Living at the Frat House - A College Romance

Malcolm is sprawled out on his bed, face down, the blankets slipping down far enough to show off that absolutely stellar ass. I can’t seem to keep my eyes off him.

There’s no way in hell I should be attracted to him, but I am. I think most people would be, but most people also didn’t break a priceless heirloom and sell off their entire freshman year as payment for it.

Will I even be able to pledge to the Tri Deltas while living here? I suppose it would still be possible. Freshmen generally didn’t live in the Greek houses here.

I look at Malcolm for a second more before grabbing my purse and heels and creeping out the door. He doesn’t even move, thank goodness. Malcolm at his fiercest like last night was one thing. Sleepy, mussed Malcolm would be an entirely different beast.

Checking my phone, I realize I need to move my ass. I’ve only got a half an hour before I need to be in class, and I’m not going to bio lab in this dress. There’s about a million texts from Bailey, but I don’t have time to answer them all. I quickly tap out a text to her saying that I’m stopping by our room and I’ll see her at lunch. She has an early class too, so she won’t be there.

I’m almost to the dorm when I hear a sharp whistle that I somehow know is aimed at me. I turn and see Taylor grinning at me from across the quad. “Walk of shame?”

I roll my eyes. “Definitely not what you think. I’ll tell you about it at lunch!” That’s all the time I have to spare. I slam into our room, glad that Bailey isn’t there to pester me with questions as I shed the stupid dress and throw on jeans and a t-shirt and grab my book bag—which I packed yesterday. It takes me less than five minutes before I’m out the door and I make it into lab with two minutes to spare.

After everything that happened, I’ll take it. Right now, Malcolm Levar doesn’t exist. Bailey and Taylor don’t exist. Nothing matters or exists except me and this class: the first class of my nutrition major.

Honestly, not much happens. It’s syllabus day, and as much as I’m looking forward to all my classes, it’s a little relieving to know that I don’t have to focus too much. Because there’s going to be a lot to deal with. I need to pack my stuff to go to Granite House. I need to break the news to everyone that I actually will be staying there. I need to tell the school that I’m moving off campus and find out if I can get a refund on my housing deposit.

I have an elective English class after my lab, and my first anatomy class after that. I blocked my classes together in the morning so that I could have my afternoons free to study. I’m going to have to study a lot in order to keep my grades up for the scholarship that I have.

But now that the three classes are over, my stomach is trying to eat itself. I barely ate dinner in preparation for last night’s party and I obviously didn’t eat breakfast. I text Bailey and Taylor to arrange a spot to meet and head to the cafeteria. As much as I want food, I’m not looking forward to it. I’m going to have to tell them what happened, and Taylor’s going to make fun of me like she always does. Bailey will try to be sympathetic but also be pissed that I’m abandoning her and all the plans that we had as roommates this year.

God, it’s a fucking mess.

I grab my food before I even get to the table. I know that once I sit down, odds are that they’re not going to let me leave until they know every detail. So I need to be prepared for that.

I end up with a big bowl of cereal. It’s comfort food for me, and fuck do I need it right now. I’m going to be a nutritionist, and I don’t condone eating a huge bowl of sugar for lunch, but today calls for a little breaking of the rules. Everything in moderation, including moderation.

Taylor grins when she sees me, and it’s the same smile that she had on her face this morning when she saw me in the dress. “You looked like hell this morning.”

“Of course I did, I slept in a strange house in a party dress,” I say. “I couldn’t exactly turn up on their doorstep with an overnight bag.”

Bailey laughs. “With that dress, you might have actually been able to pull that off.”

“I highly doubt it,” I say, digging into my cereal.

“Seriously?” Bailey says. “That’s all you’re going to give me? After you ignored my texts and everything?”