《Falling For Juliet》


 1. Late To Class (Naomi)

    I was startled awake by a noise. It took me a moment, but I realized it was my alarm clock. I reached over to my nightstand to turn off the alarm, and then I hopped out of bed. I was a freshman at Sutlow University now, and I was looking forward to my first day!


    I started shuffling around, looking for a decent outfit, when I heard the faint sound of pop music coming through the walls. That was Calinida, my cousin, but I called her Cali for short. We shared a dorm room on campus. We realized last night that we had our first class at the same time, which was why we were both up at seven-thirty in the morning. Her and I were practically sisters, but we were very opposite.


    For starters, Calinida was confident, and outgoing; usually she could make friends pretty quickly. And the way she carried herself was always so graceful, even when she wasn''t trying. She had curves in all the right places, and she was a bit taller than your average female. Her breasts were plump, and perky, accenting her figure perfectly. She had a very nice butt. Her skin complexion was rich brown, and she had really nice dark brown, curly hair that hung just past her shoulders.


    Whereas I was an awkward, clumsy, introvert who found it hard to even approach someone. And as for body physique, I did have curves, but I was much chubbier than Calinida, and I had big boobs with a big butt to match. My skin tone was a bit pale in comparison to hers, and as for my hair, it was way more wavy than curly, and much shorter.


    Growing up with Calinida was tough on me. I mean, don¡¯t get me wrong, I loved her dearly, but¡­ I was compared to her all the time. Our family members would compare us, and since our family was so close knit, her and I always went to the same schools as we grew up, so our classmates would compare us too! It was suffocating. But no one seemed to notice that I was drowning.


    And just when I thought we¡¯d finally be apart, Calinida wanted to attend Sutlow University as well. Both of us wanted to live on campus, and our parents were cool with that¡­ As long as we lived with each other! So, there I was, sharing a dorm with Calinida. This was the first time I had ever felt deflated about her presence. It wasn¡¯t like having her around was terrible, it was just that¡­ I was ready to break away from being in her shadow, and I had planned for college to be my escape.


    I continued to rummage through my drawers until I found a bra, and a pair of underwear. Then, I moved on to looking for clothes to wear. Usually I wore hooded sweatshirts, most of them dark colors, and black or dark blue jeans. For today, I decided on a gray hoodie, and black jeans with rips in the knees, then went to my closet and grabbed a pair of gray Vans.


    I took off my pajamas, changed into my day clothes, and slipped into my sneakers without untying them. After that I left my room and headed for the bathroom, where Calinida was putting on makeup.


    ¡°Good morning, Cali,¡± I greeted.


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    She was applying her eye shadow as I started brushing my teeth.


    ¡°Good morning, Lovebug,¡± she greeted.


    Lovebug was a nickname she had given me when we were kids, but when we were alone like this, she tended to use that name.


    Once I was done brushing my teeth, I combed my hair, then applied a small amount of eyeliner and mascara to my eyes. Calinida was the first to leave the bathroom, but I followed behind shortly after. We gathered our school supplies, and packed them in our bookbags, before we left our dorm room together. I locked the door behind us, and we headed outside.


    As excited as I was, I knew being a university student would be a huge change of pace for me, but I was determined to focus all of my energy on being my own woman. I wanted to reinvent myself, and this was my chance. This was my time.


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    ¡°I have a break between classes around eleven,¡± Calinida stated as we walked side-by-side.


    ¡°Yeah? Mine starts at eleven thirty,¡± I replied.


    ¡°That¡¯s cool, I have enough time for lunch if you do,¡± she suggested.


    ¡°Sounds good. I''ll see you soon,¡± I smiled.


    After a few minutes of walking, we eventually had to split up because our classrooms were located in diffection buildings. I went in the opposite direction, and started searching for a building with the name ¡°Science¡± engraved across the top of it. It wasn''t too long before I found the building I was looking for. I checked the time on my cell phone¡ªI had five minutes to spare before the professor would be starting class. I spied the building''s entrance, a set of glass double doors, and rushed over to them.


    I went inside, and hurried down the hall, beads of sweat formed on my forehead from being anxious. I saved my new class schedule as a screenshot in my phone, so I quickly searched for the photo to look up the room number for my class. I frantically began going from door to door, checking for the correct number. After several seconds, which felt more like several days, I skidded to a stop in front of room one-zero-nine. I took a deep breath, and calmed my nerves.


    I placed my hand on the door knob, but before I could turn it, I heard a female voice call out to me.


    ¡°Wait!¡±


    I turned my head to the side and was awestruck. A young female, about my age, came speed-walking towards me. The young woman stopped in front of me, then hunched over slightly as she tried to catch her breath. Once she did, she stood up straight again and flashed me a kind smile. Our eyes met, and my breath caught in my throat.


    ¡°I''m so glad I''m not the only one who is late!¡± The female admitted with an awkward grin.


    ¡°Uh, yeah¡­¡± I muttered. Her remark hadn¡¯t made me feel any less guilty for being late on my first day.


    ¡°Well, come on, I''m sure our professor has started by now,¡± the female stated.


    She opened the lecture hall door, and went inside. I went in right after her, and found that most of the seats were already taken. My only option was actually an empty seat that was located next to that girl. I sat down, and started taking out my school stuff. I could see something move out of the corner of my eye. It was that girl. She had leaned closer to me.


    ¡°Hey, I''m Juliet,¡± the girl whispered.


    ¡°Oh¡­ I¡¯m Naomi...¡± I whispered back.

 2. A Sandwich, Please? (Naomi)

    Once it was time for my break, I made my way outside quickly. It was a nice day. The sun wasn¡¯t too bright, and the breeze was perfect. It was in my nature to love being outside, to feel the grass under my paws, and run free. It had been a while since I shifted. I was too busy preparing for the move onto campus. Soon though, when I was more settled and felt more comfortable, I would shapeshift.


    Hey. Where should we meet? I asked.


    I heard my phone chime seconds later.


    Let''s meet right outside the Dining Hall. Calinida replied.


    That was the term that was used for our school''s cafeteria. This would be the first time I had eaten there. Calinida and I had moved in a week before classes started for the semester, and the Dining Hall wasn''t open yet. I texted back my reply.


    Sounds good. See you soon.


