“No, I think I’m good. I was a little bit ahead before…the weekend, and just going over it has me remembering most of it.”
“And that’s exactly why we wanted you in our study group,” he replies, and I can hear the smile in his voice.
Before I can reply, my phone lights up from its spot on the couch next to me, and I reflexively glance at it before quickly scooping it up and angling it so Will can’t see.
Xavier:Tell the hockey player to remove his arm.
I frown at the screen. How does he know that Will has his arm around me? Did he somehow slip back into the dorm without me noticing? Turning in my spot, I scan the rest of the living space for any sign of him, but nope. His bag isn’t here, and neither are his boots.
Besides, I’m very confident that if he had come back, the three people at the table would have made some sort of fuss about it. I settle back into the couch and somehow end up tucked even farther into Will’s side.
Me:???
ImmediateReadstatus. That is either very, very interesting or very, very worrying.
A picture message comes through.
Worrying. Definitely worrying.
Xavier:*A still-frame image of Will and me sitting on the couch, his arm around me and a hint of Vinnie near the kitchen.*
My mouth falls open. Does he have a camera in my dorm? Is he spying on me right now? I roll my eyes at myself—what a dumb fucking question. Of course he’s spying on me right now. A hot, liquidy feeling rolls around in my stomach and up into my chest, coiling around my heart.
What the hell? Surveilling me like I’m some sort of, of…of child who needs a monitor?
Snapping my head up, I stare into the corner of the room, trying to figure out where the camera is. It takes several up-and-down glances between my phone and the wall to figure out that the camera is attached to the underside of the corner shelf thingy that Oakley bought last week.
Nerves flutter in my stomach as I close my laptop and set it on the couch, then pat Will’s knee. “I’m going to get a glass of water. Would you like one?”
Will offers me that perfect smile of his. “That would be great.”
I keep my movements calm and even, doing my best to not let on that my heart is hammering like I have a hummingbird responsible for each beat.
Oakley shoots me a look as I walk into the kitchen and grab two glasses to fill with water, her conversation with Vinnie going quiet, which would have made the whole interaction awkward, but I’m so in my head, I barely notice them.
“You all good?” Oakley asks, her gaze a little too assessing for my liking.
“Uh-huh,” I reply, because what the fuck am I supposed to say?
Oh yeah, the deranged NU professor who decided to move in earlier this week has set up cameras in at least one of our rooms and is actively watching us all right now?
Once the glasses are full, I swipe the hand towel and head back to the couch. As I pass the corner shelves, I casually drape the towel directly over the decorations on the shelf, making sure to also cover the tiny camera.
Stomach turning with a mix of anger and impending doom, like I’m the one who actually did something wrong, I go back to Will and offer him the water. He accepts it with a preoccupied smile.
I sit back next to him, and thankfully, his hands are now both full with the water and his phone, which seems to have his complete and utter attention.
Another notification from my phone grabs my attention.
Xavier:*Screenshot of an app with three video feeds, titled Emery’s Dorm.*
I clench my jaw so tightly, my headache threatens to flare up again. He has clearly edited the other two feeds with big black boxes so I can’t work out where the cameras are.
How fucking dare he? The invasion of privacy is insane. My chest goes cold at the thought of not having a single private moment to myself. This man is insane. How can he think this is okay? What about Oakley? And where the fuck are those cameras?
A horrible thought pops into my head—is there one in the bathroom?
My fingers fly over the screen.
