She opened a textbook and started reading, truly able to ignore his presence since the material now had her undivided attention. But at some point, the intensity of his gaze caused her to lift her head and look straight into his hazel-green eyes. She smiled a little. He looked somewhat embarrassed and looked back down at his book, his hand going up to his forehead, resting near his dirty blond hair. She took back her smile and continued studying.
A few minutes later, she was having a two-way conversation with herself.
She had to do it, otherwise it would be too obvious she was avoiding him. She had to pass him to get to the shelf where the book she wanted was located.
She could feel his awareness of her movement as she got up and walked toward him. Then she remembered Maria’s dare. She considered just making something up to tell Maria but the excitement she felt about approaching him crossed the finish line first.
As she was about to pass him, she whispered:
“Test on Monday too?”
He looked somewhat startled, as if he never expected her to say anything to him. And why would he?
“Huh?” he said, looking at her with panicked eyes. But he recovered quickly. “Oh, yeah. Managerial Accounting. I figured since I’ll be partying the rest of the weekend away I should study today.”
He grinned at her as if he had made some great joke.
She knew she returned a smile a second too late but she didn’t care.
She got the book she needed and was passing him on the way back to her seat when she felt as if he was about to say something to her, but he remained silent. She sat down and studied for the next hour then headed home.
***
Sydney opened the door quietly in case Maria had already gone to bed, but found her up, reading.
Sydney rolled her eyes when she saw what it was.
“Oh my goodness.
Midnight Love?
You’re still into that romance novel crap?”
Maria smiled.
“Well, as long as I’m not getting the real thing,” she said, shrugging.
Then she sat up and stared at Sydney, putting the book down.
“So how did it go?”
Sydney just looked at her as she lowered her bag to the ground.
“You saw him and you did it didn’t you?” Maria said in an almost accusatory way. “So what did you say? What did
he
say?”
“Well, my night was quite productive, thank you. I got three chapters done. I have just two more to go and I think it’ll only take...”
“Sydney...”
Maria narrowed her eyes at her.
“So how was your night?”
“Full of
Midnight Love
. Come on, stop keeping me in suspense!”
Sydney smiled.
“So yeah, he was there, and he was watching me at first. Eventually I had to get a book from a shelf behind him, so as I passed, I asked him if he had a test on Monday like I did.”
Maria grinned.
“Good one.”
“He said yeah, for Managerial Accounting.”
“You even remember his exact course,” Maria interrupted, shaking her head in mock disapproval.
“Hey, remember?” Sydney tapped a finger against the side of her head. “Superb memory lady.”
“Don’t remind me.”
“Anyway, then he said he might as well study tonight since he’ll be partying all weekend which was what I expected. He’s a spoiled rich kid who takes nothing seriously.”
Maria raised her eyebrows slightly.
“All that from one comment, huh? Sydney, you’ve got to admit, you take everything a little too seriously sometimes. Well, all the time. You should relax once in a while, have some fun.”
“But I do—you and me, remember?”
“Yeah but okay, who else do you know at this school? Don’t you want to get to know more people than just...you know, me?”
Sydney tried to curb her annoyance.
“Who’s got time for that? And I certainly don’t have time for any boyfriend.”
“I didn’t say anything about a boyfriend Sydney...”
“Whatever. You can go ahead and read your stupid novels when you should be studying, and I’ll continue being uptight.”
Sydney felt bad when she saw hurt crawl onto Maria’s face but Maria seemed to recover quickly.
She shook her head.
“Sydney, when will you have time for yourself? Do things normal people do? Fun stuff? It’s all part of growing up you know—living.”
“Hey, just because I’m not some kind of party animal doesn’t mean I’m a weirdo or a child.”
“That’s not what I mean. Look, it’s one thing to boomerang, to go out and come back to where you started, because at least you went out, experienced something different, saw another part of the world. But to rigidly stay where you are...how do you expect to grow if you don’t move? I’m not saying you have to become some kind of ‘party animal’—it’s just that...well you’re like this with everything. Like you’re stuck in a cocoon.” She let out a deep breath. “You think you’ll have time once you reach law school?”
