103 - The chapter with the catch

Rose

Back at college, I attended one more contemporary art history class before finally freeing myself to enjoy some time with Christian, who was saying goodbye to Harry and taking his clothes to my room. Cam was loving to pick on us, saying that Sky and I would practically be living together with the boys, but that was far from the truth. I had already made it clear that when we moved in, we would each have our own room and space. This was just a temporary measure.

I took a shower and returned to my room, putting on the Foo Fighters t-shirt that Christian loved and I had taken from his bag, a pair of short jeans and a pair of black knitted socks that went down to my knees, throwing myself on the beds that we had put together to improvise a double bed, starting to play some game on my cell phone while I waited.

Time passed and Christian was taking longer than I expected. As it got closer to dinner time, I got a text from Liam, letting me know that they had bought Thai food and were waiting for us in the playroom. I tried to call him, but his cell phone was off, which only served to irritate me. Where has Christian been?

I got up, not bothering to change, just put on the fuzzy slippers I had and left. Maybe he needed help bringing his stuff, I should have thought of that before. The fact that I was walking so freely through the corridors of the dorm didn't draw any extra attention. In fact, those who shared the hallway with me knew that I usually went out in my pajamas or just a t-shirt a lot of the time, after all, one way or another, this was my home and I liked to feel comfortable.

I walked up the two floors that separated our rooms, attracting more and more stares wherever I went, after all, I knew almost no one in that place. Both Christian's and Theo’s rooms were in that wing, but if I'd been there three times it had been a lot, usually the guys who came to my room. I was attracting more and more male attention as I walked, but I wasn't going to let that intimidate me, and I kept going at the same confident pace as always. That's when a face caught my eye.

" Hey Rose," Taylor Ashford greeted me, standing next to a group of guys who were staring at me in amazement.

" Hey Tay," I nodded with a smile on my face without interrupting my path, further increasing the surprise of the boy's colleagues.

Christian's room was the last one in the corridor, and I could already see his door from where I was. I hastened my steps a little as I saw the door opening, but the next image made me stand still in my place. Christian rushed out of the room followed by none other than Alicia.

She was the first to notice my presence, flashing a victorious smile, and it didn't take me much effort to notice the purplish mark on Christian's neck, which I was sure hadn't been made by me. My heart pounded almost painfully as I registered every detail of that scene. Her lipstick was smudged and his lips were blushing more than usual, his shirt was inside out and his eyes, which I usually adored, were fixed on me, full of surprise.

The girl, still smiling, ran her hand up Christian's arm, who then pulled away, only then seeming to snap out of the shock of finding me there.

" Rose…”

Her worried voice made me laugh, almost giggle. Alicia's victorious expression gave way to confusion at my reaction. Still laughing, I turned my back and began to retrace my steps, feeling my heart begin to ache as I laughed, attracting the attention of those still in the hallway. I ran my fingers through my scalp, tossing my loose hair back, hearing Christian start an argument with Allie as I walked away, but I didn't want to hear that, so my alternative was to laugh a little louder to drown out the sound of his voice.

" Hey Rose, what's so funny? " Taylor, who was still with his friends asked.

I just nodded, not stopping laughing. Maybe the people there were thinking I was crazy, and maybe I was. What was so funny anyway? If I were to verbalize the answer to that question it would be "how stupid I am!". Yes, my stupidity was the big joke of that show, because I let my guard down, faced my fears and he didn't wait even two days to show me how stupid I had been for trusting him!

The laughter started to die down as I walked down the stairs and I started to hurry my steps as the laughter crisis gave way to the urge to cry. He completely disarmed me, made me drop all my defenses and hit me full on. I barely noticed that I was almost running when I finally reached my room, and the urge to cry had already been replaced by anger as I realized once again how stupid I was for falling for that story!

I slammed the door hard, grabbing the chair from my desk and leaning against the doorknob, because on top of everything else, that bastard still had the key to my room!

That bastard had convinced me to become my new roommate!

" WHAT A SON OF A BITCH! " I grabbed my pen holder from the desk, throwing it against the wall before turning to the two beds together.

Feeling my heart beat even harder, I ripped the sheets off the mattress, trying to separate the beds, getting angry and just throwing the mattress to the other as tears finally started to run down my face. A sob escaped my lips as I struggled to push the beds apart, giving up, letting my body just slide to the floor, kneeling there, no longer containing all the bad feelings eating away at me. I hugged my legs, hiding my face in my knees in an attempt to stifle my sobs.

Why? Why would he do this to me? He was already having sex with me, why delude me just to laugh at me? How long has he been with her? Did they plan this together?

The sound of the doorknob moving before Christian started trying to unlock the door made me lift my head, drying my face afterwards as I stared at the door, as if I could see him through the wood.

" Rose, open the door, I can explain! " Christian started to knock.

" GET OUT OF HERE! " I shouted in response, getting to my feet.

The handle turned again, moving the chair, and when I put a little more force, the door opened a few centimeters, which was enough for that cloud of hatred to dominate my vision again. I grabbed a motorcycle club mug he had brought me as a Christmas present, throwing it hard at the door.

" I TOLD YOU TO GET OUT! " I yelled as the china shattered on the wood, making Christian slam the door shut for good, seeming to give up on entering.

A small commotion started outside and the boy seemed to start arguing with someone. I sat back down on the floor, curling up and wrapping my body in a tight hug in an attempt to stop the pain that seemed to tear me apart.

I remained in that position for a few minutes, stuck in a silent cry until the door moved again, this time opening enough for the person to move the chair out of the way. I wanted to send him away one more time, but I didn't have the strength to move.

Liam sat next to me quietly, pulling me to lie on his lap. I didn't hesitate to accept, keeping my eyes closed, trying to ignore the fact that I was crying in front of him.

" I'll ruin your clothes with my tears,” I commented.

" 'I have money to buy other clothes, don't worry,” he returned simply, stroking my scalp.

That was a comfort I didn't expect at that moment, but I didn't need to say anything else, my friend's presence was all I needed. I enjoyed that affection for a few minutes before getting up, giving him a brief kiss on the cheek as a thank you, going to the bathroom to wipe away the tears. I wouldn't let it get me down, one way or another, I would turn it around. And Christian would regret until the last second that he lost me!