    I admit I had to look up the school''s layout on their website but the building itself was actually closer to me than I thought. I stood outside of the building, and waited for Calinida. Several minutes later I heard her voice nearby. She was talking to three guys who had cocooned themselves around her.


    ¡°It was nice meeting you too Derrick¡­ Trent¡­ Brandon,¡± Calinida said kindly. The guys walked off with huge grins on their faces while she approached me.


    ¡°Sorry about that! I hope I''m not late?¡± she asked.


    I checked my phone. I had only been waiting about ten minutes. That wasn''t too long.


    ¡°Nope. Let''s go, I''m starving,¡± I replied.


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    The Dining Hall was massive! The color scheme for the walls were bright, but the colors clashed with the boring brown color of the floors and rugs. It looked very odd to me, but maybe I was weird for paying so close attention to the details. There were sections for most kinds of foods, including pizza, burgers, soups, salads, and sandwiches.


    Each place had their own set up, equipped with kitchens, kitchen staff, and employees to check the students out. Whatever left over space there was, it was filled with tables and chairs for students to sit at. As I watched other people eating and conversing, it hit me just how big our school campus was. So many humans. No sign of any other supernatural beings yet.


    I wondered if Calinida had met any. Our parents had always told us to be careful who we exposed ourselves to, and we were. Thanks to our keen sense of smell, it made it a bit easier to distinguish humans from paranormal folk. I was hoping to meet more supernatural beings here at school, but I kept my expectations low.


    ¡°So, how was your morning?¡± Calinida asked suddenly.


    I recalled my morning. Meeting Juliet was unexpected. She was unexpected. After I heard her voice and looked in direction, I caught a whiff of her scent. All supernatural beings had their own distinctive smell to them, and Juliet''s smell was strawberries. Then I took in her appearance; I was awestruck.


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    Everything about her was¡­ unique and alluring. Juliet was tall, not as tall as Cali, but certainly taller than me. She had this long platinum blonde hair that flowed down to her sides, and I¡¯m pretty sure the color was natural! Juliet had a great body. She had the classic hourglass shape, and her breasts were nice¡ªperky, yet round. My body heat spiked, reaching all the way to my ears. I tried to look away, but I couldn¡¯t, and my eyes explored lower. She was wearing a dress that came up to her knees, so her legs were showing. Her thighs were thick for her body frame, but still, they looked very appealing.


    I never made conversation after class, because of course I was me, shy and awkward. So for the entirety of my second class, all I could think about was my lack of social ability, and Juliet. Who was she? I mean, I knew she was a supernatural being based on her smell, but I wanted to know a lot more than that about her¡­ Then it hit me. I would never get to know anything about her! How was I supposed to interact with her? I could barely tell her my name earlier.


    ¡°Earth to Lovebug!¡± Calinida said as she snapped her fingers in front of my face.


    Her action brought me back to the present. I spaced out. And she hated when I did that.


    ¡°Yeah, sorry¡­ My two classes were good I guess,¡± I told her.


    ¡°No, no. Hold up. You were all¡­¡± she paused and made this funky facial expression. ¡°And I know that means, you were thinking about something!¡±


    I raised my eyebrow at her.


    ¡°What?!¡± she exclaimed.


    ¡°Why did you make that face?¡±


    ¡°Because! I was trying to make the face that you make¡ªthat¡¯s not the point!¡± she said with a frown.


    ¡°I met someone¡­ Well we didn''t technically meet,¡± I admitted. ¡°It was more like we had something in common and therefore were forced to speak under certain circumstances.¡±


    She rolled her eyes, ¡°Did you actually speak to this someone?¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Then you did good!¡± she said with an encouraging grin.


    Despite that Calinida knew I wasn''t confident about my encounter with Juliet, she was still supportive. It made my heart swell.


    ¡°Now, what to eat. There''s so many choices! What do you want?¡± she quizzed.


    I wanted something simple. My stomach was still doing flips, even after hours later. Was I so anxious because Juliet was the first person I met on campus so far? Or was it because she really struck a chord with me? I wasn''t sure. But I had a whole week to figure it out. That''s when my Chemistry class was, and that''s when I would see Juliet again.


    ¡°I think I''m going with a sandwich,¡± I decided.


    ¡°That works! Look, there''s a soup and sandwich place over there,¡± Calinida pointed out. ¡°Soup sounds yummy!¡±


    We headed over to The Sandwich Dipper, which was the name of the food place, and stood in line.


    ¡°I hope they have Italian Wedding soup here!¡± she stated. Then she turned to me. ¡°What kind of sandwich are you going to get?¡±


    That was a great question. The close we got to the front of the line, the more I was able to see. This place had so many options! Starting with the bread. And before I knew it it was our turn to make our orders. Calinida went first thankfully; by then I had a basic idea of what kind of sandwich I wanted.


    ¡°What would you like to order?¡± the cashier asked me.


    ¡°I¡¯d like to get a sandwich, please,¡± I replied.

 3. Going For A Run (Juliet)

    Before today, I honestly thought my college experience was going to totally suck. Then I met that girl, Naomi¡­ she was a supernatural being! I knew it as soon as I first saw her, when her scent wafted all the way down the hall. That¡¯s why I got her attention in the first place. If I wanted, I could have just let her go inside the classroom and then I¡¯d be even more late. But instead, I wanted to view her up close, and her natural smell was alluring.


    A mix of earthiness, and sweetness, like vanilla. That¡¯s how she smelled like to me, and I found her scent to be intoxicating. Once I got closer to her, I saw that her appearance was much more pleasing than her smell. She was shorter than me, which I liked a lot. And then her body¡­ Holy shit! She was super curvy, with thick thighs that made my mouth water. I had to force myself to look away, and then I went into class first.


    I never expected to meet another supernatural, definitely not here at school, and I couldn''t wait to get out of class and talk to her! However, when class was finally over, she bolted out of there so fast, that I never got my chance to speak with her. She seemed to be more shy than I was, which worried me. If we were both shy, how were we ever going to have a conversation?!


    I wasn¡¯t the best with social interactions, and I especially sucked with introductions. Growing up my parents always forced me to introduce myself, but I could never do it on my own. That¡¯s why I hated public speaking in highschool, and I wouldn¡¯t doubt that I would hate it while I was at college. It didn¡¯t help that I was new to the area either.


