Chapter 4: Soft Like Thunder: Chapter 3

STUPIDMOTHERFUCKER: I’m running out of patience, Helen. You’re past due now.

My cereal curdled in my stomach. Destroying that Bimmer had felt good in the moment, but it didn’t solve my biggest problem. I was short of funds at a time when being short of funds was a danger to my health.

Zadie plopped down across from me at the table I’d claimed for us in the dining hall. “Ready for our first day?”

I tossed my spoon in my bowl. “Yep. I think so. Although, I’m not entirely sure online community college properly prepped me for Savage U.”

If Mads had had her way, I would have been enrolled at Savage U last fall. But the thing was, my grades in high school had been pretty shit. I’d done the bare minimum to graduate, nothing more. It took me all year working my ass off in my CC classes to have a sparkling three-point-eight GPA worthy of admission at Savage U.

Besides the need to raise my GPA, going to in-person school full time would have defeated the entire purpose of being her companion. I actually had to be in her presence to do my job.

I rubbed the pinch in my chest I got every time I thought of my girl. My Mads.

“You’ll do fine, Hells. If you can charge into a frat house and beat a guy up, you can handle classes here.” She started peeling a banana. “I managed to get through an entire year here, you know.”

“That’s because you’re smart.”

Two days as Zadie’s roommate had shown she was smart, chill, and funny when I got her going. Our third roommate still hadn’t shown up, which was fine by me. The dynamic Z and I were developing was an easy one.

“True. But walking into a classroom where I don’t know anyone isn’t exactly easy.”

“Too bad we don’t have classes together.”

Her nose wrinkled. “I know. Next semester, we’ll have to plan it.”

“Yeah.” My stomach warmed. Two days, and this girl had my stomach warming. The bitches who had been her roommates last year had missed out on a treasure with this girl. What the hell had they been thinking?

When we were done with breakfast, we walked to the main quad together, then it was time to separate. I ran my hands down my sides.

“Do I look like a college girl?”

I had my holey Vans, a Hello Kitty Band-Aid on my knee, cut-offs two sizes too big hanging off my hips, a crop tie-dyed tee, and my hair tied back in a pony. Zadie looked me over from head to toe.

“You look beautiful, Helen,” she said softly, like she really meant it.

“Well, you do too, Z. The boys are going to drool, and the girls are going to be jealous, catty bitches. Remember that.”

Zadie was wearing a sweet little pink sundress and leather flip-flops. Not my style, but it fit her to a T. Two days, and I hadn’t gotten over her soft beauty. I had also confirmed she did, indeed, have an ass that didn’t quit. Z was completely oblivious to it, though.

She smoothed a hand over her middle. “See you, Hells. Have a good first day.”

I tipped my chin to her. “You too, Z.”

Last class of the day, and I was doing well. During my time with Mads, I’d learned a lot about myself. The biggest was that I liked taking care of people, and when I put in effort, I excelled at science and math. Losing Mads had affirmed my decision to go into nursing. My courses were focused mostly on those subjects, which I liked, but I still had to take an English class as part of my core requirements.

I wasn’t so great with words, so I wasn’t looking forward to dissecting Shakespeare. Now, if it had been Will’s actual body I was dissecting…

Grumpy mood in full effect, I took a seat on the aisle in the third row of the lecture hall. This was my biggest class of the day, but it was nowhere near the giant auditorium-style classes I’d heard about from my friends who went to larger schools. Each row held two long tables with eight chairs spread apart from each other. There were five rows, and empty seats were quickly being filled. The spot beside me was taken by a massive guy with thick, dark hair falling in his face. He didn’t say a word to me or seem interested in speaking to me, so I was fine with him being there.

A shift in the air brought my head up from my phone. Theo rushed into the room just as the professor was shutting the door and took the first empty seat in the front row, not noticing me.

Wonderful. Perfection. Stupendous.

I’d definitely broken his car two nights ago. That hadn’t been my finest moment, but he probably deserved it, seeing as he was friends with Deacon and his girlfriend had been evil to Zadie. I was surprised the cops hadn’t shown up at my door yet. Then again, Theo probably didn’t know my full name, or that I was a student here.

I could only hope I’d fly under the radar in this class—and Theo would forget I’d bashed the shit out of his ride. I didn’t have the money to repair his car or the time to spend locked up for a crime I did commit.

