the shower, which made me feel bad, so I cooked him breakfast and found the biggest glass in the cabinet to pour his orange juice into. He was smiling by the time we walked to our first morning lecture.
Giving him a subtle sideways glance, I check his face. He’s looking kind of bored, his eyes a little glazed as he watches Professor Busch click to the next PowerPoint slide. Poor guy. I wonder how bored he is. He told me he wasn’t that great at academic stuff, and maybe he’s bored because he doesn’t understand the content.
I could teach him.
It’d be like returning the favor.
“All right, people. That’s it for today. Please make sure you’re up to date on the readings before our next class. I want to dive more in depth into this material before your test next week.”
Laptops shut around the room as students pack their bags and start heading for the door. I check my watch. It’s lunchtime, and the hunger pangs are kicking in.
“You want to go to the cafeteria?” I ask, checking my phone and spotting a text from Tabby.
TABBY: We’re at the table by the window, underneath the Eco-Day banner.
I send her a thumbs-up, then look to Brody.
“Everyone’s waiting for us. Let’s go.”
He turns with me and we head for the cafeteria, talking about what’s coming up after lunch. We run through the rest of the day as we collect our food, then take a seat with the rest of our friends.
It’s been nearly two weeks, and I’m starting to feel like I fit.
I mean, I think I do.
Tabby’s sweet and easy to be around. She and Wren, the flirt from the party, have started dating, and he seems pretty cool too. Then there’s Percy, who is… well, he’s kind of weird. But he and Tabby are family friends, and she doesn’t have the heart to be mean to him. Occasionally we’re joined by the twins, Joanna and Jolene, but it’s usually just the five of us, and I quite like it that way.
Unwrapping my chopsticks, I dive into my teriyaki chicken sushi while Brody chows down on mac and cheese.
Hm. I wonder if he knows how to make that. I feel like it’s a standard dish I should learn. I’ll add it to my growing list of things for him to teach me.
“So, how was your morning?” Wren smiles at me, his nose twitching with that little tic of his, and I tell them all about my latest classes, although I feel kind of bad that I don’t remember the second half. My thoughts got derailed by Brody. I seriously can’t let that happen again.
“We’ve got a test next week,” I say before popping a piece of sushi in my mouth.
“Yeah, me too. Can’t believe they’re already slapping those on us. These lectures are way more intense than high school.” Tabby gives me a nervous wince.
Wren chuckles and kisses the side of her head. “You’ll be okay. You’re the smartest girl I know.”
“Not as smart as Indy.” Tabby points at me.
I shake my head, hating the spotlight.
“Are you kidding? You’re like a science whiz.”
“No, I just… have to work really hard.” I keep downplaying the compliment and am super relieved when Percy pipes up… until I hear what he just said.
“At least you’re smarter than this one.” He plops his phone in the middle of the table, and we all lean forward to check the screen.
Oh crap!
What is he doing following Ruby!
“Who’s The Crimson Jewel?” Wren murmurs, his face wrinkling as he looks at the screen and blinks a few times. Ruby’s dipping her hip, sticking her butt out, and flicking her hair.
The duck face she’s pulling makes me want to hurl, so I glance away from the screen, not caring a rat’s ass about the rest of her stupid TikTok video.
“She’s just this rich bitch who thinks she’s hot.” Percy guffaws. It’s an awkward, cringey sound. “She posts stuff all the time. Check out her bikini, man. It’s barely covering her nipples!”
“Ugh.” Tabby pokes out her tongue and slides the phone back to Percy. “Why do you look at that crap?”
Percy laughs again. This time it’s a high-pitched giggle that grates my spine.
Brody glances at me, but I avoid his gaze, not wanting my face to give anything away. My heart is racing, and all I can do is stare at the table and pray that they don’t link me to Ruby in any way. I’m pretty sure none of her social