Best Friends Forever (7 page)

Fifteen

The brilliant sun is beating down on me when I wake. I’m covered in sand and memories of last night come flooding back. Not only did I lose Roman, I also slept with one of his friends. Such poor decisions…

“You’re awake,” Andre says, his voice deep, seductive.

“Yeah, barely.”

He smiles at me and I can’t help but feel guilty. I hope he doesn’t think we’re going to be a thing. I just needed to forget Roman, not get tangled up in another too-fast relationship.

“We should probably get back to the dorms,” he suggests as he stands, not mentioning the events of last night at all.

I take the hand he extends to me and let him lift me up. We walk in silence back to his car and the ride to the dorms is quiet, with only the faded hum of music filling the air. After he parks in the lot, he turns to me and I want to let him down easy.

He beats me to the punch. “I’m sure you’re trying to find some way to let me know what a mistake last night was, and blah, blah, blah. I just want you to know that it doesn’t need to go any further, okay? You were feeling down and needed to get the taste of Roman off your tongue.”

I smile, feeling better already. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I haven’t been used like that in a while. It’s an ego-boost,” he confirms, leaning over to hug me. “Don’t feel awkward, either. We’re friends, and I hope that hasn’t changed.”

I shake my head with a grin and then make the walk back to my dorm. I open the door feeling more at ease with myself than I have in a long time. That feeling fades as soon as I see my roommate.

“Do you finally see what I’ve been saying?”

“Huh?” I play dumb, wondering how she already knows about Roman and me.

“Roman broke up with you last night, right?” She doesn’t wait for an answer. “I told you he would hurt you, Hazel. Maybe next time you’ll listen to what I have to say! He’s a player, through and through. Are you just going to stand there?” She looks pointedly from me to the open door.

I close the door. “I don’t really want to talk about it.”

“I don’t care. I told you to stay away from him. I told you how he was just using you. And he got what he wanted, right? He got you to sleep with him, didn’t he?”

“Yes,” I mumble, not really wanting to answer, but knowing she won’t let it go. She needs to say her piece.

“Exactly. Love’em and leave’em, isn’t that what I told you?” she goes on, telling me exactly how right she was and what a fool I am for letting him get to me.

She doesn’t ask how I am, like a true friend would do. All she cares about is being right, and that just rubs me raw. The more she speaks, the more I want to make her feel the way I do: heartbroken. As she goes on and on about Roman and his playboy ways, an idea forms in my head. An idea that could take down Cheyanne and Roman at the same time. It won’t be easy, but I know I can pull it off. Ruining the two of them, and possibly getting them out of Coastal, is my idea of a good school year. Now I just have to work out the details. No one can know it’s me.

Knocked Up

Nolan

One

The first week of college is always the best. As an RA, I pretty much get first pick of the freshmen crop. And man, they sure are something this year. At the bonfire party last week, I met four girls, all of whom I plan to get with this year.

Hazel is a little goth for me, but she’s got a smokin’ body and a great rack, so I know I can’t write her off. With her long black hair and blunt, straight bangs, her brown eyes stand out, even underneath all that thick black eyeliner and mascara. She’s a hot one. My best friend Roman even dated her, if that’s even what anyone would call it. They lasted all of five days. He got what he wanted from her, though, so I’m proud of my boy. I plan to get a piece of that ass soon too.

Cheyanne is Hazel’s roommate, and although she’s a fiery redhead, which is usually a turn-off for me, I figure I’ll still get in her pants, just because I can. With bright blue eyes and bangin’ curves, I bet she’ll be a wildcat in bed. There is the slight awkwardness that she and Roman used to be a thing, but that was back in high school and I know she’s done with him, even if he is still kind of hung up on her.

Miranda is an enigma. She’s quiet and reserved and definitely has that girl next door thing going for her. She’s plainer and doesn’t dress provocatively or wear loads of makeup, but she’s still pretty, with brown eyes and light brown hair. She keeps to herself and doesn’t seem to have a lot of friends yet. I’m hoping to change that, though. She’s my first target of the three, as soon as I’m done with Des.

Ah, Destiny. I’ve secretly nicknamed her my “ditzy blonde,” even though I couldn’t care less about her brains. She’s blonde and dresses like she wants to get laid, and that’s more than enough for me. We’ve been taking it slow, at her request, but I want nothing more than to add her to my Master List and then move on to Miranda.

