A Different Side (University Park #4) (9 page)

Lexi: How did you get my number?

I cringed and lowered in my chair, almost hearing the irritation in her voice. She was not happy.

Shit.

My fingers trembled and my mind went blank. A few seconds later, raucous thoughts invaded me and the voices started. I ignored them, determined to reply to her comment. What would I say? Should I apologize? Maybe I shouldn’t respond. She didn’t want to help me. I was the biggest idiot on this earth.

Tossing the phone on the table, I got up and paced the room. I shouldn’t have messaged her. With my hands on my head, I yelled. This shouldn’t be that difficult. Why was I making such a big deal out of it? She was my tutor and I needed her help. If she didn’t want to help me, fine. No harm in asking. I grabbed my phone and told myself to quit being a dumbass.

Me: I got it from Dr. Phillips. I hope that’s okay because I REALLY need your help. I have a paper due tomorrow that I forgot about.

I hit send and fell to the chair. If Lexi refused to help me, I guess I could call on Beth. All though she was a history major, I’m sure she could help in more ways than one. I shook my head. I didn’t want Beth’s help. I wanted Lexi’s. I buried my face in my hands and sighed. This totally sucked.

The table vibrated as a text message came through my phone. I lowered my hands and sat up. I peered over my books and laptop, trying to catch a glimpse of the screen. Distinguishing the voice telling me I was a chicken shit, I grabbed the phone and looked at it.

Lexi: I guess. Can we meet at five?

Hell yeah!
I slapped the table and quickly replied. All the nervousness was a waste of energy. I thought about telling her that we could meet at my apartment, but opted to let her decide. It would be too tempting if I had her here.

Me: That’s fine. Where do you want to meet?

Me: You choose.

It took a minute or so before she responded.

Lexi: Yes, The Raven. The sexy football player.

I did a double take. The message was a little confusing, but was obviously clear. She’d referred to me as sexy
.
I lifted my eyes from the screen, a huge grin spreading across my face. Lexi Thompson, my tutor, called me sexy.

Oh yeah, baby!

Dirty thoughts about all the things I’d like to do with her invaded my mind. I shook my head, reminding myself not to screw this up. I wasn’t going after her. Even though I wanted to get to know her, I didn’t want the tutoring relationship to end. I needed to back off and just take things one-step at a time. If things progressed, great. If they didn’t, okay. As long as she tutored me, I was good. But I figured it was okay to let her know what I thought.

My fingers rolled across the keyboard, not thinking twice. I bit back the huge smile emerging and hit send.

Me: Thanks. I’m glad you think I’m sexy.

A moment later, my phone buzzed.

Lexi: Sorry. You weren’t supposed to see that.

I laughed. She was totally talking to someone about me. And there was only one reason she was doing that: she obviously liked me, even though she acted like she didn’t. I considered telling her to fess up, but like Josh said, I really didn’t know her well enough. It was better to play it safe.

Me: That’s okay.
I hit the winking smiley face and hit send. I would’ve loved to have seen the expression on her face. Something told me she probably turned five shades of pink. My goal wasn’t to embarrass her. Get under her skin? Yes. Make her uncomfortable? No. I wanted Lexi to like being around me. The best approach for that — just be myself.

Lexi: Let’s meet at the library at five.

I cringed as I read the message. Hopefully Beth wasn’t working today. If she was, I’d just have to tell her I’d call her later. She’d understand. They always did.

Me: See you then.

I tried not to get excited about meeting her. After all, it was a tutoring session. Not a date. But something within me, in the very center of my stomach, stirred. It circled around and around, causing my insides to feel light. And, for whatever reason, I imagined what it would be like to take her on a date. I snubbed the crazy thought. Crossing my arms, I leaned back in the chair. What was Lexi doing at this very moment? What was she thinking? Was she upset over accidently sending me that text? I wouldn’t bring it up. No. I just wanted to get to know her. And that’s what I would do.

