08. The chapter in which everyone hangs out

Rose

I started to rummage through my closet in search of an outfit still wearing a robe after getting out of the shower. I had decided to take advantage of Sunday and sleep late, forgetting that I had arranged to go out with Liam and the others.

I removed the robe, turning sideways in front of the mirror to apply the healing ointment to the tattoo before placing a new clear bandage over it. I spread the ointment gently over the skin, resisting the temptation to scratch the area, admiring the delicate sunflower design surrounded by two daisies, forming a small bouquet.

" He's annoying but he has good taste," I outlined the small design with the tip of my finger.

I placed the bandage carefully, smiling as I remembered everything that had happened yesterday, from that disastrous party to the moment when I was one step away from kissing Christian. I certainly would have if that nagging pain hadn't started up again at that moment.

Christian Davis had aroused a mixture of emotions in me. He was arrogant, sarcastic, childish, and passive-aggressive, but I couldn't deny that there was something very intriguing deep in those blue eyes.

" Alicia was really stupid to leave someone interesting for a guy who couldn't take his eyes off his video game while she was in the same room with him," I muttered to myself, putting on a bra before putting on a black shirt and jeans shorts.

I checked the time on my cell phone as I put on a pair of heelless short boots, noticing that I was already late. I grabbed my bag and hurried out of the room, heading towards the common area of the dorm, where the others were already waiting for me.

" Rose, finally. I thought you had died under the shower," Sky complained as soon as I approached.

" Maybe she was accompanied " Theo scoffed.

" Hahaha, very funny, but I wasn't with anyone.” I flashed my tongue to my friend.

The four of us started walking towards the exit, while Sky was looking for something in her bag.

" That's too bad, if you want company next time, you can tell me," Liam winked at me, making me laugh.

" Liam," Sky groaned in disgust at this sentence.

" What? The invitation wasn't for you, you can't be offended." He arched both eyebrows at her, before confiding in me as we pulled into the parking lot. “I will never make that mistake again, I still feel my face burning from the slap I got when I invited her for a shower.”

I brought my hand to my lips, trying in vain to stifle my laughter, Theo unlike me, didn't try to disguise it, laughing openly.

" Did you slap him?”

" A slap? She almost turned his face inside out. He had her hand tattooed on his face for the rest of the day," Theo sneered.

" Hey, it was the first time he approached me after I took a realistic illustration class with him. And then he invites me in for a shower, right off the bat," Sky defended herself.

We walked down the row of parked cars, looking for Sky's Virtus. Liam still had that lazy smile on his lips, watching the girl's partially covered profile with golden hair.

" If this was your first interaction, how did you end up friends?”

" After that he came to me with a cup of vanilla cinnamon latte as an apology for his inappropriate behavior, it's my favorite coffee," she smiled, as if stuck in a nostalgic memory.

" God knows how he figured it out in such a short time " Theo commented thoughtfully.

" I thought it was you," Sky frowned, staring at his friend.

We finally reached the car, and everyone looked at Liam for an answer.

" I... talked to a girl who was around you that day, Jenna, Jenny... it was something with a J in it " he shrugged.

" Julia? Oh my God, when you say you talked to her…”

" She probably accepted the offer of a shower," I scoffed, amused at the shocked expression on my friend's face.

Theo walked toward the front door, still laughing at the whole situation.

" No, there are no showers in the library," Liam denied naturally before turning to his friend who had just opened the door. “thanks man”.

Theo remained unresponsive for a few seconds while Liam took the seat next to the driver.

" What? It's my seat," he justified himself.

Theo looked at Skyller for support, but after alternating her gaze between the two, she decided not to get involved and silently took the driver's seat. Theo climbed in next to me in the back seat with a sulky expression.

" You could spoil him less, you know. " Theo murmured, buckling her seat belt as Sky began to maneuver the car.

" I don't spoil…”

" You do a little," Liam agreed.

The fact that Liam himself admitted this made me laugh.

" What? I've been spoiled my whole life, I'll give you that," he turned to me.

" If you've always been so spoiled, where's your car? You're always hitchhiking," I pointed.

That question disconcerted the boy for a minute, especially with Theo's laughter next to me, but he soon recovered.

