I remain in the shower for longer than I should, desperate to scrub off last night’s events. I wash my hair then climb out, dry off, and get dressed. I brush my teeth way longer than required. By the time I’m finished, I feel a tad bit better and am even slightly hungry. Food will have to come later because I need to get to class.
I’m heading toward the door with my bag slung over my shoulder—my laptop in it—when someone knocks. I tense. Getting grabbed last night and the message on my door has me on edge.
Hesitantly, I open the door.
River is standing on the other side. He’s wearing a pair of baggy sweatpants, a T-shirt, along with sneakers. He also has what looks like a to-go box in his hand.
His gaze fleetingly sweeps across me. “You’re alive?” he jokes.
“Barely. I told Lily I think I died and came back as a zombie.”
His lips quirk. “You did basically puke your brains out last night.”
Guilt and embarrassment weave through me. “I’m so sorry. I feel like an idiot.”
He grows serious as he shakes his head. “You don’t need to apologize. Everyone’s gotten too drunk at least one time in their life.”
“I know, but how many people have gotten too drunk in their life and made some guy, who barely knows them, take care of them while they yakked their guts out.”
“You didn’t make me,” he stresses. “In fact, you told me to leave like a dozen times.”
I fidget, crossing my arms. “Why didn’t you, then?”
He shrugs. “Because you were sick and could barely hold your head up. I wouldn’t leave someone like that—ever.” He pauses, and a trace of amusement glitters in his eyes. “And while I saw things last night that will probably haunt my nightmares, I’m glad you seem semi-okay now.”
I shake my head while biting back a smile. “So, you have a joking side to you? Again, you surprise me, River Averson.”
His brows knit, as if he didn’t realize he had been joking with me. Then he hastily clears his throat. “So, I brought you a burger. Whenever Finn gets trashed, he likes to eat burgers because he says the grease makes his stomach feel better.” He hands me the to-go box.
I take it from him, looking from the box to him. “You brought me food?” I ask, flabbergasted. No one has ever done something like this for me, and my mind doesn’t even know how to process it.
He nods, brushing strands of his hair out of his eyes. “You seem shocked by that?”
“I … I’m just not used to people doing stuff like this for me.” I shake the shock out of my head. “Thank you.” It might be the most sincere thank you I’ve ever given.
“You’re welcome.” His gaze flicks down the hallway as a guy shouts, “River, hurry up. We’re going to be late.” He returns his focus to me. “I have a weight class I have to get to, butif you need anything, just text me … Wait, we should probably exchange numbers, right?” He leaves the question hanging in the air between us.
“Yeah, probably.” It’s a new experience for me as I retrieve my phone and we message each other. I’ve never given my number to a guy before, but that’s okay. I can have a guy for a friend.
That’s what I tell myself as I program River into my phone under the title, “Gothic Prince.”
“All right, I’ll text you later if I haven’t heard from you, so we can figure out what time to meet in the mornings for training.” He begins to back away, slipping his phone into his pocket.
“Wait just a second,” I hiss, causing him to pause. I motion for him to come close, and when he does, I ask, “What happened to the message on the door?”
“I had it cleaned up,” he explains while peering around suspiciously at the people roaming the hallway. “If anyone else saw it, it would’ve led to gossip about either you or Lily.” He looks back at me. “I did take a photo of it, just in case.”
I lean against the doorframe. “Can you send it to me?”
He nods. “Are you sure it was for you?”
“I’m not positive,” I reply. “But I do think it’s weird that the same night I got grabbed at a party, a message was left on my dorm room door. Maybe it’s a coincidence. I don’t know. Would anyone leave a message like that for Lily?”
He wavers. “Honestly, there’s a small chance it could be for her … She’s had some problems with getting bullied before.” Tension flows off of him. “Please don’t say anything about that to her. And if you could keep quiet about the message on the door until we can figure out more about it, I’d really appreciate it.”
While I loathe the idea of keeping a secret from Lily—or anyone—I also know that I owe River. Big time.
“I can do that,” I say, checking the time on a clock on the wall across from us. “It’s the least I can do for you after you spent last night watching my stomach give itself an exorcism.”