***

Practice dragged and no matter how hard I tried to focus, I couldn’t. Lexi Thompson was on my mind and refused to leave. The harder I tried not to think about her, the more I did. Coach played clips from Saturday’s game, grilling us on all our mishaps. Watching the mistakes was grueling. We should’ve won the game. I didn’t want to focus on the errors I’d made, even though I needed to learn from them. No, I wanted to think about the upcoming game Friday night. It was a big one and we were going to win it.

As soon as practice was over, I rushed into the locker room and straight to the showers. I got dressed at lightning speed, but took a minute to put on deodorant and cologne, just in case I still smelled like sweat.

“Hey, man, what’s the rush?” Shawn asked as I shoved my feet into my boots.

I bent over and tied the laces. “I’ve got an appointment at five for tutoring.”

Shawn huffed. “You have five minutes to get there.”

Glancing at the clock near the door, I verified what he’d said. “Shit. I’m going to be late. Again.” I grabbed my bag and headed toward the door. “See you later.”

“Alright. See ya, man,” Shawn said as I flew past him.

I waved to Josh and a few other players as I darted out the door. My hands fumbled for my keys in my bag as I descended the stairs two at a time. Checking the time on my phone, I contemplated whether I should drive or walk there. I was on the other side of campus, and chances were it would be hard to find parking. I unlocked my car and tossed my bag in the back. A strong gust of wind whipped by me, kicking up dirt and leaves. I grabbed my leather jacket feeing the cooler weather coming.

Digging my phone out of my pocket, I sent Lexi a quick text.

Me: Hey Lexi. Just got out of practice. I’m on the way.

I tucked my phone in my back pocket, looped my backpack through my arms, and ran to the library as if I were running to score a touchdown. Then again, maybe I was. Who knew what would happen between Lexi and me?

Putting on the brakes, I skidded to a stop. Sweat collected along my brow and I quickly wiped it away, glad I had sprayed the cologne. The last thing I wanted was to smell like a locker room of sweaty guys. Pulling the phone from my pocket, I checked the time. It was a few minutes after five — barely late. I walked toward the front door of the library and stopped. If Beth was working, it would be better if she saw me walk in with Lexi…unless Lexi was already inside.

I whipped out my phone and sent another text.

Me: I’m here at the library, where are you?

I looked around while checking my phone, but didn’t see her. After a few minutes, I decided to call her. Maybe she didn’t see the message. I hit her number and waited for it to ring. Words tumbled around in my head, like a loose ball on the field, with no driven purpose. I tried to gather them, and make sense of what I wanted to say while the phone rang and rang. Finally, it went to voicemail.

Pfft. I considered hanging up, and then without much thought, blurted, “Hey, Lexi, it’s me, Raven. I’m waiting for you in front of the library. Where are you?”

I hung up the phone and sighed, frustrated at how flustered I sounded. A toddler learning to talk sounded better than I did. With my head hanging low and the phone loosely in my hand, I waited for a call or text. Several more minutes passed and nothing happened. No call, no text.
What the hell?
Had she changed her mind?

Then I remembered there was a writing lab inside the library. She was probably waiting for me there.

Shit.

I spun around and went inside, hoping I didn’t see Beth. I quickly sent Lexi another text, just in case she didn’t get my voicemail or see my other text messages.

Me: I’m heading inside the library to look for you.

Instead of taking the stairs, which were in the middle of the library, I opted for the elevator. I hit the button and kept my eyes trained on the doors, waiting for them to open. Half a minute later, the doors parted and I stepped inside. A musty smell filled the small space and it looked like no one had used it in years. I hit the button for the third floor and rested against the wall. The walls shook and a whining noise followed by several knocks alerted me. I hoped the damn thing was safe. I checked my phone again, but there was no response.

Damn!

The ride to the third floor seemed to take forever. As soon as the doors opened, I bailed and darted toward the writing lab. I flung the door open and several pairs of eyes landed on me.

“Hi.” I stepped inside the doorway, keeping it propped open with my foot. “I have an appointment with Lexi Thompson. Have you seen her?”

A guy with curly hair and glasses shrugged his shoulders. “Sorry, I haven’t seen her.” He was sitting next to a cute blonde, and I felt bad for the dude. He reminded me of the guy from Napoleon Dynamite and with looks like that, he was never going to get laid.