The class went by quickly, and Professor Davis was mildly interesting, which was more than I’d been expecting. He went over the plays we’d be talking about and had us write out ten facts we knew about Shakespeare and his writing. I was really reaching by the time I got to eight, so I threw in some Leonardo DiCaprio references. Everyone knew his version of was superior to all the rest, even though that story was utter bullshit.

Then he went over the syllabus and the breakdown of his grading system. That was when I began to panic. Not that the workload was too much, but because twenty-five percent of our grade would be coming from watching a modern interpretive performance of on a night I’d be working.

I raised my hand. Professor Davis nodded to me.

“Excuse me, sir, but is there another time we can watch the play?”

He propped his butt on his desk and crossed his legs at the ankle, then he slanted his head. “Is that inconvenient for you?” I didn’t know if I was imagining it, but he sounded amused.

“Actually, yes. I have to work that night.”

He brought his hand up to his chin, stroking it in a way I figured was supposed to be thoughtful. “I don’t know what to tell you. You’ll have to take the night off. In this class, going to that play is a requirement. If you can’t do that, I suggest you drop the class.”

I swallowed. “There’s no other time for the play? I work every night and I—”

His laugh boomed out of him. “Every night? I find that hard to believe. What’s your name?”

“Helen Ortega, sir. And yes, I work every night. I’d have to ask for the night off to go to the play, and honestly, I can’t afford it, but—”

He snapped his fingers. “There. You said ‘but,’ Ms. Ortega, which means you ask for the night off, but you’re unwilling to. So, I’m sticking to my original statement. Drop the class if you can’t commit to the work.”

An arm shot up in the front row. Professor Davis pointed to the student.

“Professor Davis, are you certain there aren’t any exceptions?”

I knew that voice. That deep, low, lovely voice.

“Name?” the professor snapped.

“Theo Whitlock.”

Professor Davis straightened, his eyes narrowing on Theo. “Do you have a conflict the evening of the play too, Theo?”

“I don’t. However, it doesn’t seem fair or at all ethical to pressure a student to drop a class because you choose to have a requirement on the syllabus to see a play that’s only playing one night. To me, that speaks of poor planning on your part, and you shouldn’t put the onus on your student. That’s just my opinion, but I can’t be the only one thinking it.”

The huge guy next to me nodded along with Theo. A few other people in front of me did too. Professor Davis’s face had flushed, and his arms were crossed in defiance.

“I hear your point, Mr. Whitlock.” Jaw hardened, he focused on me again. “There’s another showing in L.A. in two weeks. It’s a matinee. I will add that information to the class portal so everyone can have it.”

L.A. was an hour away. I didn’t have a car. Still, I’d make it happen. If the professor hadn’t been an asshole, I would have dropped the class. But now that he’d challenged me, no way was I backing down.

I gave him a jerk of my chin, averting my gaze to my laptop.

The guy beside me leaned over slightly but didn’t turn his head. “What’s fair is fair,” he rumbled lowly.

“Um, true. Thanks.”

He returned to his space like he’d never said a word. And that was fine. I was already thrown enough from Theo coming to my defense, I didn’t know what to do with anything else.

The class went on for another ten minutes, and Professor Davis’s face stayed flushed the entire time. I would have laughed if I didn’t need this class. I was obviously on the professor’s shitlist on my very first day—a place I did not want to be.

Naturally, when class ended, Theo was waiting at the door for me. I stalked past him without a word, and he followed me outside. I started to put my skateboard down on the sidewalk, but Theo snatched it out of my hands, tucking it firmly under his arm.

I rounded on him. “No.”

He raised a brow. “Helen Ortega, huh?”

“Yes, Theodore. That’s my name. Give me my skateboard back.”

He chuckled under his breath. “I’m beginning to think it’s cute when you call me that. Like a pet name.”

“It’s important to have dreams.” I hitched my backpack higher on my shoulders. “You know what? Keep my skateboard. I don’t need it.”

I walked away, but Theo easily kept up, like he was out for a Sunday stroll. Long-legged asshole.

“I’m gaining a collection of your boards, Helen.”

“It’s interesting you want to keep mementos of our time together, Theodore.”

He grabbed my arm and dragged me to the side of a building, boxing me in against the warm brick wall and dropping my board to brace his hands on either side of my head.

“Stop for two seconds,” he gritted out.

“Why? I don’t even know you.”

“You fucked my car up like you know me.”

“That was a mistake, but again, the company you keep.”

