My focus at work has never been so scattered as it is right now. I keep trying to concentrate on the water, but my heart rate seems to have a mind of its own, fluctuating without any apparent cause. I can't pinpoint what's bothering me. Part of my unease stems from overhearing a conversation involving one of my roommates when I shouldn't have. It's been on my mind every time there's a moment of silence, and I'm dreading going home to face Mark. I'm pretty sure I confessed to Kent during our car ride that I can be quite spoiled. Figuring out the right balance when it comes to intimacy has always been a struggle for me. I don't have a strong desire for it, but I also don't want to feel like a social outcast for not craving it. I'd rather not discuss it, but when I'm forced to, my thoughts become all too clear. Back in high school, I only engaged in it a few times with my boyfriends. When they wanted it, it was usually hurried and not particularly enjoyable. I never truly understood wh
I've made a colossal mistake. The atmosphere in the apartment has been tense for the past two weeks. I regret the argument with Kent, not just because I realized that day he was attempting to make amends, and I dismissed it. But also because my actions had soured the entire apartment's mood. Things were getting increasingly strained, and I felt compelled to do something about it. I put on a façade of indifference, avoiding eye contact with Kent and refusing to show any remorse. Yet, a part of me acknowledged that I had been right to call him out for his mistreatment. I never would have met him if we hadn't shared this living space, and I had always made an effort to steer clear of people who treated me poorly, dating back to high school. I believed he had once felt the same way about me, but I was mistaken. He had become moody, rude, irritable, and, worst of all, messy. He consistently left behind colossal messes for me to clean up. Mark and Kyle were also growing weary of Kent's b
"Isn't that much easier now?" I attempt to hide and escape from his playful torment. He's doubled over at the waist, continuing to tickle relentlessly, so I seize the right moment to nudge his leg with my foot, throwing him off balance. The bathroom isn't very spacious; it only accommodates a toilet, a small sink, a washer and dryer, and nothing else. Kent, who stands taller than six feet, still has his wet clothes in a basket within the room. He crashes down beside me, occupying the remaining floor space. My chest heaves as I try to catch my breath, and he chuckles in a brief, wheezing manner. "Julia, that was a cheap shot," he chides, while I laugh. "Don't you dare tickle me!" I tap his shoulder and retort, "Asshole." "You must have enjoyed it, right?" he retorts, prompting me to turn my head to look at him. His gaze meets mine, causing my throat to constrict, and I take a deep breath. "Um, Julianna?" My heart leaps when I hear Chase's voice from the dining room. "Is everything
"A frat?" Kyle shifts away from the table to place his dishes in the sink. "Yes, a fraternity," Piper insists, surrounded by her entourage, already dressed and gathered around the dining room table. Piper is making plans for the evening, although she hadn't informed me about it. In fact, it seemed like she hadn't informed anyone about her desire to attend a frat party. "I thought we were hitting up Apex," Mark says with a furrowed brow. Apex was a budget-friendly downtown club for students. Similar to a frat house, it was dimly lit, noisy, and offered cheap drinks. It didn't particularly pique my interest, especially knowing it would be packed with first- and second-year students on a Friday night in search of something to do. "I considered it, but my sorority got an invite to this frat, so I thought it might be a better plan," she says, wearing a cheerful expression. "At least there won't be any lurking at the door." "It might be okay for you," Kent mutters, folding his arms acro
"Did you really only need seventeen minutes, Julianna?" Piper's voice rings out before I've even crossed a few steps into the hallway. "I thought you'd need all twenty." Laughter follows her words. I take a deep breath, stand tall, and continue down the hall, entering the kitchen. "Are we all ready?" I inquire, sweeping my hair off my shoulder. Piper's smug smile fades, Kyle stumbles into the pony wall by the front door while wrestling with his shoes, and Mark accidentally sprays beer across Chloe, who recoils with a disgusted exclamation. "Ew!" Chloe shrieks, jumping up to grab a paper towel from the kitchen. The sudden silence makes me feel like all seven pairs of eyes in the room are locked on me. "Well, it seems to be effective, huh?" Mark coughs, giving me a thumbs-up when I ask. "Fantastic. Let's give it a whirl at the frat house." Everyone gets up, retrieves their coats and shoes, and starts heading out. Kent, however, doesn't rise immediately. We share a few seconds of mutua
"Alright, we have a couple of options," I propose, aiming to make sure our plan is solid before venturing into the party scene. "First, we could pretend I'm an exchange student from London looking to attend a frat party." He chuckles, seeming open to the idea. "That doesn't sound too bad," he agrees. "What else have you got?" "Option two: you play the 'I'm Kent' card and leverage your fame to get us as far as possible." He simply shrugs in response. "Piper wasn't kidding; those guys don't take well to challenges," he mutters, and I nod in agreement. "But let's keep it as a backup plan." "Alright, for option three, we can team up with a group of girls already waiting in line. It'll look like you're bringing about six girls to the party." "That seems like our best shot to me," he concurs, and I smile. "Let's give it a try." He lets out a sigh as he surveys the line of people. Our group of friends had been waiting for Abby and her friends, and now we found ourselves alone in this sit