    My family had just moved to the city of Sutlow two weeks ago, and I could guarantee that a lot of my peers had known each other from highschool, while I knew literally no one. You¡¯d think that because I hadn¡¯t known anyone, and I was new in Sutlow, that I would rather live at home, but I didn¡¯t want that.


    Even though my family lived close to the University, close enough that I could have commute, I begged my parents to let me stay on campus. It took A LOT of convincing, but eventually they got tired of my harassment, and gave in. I was ecstatic! But part of me knew I would feel homesick.


    I was very close with my older brother Benjamin, and it was going to be weird not seeing him everyday. We both had lived at home before I graduated high school. Of course my parents told me I could visit as much as I wanted, and whenever I wanted, but living on campus was an experience I didn¡¯t want to miss.


    I was torn emotionally. And in the end, my choice was living on campus. But still, I missed my big brother. I pulled my phone out from the small purse I usually carried with me, and tapped the screen. I found the thread of texts between Benjamin and I, then typed out a new message.


    Hey Benji! Miss you already lol¡­ And I wanted you to know, I think my experience here is going to be much better than I expected.


    I smiled as I sent the text. I put my phone back in my purse, then headed for my dorm room. The temperature was perfect today, and I wanted to enjoy it. I didn¡¯t have another class until later that evening, so I wanted to drop my school stuff off, and then go for a run around campus.


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    Thankfully my room wasn¡¯t too far from my first class, so it took me less than fifteen minutes to get there. On my way, I heard my cell chime. I slowed down my walking pace, then pulled out my phone again. I saw that a text notification from Benjamin flashed on the screen.


    Hey Jules! Miss you too¡­ And I told you, just stay positive! ????


    His text put a big grin on my face. He was always so encouraging. I put my phone back in my purse and started walking at a normal pace again.


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    I hadn¡¯t realized how elated I was until I reached my room, and saw my roommate, Heather, laying on her bed. My mood changed right away. I frowned. Not that she could see. She was too busy yapping on the phone, and flipping through a magazine. All I knew about her was her name, and nothing else.


    We both moved into the dorms over the weekend. Since then, whenever I tried to talk with her, her answers were always short and deflated, like I was boring her. So I stopped trying. Today was no different, she hadn¡¯t acknowledged me when I first came in, completely ignoring my existence.


    I hung my bookbag on the back of my desk chair, and placed my small purse on top of my desk. My purse had my dorm keys, my school badge, my cell phone, and my headphones inside of it. The badge was for all students who attended Sutlow University. Without your badge, you couldn''t get into any of the buildings. It was one of Sutlow¡¯s security measures.


    I started looking in my dresser for a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt to change into. After a few moments, I heard a voice.


    ¡°Hey Juliet,¡± Heather spoke.


    I was so stunned to hear her voice, that she startled me. I turned my head to look at her.


    ¡°Yeah?¡± I asked.


    Was she finally going to be nice?


    ¡°Can you keep it down?! I''m on the phone!¡± she scoffed.


    I was annoyed. I wasn''t even making loud noises. All I did was open and close my drawers. Heather went back to her magazine, and I flipped her off. She was unbelievable! I found something to wear, and decided to change right there in the room. I didn''t care if Heather saw or how she felt about it.


    I put on the clothes I picked out to run in, and put my sneakers back on. I swiped my purse from off my desk, and slung it over my body before storming out of the room. I made sure to slam the door behind me, in hopes of bothering Heather even more. What a bitch. After I got outside, I took a moment to bask in the cool breeze. It calmed my frustration.


    I looked around and saw other students hanging out. They all were in groups sitting on the ground chatting, and some were doing other activities. It seemed like everyone had made friends already. And then there was me, who couldn¡¯t even get along with my roommate. I bit my lip. That wasn¡¯t going to last, I mean I hoped it wouldn¡¯t. I would make friends soon enough, right?


    I took my phone out of my purse, then my headphones. I searched my music playlist for one of my favorite songs before I put the earbuds in my ear and pressed play. Then I started running. I spent my entire run thinking about how I could get some private time with Naomi. All I had to do was muster up the courage to start a conversation¡­ But there were so many ways to do that!

 4. Library Show And Tell (Juliet)

    It was Friday, and the past few days seemed to go by in a blur. Most of my classes were in lecture halls because I was a freshman, and usually the lecture halls were packed. It was hard to focus on the lesson when most of the students around me were having hushed conversations, but I tried my best to pay attention. And I admit, I also hoped I had another class with Naomi¡­ but no luck. In fact, I hadn''t seen her around campus at all. She couldn''t have just vanished¡­! I guess I had to wait until Monday to see her again. It sucked, but it gave me something to look forward to.


    When I wasn¡¯t in class, I spent all of my time in my room since I still hadn¡¯t made friends yet. I even did homework there, unless Heather was around on her phone. When she got on the phone, she didn¡¯t care how loud she was, and I couldn¡¯t concentrate like that. Any time I tried to ask her to be a little quieter, she ignored me, as usual. Eventually, I got fed up and decided that when she was in our room, I would go to the library if I had homework.


    The library was pretty big, spacious enough that I could find a spot all to myself, where no one could bother me. It had two floors, and was filled with tons of bookshelves that had all different kinds of books. Each floor also had multiple designated tables and chairs that were for the students to use. Then there was a small computer room, with a handful of desktop computers inside, that was located on the second floor. I really liked it there, and despite all the students who constantly rotated in and out, I found peace at the library.


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    That Friday evening was one of those times where I needed to go to the library. It was located in the middle of campus, but it only took me ten minutes to walk there. Once I got inside, I saw that the library was pretty packed. I searched for a spot where I could be alone and I found nothing. I was about to give up when I spotted a small table with an open chair. As I got closer to the table, the smell of rain caught my attention. The scent was faint, but it was definitely there. I realized the smell had to be coming from the guy who was sitting at the other end of the table. He looked to be around my age, he wore glasses, and he had wavy brown hair that was unkempt.


    The guy had headphones in, and he was reading a book; the nearby areas were quiet enough, so that spot would have to do. I set my backpack down on top of the table before I took my seat. As I started unpacking my supplies, I felt a pair of eyes watching me. I ignored it at first, but while I was booting up my laptop, I still felt someone spying on me. I glanced at the guy who was at the end of the table. He stared back at me curiously, like he wanted to ask me a question, but he didn''t say a word. We gazed at each other for a few minutes before I looked away. Just my luck, this guy was a weirdo!


