Carnelian (13 page)

“I doubt bringing Sim and I would piss of
Dee,” I added as he opened the door to the dorms. Dee didn’t even
seem to think Sim and I existed.

“I suppose not,” Ty replied, his balloon
bursting only a little. “But the other guys on the team will be
jealous, which might just make both Dee and Seth a bit jealous
also.” Ty seemed to have back-up plans for his back-up plans. “Come
on, Mari, I’ll even buy you some pizza,” Ty bribed.

“Fine,” I said as he opened the door for me.
Bribery was the best method, and food was always a good bribe.
“We’ll go to the game and be your dates, but only for free pizza.”
Ty laughed.

“Then it’s a date,” Ty replied. Ty surprised
me when he bent down and crushed me in a hug. Surprised me, that
is, until he set me back down and I saw Seth coming around the
corner with Melissa right beside him.

“See you tomorrow after the game date,” Ty
added, obviously for Seth’s benefit. I hid my smile in his chest
after he sat me down. I had caught one glimpse of Seth’s face when
Ty was hugging me, and sitting through a football game would be
worth it. Dee might not be impressed with Ty showing up with Sim
and me, but Seth was already fuming.

I tried to
keep the momentum of seeing Seth mad the day
before and into the next day as Sim and I got ready for the game. I
began to worry a little bit about watching Seth. I wasn’t
completely sure about anything with that guy. I was already
regretting my decision to go to the game, but I couldn’t think of a
good enough excuse to get out of it. I dressed hurriedly, not
especially paying attention to what I chose. I hadn’t been at
Morton long, but I had enough blue and white clothing to last a
lifetime. Sim redressed me when she saw what I picked out, and at
that point I didn’t even care. I was getting too nervous. After
talking with Ty and him telling me that Seth was a good guy, I was
slowly doubting that I could unfall for Seth Sangre.

Sitting surrounded by excited college
students, my nervousness faded a bit. The game went exactly as Ty
predicted. He was the standout freshman that everyone was cheering
for, beyond the star quarterback, Seth. Their names were repeated
enough times, I would be dreaming about them playing football that
night. By the time the game ended, I was ready to meet up with Ty
and get that pizza he promised. The crowd thinned as we waited down
by the field as Ty had instructed us to. I tried to get some of
Sim’s excitement that we were going to the team after party, but I
my nerves were coming back full force. People milled around us as
they waited. I tried not to look at all the waiting faces, but I
couldn’t help it. Would the ex-girlfriend show up for Seth? I
didn’t see Melissa waiting around, but she had to be somewhere.
From what Ty explained, she wasn’t about to give up on Seth.

Ty was amazingly quick at changing and was
one of the first guys out of the locker room. My nerves were just
about shot, but walking away from the crowd helped a lot. Ty held
an arm out for each of us. We were off to the pizza joint with Ty
and away from all the fawning girls, waiting for football
players.

Surprisingly, the pizza place was already
packed by the time we got there. Not many players had arrived, but
tons of other people filled the place. Ty walked through the front
door, not even waiting for the person to ask his name. Toward the
back, he found a table, and we slid in while he stood and shook the
hands of the people congratulating him. After fifteen minutes, he
was finally free.

“I’ll get that pizza I promised.” Ty winked
at me before walking away.

“You didn’t seriously come for just pizza?”
Sim asked. She stared around at the people milling about in awe.
She obviously recognized faces that I had no clue about. I didn’t
come from a sports family, and was even more removed just from not
being from the area. Everyone around here seemed to know the
players by name.

“Um, yes,” I answered. Sim swatted at me
from across the table.

“You didn’t seriously just say that.”

“Yes?” I replied.

Ty joined us at the table and sat next to
Sim, leaving an open chair beside me. I didn’t think anything of it
until I saw who was following Ty not too far behind, Seth. Seth
joined our table and sat beside me. Behind him, Melissa followed
like a puppy dog trying to get someone’s attention. I watched, and
Ty was right. The girl was more desperate than anything. Her shirt
was as low cut as could be to still get through the doorway and not
be sent away for indecency and her shorts barely, just barely,
covered her butt. Personally, I thought she was crazy as I was in
jeans and a t-shirt. It was cold outside. It may be fall, but here
fall included cool weather.

