"It's not kidnapping if I'm taking you somewhere you have a key to."
"That’s not how kidnapping works!"
More laughter. A wolf whistle. Someone yells, "Get it!” and I want to die.
For a second, I go limp. Just hang there, bouncing against Gavin's back as he jogs, staring at the ground moving beneath us. My hoodie is bunched around my face, blocking most of my vision. My backpack swings with every step.
This is ridiculous. He's ridiculous. I was trying to do the mature thing, the responsible thing, and he just?—
Kidnapped you.
Because he doesn't want to break up.
Because he wants to communicate.
Because Sylas told him to.
Something warm and terrifying blooms in my chest.
No. Stop that. You're supposed to be angry.
I am angry. I'm furious. I'm... completely failing to actually struggle.
Because apparently being manhandled by Gavin Robins is doing something for me.
Goddammit.
"Almost there!" Gavin announces.
I crane my neck, trying to see through the gap in my hoodie. The frat house looms ahead, Valentine's decorations still clinging to the porch rail because apparently no one in this house understands the concept of timely decoration removal.
"Gavin, please?—"
He doesn't slow down.
BANG
The door slams against the wall hard enough to leave a mark, and suddenly we're inside. Music hits me, some EDM playlist throbbing through the speakers, and Gavin is yelling at me.
"I've seen this happen twice, and it's NOT happening to me!"
I hear the music stutter. Stop.
"What the fuck just happened?" Someone's voice, James, I think.
Then we're moving again, Gavin taking the stairs two at a time, and I catch a glimpse of the common room as we pass. Frozen faces. Pizza slices suspended halfway to open mouths. Someone standing up from the couch, craning to see what's happening.
They're all staring.
At me.
Dangling upside down over Gavin's shoulder with my hoodie stuck over my face, my glasses askew, and my Doctor Who shirt on full display.
I'm never going to live this down.
The hallway. A door opening. Then I'm being set down, right side up, finally, and the blood rush makes everything spin for a second. I grab the nearest solid surface, which turns out to be Gavin's chest, and try to remember how standing works.
Downstairs, the music starts back up. I can hear voices, confused, amused, probably placing bets on what the hell is happening.
