whose names I can't quite remember, and the girls they hang out with. Steph pulls me towards the kitchen, grabbing a cup of jungle juice from the fridge once inside.

"Want one?" she asks.

"No, I'm driving remember?" I respond.

"One won't kill you, but I mean if you don't to drink that's cool," she says, instead keeping the second cup for herself. I make a mental note to get her water after she finishes these.

"I'm gonna find Tristan, if that's cool," she says, biting her lip and looking around the room for him.

"Yeah, go ahead, I can entertain myself," I say, encouraging her to find him and sort out whatever their issue is at the moment.

"Hey, I think Jace is out back, so I'd avoid going out there. And Molly's in the living room," she says, nodding towards the head of pink hair on the couch in the main room.

"Great," I sigh.

"There's always the empty rooms upstairs if you just want to lock yourself in one and chill," she laughs, knowing I just might do that.

"That's not a bad idea," I yell over the music, as someone cranks it even louder.

"I'll text you if I need you!" she yells back, walking to the main area to find Tristan.

Grabbing a cup of water, I look around the room, debating what to do. There's no one here I really know, and I don't feel confident enough to just walk up to random people – especially sober. With such limited options, I decide to take Steph's advice and go upstairs.

Reaching the top of the staircase, I knock on the first door I see. When I hear no answer, I peak in to see if it's occupied. Peering in, I find a topless girl straddling a shirtless guy and quickly shut the door. That room is definitely not available.

I knock on the next door and try again. This time, I'm greeted with an empty room containing two twin beds, a desk, and a few papers scattered across the floor. I turn on the dim light and squint to see a path inside. Walking in and locking the door behind me, I sit on the bed and get out my phone. Now is the perfect time to mindlessly scroll through social media.

About ten minutes go by and my body is now sprawled out on the bed, head hanging off the edge. I move my head to the beat of the music downstairs and continue scrolling through pictures of my old high school classmates. Some of these people have really let themselves go...

I hear a door shut and look up. My head still hanging upside down, I see the silhouette of a tall figure in front of me, the light from the hallway making it impossible to see their face.

"Hey, I locked that door for a reason," I say, sitting up, annoyed at the crappy locks in this house.

"Hello, Theresa. I've been looking for that pretty face of yours all day," I hear the figure utter in a British accent, and my blood goes cold.

My eyes adjust, and I see no other than Hardin Scott standing in front of me, key in hand, and locking the door.

Author's Note: Be sure to follow me for notifications when I post new chapters! I try to post at least 4 times a week. 

Also, if you cannot handle abuse, both sexual or physical, do not continue reading. Your mental health is more important than a story <3