"You often use that nickname," I persist, and he chuckles. "I'm not attempting to belittle you," he reassures me, his hand on my hip causing my thoughts to cloud. I sneak a quick glance at him, and despite the darkness, his green eyes are captivating. "Even though I'm aware you don't hold me in high regard, I appreciate everything you've done," I mumble, and he shakes his head. "Julianna, if I didn't like you, I wouldn't have gone to such lengths," he admits, and my eyes widen. "I understand I haven't done much to make you happy since you moved in. I just struggle with people," he confesses, sounding somewhat upset. "I know it's not a valid excuse, but there's something I want you to know." "Alright," I say slowly, and he nods. "I'm aware people may have told you that I hop from one girl to another, using them, and that I'm a promiscuous man who sleeps around," he begins in a hushed tone, and I sigh. "That's not true," he asserts in a whisper, and I blink in surprise. "What about
I've been feeling like I've been caught in a whirlwind since Saturday night. I couldn't stop replaying what had transpired between Kent and me. So much had shifted, leaving me in a state of confusion. I appreciated Kent's candidness about his past and his apology for his past behavior towards me. It was crucial to me, not because I needed an apology, but because I wanted him to comprehend how his actions had affected me. Certain memories refused to leave my mind, regardless of my efforts. Every night, they haunted me as the last thoughts before sleep, and with Kent residing just across the hallway, there was no escape. Although the moment on the lawn behind the fraternity house had been charged with electricity, I had no reason to believe it was anything more than a spontaneous occurrence. I couldn't be certain that Kent genuinely wanted to kiss me, even though he claimed to be trying to leave his past behind. Our inability to even make eye contact made me loathe both of us. I rese
After 2 years... Kent "Today has to be perfect." I've been super busy preparing for this day for the last few weeks. It has to happen tonight, or she'll suspect something's up. Juls is getting her master's degree today, and I've never been prouder. She's incredibly smart, always reading or researching. That pile of library books in our office never seems to shrink. She's applied to Ph.D. programs all over, but I think she'll stay at Brown. I'm okay with that because I don't want anything to change about our lives. Well, except for one thing that I hope to change today. I finished my MBA a few months ago and started working full-time downtown. I'm in marketing for now but aiming for investment banking and trust. I know my path, and with time and connections, I hope to take care of us. Juls keeps saying she'll stay in school because she doesn't know what else to do, but I think it's the other way around. School and academia bring out her best. Her eyes light up when she learns some
"We're almost there," Kent insists, turning on his car's signal. I feel like we're in the middle of nowhere, and we've been driving for over an hour. Kent refused to tell me our destination because, as he put it, "I would just g****e where we're going, and then it wouldn't be a surprise anymore!" The weather was gradually getting less cold, not warm yet but no longer snowing or freezing. I was on my last spring break, trying to finish my thesis and schoolwork. We recently received information about our upcoming graduation. In about a month and a half, we would be finishing our undergrad degrees. It was still surreal to me, moving from starting a university degree to finishing it. Kent had been discussing plans for the summer, including hiking trips, which I pretended not to dread. I wasn't much of a hiker, but I was willing to do it with him. We signed our lease for next year, securing that cute little apartment on the other side of campus. The thought of moving in with him excite
"I got my email." Even though Doctor Binkley said I have a spot, I'm still nervous to open it. Maybe I should've waited to open it when I'm alone, but I can't wait. I'm opening it on my way out of lecture. I open the email, quickly reading the first few lines. But at the top, there's a big box that says 'congratulations' and 'welcome!' My heart immediately slows down, and I feel relieved, clutching my phone to my chest. It's official; I'm staying at Brown next year. That means I'll be with my family, my school, and, of course, Kent. We can start our life together, still have our friends and continue studying, but we'll be together. I remember how tough that month at Northwestern was, how much I missed him, and how I felt like I had no support. I need to text my parents and tell them the news. They've been anxiously waiting to hear what I'd do about my living situation next year. But I'll do it later. Right now, I just want to go home and be with someone I love. I pull out my phone