Sydney folded her arms.
“I don’t care if I never have time.”
She turned away from Maria for a moment, and when she glanced back, saw Maria shaking her head again slowly, her mouth pressed into a line as she turned back to her book.
“Yeah you do,” Maria said in a voice so soft, Sydney almost didn’t hear her.
CHAPTER THREE
I can’t believe I’m done
, Sydney thought as she closed her book and checked her watch. It was just after three o’ clock on a Saturday—she had hours to spare.
She looked over at where Nicholas Dhalton sat yesterday, as if several glances in that direction would make him materialize, even though she knew he was never there on weekends.
She packed up her books, wondering where Maria was at that moment. Then she remembered: any minute now, Maria would be back from her art museum excursion.
She thought about what Maria had told her last night, and concluded she was right—now was as good a time as any to go out and do something. To find out what people were really like instead of just reading about them.
She even flirted with the idea of dating. Nicholas Dhalton even.
She laughed to herself at the far-fetched thought but found she was unable to fool herself. After all this time longing for the forbidden fruit, she had gotten a taste of him last night and wanted more.
Once she got outside the library, Sydney called Maria’s cell hoping she had plenty of time on her hands, although she was unsure what they would do.
In minutes, Maria was jogging up to her.
“So what’s going on?” she asked, flushed and smiling.
The day was a surprisingly warm one.
“I’ve decided I want to do something tonight,” Sydney said, still unsure up until the words left her mouth.
Maria’s face contorted a little in confusion.
“Okay...like what?”
“Well I think I heard something about a party tonight...”
Maria’s mouth dropped. Then her smile returned with a vengeance.
“Don’t tell me Stiffney wants to go partying!”
“Hey, I told you to stop calling me that. Anyway, yeah. Mind if we check it out?”
“Why Sydney, never thought I’d see the day!” she said in a playful, Southern accent.
Maria grabbed her by the hand and started pulling her toward her car.
“Wait, Maria, where are you taking me?”
Maria snickered.
“Girl, I know you do
not
have party-appropriate clothes. We’re going shopping! I don’t know what we’re going to do about those glasses though—you’re not coming behind me with those and I don’t want you bumping into things left and right.”
“I have contacts remember? For dance class.”
“Oh yes—great! The more time to shop, the better.”
Hours later, they returned to their dorm room loaded with shopping bags and after going through their purchases, got dressed for the party. Soon, they were admiring themselves in their mirror.
Maria looked Sydney up and down, making a noise that sounded like she was enjoying a juicy steak, just short of lip-smacking.
“Girl, I didn’t know you had it in you. Looks like I’ll have to be your personal bodyguard tonight,” she said, this time in an affected Chicano accent.
Sydney smiled a little at the compliment.
“I look okay then?”
She tugged at her top and smoothed a hand over her hair.
“Understatement? More than okay to say the least. I bet you fifty bucks the Dhalton boy won’t be able to stop himself from approaching you tonight.”
“Oh, crap—Maria you’re right. He might be there!”
Maria rolled her eyes.
“It’s a Dhalton party Sydney, of course he’ll be there. Don’t act like you didn’t know that. So what?”
“So...I don’t know! I don’t know if I’m ready for this!”
“Stop worrying. Let’s have some fun. Say cheese!”
Maria snapped several shots of Sydney.
“Would you stop that! You sure this isn’t too revealing?”
Sydney looked down again at her tight black pants and the turquoise, studded, sleeveless top Maria had picked out for her.
“Girl it’s the usual. Trust me,” Maria said. “Heck, look at me.”
Sydney examined Maria’s short, black, pleated skirt and the sleeveless red top barely keeping her boobs in.
“Let’s go babe!” Maria said, smacking Sydney on the behind.
They grabbed their purses and after a few steps, Sydney found herself stumbling in her new black, strappy, high-heeled shoes.
“I think I need to practice a bit in these,” she said.
“They’re three measly inches,” Maria replied, rolling her eyes.
As Maria drove them to the Dhalton Party House, Sydney found herself wondering if this was a good idea after all. She couldn’t believe what she was doing to see Nicholas—so he could see her. That she had stooped so low, using a time-honored method of grabbing attention.