As RA of Hazel, Cheyanne, Roman, and Audric’s floor, I pretty much let the four of them do what they want, knowing they’ll feel obligated to do things for me later. There’s not much I enjoy more than using people to my advantage. Last year, I didn’t write a single paper, instead getting two girls to write them for me all semester. Promising freshmen girls sex works like a charm; I even got them drunk and had a three-way with them, which was hot.

I might be a player, but my boy Roman is flying through women even faster than I am. He’s already done with Hazel and I imagine she’s pretty torn up about it. Now would be a great time to make a move on her, but I know that would only piss Roman off, so I’ll keep my distance. For now.

This past weekend was drama filled, but I like it. Without the drama, college would be pretty boring, and I’m not keen on that. I want interesting, not boring. Now, it’s Monday and I have a class with Hazel. The plan is to fool her into a false sense of security through friendship with me, while trying to gain her trust and eventually sleep with her.

I walk into class late and she’s there, waiting for me in our spot near the center of the class. We both agree that a middle seat doesn’t look too eager or lazy. I slide into the desk next to hers and give her a wink.

She’s wearing her signature dark makeup, but I notice it’s a little smudged. I feel bad for her, knowing what Roman’s done, but his actions have only solidified my plan to do the same. She has no idea what she’s in for.

I pull out a notebook that has become our way of communication during class and ask if she’s okay. I slide it to her and she glances up at me with a sad smile. My heart jumps a little, and I know I won’t last long if she keeps this up. Hell, I’m ready to ditch Des to be with Hazel right now.

What’s the matter with you? I ask myself. Not only am I acting like a smitten pup, I’m all but drooling over her. I need to take things one day at a time. And that means sleeping with Des first and then moving on to Hazel later in the year. I’ve got plenty of time.

Hazel slides the notebook back at me.

Things are okay. I know you and Roman are good friends, but I still want to be your friend. Especially since you’re dating Des. But overall, I’m good. I see what a douche Roman is now. And it helps to know that I’ve got a bunch of people like you and Des and Audric who care about me.

I read the note twice before replying. Why does she mention Audric? Are they a thing?

Yeah. Having a couple and a gay guy on your side is helpful, I would imagine.

A gay guy?

Audric. Didn’t you know?
I barely get the notebook in front of her and she’s scribbling away in reply. When she finally pushes it in front of me, I can tell she’s angry. Her handwriting is barely more than chicken scratch and it’s tilted to the left.

Audric isn’t gay. He’s not. I made out with him on my very first day and trust me, you can’t fake his reaction. Don’t go spreading rumors about him, Nolan. If I hear you saying that shit again, I’ll report you.

I’m surer now than ever that she and Audric are a thing now. She wouldn’t be defending him so hard if she wasn’t interested in him.

It was a joke. I wouldn’t spread lies like that.

It’s an attempt to cover my ass. I don’t want her mad at me, and although I’m not a fan of her and Audric together, I know there’s little I can do about it. For now.

Hazel doesn’t write back for the rest of class and when I try to put the notebook in front of her, she pushes it away, obviously pissed. Knowing I’m going to need to suck up to her a bit, I make a plan to ask her to lunch to explain. I have no idea what I’m going to say to make her see I was just kidding, but I’m sure I’ll think of something.

“Hazel, wait,” I say when class ends and she gets up to walk away. She turns and looks down at me.

“What?”

“I want to explain about what I said. Please. Have lunch with me?”

She looks torn and I know my pleading eyes are working on her. “Fine.”

I grin at her, thankful for her agreement, but knowing she can’t resist my charms makes me want to push things further, just to test the waters.

“Then we’ll have sex in the bathroom after lunch.”

“What is wrong with you?” she asks, appalled. But she blushes, too, which tells me it’s not completely out of the question in the future.

Oh, this is going to be a fantastic year.

Two

I text Des on the way to my car. Or, rather, I reply to the six messages she’s sent me while I was in class. That girl is damn clingy. And she won’t put out. Not yet, at least. So I need to keep her attached and thinking that I am just as lovey with her as she is with me. Good thing I’m a great actor. I let Des know I’m taking Hazel to lunch, since Des has a class in fifteen minutes, and I plan to console her friend. She agrees that it’s a good idea and tells me to have fun. If only she knew the kind of fun I want to have with Hazel.

I smile at Hazel and open the door of my car for her, a perfect gentleman. “Thanks,” she mumbles.

When I climb in, she turns the radio station to some goth-emo shit that drives me crazy, but I let it go. If I ever want to get with her, I need her to think I’m a great guy. So I smile and turn up the grunge music for her. She leans back against the seat and her eyes close. This shitty music relaxes her for some unknown reason.