“Great game, guys,” Sim complimented the
boys, and they both grinned. Obviously, they like being told
that.

Melissa stood at our table as Seth sat. She
didn’t look at any of us but Seth, as if she was waiting for him to
finish up and join her.

“It was a good game except that missed catch
by Dee in the second quarter,” Ty replied.

“Hey, that wasn’t my fault,” Dee complained,
joining the table by standing beside Melissa. She didn’t even
notice him, but he surely noticed her as he stood beside her with a
good angle to stare down her top.

“It wasn’t mine,” Seth replied. “The ball
was exactly where I said it would be.” Seth didn’t even notice
Melissa as she impatiently waited for him. “Did you enjoy the
game?” Seth asked me. He waited for my answer nervously. How was I
to respond? I wasn’t much into football, but it was fun. Did I
really want to admit that to Seth?

“She had a great time,” Sim replied, saving
me from having to answer. I kicked Sim under the table, and she
smiled sweetly at me. I wasn’t going to admit to Seth that I had a
great time.

Seth smiled widely like he was just told the
best news.

“Did you see that play in the first
quarter?” he asked excitedly.

“Sethie,” Melissa complained, keeping me
from answering again. I would have thanked her later if I liked her
any. “We should go see Matt and Ellen. They’re saving us a place at
their table like always.”

Seth stood and stepped a few feet away from
the table with Melissa. I tried to ignore them, but it was kind of
hard to. Seth said something that Melissa didn’t agree with, and
she yelled back her response. Too bad the place was too full of
people and noise. We didn’t get to hear what she ranted on about. I
really was curious what such a shallow girl could say in response.
Seth replied as he leaned closer to talk to her. She turned to
glare at me over what he said. Without another word, she stomped
away from Seth. He joined us back at the table.

“Sim, do you need to go to the bathroom?” I
asked, sliding out of the seat. I didn’t want to sit there next to
Seth. He would make my life impossible. It’s hard enough to turn
down the cute player when you don’t know him. If he truly turned
Melissa away, I had lost my latest excuse to turn him down.

“Sure,” she replied, pushing Ty to make him
move. Seth frowned at our sudden departure.

Sim hooked her arm through mine and led the
way to the restroom. Once inside, Sim headed for a stall, but I
really didn’t need to use the restroom. I waited for her by the
sink. Another person entered, but I didn’t think much of it until
Melissa appeared behind me with tears dripping down her face. She
glared at me.

“This is all your fault,” she complained to
me as she washed her mascara eyes. Two more girls rushed in to care
for Melissa. They dabbed her eyes and fixed her makeup as if she
were their queen. “You just had to be different. Every other time
he found a new girl, he always came back to me. Now he doesn’t want
me around. You’re such a bitch.” My eyes widened in shock. I didn’t
even know this girl.

“I’ll see you at the table,” I called to Sim
as the toilet flushed. I wasn’t staying around to hear more of what
Melissa thought of me.

I hurried back out the door, but heard
Melissa following me as she continued to talk. Instead of going
back to the table, I turned into the restaurant and around the
corner. I watched from my dark corner as Melissa left along with
her girls. She was scanning the crowd, probably looking for me. Sim
followed not too far behind. I couldn’t wave down Sim without
Melissa seeing, and consequently I stayed in my spot. Sim would
forgive me, and I’d find my way back soon.

As I stood in my corner, I felt the tingling
in my hand start again. I guess with all the noise and vibrations
from the music being played over the speakers by our table, I
didn’t notice it before. But it was still there. Seth had to be
close. I turned into my corner and waited. He must have been
heading to the men’s bathroom. I’d just wait until he walked away
to leave my spot.

“Hiding in a dark corner isn’t exactly safe
these days,” Seth said right next to my ear, making me jump at
least two feet into the air. “Don’t you watch the news? There are
some guys playing pranks around here and scaring girls they find
alone.”

“Would you be one of them?” I asked, though
I knew the answer.

“Are we on talking terms again?” Seth
smiled. I guess it was the first time I had talked to him in a
week. I clamped my mouth shut at his question. No, we were not on
speaking terms. I had to remind myself mentally of seeing him
kissing Melissa right after spending the evening with me.

