Chapter Fifteen
Stephanie spins in our black desk chair as her hand consistently taps against the desk, propelling the chair to move faster with each spin. My phone lights up in front of me and seeing Red Velvet flash across the screen I pick it up.
"Hello?"
"Who is this?" An unfamiliar, yet seemingly condescending voice asks making my eyebrows furrow.
"Who is this?"
There's some mumbling before it seems like the phone is grabbed by someone else.
"Why is your contact saved as vanilla? Are you really that sweet?" Laughter bursts through the phone and my body instantly goes rigid.
"Oh, oh wait I got one," a faint voice says before someone clears their throat. "If you're vanilla, why don't we mix together and make a hot fudge sundae?" I gulp not liking were this is going and not sure what to say.
"Oh! And maybe we can do some banana splits!" Someone adds in the background and they all laugh again, but it's muffled by the person holding the phone.
Then all of a sudden all the noise stops. There's some incoherent mumbling and the line rustles a bit before there's a loud snap. I pull back thinking they ended the call, but still seeing the minutes I bring the phone back to my ear.
"Lacie?" Trent's voice rings through the phone and I let out a relieved breath.
"Yeah?"
"God," he breathes, "I'm so sorry that was just the guys being freaking assholes." He yells the last part and I hear them snicker in response.
I let out a laugh myself, but it sounds just as uncomfortable as I feel. "It's okay..." I pick a piece of lint off my comforter. "Are youâ?"
"I'm sorry, but I have to go." Trent rushes out, cutting me off. "I'll talk to you later, okay?"
"Okay," I reply warily, but then pull the phone back and watch as the call ends. "Weird."
"What?" Steph asks bringing her hands up to her temples now that she has stopped spinning. I stare down at my phone still a little baffled.
"I think I just got a prank call from some of Trent's friends."
Stephanie waves her hand. "They were probably just messing with him about having a girlfriend."
"But we haven'tâ"
"Made it official yet â yeah yeah," Stephanie waves me off before tilting her head up towards the ceiling and groaning. "God, I don't want to go to class. I'm going to fall asleep." I let out a laugh stretching my legs out across my bed.
"You made all your classes in the afternoon, though."
"I know," she sighs looking straight ahead again. "But that doesn't make them any less annoying." I shake my head at her and glance down at my phone, checking the time.
"Oh crap, you better go before you're late."
"Ugh," she groans pushing up from the desk chair and slinging her backpack over her shoulder. She sighs before looking over at me. "Where would I be without you?"
"Late," I reply and she sticks her tongue out at me before trudging out of the room. I glance over at my half open backpack on the floor and then at my phone.
Homework, or aimlessly scrolling through instagram textpost accounts?
Being the procrastinating person I am, I pick up my phone and flop back down on my bed.
****
I sway forward on my heels waiting in line in the student lounge for my tea. It's just about dinner time, so there are a few people buzzing around getting their own food or just hanging out. I grip my student ID and then glance to my right seeing Raven standing by the counter. She taps her nails against it and I see they're a bright shade of royal blue with small gems on her ring fingers.
"I like your nails," I say and she turns to me with a smile.
"Thank you." She picks up her hand examining them before turning back to me. "I actually got them done at this place a few blocks away and they're cool because on Tuesdays and Thursdays a mani pedi is only twenty dollars instead of thirty."
"Oh that's cool." I nod. "Maybe I should check it out."
"You should." She nods with a smile before one of the women that works the register comes back with her drink and she hands her back her student ID. Clutching the styrofoam cup, she blows on the lid before looking over at me. "See you later."
"See ya." I smile before looking down at my own nails. I could really use a manicure.
"Yo!" Someone bumps into my hip and I turn only to see it was Zack. He gestures to the food on his tray. "Look it's your favorite." Seeing that today's special is chicken pot pie, he gestures to the abundance of peas inside it and I shake my head.
"I'm never going to live that down am I?"
"Nope." He shakes his head with a grin and I nudge his arm with my own before taking a step to the right.
The other girl comes back with my tea and I thank her, handing her my ID card, before stepping to the side to wait for Zack to pay.
"Hey man," A guy with spiked up brown hair and dark caramel skin says as he comes over and gives Zack a high five. He passes a glance my way and I faintly recognize him as being one of the guys Zack pointed out at the last frat party I went to. Probably the last one I'll ever go to. "Who's this?" He so bluntly asks, gesturing to me, as Zack stuffs his student ID in his back pocket before turning to us.