I take her off campus for lunch, hoping she’ll appreciate the gesture. She smiles at me when we pull into a restaurant I heard her mention she loves. It’s early and we’ve beat the lunch crowd, so we get a booth right away.

“That remark about Audric really was a joke,” I start and she puts her hand up.

“I know. I overreacted. I’m a little emotional after the breakup and I just responded too quickly. I know you don’t have any problems with Audric.”

“You’re amazing, you know that?” I blurt. I can’t believe the words just came out of my mouth, but I’m shocked by her easy forgiveness.

“No, I’m not. I want revenge. On both of them.”

“Both? Roman and Audric?” She’s lost me.

“Roman and Cheyanne. I know a secret about that them. One that could destroy everything,” she explains and I know what she means.

“Deacon?”

“How’d you know?”

“I went to school with them. Didn’t Roman ever tell you the three of us were all from Columbia?”

“No. We didn’t really talk about important stuff like that, or his son,” she says, tears welling up in her eyes.

“Well, what kind of revenge do you want? As long as Deacon doesn’t get hurt, I’m down with helping you out.”

She smiles broadly, the tears disappearing. “Well, I was thinking that the whole school knowing about Deacon could harm them, but I got a juicy bit of gossip this morning from Audric,” she teases.

Audric. I need to get rid of that fucking kid. He’s messing up my game. “Oh yeah?”

“Apparently, Roman and his parents are going to blindside Cheyanne with a custody battle. They’ve talked to lawyers and Roman went home yesterday morning to chat with his folks and the lawyer about what he wants. I guess Cheyanne has too many rules about the kid and visitation and they are sick of it.”

I haven’t talked to Roman since he left for brunch at his parents yesterday. Des made me hang out with her all day, which left me with severe blue balls and no satisfaction. I wasn’t big on revealing something like that about my friend, especially since he hadn’t told me directly, but if this brought me closer to Hazel, I would do it.

“So what do you want to do?”

“I think I want to go buy a prepaid cell phone with a local number and send a mass text to as many people as I can about it, including Roman and Cheyanne. Not only would it out them as having a kid together, it would set both their lives on fire.”

It’s risky, but I wouldn’t be who I am without a little bit of risk. “Let’s do it.”

We share a smile as our meals arrive and I know we’ll be buying that prepaid phone as soon as we leave. My guess is we’ll be sending messages out to everyone we know before we even get back on campus.

That’s fine by me. Most of the people I’ve met at this school are fake and I can’t stand them, especially Cheyanne. She comes off as this virginal girl who just wants to get through class, but Roman and I know the truth about her. She lied about birth control when she slept with him, and before that, she was a total slut. So much so, in fact, that Roman demanded a paternity test before he took responsibility for his son. And Cheyanne refused to give little Deacon his last name, claiming he would be better off without Roman’s family name.

It irks me that he lets her have so much control, so I’m amazed and ecstatic that he’s stepping up and taking charge, trying to get custody of his kid. He’s my boy, and I’m proud. And even though I’m helping Hazel out his little plan, the goal is to ruin Cheyanne, not him. I want her to turn into the slutty girl she was before she got pregnant. Then I’ll make my move with her. And Roman won’t care because he’ll have custody of their kid and more fuel to the fire that she’s an unfit mother.

“You’re really on board?” Hazel asks, lifting her brows.

“Sure. Why?”

“Well, you and Roman are friends. I kind of figured you would have a problem hurting him,” she says.

“That’s true. But we’re going to pay cash for the phone and the minutes and I would hope you’re smart enough to use a fake name for the registration part, so how would it get back to him that it’s me? Especially since he hasn’t told me about the plan yet. There is the problem of Audric, though. If Roman told him, he’s going to know Audric told someone and he’s going to take the fall for you.”

“I’ve thought about that. But I think I will wait a few days until I can convince Cheyanne to tell me about it. That way she won’t know who it is and she’ll be able to tell Roman she told someone and I can just pin it on Audric. It’s perfect,” she says with a smile.

“Just be careful. I don’t want this coming back on me, Hazel.”

“Of course. Your name will never get brought up. You’ll be the mastermind behind the whole thing,” she confirms.

Yep, the mastermind. And Hazel will be my scapegoat, if necessary. Using her is a perfect plan for my eventual seduction. She’ll be so grateful that I’m helping her, she’ll repay me with sexual favors. I can’t wait until those start.