Boarding School Bliss

Chapter 12

 Dawson entered the classroom a few minutes after Samantha, both of them barely avoiding being late. Samantha raised her eyebrows at him as she took her seat.

"You've nearly been late twice in a week, now. You're slipping." Samantha teased him.

Dawson shook his dark hair, still damp from his shower, out of his eyes and arched an eyebrow at her. "Uh-huh and both times it was your fault."

Samantha giggled. "Sorry."

"Worth it." Dawson said, with a grin.

Mr. Alek walked in just then and called the class to attention. He continued the mountain of work he'd given them the previous day and kept them busy the entire class.

Samantha's day was crazy which she was kind of grateful for. She wasn't entirely sure how to act around Dawson now and she was still torn about wanting people to know about him. She didn't care for their approval, but she didn't handle conflict well. Darken was supposed to be her haven away from conflict. If her friends at the school were in an uproar about who she chose to date and her parents treated her like a mistake they were trying to forget about, then there would be no peaceful place for her to run to.

After school Dawson texted Samantha and asked her if she wanted to ride with him to the coffee shop. She, of course, agreed and, with a little difficulty, managed to find his car. It was only when they pulled up to the coffee shop that Samantha remembered Meg and knew she was about to be interrogated.

They entered the coffee shop holding hands and Samantha looked for her friend. She found her already walking towards them, her eyes wide and sparkling with excitement.

"Um, excuse me, Dawson, I need to steal Sammy real quick." Meg said, grabbing Samantha's other hand and pulling her away.

Dawson gave her that half-amused, half-worried look that guys got when they knew they were being talked about, but he released her hand and claimed a table.

"Geez." Samantha said, laughing at her friend's enthusiasm.

"Oh, my gosh! You two were holding hands! Tell me everything." Meg said after she'd sequestered them in a corner. She kept tossing Dawson glances that were nowhere near sly.

Samantha told Meg everything that had happened since she saw her last and Meg oohed and aahed, placing her hands over her heart at the perfect moments.

"Oh, man, I knew it. I knew he liked you." Meg said.

Samantha rolled her eyes and couldn't contain her giddy smile. "You're right. You were right."

"Okay, now, get over there! Your Prince Charming awaits." Meg said dramatically, drawing a laugh from Samantha. "I will bring you free celebratory coffees."

"Ooh, I won't say no to that." Samantha said as they parted ways and she joined Dawson at the table.

She took the seat across from him and his green eyes warmed with a smile. "So?" He asked.

"So, what?" Samantha said, intentionally being difficult.

"Well, what did she say?" He pressed, impatiently.

Samantha scoffed. "That is top-secret, Dawson. I couldn't tell you even if I wanted to."

Dawson rolled his eyes and Samantha laughed. "She said she knew you liked me and then she gloated about being right and she's bringing us celebratory coffee."

Dawson narrowed his eyes at her, but they still shone with humor. "She didn't know I liked you. I'm very sneaky."

Samantha laughed at that, but she had to agree. She'd been blind to how he felt, though she was probably too close to the situation.

Samantha sobered and looked at him very seriously. "We have to get work done tonight."

Dawson raised an eyebrow at her. "Okay?"

"That means you can't distract me."

Dawson gaped at her. "You're accusing me of distracting you?"

"Oh, absolutely."

Dawson's disbelief dissolved into a laugh. "I'll try my best not to."

They worked for a while, planning out their story and arguing over dialogue. Samantha couldn't help but provoke Dawson as they worked. When she proposed something ridiculous he would get all worked up and frustrated. He'd wrinkle his nose and push his glasses up irritably and Samantha loved it. After the third time she'd said something crazy she was watching him with a small smile on her face and he stopped talking and narrowed his eyes at her, suspiciously.

"Are you messing with me?" He asked.

Samantha laughed as she stared at him. "Maybe a little."

He glared at her, but he couldn't hide the dimple that showed in his cheek when he was holding back a smile. "I thought we weren't supposed to be getting distracted."

"I couldn't help it! You started it by being so dang attractive." Samantha mumbled grumpily as she looked back down at her papers. She snuck a peek back up at Dawson and he was smiling at her.

"Of course it's my fault again." He said, with a chuckle.

"It's not my fault you don't get distracted by me." Samantha said. She might have been fishing, just a little.

Dawson leaned across the table towards her and turned her chin so that he could meet her eyes. "I failed our last Lit exam because, as you know, we now share a table and you had leaned your pretty little head on your hand and your hair was laying on my arm. I honestly couldn't focus at all." He grimaced. "I had to beg Mr. Alek to let me take it again. It was horrible."

Samantha didn't know whether to laugh or apologize. She settled for blushing, causing Dawson to laugh and lean back. "So, yeah," He continued. "You distract me."

Neither of them could focus on their work after that. As they talked Dawson had his arm laid on the table. Samantha again noticed the leather strap he had wrapped around his wrist. She ran a finger over it. It didn't have any markings on it. It appeared to just be a simple piece of leather he'd made into a bracelet.

"Where'd you get this?" Samantha asked him.

"My sister gave it to me." He said, smiling slightly as he studied the bracelet.

Samantha was about to question him further on it when he reluctantly said that they should get going. They both had more homework to get done and they weren't getting anything done sitting in the cafe. 

Dawson texted Samantha later that night asking her if she was free to go out with him the next day. In the midst of her crazy week, she'd nearly forgotten she'd made it to the weekend. She said yes and continued her homework with a smile on her face.

Author's note: Hey guys! I hope you're enjoying the story as much as I'm enjoying writing it! Vote if you like it and leave your thoughts in the comments!