    Suddenly, he got up with his book in one hand, and picked up his chair with the other. He moved so that he was directly across from me, then put the chair back down, and sat in it. I peered at him over the top of my computer, and he peered back. Still no words came out of his mouth. I wasn¡¯t sure if he was possibly deaf, or mute, but I felt uneasy about the whole encounter. It was making me anxious. I closed my laptop and put it back in my bag before I started packing up the rest of my stuff. I stood up and moved to leave, but a male voice stopped me.


    ¡°Wait! Please, don¡¯t go,¡± he pleaded.


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    I turned around and looked at the guy across from me. So he could talk.


    ¡°What is it that you want?!¡± I barked. I admit I was a bit too harsh, but my anxiety was already on high.


    The guy shrunk down in his chair a little. I felt bad. I sighed and calmed my nerves.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for snapping¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for being weird,¡± he apologized.


    ¡°Well?¡± I asked him.


    ¡°Well, what?¡±


    ¡°What did you want¡­?¡± I quizzed.


    ¡°Oh! Right, um, I just wanted you to talk with you¡­ You seemed nice,¡± he answered.


    I sat back down and placed my bag on the floor beside my chair. I did have questions for him, what were his abilities? How many other supernatural beings had he met on campus so far? This was my chance to make a new friend, and network with other paranormal beings.


    ¡°My name is Juliet,¡± I told him. ¡°What¡¯s yours?¡±


    ¡°Danny, nice to meet you,¡± he grinned.


    ¡°Tell me Danny, what ability do you have?¡± I questioned.


    He grinned harder, ¡°Actually, it¡¯s better if I just show you.¡±


    Danny took a quick look around, and I mimicked him. I knew he was trying to see if anyone was close by before he showed his power. He lifted his hand in the air, then brought it down swiftly, as if he was going to slap the table. I braced myself for the loud noise that would come from the contact as I watched him closely, but the noise never came. Not only that, but I was convinced I was seeing things! Danny¡¯s hand went right through the table!


    ¡°You¡¯re a¡­ Phaser!¡± I exclaimed. I¡¯d heard of Phasers before, beings who could pass through solid objects. According to what information I remember, a Phasers¡¯ power came from some kind of ancient magic that was passed by bloodline.


    ¡°Quiet!¡± Danny scolded in a hushed voice.


    He was right, I was being way too loud. I bit my lip.


    ¡°Sorry¡­ It¡¯s just, you¡¯re the first Phaser I¡¯ve met in person,¡± I admitted.


    He smiled, ¡°Awesome.¡± Danny adjusted his glasses and spoke again. ¡°And what is your ability?¡±


    As a shapeshifter, you had to train yourself to be able to control your transitions. For a long time, I had to hide my tail in my pants because I couldn¡¯t control that part of my transition yet. There were a few times while I was growing up where I remember my brothers having to stay home from school because their dog ears and noses were exposed. By now, I had full control over my ability and I was proud of that. I let my hand transform into a paw, and as Danny observed me, his mouth dropped open in awe.


    ¡°A shapeshifter! I always love meeting shapeshifters,¡± Danny said excitedly.


    I shifted my paw back into a human hand, and placed a finger to my lips.


    ¡°Shush!¡± I said with a small smirk, and he gave me a smirk back.


    I was shocked that I made a friend at the library, but I was glad I did. Meeting Danny made me very happy.


    ¡°So, have you met any other supernaturals on campus yet?¡± he asked.


    Supernaturals? That was different. I never heard that shortened term before, but I liked it.


    ¡°No, I haven¡¯t¡­ Have you?¡± I questioned.


    ¡°A few,¡± he shrugged. ¡°They weren¡¯t that great... But if you want me to tell you more about them another time, I can.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that would be cool,¡± I replied with a smile.

 5. Killing Some Zombies (Naomi)

    As the week went by, I got more familiar with my schedule. Most of my classes were standard courses this semester; I had to take four core classes, but I decided to choose two electives as well. Six classes that added up to thirty-five credits, it seemed like I was being ambitious, but I knew what I could handle. Unfortunately, there were no computer programming classes to pick from as a freshman, but I was hopeful for next year.


    It wasn''t the most popular area of study, but it was what I was passionate about. I loved the idea of creating technology. I wanted to be a computer programmer, so that''s what I chose to major in. When I worked with computers I was in control, I controlled the codes and algorithms, no one else. It felt like that was the only time I had control over anything, and I embraced that feeling. Maybe that''s why I liked programming so much, maybe it was psychological¡­


    If I wasn''t in class or doing something school related, I spent all of my extra time in my dorm room playing video games or reading books. I told myself I would be more social, but my habit of isolation was going to be hard to break, especially when I still hadn''t made friends. But I wasn¡¯t going to give up, not yet. It was Friday evening, and I was laying on my bed reading a book when I noticed that Calinida was gathering up some of her school supplies. She put the items into her backpack, and zipped it up. I marked the page I was reading in my book, and closed it.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± I questioned.


    Calinida glanced at me, ¡°Oh right, sorry! I forgot to tell you, I''m meeting up with some other kids for a study group.¡±


    Immediately, I felt a little deflated. She had already met a whole group of people, who I knew would become her friends soon enough! And I still hadn¡¯t met anyone! My insecurities crept back into my mind... I was going to be in her shadow all over again! No one was going to see me for who I was or what I was capable of¡­ I swallowed hard and tried to calm myself.


    ¡°I won''t be gone too long¡­ You¡¯ll be fine, right Lovebug?¡±


    I knew she meant well, but I was too upset to see that at that moment.


    ¡°Yeah! Why wouldn''t I be? Why would you ask me that?!¡± I asked harshly.


    As soon as the words left my mouth, I felt guilty.


    ¡°Jeesh, chill. I was just making sure you were good,¡± Calinida replied.


    ¡°I''m sorry Cali¡­ I hope you have a good time,¡± I told her and flashed a small smile.


    She smiled back.


    ¡°Text or call if you need anything,¡± she stated.