Seth smiled wickedly. “I guess you forgot
how much you dislike me for that one moment. Doesn’t that mean
something? Maybe you don’t hate me as much as you pretend to.”

“Seth, I don’t hate you,” I replied. Forget
about the ‘no talking’ part.

“Then why are you ignoring me?” Seth
answered.

“I make it a policy to not get involved with
guys that are still attached to their ex, and I don’t date guys
that are seeing how many girls they can get to fall for them. Two
strikes against you.” I crossed my arms in protest as he didn’t
move away from me, even when I spoke with a bit of hostility. In
fact, he leaned a bit closer.

“Good thing I’m neither.” Seth balanced with
one arm one side of my head.

“Then what do you call kissing Melissa after
CRUSH?” He had to be delusional.

“I didn’t kiss her,” Seth answered. “She
kissed me and I told her that nothing was between us, just like I
told her tonight. You’re the only girl I see.” Seth leaned in
close, bringing his face close. “You’re the only girl I want.” His
face was right next to mine as he whispered his last words. His
breath sent chills down my arms. I couldn’t respond with anything
coherent. The tingles in my hand had spread throughout my body. I
ducked under his arm and used the quick moment to compose myself to
intelligible words.

“Good luck with that,” I said, hastily
trying to get away.

Seth’s arms snaked around me, keeping me
from leaving as he didn’t touch me, but the wall beside me. I was
trapped between his arms and he kept them lower this time to make
sure I wasn’t ducking under them.

“I don’t need luck. I know you feel it, too.
There’s something between us, whether you want to admit it or not,
and I intend to make you mine. Don’t forget that when you go
hugging other guys.” My mouth dropped open, and he pushed it shut
with one feather light finger. Seth Sangre had more confidence than
every guy I had ever met combined. He leaned even closer with his
face only a breath away from mine. I glanced at his lips. He was
too close. He was close enough to kiss, and yes, I did want to find
out what it would be like to kiss him.

“You’ll be mine soon,” he said with a
sparkle in his dark eyes.

I spun around him, past his arm that had
just been touching my face, quickly before he could kiss me as I
wouldn’t be able to refuse him with the tingles growing throughout
my body.

“We’ll have to wait and see about that,” I
called back to him as I hurried away and back to my table with Ty
and Sim. I couldn’t help but glance back to the shadow. He stood in
the dark, but I could still see him. He almost glowed slightly. His
smile was brilliant as he chuckled at me making my way away from
him. Something was really different with Seth Sangre, and I wasn’t
sure I wanted to know what it was.

Chapter 8

Falling for Him

The following week
went as fast as the one before. Everything seemed
the same. English class on Monday, Wednesday, Friday. Art History
on Tuesday and Friday. History of South America on Monday,
Wednesday, and Thursday, and Photography on Wednesday. I was
finally getting into the norm with my classes, and the homework
load was completely more do-able than the first week. The only
difference in this week was Seth. Where I had to avoid him the
previous week, it seemed he now was avoiding me. I hadn’t even seen
him when I should have where our paths crossed between our classes.
It was strange for him to be gone from my sight, almost like he did
it knowingly. The thing was I still felt the tingling every now and
then, which meant he was around, but just hiding. I had no clue how
he planned to win me over when he wasn’t even around.

By Friday I was very confused. Last week he
left at least a note or two a day, and this week nothing. Maybe he
was giving up after all. It would make my life easier. Seth Sangre
was just a ball of confusion for me. He had equal amount of traits
I liked and disliked; I think my overall opinion was actually
neutral on him. He was cute. Okay, not cute… gorgeous. All the time
we had spent together he was really a nice guy. I actually enjoyed
being around him. Still, there was always the negative that he was
a player and always going through girls. I was the next on his
conquest list, which made me very nervous. I didn’t need to get my
heart broken again. That was what my high school boyfriend was for.
Then there was the ex-girlfriend he didn’t seem ready to completely
tell off. I really didn’t want to date a guy with an ex-girlfriend
still hanging around and pining for him. That would be beyond
awkward. Melissa didn’t hide her dislike of me from day one, and I
didn’t want to go through college looking over my shoulder for her
next attack, verbally or physically.