She hoped it worked.
Once they pulled up to the house, parked, and headed for the door, Sydney started getting worried.
“What do people do at these things?” she asked, a little wary of the music bursting through the walls.
“Dance, drink, be loud,” Maria replied.
“Whoopee.” Sydney shook her head. “I guess this is why I’ve avoided them for years. This’ll be a waste of time, I just know it.”
“Oh come on Syd, think positive. There’s no waste of time unless you have absolutely nothing to show for it, right?”
They entered the house, greeted by loud music and loud people. The smell of beer and cigarette smoke immediately disgusted Sydney.
“This was a bad idea,” she said.
She started pulling away but Maria held on to her firmly.
“No backing out now girlie.”
“Hey Maria!”
They both turned toward the voice. A tall, stocky guy with close-cropped blond hair raised his drink in their direction.
“Scott! Nice to see you!” Maria waved at him, grinning.
“You too! Who’s your friend?” he asked, his bloodshot, blue eyes sizing Sydney up.
“You remember Sydney?”
Scott’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.
“No way!”
Maria nodded her head, dimples twinkling, and kept walking.
Soon it became a pattern: people calling out hellos to Maria, then expressing shock at seeing Sydney.
“You’re a hit,” Maria said, giggling.
“You know a lot of people,” Sydney replied, surprised at this whole other life Maria seemed to have that she had been clueless about.
As Maria continued to work the room, winking and smiling at people as they made their way through, Sydney found herself drawn to a radiant redhead who seemed to be the center of the room. Sydney looked around and saw that she wasn’t the only one entranced by the girl. People flocked around her, while others threw glances of admiration or envy in her direction. Her face not only glowed with beauty, but with a genuine openness, touched by the right amount of confidence and humility.
Sydney looked off to the side, feeling a wave of envy herself, thinking about her own social inadequacy.
She ended up forgetting all about the popular redhead once Nicholas filtered into view.
He was dancing with a girl who clearly wanted to eat him alive but he was successfully maintaining distance between them. He held a beer in one hand, and the girl held a wine glass in one of hers.
Suddenly, the girl surprised him by turning around and bending over, moving her butt against him. Caught off guard, his drink spilled onto her flimsy outfit.
Sydney smiled in amusement.
The girl excused herself but Nicholas was already looking around for another partner.
“He’s free now—go get him girl!” Maria said, startling Sydney since she had forgotten all about her.
Just then, Nicholas looked over in their direction and it was as if someone had pressed pause. He looked stricken, as if he wouldn’t have been able to peel his eyes away had someone spun him in the opposite direction.
Sydney felt her cheeks warming, wondering if she was being too presumptuous by thinking she was the cause of his mesmerization.
She recognized his initial expression—no one could mistake the open admiration, but then his face then took on a strange expression, one she found difficult to read.
Maria grinned at her.
“I told you he likes you. Look at his face!”
“I think he was trying to figure out who the hell I am,” Sydney replied.
“No, Sydney. Straight hair or curly, glasses or not, hot outfit or baggy shit, you’re the same Sydney.”
“To you Maria, you know me. Didn’t you see how everyone else reacted? It was like Bruce Wayne and Batman—no one recognized me. No one.”
“I think that’s because they hardly see you. And they certainly wouldn’t expect to see you in a place like this. And looking so hot!”
She feigned licking her finger and touching Sydney, making a sizzling sound as she pretended to get burned.
“Anyway seeing as how this guy stalks you, he should pretty much know you no matter how you look.”
“He doesn’t stalk me.”
“Yeah well, he sees you and watches you more than anyone else—I’ve seen it girl. He’s probably the only one besides me who would recognize you in anything.”
Sydney looked again in his direction but he was no longer there.
She turned around to look for him then saw him sitting on a lower step of the nearby staircase, his head leaning against his hand, staring at nothing as people walked up and down past him.
She felt pulled toward him, as if he had a fishing line in him reeling her in.
She turned to tell Maria she was going over to him, but Maria had disappeared.
Sydney headed over to the staircase.