    ¡°You too, and be safe!¡±


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    She left our dorm room, and I heard her keys jingle as she locked the door. Shit. I forgot to ask her about meeting any supernatural beings on campus. Part of me felt like if she had, she would have told me already, right? I needed a better distraction than a book after that encounter, so I decided it was time for music and video games. I set up my console and picked out my playlist. I was about to put on my headset when my phone chimed. I picked it up and saw that my mom had texted me.


    Hey babe, just checking in. Hope you have a good night. Love you??


    Her text made me smile, and I felt a little better. I quickly texted her back, so she wouldn''t worry.


    Doing good, playing video games. Call you tomorrow. Love you too??


    I put on my headset and went to work on killing some zombies.


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    I wasn''t sure how long Calinida was gone for, but I must have dozed off by the time she came back. I woke up to the sound of someone talking loudly, and then the smell of something burning hit my nose. I sat up quickly and looked around frantically, still half asleep, thinking it was a fire. I guess I fell asleep with my headphones, and my game controller beside me, so when I moved, both things crashed to the floor. I grumbled as I got out of bed. I picked the headphones, and controller up, then placed them on my desk.


    ¡°Stupid popcorn! Shitty microwaves! Why are they all different watts anyway?!¡± Calinida shouted as she closed the door behind her.


    Our dorm room didn''t have a kitchen, but out in the hall, where the lounge area was located, there were a few microwaves that were available to the students who lived on our floor.


    ¡°Oh no, Lovebug! Did I wake you!? You were sleeping so peacefully!¡± Calinida exclaimed.


    ¡°Yeah, sorta!¡± I scoffed. ¡°What is wrong?¡±


    ¡°Ugh, I just used the wrong setting for the microwave. I''m so sorry,¡± she apologized. ¡°Thankfully, I didn''t set off any alarms.¡±


    I rolled my eyes and went back to my bed. Calinida came over soon after, holding a bag of Doritos as she climbed onto her own bed. I guess she was done trying to make popcorn. I checked my phone for the time, it was close to midnight, but since I ended up taking a short nap, I wasn''t tired. At least Calinida would be up with me. I could finally ask her about meeting other supernatural beings.


    ¡°So, Cali¡­ I had a question. Have you met any other students who are¡­ like us?¡±


    ¡°You mean supernatural?¡± she quizzed.


    I nodded, and she grinned. She had! She had met other supernatural beings!


    ¡°Based on your reaction, that¡¯s a yes?!¡±


    ¡°Yup! I wanted to tell you as soon as I got back, but you were sleeping,¡± she explained. ¡°And I didn¡¯t want to wake you.¡±


    ¡°Well! I¡¯m awake now, tell me more!¡± I exclaimed. I hopped up from my bed and jumped onto Calinida¡¯s.


    We spent a while chatting about her recent experiences. She told me that the group of kids she met up with earlier were actually supernatural beings, all of them. She explained that some of the beings in her group were older, so they gave her some historical facts about the school. Apparently, Sutlow University had a high percentage of students who attended that were paranormal, and it had been that way for generations. I couldn¡¯t believe that I never knew that. Now, I was more hopeful than ever! I was bound to meet another supernatural being, other than Juliet, on campus.


    By the time we finished talking, Calinida¡¯s chip bag was half empty, and we both were getting tired. We decided to call it a night, and got dressed in our pajamas before the both of us drifted off to sleep.

 6. Shark Food (Naomi)

    When I woke up the next day, Calinida was gone. Her bed was made up neatly, and there wasn''t any noise coming from the bathroom, so she couldn¡¯t have been in there. I grabbed my phone from my desk to check it. Several missed notifications were displayed on the screen. A few were texts from Calinida, and a couple were from my mom. It was already close to one in the afternoon and I hurriedly dialed my mom¡¯s cell number. She picked up after a couple rings.


    ¡°Nay! How are you?! I miss my baby!¡±


    ¡°Ma¡­ It''s only been a week. I''m doing okay,¡± I told her. ¡°And I miss you too.


    ¡°Your dad is here too, he wants us to video chat,¡± my mom said.


    I sighed, ¡°Fine¡­¡±


    I tapped a button on my phone and the audio call became a video call instantly. My mom was in the living room. She called for my dad to come in the room, and he appeared in the background moments later.


    ¡°Look at my college girl!¡± my dad greeted me.


    ¡°Hey, Dad,¡± I said and waved at him.


    The three of us talked for close to an hour before we finally hung up. I told them all about my classes and what they were like. Of course they asked if I met any potential friends and I gave them an honest answer. My dad was more positive about it than my mom was, but that was more expected. I knew that she wanted the best for me, but she couldn''t seem to understand my struggle. Getting bullied had made it hard for me to be outgoing because it ruined my self esteem.


    Then they reminded me that they were coming for the festivities the next weekend. My parents were referring to an event on campus as ¡°Welcome Back Weekend¡±. Sutlow University used the second weekend of every new school year to welcome students'' family and friends to campus. Games, activities, prizes, food and drinks were provided, it was like a small fair, and all students got in for free. I remembered hearing about it during orientation. Unfortunately friends and family had to buy tickets, but the cost wasn''t much.


    They were excited to visit the campus again, but they were even more elated that they got to see me. It would be the last time I would see my parents until the holiday break since we lived so far from the school itself. However, I was looking forward to the freedom of being away. I loved my parents, but they could be very overbearing sometimes.


    I checked my phone to see what messages Calinida had sent me. She let me know that she met up with the same group of people from last night, and she would be back before six. I guess I was by myself for the day. I decided that even if I couldn''t muster the courage to talk to anyone, I had to make the effort, and at least leave my room today. Plus, I got hungry.


    I changed out of my pajamas and into some fresh clothes, then I brushed my hair, though you would never know it, before pulling it back into a small ponytail. Once I put on my sneakers, I grabbed my room keys, my school badge, and my cell phone from my desk. After leaving my dorm room, I locked the door behind me and made my way down the hall.


    I hadn''t made it far when a girl came out into the hall, and locked the door behind her. As she started walking in my direction, I found myself leering at her. I had to admit, she was pretty hot! Definitely not as beautiful as Juliet though. The girl smiled at me when we passed each other, and I smiled back awkwardly. Our interaction was odd to me, I guess I wasn''t used to that kind of behavior. My high school was like a sea full of hungry sharks, and I was the bait.