"Lacie, Josh, Josh, Lacie." He gestures between us before furrowing his brow. "Trent didn't introduce you guys?" I glance down at my cup and take a step back, so we aren't blocking the line.
"Oh, so this is Montgomery's girl?" Josh points to me and when Zack nods, he turns back to me. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Lacie." He extends his hand out as a genuine smile lights up his face and I give it a small shake sending him a smile back. "Alright well, I'll see you in a bit," he says turning back to Zack. "Oh and Asher got the beer so we're covered."
"Oh alright," Zack nods picking up his tray and then Josh leaves with a wave.
"Beer?" I ask taking another step away from the counter.
"Yeah, it's guy's night. Trent didn't tell you?" Zack asks before popping a pea into his mouth and I shrug.
"We haven't really talked much today."
"Oh," Zack's eyebrows go up in surprise, "well as far as I know he's been at the frat house all day, so he probably just doesn't want to drunk call you, or something."
"Okay." I nod before raising my brow. "So you're all planning on getting drunkâon a Thursday night?"
His chuckles shake his shoulders before he shrugs them. "Why not on a Thursday?"
"I don't know," I drawl. "Maybe because you may have class tomorrow?" Zack grins at me before reaching over and patting my head.
"Oh, Peas, you're so cute when you act all innocent." I swat his hand away and he laughs. "Alright well, I'm going to go eat my chicken pot pie, but if Trent doesn't talk to you tomorrow come find me and I'll see what's up."
I hope my smile says it all, but I still send a, "thanks, Zack," his way before nodding towards his tray. "Enjoy your pie."
"Oh, I will." He grins holding it up before walking away while I turn and head out of the lounge.
****
The red Netflix logo pans across my laptop screen as I wait for it to load. I tap my fingers against the keyboard trying to think of a movie to watch. Stephanie's thumb continues to scroll through her phone as she's lying on her bed before she turns her head to sneeze into the crook of her elbow.
"Bless you," I say still staring at my laptop screen.
"Thank you," she replies and even though I shouldn't, I relentlessly press random keys on my keyboard willing Netflix to load faster. The little white circles rotate slowly, mocking me. Ugh. I lock eyes with my self in the black screen before rows of movie covers take over my line of vision.
"Finally," I breathe sitting up straighter, but then my phone starts ringing beside me. I go to pick it up, but then seeing Red Velvet, I hesitate with my fingers hovering over the screen. I'd prefer not to have a repeat of this morning, but then I shake my head silently laughing at how stupid that conversation really was. I finally pick up the phone with a sigh. "Hello?"
"Lacie!" I relieved because the cheer is completely and totally Trent's.
"Hi," I say, but it sounds more like a question because although he's playful when he wants to be, he's generally a more serious person.
"Lacie, Lacie, Lacie..." He hums and my eyebrows furrow further.
"Are you okay?" I push my laptop off my lap as if ready to go fight the aliens that have abducted Trent Montgomery.
"Yes," he chirps. "I'm perfect actually and so are you and so is life." I tilt my head to the side thinking for a second before a smile stretches across my lips. There is going to be no intergalactic battle today. He's drunk. "Did you know that if you put our names together it equals Lent? Oh, oh, oh â or Tracie?" I let out a laugh. "You see Trent plus Lacie equals Tracie."
I nod even though he can't see because I'm that amused. "That's cool."
"It is." He goes silent for a few seconds as I tap my fingers against my thigh. "I'm in the bathroom." My eyebrows shoot up in surprise and my mouth drops open slightly.
"Um..."
"Don't worry I'm not peeing though." Another laugh escapes me. And I thought I was a bad drunk. "Lacie?"
"Yeah?"
"You know what I could really use right now?"
"What?"
"Some cake... and some cuddling, lots and lots of cuddling."
"Yeah?" A smile stretches across my lips before I can stop it.
"Yeah," he sighs as if all was right in the world. "Come cuddle with me."
I let out a laugh even though I momentarily consider it. "I don't think I can."
"Please?" He pleads. "I promise I won't smell you." He pauses. "Okay, I can't promise that, but you just â you're just... my vanilla." I look down before bringing a hand to the side of my face in attempt to hide my smile.
And you're my red velvet.
****