“You’re just a squatter anyway,” he replied, and the other two laughed.
I ignored him and looked for the room assignments for the other two. “Holbrook is in room seven, and Gamble is in room nine.”
“And mine?” asked the nameless one.
“Your name?”
“Whatever you want to scream later tonight when in my bed,” he said, causing the other two to laugh and fist bump him.
I rolled my eyes, then noticed the guy standing behind him. “And your name?”
“Brannington,” he said to me.
I flipped back to the front of the book, and as I dragged one finger down the page, I noticed two of them. “Which one?”
“Cillian,” he replied, then nudged the nameless one aside. “And his name is Conrad Banks.”
“Thanks,” I mumbled to him. I looked at Conrad. “Banks is in room six, and you’re in room twelve.”
“Why did you have to do that?” Conrad asked Cillian who shrugged.
“You’re being an ass. She’s just trying to do her job.”
“Since when did you become such a damn boy scout?” he asked Cillian.
I watched him smirk at the other guy. “We all know that I’m the farthest thing from a boy scout. Go get your stuff unpacked, and I’ll stop in when I’m done with mine.”
“This isn’t over, squatter girl,” Conrad said to me.
“It never started,” I responded, then heaved a sigh of relief as two girls stepped up to the desk. “Names, please.”
I remained at that desk for the next three hours, and by the time I stood up, I could feel the stiffness in my legs. Before I hung out with Rowan, a hot bath was in my immediate future. But first...As I looked down at the floor muddied with footprints, I walked over to the janitor’s closet and retrieved the mop. I was sure he would actually wash the floors in the morning when he got back to campus, but I would help him by at least getting up what I could. A few minutes later, I returned the mop then stepped out to find Conrad and Benny standing there with red solo cups in their hands.
“You’re a maid, too,” Benny said.
“No, I’m not. Is there anything I can do for you two, or?—”
“You can come back to my room and be my whore,” Benny responded.
I rolled my eyes. “No, thank you.”
“She’s probably as good at sex as she is at scrubbing floors. Come on, Benny. She missed a spot,” Conrad chimed in.
As I looked to see what he was talking about, he dropped his cup onto the floor, and the red liquid splashed onto the tile, spreading rapidly. Annoyed, I didn’t give them a piece of my mind as I wanted to and instead retrieved the mop. By the time I came back out, they were gone, but their mess remained.
I scrubbed at the dark liquid, which was practically as thick as motor oil. I had no idea what it was, and I didn’t want to know. I just removed it before it stained, then put the mop away.When I came back out, I started to head for the door that led outside when my feet slipped on the slightly sticky surface and I fell.
Okay, it was worse than that. I pitched forward, and I had just barely gotten my hands out in front of me to stop myself from faceplanting on the tile. I heard two men laugh and realized they had not gone away as I had hoped. I ignored the throbbing pain in my left wrist and stormed past the guys once I scrambled back onto my feet.
As I flung the door open, I encountered resistance, and when I looked up, I found Cillian smirking at me. I shook my head and threw my hand up, not wanting to hear anything from him either. From there, I fled to the safety of my cottage, getting soaked in the process.
“Happy fucking new school year,” I muttered to myself as I tried to shake some of the wetness off me once on my porch. I twisted and squeezed my shirt until it was mostly wrung dry, then I entered the house.
“Is it all done?”
“Yes, Mamma. I’m going to change into something dry now.”
School had been back in session for almost two weeks. I had no idea why my grandfather insisted that I even come here, but it did make me feel better knowing that I wasn’t the only Brannington to have had to do so. Currently, my cousin Princeton was also here, although I hadn’t seen him in days. We were related, but had separate interests. I was more subdued than him, and even his brother, Kingston, who’d graduated from this school before us. Princeton liked to party. I wasn’t opposed to it, but I also preferred to focus on my studies.