    It hadn¡¯t taken me too long to get to the Dining Hall, which was packed, per usual. As I walked, I started thinking about what I wanted to eat. Tacos? Pizza? Something else? My thoughts were interrupted by a group of guys that were walking toward me. All of them were laughing and patting each other on the back, most likely because of a stupid joke one of them told. I caught one of the guys glancing at me as I passed by and he grinned.


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    ¡°Damn, look at that ass!¡± he said loudly.


    It took me a moment to realize it, but he was talking about me! The rest of the group stared at my body briefly before they all started making raunchy remarks. I kept walking, hoping that none of them would stop me, and thankfully, they hadn''t. My whole body was feverish, all the way to my ears¡­ Was I actually flustered?! I wasn''t used to that kind of attention from males. Like I said before, I was practically invisible in high school.


    I took a deep breath, and focused on what I wanted for lunch to calm my nerves. I finally decided on a cheeseburger and got in line for it. After I got my food, I went straight back to my room, and ate it. It was surprisingly pretty good, and it made me full; I had no complaints. I ended up playing some video games for a few hours. I had homework, but I figured I¡¯d use all of tomorrow to get it done.


    Calinida was true to her word. She showed up a little after six with a few shopping bags in her hands, more clothes I presumed.


    ¡°Hey Lovebug!¡± she greeted. ¡°How was your day?!¡±


    ¡°Low key,¡± I answered. ¡°You found the closest mall, I see¡­¡±


    ¡°Nope. But this city has a small shopping center nearby, so, close enough,¡± she countered and smiled.


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    Sunday came, and my homework was taking much longer than I expected. Calinida decided she was going to spend today doing homework too, though I started long before her.


    ¡°I¡¯m starving!¡± she groaned and stood up. She began stretching, as she spoke again. ¡°Let¡¯s try one of the take out restaurants close by.¡±


    I hadn¡¯t realized how hungry I was until my stomach growled. I stopped doing my schoolwork, and looked over at her.


    ¡°Yeah, why not. Which one?¡± I questioned.


    ¡°I¡¯m feeling wings! I heard there¡¯s this great place just a few blocks from here.¡±


    ¡°Wings...?¡±


    ¡°Yeah! What about you? What are you in the mood for?¡± she asked.


    Wings sounded kind of good actually.


    I nodded, ¡°Wings, it is.¡±


    ¡°Great, I know what kind I want already. Do you want BBQ or hot buffalo?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, get me some of each? Please¡­¡± I replied with a grin.


    Calinida grabbed her phone from her desk gingerly, and tapped on her screen several times before putting the phone to her ear. I presumed she was searching for the number on Google. She placed our order, then hung up the phone, and flopped onto her bed with her face to the ceiling.


    ¡°They said we had to wait forty minutes!¡± she whined.


    I chuckled.


    ¡°Do some more of your homework,¡± I suggested. ¡°Monday is coming fast.¡±


    She sat up quickly and flashed me a coy smile. She was up to something.


    ¡°What?¡± I quizzed.


    ¡°Monday¡­ Isn¡¯t that the day you have that Physics class with¡ªwhat was her name again?¡±


    ¡°Juliet!¡± I blurted. Shit, Calinida was right! Tomorrow, I was going to see Juliet! And then what? Just stay quiet the whole class again?! The weekend had gone by so quickly, I never prepared for Monday!


    ¡°Right, Juliet,¡± she grinned. ¡°Are you actually going to have a conversation with her this time?¡±


    ¡°Probably not,¡± I answered curtly.


    ¡°Naomi! You have to try!¡± Calinida insisted.


    ¡°What do I even say?¡±


    ¡°Ask her a question about herself¡­ Ooh! Ooh! Compliment her on something! Girls love compliments!¡±


    ¡°Cali¡­¡± I sighed.


    ¡°Too much?¡±


    I bit on my bottom lip. Why was this so important to me? Important enough that it gave me anxiety! Besides the fact that Juliet was a supernatural being, and I wanted to know more about that aspect of her life, what else was it that drew me to her? I still wasn¡¯t sure¡­ And I knew I would never find out if I couldn¡¯t pull my shit together.


    ¡°I¡¯ll give it a shot,¡± I decided.

 7. Two Strikes (Juliet)

    Today was Monday. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that I got to see Naomi this morning, I would have felt gloomy. Monday¡¯s usually suck, but now, I was looking forward to them. Over the weekend, I spent some time with Danny, and we got to know each other better. I was really happy I''d met someone that I wasn¡¯t attracted to. It made building a relationship much easier. I felt close to him already.


    I jumped out of bed, determined to be on time for class this morning. I took care to choose my outfit for the day, which was shocking to me. I guess I wanted to impress Naomi. I picked out a pair of blue jeans, ones that hugged my hips nicely, and a short sleeve blouse that showed just enough cleavage.


    I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth, and finish getting ready. I wanted to look natural so I was light on the makeup, and then I did my hair in a french braid updo that I tied back into a ponytail. I checked myself out in the bathroom mirror, and was pleased with my appearance. I looked pretty damn good. I went back into the bedroom, then packed my messenger bag with my school books, notebooks, and my sketchpad.


    I was ready. I picked up my phone, and checked the time. I was twenty minutes ahead of schedule, and knowing that put a smile on my face. My morning was going great so far! I stuck my phone in my front pocket, then grabbed my room keys, and my school badge. I skipped those into the front pockets of my bag before I left my dorm room, and locked the door behind me. Heather was still sleeping. As much as I wanted to slam the door, the decency in me held me back.


    By the time I got to class, it was still half empty. I scanned the cluster of students who were there already, searching for any sign Naomi. I finally spotted her a few rows down, and over to the left. She was closer to the front of the room than last week. Or at least I hoped that was her, I could only see the back of her head from where I stood. If I wanted to confirm, then I had to get closer. I took a deep breath, and made my way to the girl I hoped was Naomi. My heart pounded with each step I took.


    I finally made it to her row. It was her. I noticed her backpack was placed in the seat next to her, but the seat beside her bag was empty. I looked around and saw that the room started to fill up with more students. I hastily shuffled down the aisle until I was next to her. She was looking down at her cell phone at first, but then she looked up at me. When our eyes met I lost my breath.