His jaw tightened, and the muscles around his mouth pinched. “You don’t know shit about me. You’ve made yourself judge and jury.”

“I don’t want to know anything about you.”

He lowered his face a fraction. “Oh yeah? Is that why I can see the pulse in your neck fluttering?”

Raising my chin, I locked on his gaze. “Maybe I’m scared of you. Maybe it doesn’t feel good to be cornered by a man who’s a lot bigger than me, and basically a stranger.”

He stilled, then he moved, grazing his nose along mine. “I don’t believe you even for a second.”

“You don’t know me, Theo. You have no idea what makes me afraid.” I braced my hands on his chest and shoved. “Back the hell off.”

He took a step away, not because I pushed him, but because he chose to. I was strong, but not strong enough to move him on my own.

“Thank you,” I mumbled.

“You’re not escaping. You can, you know. I’m not holding you prisoner.”

I let my head fall back on the wall, meeting his eyes. God, they even sparkled when he was angry. What that?

“You obviously want to speak to me, so get on with it, then we can be done with this.”

He backed up another step and turned his head away from me. The corner of his jaw ticced like he was grinding his teeth hard.

“I have your skateboard,” he spit out.

“I know.”

He faced me again. “I could fuck you over, Helen. You know that? You chose to fuck me over. I could return the favor.”

I huffed. “Oh, please. Like Daddy’ll even notice a bit of broken glass. I don’t—”

His hand slammed on the brick beside my head. “You say I don’t know what makes you afraid—you don’t know the first thing about me either. You have no idea what my father can do.”

“Is that a threat, Theodore?”

He hit the brick again, so hard, I wondered if he drew blood.

“You aren’t listening. He’ll want your name, which I now have, and I won’t give it to him. There will be consequences for that, which I’ll face.”

I sucked in a breath, absorbing what he was saying. It didn’t make sense. There was absolutely no reason for this guy to sacrifice himself for me. Unless he wanted something.

Now, I got it.

“What do you want in exchange? Because, honestly, I’m short on cash and out of favors.”

His head dropped, and he groaned. “I don’t want anything. I’m just talking to you, but you’re making that really, really difficult.”

I pushed his forehead, bringing his head up. “Then go. I’m not keeping you prisoner”

He jerked at me echoing his words. Then his eyes dropped to my mouth. “Not yet.”

My breath hitched as he moved closer. He was going to kiss me, just like he’d started to outside the T. And I…I couldn’t let that happen.

Raising a hand between us, I pressed my fingertips to his lips. “Don’t kiss me, Theo.”

His body went rigid, then he wrapped his fingers around my wrist and yanked my hand away. “Don’t act like you don’t want me to, Little Tiger.”

“I don’t.” I shoved him again, and this time, I took the opportunity to stoop and grab my skateboard. “Even if I liked rich boys, I don’t like cheaters. Your girlfriend probably doesn’t like cheaters. Poor thing.”

My board clattered to the ground, and I pushed off, away from Theo’s silence, back to my dorm. Hopefully it would be empty so I could stew over a plate of dining hall mozzarella sticks in peace.

Our suite smelled different. Like rare flowers and imported vanilla. I flung my backpack on the couch and placed my to-go box of mozzarella sticks on the coffee table.

Z emerged from her room with wide eyes. “Our roommate is here.”

My eyes went round like hers. “Bad?”

She bit her lip, her eyes avoiding mine. “I’ll let you be the judge. I don’t want to color your opinion.”

The door to the previously empty room suddenly opened. “Did I hear a new voice?” A blonde emerged, a big, white smile splitting her perfectly symmetrical face. “Hey, I’m Ele—”

“You’re absolutely kidding me.”

Elena Sanderson’s fake smile wiped from her face faster than it had appeared.

“You’re kidding me,” I repeated.

Elena’s manicured hands hit her hips. “Is this a joke?” She glanced at Zadie. “This is a joke, right? Are there cameras? Because this has to be a joke.”

Zadie’s eyes darted back and forth between us. “Do you know each other?”

I snorted. “Elena was the queen bitch in high school.”

Elena smirked at my assessment. “I’ll take that title gladly. It’s far better than town whore. Isn’t that what everyone called you?”

“Wow.” Slowly nodding, I gave her a long once-over. “It’s nice to know some things haven’t changed. Even in college, in the throes of adulthood, you still remain a child. Go you, Elena.”