" That's because I hate driving, and…”

" He lost his license and Mr. Van Derr Waal took his Porsche," Sky explained, to my surprise.

" And that happened too," he added with a wry smile.

" Oh my God, how did this happen?”

" A policeman stopped me and I had forgotten my license at home," he explained.

I frowned, this was not a good situation, but I believe it could be solved without such drastic measures.

" I know you are trying to understand how this happened, I will help you. He ended up being arrested for contempt, his car was impounded because it was discovered that he had received too many speeding tickets, his father had to go to the police station to post bail," Theo began to relate.

" They required him to retrain his license, and then he was caught trying to cheat on the theory test, and now he has to wait to retake the test," Sky added with a restrained smile on his face.

"Which was much better for me, now I have the best driver in the universe” Liam winked at Skyller, and for a second, I had the pleasure of seeing her face blush.

Those two were the typical example of people who should stop wasting their time, they were already a couple, even if they didn't realize it.

" It seems that now I share my position with you, Rose. How was the party last night?”

" Great, Audrey introduced me to one of the newcomers and... " Liam answered for me.

" Audrey introduced you to someone? This is news," Theo raised his eyebrows.

It wasn't the first time I realized that there was some hidden history between Audrey and Liam, and I tried to restrain myself so that my curiosity wouldn't be mistaken for interest, but it was difficult.

" Okay, Allie introduced me, but Audrey was next to her," he admitted.

I couldn't help but frown upon hearing Allie's name; after all that had happened, all the dislike I had felt for her during my high school years had returned with force upon seeing her attitude the day before.

" Did you find her? How is she? " Sky asked, not distracted from the driving as he led us to downtown Grayfox Mills, where they assured me a restaurant with live music was becoming a major attraction for college students.

" Living the college dream by being humiliated in as many ways as possible in the name of a sorority," he sneered.

This was ridiculous, I overheard one of the girls in my class telling another that they would be forced to clean the fraternity bathrooms after the party, and I couldn't imagine what they would find there.

" Her guy seems to have dropped out, but she has already found a replacement, she spent the rest of the party hooking up with Wayne Simmons," he continued, making me roll my eyes, a gesture that did not go unnoticed by Theo who was standing next to me.

" What's the problem? " Theo was unceremonious.

Liam turned back, analyzing me at his friend's statement.

" Nothing," I said, not wanting to badmouth his cousin.

" You're lying. What do you know?”

I sighed, giving up my plan to remain neutral on the story, not least because I intended to keep my promise to become friends with Davis, and they would surely find this change in attitude strange.

" She asked Davis to go to the party with her, and he did, but she was a bitch to him, which reminded me why we weren't friends in high school," I shrugged.

Liam narrowed his emerald eyes, thoroughly assessing my sentence before a full smile appeared on his face.

" Ahh my little Frida Khalo, I work in detail.”

" That's because you're such a big gossip," I teased him.

" Far be it from me, gossips pass on information, I just like to know things," he winked at me.

I spent the next few minutes recounting everything that had happened the day before in detail, getting downtown in a few minutes.

" So, you decided to steal my cousin's guy," Liam chuckled at the end of the story, as we walked through the city streets.

" Firstly, he is not her guy, secondly, even if he was, he wouldn't be from the moment she was a bitch to him, and thirdly, nothing happened between us," I returned.

" Interesting that you leave this information last," Theo teased me.

" I would have started with that, in fact, I wouldn't have even mentioned the rest," Sky whispered to Liam.

This was typical, I couldn't approach someone of the opposite sex without having any sexual intentions.

" I have no interest in Davis, I just hated the way Allie acted with him. She did it in front of everyone, it was ridiculous," I muttered in disbelief.

Liam opened the door to a restaurant, allowing Skyller and me to enter first. The place was quite full of young students, but he didn't hesitate to walk towards a vacant table in the corner.

" It really wasn't her best attitude," Theo agreed with me.

" I had hoped that she would at least enjoy the guy's company a little before dismissing him. And that she would be more sensitive in this matter," Liam shrugged.

Yes, that would have been better, but no, she decided to act like a real spoiled bitch. And that took away any right for her to complain about my approaching him.