"I hate school sometimes." Yes, I like researching and finding answers to questions no one's ever thought of before, and I like my degree, but the coursework sucks. I'm sick of reading pages and pages of scholarly articles and books and writing a new paper every other week. My honors project is draining every ounce of energy from me, and I was starting to worry if it was even worth it anymore. I hadn't heard about Brown's Master's program yet, and that's the whole reason for this extra burden. Today was Tuesday, one of my busier days. I only had class today until noon, and then I usually spent the rest of the day grinding out work. Today I had to meet with Doctor Binkley and discuss my work. It was something we did monthly to make sure I felt like I was always on the right track. Kent had a break after his class at one-thirty, and we were planning to meet up and study together until his next class at four. Then I was planning to go home and take it easy. I take the elevator up to
I wake up in the middle of a large bed with Kent beside me. We were completely tangled in bedsheets, just beside each other in a beautiful room. I sigh, feeling my body ache and my head pound, but it's bearable. I shuffle over slightly, laying my head on his chest and snuggling back into his side. That seems to get his attention. He moves under me and groans slightly, eyelids fluttering. I feel his lips press a simple kiss to my temple, and I smile. "Hey, Juls," he mumbles. "Hi," I whisper back, watching his eyes open slowly. He grins at me easily, running a hand through my hair. "How do you feel?" he asks, and I shrug. "I have a headache and I'm tired, but I'm okay," I sigh, tracing my fingertips down the center of his chest. "I had a lot of fun last night." "Good," he whispers, putting his hand over mine on his chest. "I know how hard you've been working and all the crap we've been dealing with." His voice is thick with sleep, deep and raspy. "It was nice to have a day that wa
"It's been an amazing night and an unbelievable birthday. I'm pleasantly tipsy, happy, aware, and buzzing," I express. It looks like all three of our friends have scored phone numbers tonight, giving Kent and me some alone time. I notice the place clearing out, and I realize it's probably time to head home. The bar is closing in about thirty minutes, and it's close to three in the morning. "Want to go somewhere else?" Abby asks as we wait for our jackets. I sigh and shake my head. I'm ready to devour some greasy food, drink water, and snuggle into bed with Kent. We've teased about getting intimate, but with all our roommates around, it's not a possibility. I've let go of that idea and just want a relaxed and easy night. "I'm good," I sigh, and she nods with a simple shrug. "Thanks a lot for everything; this night was so, so fun!" "I'm thrilled you enjoyed it!" She insists, giving me a hug, and I grin. Kent retrieves our coats, and I sigh, not looking forward to facing the cold a
It was nice to feel noticed by him, nice to know that he always seemed to care about what I was up to. I'd never felt attractive before I started dating Kent. We all round up the last of our coats and shoes while the Uber's on its way. I get my coat on, and I feel Kent slide his hand along the small of my back. I gasp a bit quietly and look up, seeing his cocky grin. "You look nice," he whispers, and I chuckle, feeling his fingertips slide around the edge of my waistband. Soon we're all piling into an Uber, and I hear Abby chatting up the driver in the front seat. I'll always be envious of her confidence and how she talks to people like she's known them forever. We grab a quick dinner at a pizza place around the corner. Everyone pushed that we should go somewhere nicer, but I didn't want to. I just wanted to go out and have fun with my friends. I hadn't gone out in a long time, not really since before Christmas, and I'd spent way too much time feeling lonely, buried in work and ove
"Did you want to stay longer?" Kent asks as we step into his car, and I smile, closing the door and putting my seatbelt on. "No, we've been there for hours," I mumble, safely tucking my birthday card into my coat's inner pocket. "If we stay longer, we're staying for dinner." Time with my family was amazing, it meant the world to me, and I was thankful I had it so close to my birthday. "Your parents are really cool," he admits, turning on the car and shifting it into drive. "No, they really aren't," I snort. "Did you miss the part where mom pulled out my baby album and sang my favorite lullaby? To all of us?" I ask, and he chuckles. "Or my dad talking about his Master's thesis? His theoretical chemistry Master's thesis?" "You know what I mean," he defends. "They're...people. Like real, normal, kind people who care about everyone." "I guess they have that going for them, huh?" I laugh, and he smiles. "I can't believe that check, that's not like them. They don't just hand out money
We head inside, and I take a deep breath, walking into our house. My family's house always makes me feel happy, like I'm somewhere safe and full of love. Mom's burning some cinnamon candle, and I can hear noise from the kitchen. "What's that smell?" Kent asks, and I laugh. "Mom loves scented candles, it's probably some clearance one that she picked up from somewhere," I explain, unsure where the nearly offensive candle was. Kent hated strong scents; he claimed they gave him headaches. "Sorry." "It's okay, just... don't go burning anything like that at our place," he says, and I chuckle, reaching for his hand. "Hello?" I call, bringing Kent to the kitchen, and mom gasps, hopping up from the stove and running over. "Juls," she whispers, squeezing the life out of me. "I'm so glad you could come." "Me too, I missed you," I whisper, and she pulls back, rubbing my arms in that aggressive mom-like way. "And I missed you, oh! You're so beautiful and smart-" "Okay, mom," I mumble, and s