Page 46 of Play By The Rules
I jump in the shower, washing away the traces of my dream. It felt so real that if I hadn’t had similar ones so many times before, I’d question if it was. The hot water scalds my skin when it runs over me. I stand under the stream for longer than I should, and by the time I step out, I’m rushing to get to class on time.
Betty has gone ahead without me, so I throw on a pair of leggings and an oversized hoodie before slipping into my Vans and grabbing my bag. There’s a mug of lukewarm coffee on the side, which I quickly toss into a travel mug and make my way out of the door.
The lesson has already started when I slip into the room and take my seat. Thankfully the teacher doesn’t seem to notice—or care—a perk of being me, I guess.
“Where have you been?” Betty whispers when I grab my laptop out of my bag. “I knocked on your door a few times, but when you didn’t answer, I figured you’d already left.”
“Shower,” I tell her, not bothering to elaborate. There’s no reason my friend needs to know that I’m late because I spent most of my time in the shower bringing myself to orgasm with my fingers because I can’t stop reliving the dream I had the night before.
There definitely is a thing such as too much information.
She shakes her head, looking at me curiously. There’s something she wants to say, and when she opens her mouth, I wonder what she’s thinking until she shuts it again and turns her focus back to the lesson.
“Gage invited us out tonight,” she tells me when the teacher steps out of the room. She looks at me with a wry smile, already expecting my answer. “Nothing fancy, just a few drinks at a local snooker club and a couple of games.”
I wrinkle my nose, pursing my lips.
“I can tell him no,” she rushes to tell me, her shoulders deflating in disappointment. I have no idea what’s going on with Betty and her stepbrother, but I hate that she wants to do things and feels like she can’t because of me.
“Who’s going?”
“I’m not actually sure, I’m guessing the guys, and then us, and Noah, if we go.”
The teacher comes back in then, effectively cutting our conversation off, but I can’t stop the feeling of guilt that runs through me. Would it be so bad to spend a night hanging out with people I used to consider friends?
Not if it makes my best friend happy. Both her and Noah have put up with so much of my shit over the years; the least I can do is swallow my pride and suck it up for one night.
“We can go,” I tell her when the bell rings and we’re packing up our stuff.
“Really?” She squeals, smiling at me widely.
“Yes, really. But I’m driving. There is no way I’m getting drunk with those three idiots.”
“Yes, okay. Amazing. Thank you, Fallon.” She folds her arms over me, squeezing me tight. When she pulls back, there’s an amused look on her face. “By the way, what the hell happened to your neck?”
“What are you on about?” I ask her, my hand moving up to feel the skin there. “Nothing, why?”
She laughs, pulling a compact out of her bag and passing it over to me. I flip the lid, lifting the mirror to my neck. Holy fucking shit. There are marks all over it. Red marks that cover the skin. They don’t hurt, but they’re glaringly obvious.
“What the fuck?”
My mind is assaulted then, flashes of the dream from the night before. A red flush spreads across my cheeks, warming every inch of me.
Well, shit.
It wasn’t a fucking dream.
TWENTY-FOUR
Ifiddlewiththeneck of my jumper I had to run out and buy this morning. I’ve never owned a turtleneck before in my life, but there was no way I could continue walking around with my neck uncovered. Not after I saw all the love bites covering my skin.
I look like I’ve been mauled by a bloody vampire.
“Are you ready?” Noah calls out to me from where he sits on the edge of my bed. Sighing, I quickly shove my hair up into a messy bun and join him.
“Yes.” He looks at my outfit, amused and mildly curious. I don’t bother explaining it to him. While he may joke about wanting to fuck Theodore, there’s no way he’d be remotely okay with what happened last night.
I’m not even sure I am.