Elena and I hadn’t had many personal run-ins in high school. For one, our school had been massive, with over four-thousand students. For another, she’d been in classes aimed toward getting her into the best school while I’d been vying to make it out whole and alive.

I’d gotten it half right, at least.

But I knew who she was and the kind of things she had done. Elena was the type of girl who laughed at others’ misery. She provoked for her own entertainment. She’d screwed with my friends and looked down on people who weren’t born with a silver spoon up their asses.

Elena Sanderson was a monster in angel clothing.

“Is it possible to start over?” Zadie asked quietly.

Elena rounded on her, and I braced. If she was a bitch to Z, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to hold myself back.

“I don’t think I noticed when I came in, but wow, you’re stunning.” Elena dragged her knuckles down Zadie’s cheek. “Your skin feels like you murdered a few virgins and bathed in their blood. Is that your secret? Do tell.”

Zadie’s blue eyes widened, and honestly, mine did too. Who the hell was this girl being all funny and nice to Z? I didn’t trust it.

“I-I…no. I just use this lotion my mom bought me. It’s Korean,” Zadie answered.

Elena snapped her fingers. “First, I love that you took my question seriously and answered it. I’m totally relieved you don’t bathe in virgin blood. Second, you’re going to need to hook me up with the bottle, babe. Don’t hold out on me.”

“Well…” Z’s eyes slid to me, then back to Elena. “Well, okay. My mom buys it by the case so I can give you one of my extras.”

Elena pressed her hands together. “You’re a doll baby. Has anyone ever told you that? Because you are.” She draped her arm over Zadie’s shoulder. “Now, tell me, has Helen been nice to you? She’s not known for her couth.”

Zadie didn’t hesitate. “Helen’s amazing.”

Elena swung her gaze to me. It’d been over a year since I’d last seen her, and I could honestly say I hadn’t thought of her once. Okay, maybe she’d flitted across my mind since she was my friend Penelope’s cousin, but that was it. A passing idea. Nothing more.

“Is she?” Elena sounded like she didn’t buy it. “I don’t know about starting fresh, but I don’t intend to be here a lot. When I am, I want my home to be peaceful. As long as Helen keeps up her end, I’ll keep up mine, and we can coexist.”

I measured my words. Peace was good, but coexisting with Elena Sanderson wasn’t my idea of a good time. I was pretty sure I couldn’t switch rooms, though, and I’d never leave Zadie in the clutches of Elena. She’d probably have all the cool sucked out of her.

“I’ll coexist.” My arms folded over my chest. “If you try any of your uppity bitch shit on me, I won’t let it stand.”

Elena snorted. “Lovely. And I’ll have to lodge a protest if you turn my toothbrush into a shank.”

“Your toothbrush? Come on, El. I make my shanks from sharpened spoons. The stainless steel is much more durable when I’m shivving my enemies.”

Elena’s brow rose. “I am disturbed, but I’m also filing that info away. You never know.”

Zadie giggled. “Are we good? I hope we’re good.”

I eyed Elena. She let her eyes flit over me, bored and disinterested. I liked that. If she wasn’t interested in me, she’d leave me alone. I sure as hell planned to leave her be too. If she stayed on her side of the suite, I could stick this out. It wasn’t like I had any other choice anyway.

“I’m good,” I assured Zadie.

Elena flicked her French-manicured nails. “Mmm. Everything’s fine.” She spun on her toes and marched back to her room, leaving Zadie and me in her wake of fire, brimstone, and imported vanilla.

Zadie sighed when Elena’s door closed. “She wasn’t so bad. Or…not as bad as my roommates last year.”

I slumped on the couch, my box of mozzarella sticks in my lap. “That’s a low bar.” And of course, Theo’s girlfriend was one of those evil wenches who had done my girl Z way, way wrong.

I held up the box to Z. “Come eat these with me or I’ll feel guilty stuffing my face in front of you.”

She perched on the cushion beside me and selected a mozzarella stick. “Thanks.” She took a delicate bite, then elbowed my side. I cocked a brow. Her lips quirked. “Do you think you can teach me how to make a shank? It sounds handy.”

A loud laugh burst out of me. Once I started, I couldn’t stop. Days of stress and change poured out of me. Everything wasn’t going to be okay, not if I didn’t bust my ass to make it so. But for that single minute, Zadie giggling beside me, a container of mozzarella sticks in my lap, my first day of Savage U in the books, it like it was okay.

Only for a minute, though.