    The last time we met, I was so busy ogling her body, I hadn''t paid attention to her eyes. And wow. They were mesmerizing! Such a beautiful color brown mixed with hues of orange. I got lost in them easily. She gave me an awkward smile that broke our gaze, then moved her backpack down to the floor beside her chair. Was she telling me to sit beside her? The professor started to speak, not giving me time to process Naomi¡¯s gesture, so I quickly sat down in the chair she seemed to have saved for me.


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    Once class began, she was completely focused on the lesson, just as she was last week. I tried my best to pay attention, but once again, the low hum of the students chatter throughout the lecture hall was just too distracting. How was I going to pass the class?! That was it! An idea came to me. I could start a conversation with Naomi by asking about Physics! I peeked over at her, and she was taking notes. I sort of felt guilty for interrupting her, but¡­


    ¡°Hey¡­ Naomi,¡± I whispered.


    She glanced over at me with curious eyes.


    ¡°Y-Yeah?¡± She whispered back.


    ¡°How do you block out the talking in order to pay attention?¡±


    Naomi shrugged. ¡°I guess¡­ I just ignore it. I''m sorry, I know that''s unhelpful.¡±


    She was right. Her answer wasn''t helpful at all.


    ¡°You¡­ like to draw?¡± she asked. Her sight was on my messenger bag.


    I looked down. The flap to my bag was open, and my sketchbook was showing. I was surprised that she changed the subject.


    ¡°I love to,¡± I answered honestly. ¡°Actually, I''m majoring in illustration design.¡±


    Her eyes lit up and she smiled.


    ¡°That''s really cool¡­! My major is computer programming,¡± she stated.


    Computer programming? Naomi was gorgeous, but now I knew she was also incredibly intelligent.


    ¡°That''s¡­¡± I began to say.


    ¡°Lame? Nerdy? Complex? Yeah, I know¡­¡± Naomi cut in.


    Could she get any cuter?!


    ¡°Actually, I was going to say that¡¯s really awesome!¡±


    She was stunned at my statement.


    ¡°Yeah, right¡ª¡±


    ¡°No, really, you''re definitely admirable. Not only were you interested in computer programming, you wanted to study it! Most people just take the lazy way out,¡± I told her.


    After that she went silent on me, and went back to paying attention to the professor. Was it something I said? I mean, I just gave her a compliment! It was times like these when I wished I was a Seer!


    I had done the first thing that came to mind, I started copying her notes. She must have noticed eventually, because she moved her notebook so I could see it better. Unfortunately, class came to an end. I wasn''t sure what to say to Naomi, but I definitely wanted her number. We slowly gathered our stuff, and walked together out of the lecture hall. It was the perfect time for me to ask for her number, but I chickened out!


    ¡°I guess I''ll see you next week,¡± I said with a smile. How stupid! Just ask for her number! I yelled at myself internally. But for some reason the words just wouldn''t come out.


    Naomi nodded and gave me a small smile back. She walked off, and as I watched her my mood deflated. I was so disappointed in myself. Not only did I possibly hurt her feelings, I also didn''t have the courage to ask for her number! I was now at two strikes, but I wasn''t going to get a third. I refused.

 8. I Need A Plan (Naomi)

    My idea to save Juliet a seat worked out perfectly, so perfect that we ended up in a conversation. Surprisingly, I welcomed the encounter. Talking to her just seemed so natural, and although we were in class, I didn''t want our chat to stop. It wasn''t until she gave me a compliment that I froze, and shut down. She told me I was ¡°admirable¡± because I was so passionate about computer programming... No one had ever said that to me before.


    I was being so stupid! I completely ignored her the rest of class, and then after class all I gave her was an awkward smile! Could I really be that hopeless?! Was it too late to go back¡­? Of course it was too late to go back! Why would I even think of¡ªmy thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a soft chime. Someone had sent me a text. I took my phone out of my pocket, and checked the screen. Calinida had texted me.


    Hey, hope class was good. Sorry about this, but I''ve got lunch plans. See you later?


    She bailed on me?! I could feel the tingling sensation traveling up my back. My anxiety was kicking in, and I took a few deep breaths to calm myself down before it got out of control. I couldn''t be upset with Calinida for being who she was... However, I could be upset at myself! I hadn''t done a thing to change my social habits! I mean, I guess it was okay for now, since it had only been a week¡­ But still, I had to do better.


    Yeah¡­ See you later. ??


    I sent my reply, making sure to add a smiling emoji at the end so she wouldn''t know I was upset. If she knew I was, she''d cancel her plans, and I would feel guilty. That''s just who she was; she always had my back, no matter what.


    I bravely made my way to the Dining Hall alone. It wasn''t like I hadn''t done it before, so I wasn''t too uncomfortable. I felt like eating pizza, therefore I went straight to A Slice Of Italy, that was the name of the shop that made pizzas. However, this shop also made pasta dishes such as baked ziti, spaghetti and meatballs, spaghetti with marinara sauce; stuff like that.


    I got in line, and waited my turn. By the time I got to the counter, my stomach was growling. I ordered two slices of pepperoni, then moved down the line to the pick up spot. While I waited for my food, I thought about this weekend.


    If I was being honest, as much as it pained me to say it, I was looking forward to seeing my family''s faces. It had been almost two weeks, and I still hadn''t made any friends. I was really hoping that seeing my parents, my aunt, my uncle, and my younger cousins would make me feel a little better.


    I heard a guy from behind the pick up counter call out my last name, and I stepped up. I guess my food was done already. The man handed me a pizza box as he smiled, and I shyly took it from him.


    If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    ¡°Thank you for choosing A Slice Of Italy, have a great day!¡± the man told me.


    I gave him a weak smile, ¡°Thanks.¡±


    I walked off feeling like I was in the spotlight. That employee was extremely chipper. Shockingly, I didn''t have a panic attack from worrying about who was staring at me. Seriously, how was I going to make friends here? I sighed to myself, knowing my goal wasn''t going to be easy to achieve. But I swore to myself I wouldn''t give up.


    After lunch, I went to Physics class, and after class I went back to my room. Calinida wouldn''t be done with classes until closer to dinner time, so it was just me by myself for a few hours. I did my homework, which took up a big chunk of time. Actually, I had just finished it when Calinida walked through the door.


    ¡°Hey Lovebug!¡± she greeted me.


    ¡°Hey,¡± I replied.