The sound of a book slamming shut caught my attention. “She’s not here.” A girl with red glasses and dark hair pinned me with a death glare. She adjusted her glasses, pulling them to the tip of her Barbie nose. I froze for a moment, unsure if laser beams would blast from them.

“Oh, okay.” I visually searched the room regardless. Something about that girl rubbed me the wrong way. Maybe it was the hateful stare in her eyes, or her bright red stained lips that looked like they had just taken a chunk out of someone’s neck. Or maybe it was the colorful array of tattoos covering her right arm — not that I had a problem with girls who had tats. Something about her just sent a slight shiver down my spine. She looked like she was a man-hater ready to kick my ass.

“If you see her, tell her Raven’s looking for her.”

Vampire Chick didn’t respond, just smacked her lips together and popped her gum loudly. The guy sitting next to her moved cautiously to the right
. Poor dude.

“I’ll let her know,” Poindexter replied.

“Thanks, man. I’ll, um, just wait outside.” I backed my way out of the small room. There was definitely no room for me in there. I called Lexi’s number again and looked around the library, continuing to search for her. When the call went to voicemail, I hung up.

Not wanting to hang around inside, I took the elevator back to the first floor and headed out the front door. I spotted a bench and took a seat, hoping to catch Lexi. After a minute or so, I pulled out my phone, making sure I hadn’t missed a call or text from her. Nothing. I checked the time again. It was fifteen minutes after five. Who was late now? I sent another text, just in case. I was totally blowing up her phone.

Me: Hey, Lexi, I’m sitting in front of the library waiting for you.

Starting to feel a little miffed, I dialed her number once more. Where the hell was she? Why did she tell me she’d be here and not show up? Had she bailed on me? Maybe she decided not to help me after all. After the first ring, I hung up. I knew I was being a total pain in the ass. Now I knew how some of the girls must’ve felt like after I said I’d be over and either took my sweet time or never showed. The phrase
paybacks are a bitch
rang loudly.

Screw it. I shook the stupid voice out of my head. I had to get the paper done and I needed her help. I quickly typed another text.

Me: Where are you?

I stared at screen as if willing her to respond. Shaking my head, I stood up, ready to leave. As I shoved my phone into my pocket, it buzzed. I retrieved it and glared at the screen for a moment, making sure my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me.

Lexi: Sorry, running late. I’m on the way!

My shoulders dropped and I relaxed against the bench. “Damn, about time,” I blurted. A few heads turned in my direction, but I ignored them, and sent Lexi another text.

Me: Okay. I’ll be here waiting for you.

I waited for a reply, but after a minute or so, set my phone next to me. I picked at a callous on my palm, wondering what happened. Why she was running late? What was she doing that caused her to ignore my phone calls and messages? Since I couldn’t find anything about her, I had no idea what her interests were, or if she had a boyfriend. Who were her friends? Where did she hang out? It couldn’t be the library. She didn’t look like a nerd. No, she was actually the hottest tutor I’d ever seen. But what was her story? None of my friends knew her and even Shelby had never seen her before. Maybe that was a good thing.

My phone buzzed and I picked it up. It was a text from Macy. She had been calling and texting me since I left her place on Sunday. She obviously didn’t get enough of me.

Macy: Raven! Why are you ignoring me?

Shaking my head, I laughed internally. It definitely sucked being on the other end. My finger hovered over the keyboard while I contemplated messaging her back. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of a girl hauling ass across the lawn. I did a double take, making sure it wasn’t Macy. I really didn’t feel like dealing with her at the moment. Besides, I already knew what she wanted.

“Sorry, I’m late. I, uh…” the girl running a few minutes ago was standing in front of me. Long dark waves swirled around her as the wind blew and she had that sexy hair thing going on.
Shit
. Her lips were a perfect shade of pink and she had a sleepy, but sultry, glow with just the right amount of makeup to enhance every feature. She was a natural beauty. The sun’s rays illuminated from behind her, making her look angelic. Like a Victoria Secret angel.