Page 29 of Baby Girl
I take a deep breath.
This bad mood needs to fuck off.
Everything is fucking fine.
“Emery!” My name cracks out through the lecture room, causing a slight dulling of the chit-chat coming from the other students, and I snap my gaze over to the jock with the flowing blond hair. He has a concerned look on his face as he hauls ass over to where I’m sitting, crouching down in the aisle so he’s at my eye level.
What’s with him and needing to shrink himself down? Logically, I get that it’s supposed to be a way for him to make his size less threatening, but all it does is annoy me for some reason.
Will’s big hand engulfs mine where it’s resting on the table, and it takes every ounce of strength I have not to rip my hand away. “What are you doing here? I thought you were taking the whole week off. I would have met you at your dorm.”
This big golden retriever of a guy is staring at me like I’m some sort of fragile damsel and he’s my knight in shining armor. I should like this, right? His blue eyes filled with warmth and concern, laser focused on me, as if he is trying to read my micro-expressions.
With determination, I turn my hand over in his until our palms touch, and then for extra credibility, I give his hand a squeeze. “I know, sorry. I should have messaged you this morning, but I was going crazy with boredom.”
Will’s eyebrows furrow as he scans my features. “That’s okay. Do you need anything?”
I shake my head. “No, I took painkillers before I left, and I have my water bottle. And these.” I hold up Derek’s sunglasses.
He glances away for a second, then a self-deprecating smile tugs at his lips. “Sorry if I came on a little strong there. One of the guys on my team got a concussion last year, and it was brutal to watch him recover.”
This time, it’s my turn to stare at him with concern. “Is he okay?”
“Nothing can take the Tank down!” Vinnie butts in as he pushes past Will and crashes into the seat behind me. “Hey, Nicholas.”
Turning in my chair, I glare at him with the full disgust that I feel. “Absolutely not.”
He smirks, white teeth practically glinting as brightly as the diamond stud in his ear. “No good?”
I shake my head. “Unless you want me to use the nickname Oakley came up with for you, I suggest you call me Emery.”
Curiosity morphs his flirty features. “She gave me a nickname?”
“Sure did,” I reply, already feeling giddy at his inevitable reaction.
“I don’t want to know what it is, do I?”
Ah, maybe he’s smarter than I gave him credit for. “It will not boost your ego, no.”
He takes a moment to ponder. “I think I want to hear it from her.”
Laughing, I turn back to face the front as the doors open and Justin walks in. Alone.
My heart sinks into my stomach.
The way I stare at the door, waiting for it to open one more time, is a little embarrassing. But it never does.
With numb fingers, I reach for my laptop and jab at the keyboard with one hand to type in my password, not really hearing anything that is happening around me. At some point, Will must have taken his seat next to Vinnie.
“For those of you not in attendance on Monday, Professor King has stepped away from teaching this class. He will oversee all assessments, exams, and grades, however I will be conducting the lectures. Moving forward, if you need out-of-office hours, you will need to book them with me. You will find me in the TA’s office on Friday mornings, from nine to eleven.” The lights dim and the screen behind Justin lights up with today’s lecture slides.
My eyes are aimed in Justin’s direction, but I don’t see him. I don’t even hear him. Static has filled my brain. Derek isn’t teaching this class? Something scratches at the back of my mind, like this isn’t new information, but I can’t grasp on to it. It’s alljumbled up with everything from the weekend, which is honestly one big bowl of soup in my brain.
Did Derek leave because of me? Can he not stand to even be in the same room as me and several hundred other people? The thought is like a bullet to my chest.
Tears burn the backs of my eyes and my laptop screen goes blurry.
Why didn’t he tell me, instead of just ghosting the entire class? He could have told me on Monday at the hospital. Or had Xavier tell me. Or sent a text.
