Prologue

Azalea stirred slightly when she felt the soft tap on her head. "Wake up," a voice murmured, followed by a quiet chuckle that hung in the air for a moment.

Reluctantly, she pulled the sheet higher, cocooning herself away from the harsh light streaming through the window, and from the weight of the day ahead.

"Leave me alone, Jackson," she muttered under her breath, her voice barely audible.

A beat of silence passed before the sheets were suddenly yanked off, and Azalea let out a long, weary sigh.

"Come on, you can't hide forever," Jackson's voice was warm, almost teasing. "We need to grab our schedules. You've forgotten about school, haven't you, my dear friend?"

Azalea's eyes narrowed at him from beneath the tangle of her hair, her expression sharp, but Jackson only responded with a grin, his dimple making a quiet, unmistakable appearance.

A quiet sigh escaped him as he flopped into the blue beanbag on his side of the room. "By the way," he added, almost lazily, "Jett Fogger's throwing a party at his parents' loft tonight. It's going to be... unforgettable."

"Isn't that the guy that did a rollerblade stunt into his parent's pool dressed as spiderman and high on cocaine?"

"Yes and you should totally come to this one, don't want you missing out."

"A lot of things that happen during Jett's parties make their way to the internet somehow, so I don't miss much."

"But being there for the experience is way more fun, and this is our last year at Princeton. I promise to claim you as mine when we get there." He tease with a grin.

She smiles. "No."

His smile dropped at her answer and he frowned. "Party pooper." He mumbles.

Azalea sat up and itched her scalp, not caring about his reaction. She hates when he wakes her up early, but then again, he kind of became her personal alarm clock over the time she's known him.

Jackson 's grey eyes drift to her as she stood and stretched a yawn. Her shirt raised and his eyes went to the bit of skin that showed.

He smirks. "If I did know I was going to get a free show I would've prepared myself."

Azalea dropped her arms and flipped him off. "Pervert." Jackson clutched his chest, faking a pained expression.

"Well that was painful to hear. I'm far from a pervert."

"Ugh, sharing a room with you is painful."

"Okay now you're actually hurting my feelings."

"Good." She smiles. "Well I'm going to take a shower so just meet me under the tree." She says grabbing her bathroom bag from her drawer.

"Well hurry up, you know how I am when it comes to my studies."

"Well don't wait for me next time." She shrugs. Azalea placed on her shower shoes and fetched herself a towel.

"Well I care about you and your degree, that's what's called being a good friend Azie!" He shouts as she left mid-dialogue.

"Whatever nerd!" She shouts back. Jackson shook his head and their room door closed. When it did he reached over to his bedside drawer and pulled the top drawer open.

Jackson took the paper from its place and smiled. He took out his phone, snapping a photo of it.

"Oh dear Azie, it's already the first day and you're already falling behind. You know how I am." Jackson tore the paper in four and balled them up.

His eyes met her phone that's on her bed and he stood up. Jackson took her phone from the bed and grinned as he put in her password.

"This is going to be so much fun."

When Azalea got to the showers there were two girls already inside talking by the sinks. She noticed them as the two most known girls in college. Priscillia Sue and Megan Smith. Megan is the captain of the cheer squad of course and Priscillia is her...assistant?

Well the both of them are apart of the team and to be honest they're pretty good at what they do.

The both of them glanced at Azie as she walked in but paid her no mind as the girl found the cleanest shower there is.

If there is one thing she'd like to change about Princeton University is their dirty bathrooms. Ever since the plasmodial apocalypse, which lead up to the girls sharing the boy's showers, which wasn't that bad, she feared to let her feet touch the floor. Even the water for that matter, but she's got to deal with it.

Azalea set her things on the hook of the stall door and set her shower bag, which is made of plastic, onto the floor. She turned the shower on and relaxed at the hot water.

"Are you going to Jett's party tonight?" She hears. Azalea decided to tone out their conversation about Jett, finding it quite the bore already.

To be honest he's insane in her eyes. He's done a lot of crazy shit that'd kill a normal person. To her he's like a true Chad. Kind of.

"Of course I am, all of the hot topics are going to be there. Like, Chester Coss, Aria Red, Mindy Lowe." Megan explains.

Priscillia gasps. "Mindy Lowe? Like the model?" And by model she means I*******m model, nothing too fancy.

"Yup."

Azalea grabbed her shampoo from the bag and put her soap and towel back. She sighs, rubbing the shampoo through her hair.

"Oh, and Jackson is going to be there too." Megan follows up with a grin. Hearing his name made Azalea smile. She knows Jackson party's just as much as he studies.

"Who's Jackson ?"

She scoffs. "Are you serious? Blue eyes, black hair and dimple on his left cheek?"

"...I don't know who that is."

"Oh my gosh Priscillia, the guy who I had sex with in Quincy?"

Azalea opened her eyes and instantly regretted it. "Shit." She kept her eyes closed tight as she quickly rinsed the shampoo from her hair, then it was her eyes.

"Oh yeah, I remember him. But isn't he like a nerd though?"

"A hot nerd that knows how to fuck." Both girls shared a laugh and Azalea turned the faucet off. She can't believe that Jackson didn't tell her about Megan.

She knows he's popular with the girls and he always tells her of his sexual encounters with the girls he's swooned but why not the Megan Smith?

Azalea grabbed her towel and gave herself a quick dry. She dressed into the clothes she slept in but didn't care since she wanted to confront Jackson about it.

After getting dressed she grabbed her things and left the bathroom. She shot the two girls a quick smile before leaving the bathroom and jogging her way back to the dorms.

Azalea reached their room two minutes later and burst through the door. Jackson , who's still sitting on his beanbag, tossed something behind him and cleared his throat.

He gave her a once over, noticing that her hair dripping wet and she's still in the clothes she left in.

"Uh, quick shower."

"Why didn't you tell me you had sex with the Megan Smith?" She asks. First there was silence, then laughter.

"Woah, woah, woah, woah...how do you know that?"

"I overheard her and Priscillia Sue talking about it in the showers."

Jackson retrieved the phone he tossed behind him. "I don't recall."

Noticing that it's her phone she snatched it from his hands. Jackson put his hands up in defense and she crossed her arms.

"She said so herself, quote, "A hot nerd that knows how to fuck."

He smiles. "Handsome, smart and good in bed. Get to know me Azie."

She stared at him and motioned. Getting the memo he turned around so she could change.

"Why'd you keep her a secret?"

"Is Azie, the apple of my eyes, jealous?"

She scoffs. "As if. I just want to know why you didn't tell me."

He sighs, turning back around. She tossed her dirty shirt into his face and quickly dressed into the clean one. Azie took a seat on her bed and he tossed the shirt back to her, which she caught.

"Before school opened, I went to pick up a friend from Quincy, she was there and it kinda just happened." He shrugs.

She'd known him for nearly four years, and Jackson had never been the type to sleep with just anyone. So for him to say it had "just happened" seemed a little too easy, a little too rehearsed. Something didn't sit right.

"That's it?" she asked, her voice flat.

He nodded, almost too quickly. She shook her head, disbelieving, and stood up, the tension between them thick in the air.

"I'm going to get my schedule," Azie said, her words coming out more out of habit than anything else. She bent down to change her shoes, the soft scrape of her heel against the floor echoing in the quiet room.

Jackson didn't respond immediately. When he did, his voice was distant, like he wasn't really present. "Yeah... you do that," he said, as if the conversation had already moved on.