She stood there for a while before she managed a “hi” which finally brought him out of his thoughts. He looked startled once again.
“Hi,” he replied, looking up at her, his eyes lingering for a few seconds before he looked down again.
“Headache?” she asked.
He shook his head.
She tried again, marveling at her sudden boldness.
“Well, one second you’re having a blast, the next, you look like someone stole all the beer.”
Her joke fell flat.
She felt her cheeks warming in shame.
“Is it that you miss that girl you were dancing with?” she asked, hoping to sweep her mistake into oblivion.
His face finally contorted into something that resembled disgust and he shook his head.
“Then what’s the matter? If you don’t mind my asking,” she added, not wanting to seem more forward than she had already been.
He sighed heavily, as if the world was on his shoulders.
“You’re beautiful,” he said. “Just beautiful.”
Her heart felt like it stopped for a moment, and she felt a smile climb her face then disappear as Nicholas abruptly got up from the stairs and walked away.
In her confusion, Sydney watched his retreating back, then sat on the stairs where he had just gotten up from, wondering what went wrong as she attempted to decode him.
She saw him a few minutes later but he looked completely different: he was laughing and dancing with the girl from before, this time, no longer keeping his distance. The girl smacked him on the butt and he returned the favor. She thought she saw his eyes flicker in her direction but it was so quick, she figured she had made it up.
Sydney watched them writhe against each other for a few more moments, ignoring the poison rising in her at the sight. When the girl reached in for a kiss, Sydney finally turned away.
Maria popped up a few moments later, bringing her back to the party although not away from what she was feeling.
“Hey Sydney,” she said. “Having fun yet?”
Maria was smiling and dancing on the spot. Then she stopped dancing and looked around, as if for someone. Her eyebrows furrowed.
“Not really,” Sydney said, getting up. “You can stay. I’ll try this again some other night.”
Sydney started heading for the door.
After a moment, Maria followed her, hooking her arm in hers once she caught up to her.
“Sydney, we came together, we leave together. Especially since we both took my car.”
Sydney managed a smile.
Then she thought she felt Nicholas’ eyes on her as they left but refused to turn around and look.
As soon as they got outside and headed for the car, Maria asked her what happened.
“Let’s just get home,” Sydney replied, surprised to find herself fighting back tears.
They began climbing into the car, but the sound of running footsteps made Sydney halt her movements. They both turned and saw Nicholas coming toward them.
“Hey!”
His face looked desperate.
Sydney let out a breath, then climbed back out of the car, wary.
“Yes?” she asked, plastering on what she hoped was an indifferent expression.
“Can I talk to you for a second?”
Sydney hesitated.
She doubted he could hurt her feelings any more than he had. Besides, her curiosity was stronger than her self-preservation instinct.
“Okay,” she said, closing the door and walking over to him.
“Listen, I’m sorry about in there,” he said as she reached him.
Sydney shrugged.
“It’s okay, it’s not like I know you or anything.”
“Nicholas
Dhalton.”
He extended his hand.
“Sydney Johnson,” she replied as she shook his hand, refusing to let him know she already knew his name.
Another strange expression made its way onto his face but disappeared almost as soon as it came, making Sydney wonder if it was a result of the night lighting.
“Now you know me,” he said. “Look, I didn’t mean to be rude—I just didn’t know what to say.”
“It’s fine...”
“No it’s not!” He paused, running a hand through his hair. “Look, I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
Sydney’s confusion deepened. She didn’t have to fake her expression this time.
“What are you talking about?” she asked.
“All I’m saying is that you’re too nice a girl to get hurt by jerks like me. You shouldn’t come to things like this.” He extended his arm in the direction of the party house. “I know these people. I know these parties. Some guys are just waiting for the right opportunity to take advantage of a girl like you.”
Sydney widened her eyes in what she hoped looked like childlike innocence.
“Daddy?” Sydney said. “Look Mr. Dhalton, I don’t know who you think you are or why you’re acting so concerned for my safety, but frankly, it weirds me out.” She sighed. “I just don’t get you! I thought you liked me but then...” She caught herself before finishing her thought.