“Tonight?” Levi glanced into the rearview mirror.
“I guess.”
“Okay, so let’s hang out tomorrow night.”
I shook my head. “I can’t.”
“Come on, Al. You know you want to. It doesn’t even have to be just the two of us. We can hang out as a group.”
I looked back at Hailey, and she shrugged.
I sighed, realizing this was another dangerous step. “I’ll think about it.”
He put a hand on the back of my seat. “I’ll take it.”
Levi turned on to Broadway and parked near our dorm. “I’ll call you later to finalize plans.”
“You never give up, do you?”
“Not when it comes to you.”
Before I could unbuckle my seatbelt, he leaned over and did it himself, his lips brushing against mine. “Have a great day.”
“See ya.” I got out without looking back.
We went inside, and I grabbed my books before running across campus to make my first class.
I walked in after the professor had already started his lecture. He shot me an annoyed look as I slid into my seat next to Jared. Jared smiled at me, tilting his laptop so I could see his notes. Unlike Levi, Jared actually took them.
Class went by in a blur, and I walked out with Jared just like after our first class.
“Levi never came home last night. Do you know anything about that?”
I figured he’d find out anyway. “He may or may not have spent the night on the couch.”
“And where did you sleep?”
“On the couch,” I mumbled.
“You two sure like the couch. Is he going to be in a good mood when I see him?” Jared nudged me as we walked.
I moved closer to Jared when a kid on a bicycle nearly ran me over. “It depends on how happy cuddling makes him.”
Jared arched a brow. “Cuddling. Is that what you kids are calling it these days?”
“You got me. We had hot sex. I wanted Hailey to join in, but Levi wasn’t up for it.”
Jared cracked up. “You’re okay, Allie.”
“I’m glad you approve.”
“But seriously.” He glanced behind us before continuing. “I’m glad you guys are working things out.”
“I don’t know if I’d say that…”
“You spent the night together. I don’t care if all you did was sleep. It still means something. You don’t do that with someone you don’t want to be with.”
I adjusted the straps of my tote bag so they didn’t dig into the bare skin of my shoulder that my tank top left exposed. “I didn’t want to be with him the last time we slept on the couch.”
“Yes you did.”
We reached my next class, and I saw Owen waiting in the same spot as last time.
Jared nodded. “See you around, Princess.”
“Do you really have to do that?”
“What? It’s your title.”
I shook my head. Jared waved to Owen, and walked away.
“Good morning.” Owen looked tired. I guessed he’d been up even later than I had.
“Before you ask, I spent the night with Levi on the couch.”
He smiled. “I know.”
“You do?”
“I just ran into him.” Owen held open the door to our classroom.
“Oh, okay.”
We headed into French class, and I hoped I’d manage to understand something my teacher said this time.
Chapter Seven
My first Friday night as a college student didn’t start out particularly eventful.
“So, we’ll go to the Boot first and see where we want to go from there.” Anne applied her makeup in front of one of the mirrors in the bathroom.
“Didn’t the guys say the Boot was lame?” I finished straightening my hair, unplugging the flat iron before placing it on the sink to cool.
“Upperclassman always say that. I think you burn out on it Freshman year because it’s right here.” The bar was literally a couple hundred feet from our dorm.
“Okay, I’m up for anything.” I couldn’t deny the giddiness I felt about going out with the girls. Even though it had only been three days of classes, I’d survived my first week of college.
I grabbed my purse and followed Anne out of the room. Hailey and Tiffany needed to use the ATM, so we were meeting up with them outside the bar.
The Boot was happening. People were hanging out on the sidewalk outside, and a steady stream was heading in. There was nothing particularly special about the place, but located right off campus, it was unofficially the Tulane bar.
We saw Hailey and Tiffany immediately, and wordlessly we all headed to the door.
We flashed our IDs at the bouncer and walked inside.
“One of the annoying parts about this place is that they actually check ID.” Hailey replaced her license in her wallet.
“We can always get fakes if you think we need them.” Anne definitely seemed keen on the idea.
Hailey shot her down. “We don’t need them, and it’s not worth the risk of getting busted with one.”
“I never saw you as someone who would be afraid of getting caught,” I said casually, taking in my surroundings. A bar dominated the back wall, with tables scattered throughout the rest of the space.
“I’m not, but it’s not worth it when you can get served most places.”
Tiffany nodded. “Yeah, that makes sense.”
“I’m sure someone will get us beer.” Anne smiled as Brandon came our way. I knew I wasn’t imagining something between them at the frat party.
“Hey guys. We’ve got a table and a few pitchers, care to join us?”
We all looked at each other before Hailey answered. “Sure.”
An hour and a few cups of beer later, Anne was agreeing on our behalf to go with the guys to some small house party their friend was throwing. Considering nothing too exciting was happening at the bar, none of us had a problem with it. It was really funny to be hanging out with Brandon. I never would have believed it in high school.
We walked a few blocks down Broadway with the guys, hoping the party would be at least half decent. We stopped in front of a house with faded paint and a rickety front porch. The only thing that marked it as a college student’s house was the Tulane Green wave sticker on the front window.
I walked up the front steps, hoping they’d manage to hold all of our weight. This was one of those non-glamorous parts about college that people never tell you about—worrying that the dilapidated apartment hosting a party would fall apart with you in it.