    She started unloading her stuff as she continued to chat with me.


    ¡°How was your day? Did you eat dinner yet?¡± she asked.


    ¡°My day was¡­ meh,¡± I told her. ¡°And no, I didn''t eat yet. I''ve been doing my homework all this time.¡±


    ¡°Great!¡± she declared.


    I raised an eyebrow at her, and she giggled.


    ¡°Not great that you had so much homework, I mean at least it''s done now, right?¡±


    I shrugged, and nodded in agreement.


    ¡°I said great because I figured I''d make up for lunch today by having dinner with you,¡± Calinida stated. ¡°How about it?¡±


    ¡°Cool. I''m starting to get hungry anyway,¡± I answered.


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    Tuesday went by¡­ Wednesday went by¡­ It was getting closer and closer to the weekend and I was still having mixed emotions. I missed my parents, but I also knew they would get on my case about not being more social. I wish I could have been more assertive with Juliet on Monday! Then, it occurred to me, I might see her this weekend¡­! Oh, shit!


    My eyes flew open; it was Wednesday evening, and currently, I was taking a break from doing homework. I was laying on my back on top of bed, listening to music, when I realized I might see Juliet at the events that weekend. What was I going to do?! Should I dress up?! Should I do more, and go into the unknown world of¡­ makeup?! Wait¡­ Let¡¯s say I did do all of that, what about the talking part¡­! Would I even be able to make conversation with her?!


    All of these questions stirred up my anxiety. I sat up quickly, and snatched my headphones out of my ears. I had two days to figure out a plan! Maybe I should talk to Calinida about it. I thought it over for a moment, and decided I would. I paused my music, then opened up my messages, and quickly sent her a text.


    Hey, need to ask for advice. When will you be back?

 9. What A Dress! (Juliet)

    I couldn''t wait to see Benjamin! The weekend event was just two days away now. Technically, it started Friday night, but the activities put on by the school that night were only for the students. The family related activities didn''t start until Saturday morning, which meant I would probably have to get up early. However, I sent Benjamin a text asking what time they''d be coming up, just to make sure.


    Yo. Text me as soon as you get this. I need to know what time you''ll be coming Saturday.


    I set my phone down on my desk, then started getting ready for the one class that I had today, which was Creative Writing. If I was being honest, I really enjoyed that class. I got to express myself through a different outlet, other than drawing, and that was very cool. Then, for the rest of the day I was flying solo, at least until later that evening when I had plans with Danny. I had to wait for him to finish class, and he wouldn''t be done until closer to eight o¡¯clock.


    I had just finished doing my hair when I heard my phone chirp. I picked it up, and saw that Benjamin had texted me back.


    Mom said the events start at 11am, which means... we¡¯ll be there by 10:30 of course. ??


    I knew it. Who wanted to get up early on a Saturday morning? My parents did, that''s who. I cursed out loud as I started packing my messenger bag for class. I grabbed my school badge, and my dorm keys before shouldering my bag. Then, I headed out for class, and locked the door behind.


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    Danny and I decided to meet up and walk around campus. Originally we were going to chill out in my room, but Heather had people over and it took up too much space, not to mention Heather¡¯s friends were also using my bed! I definitely would be changing my bed sheets later, I couldn''t trust anyone who liked Heather, they could have some kind of catchable sickness or something.


    Then Danny suggested we try his room, but his roommate was a bit too involved with his video games, screaming and throwing things around the room. So we ended up on a walk, we figured that was the best option tonight. As we walked around, we chatted.


    ¡°Do you like your classes? Cause¡¯ honestly, there''s one class I think I want to drop,¡± Danny uttered.


    ¡°Actually, now that I think about it, all of my classes are pretty cool,¡± I replied.


    ¡°Ugh! Lucky!¡± Danny scoffed.


    I laughed, ¡°The class you want to drop can''t be that bad.¡±


    Danny looked at me like I was insane.


    ¡°Yes, it is that bad!¡± he exclaimed. ¡°The class is called ¡®Dragons from The Past¡¯...¡±


    ¡°But that sounds interesting!¡± I objected.


    ¡°Exactly! It sounds interesting! The name of the class is the only interesting thing about it!¡± he retorted.


    I bursted with laughter, and Danny joined in. We laughed for a few minutes before we continued to talk. We opened up a little more to each other, talking about our families, and our experiences in high school. I really enjoyed spending time with Danny. It was so easy to be myself around him, and I liked that. I was going to need a close friend like him while I went to school here, and Danny was the perfect guy for the job.


    This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°So, are you going to any of the events tomorrow?¡± Danny asked.


    ¡°Probably not, but I''ll be going to the events on Saturday. My family is coming,¡± I told him.


    ¡°Right! So, I don''t know if our parents are coming, but I''ll still come and hang with you if you want,¡± Danny said with a grin.


    ¡°Our parents?¡± I questioned. This was the first time Danny had mentioned having siblings, and the fact that they went to school with us.


    ¡°Oh, yeah, duh. My bad,¡± he chuckled. ¡°My older brother Dean goes to school here too.¡±


    ¡°Wow, that must be¡­ annoying,¡± I admitted.


    He nodded, ¡°It is¡­ for the most part anyway. Did you want me to come meet your family and hang around with you on Saturday?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that would be cool¡­ I mean the hanging out part, not meeting my family,¡± I said and rolled my eyes.


    ¡°That bad, huh?¡± Danny asked sympathetically.


    ¡°Nah, not really. I mean my siblings are chill¡­ It''s my parents, they''re a bit¡­¡± I told him and shook my head. I couldn''t find the right word for the type of people my parents were at that moment. However, Danny seemed to understand me completely.


    ¡°Say no more, I get it. Like I said, we don''t even know if our parents are going to show up,¡± he said quietly.


    I bit my lip. Poor Danny¡­ At least there was a solid relationship between my parents and me. We walked in silence for a few minutes before Danny spoke again.


    ¡°Hey so, back to Friday¡ªI hear the school is throwing this party that starts at ten, it''s supposed to be set up like a club or whatever. It''s called ¡®Late Night Bash¡¯.¡±


    ¡°It sounds lame,¡± I chuckled.


    ¡°I know, and the school staff are the ones decorating. I bet it will look like crap! But, free food and drinks! You can''t pass that up,¡± he replied with a smile.


    He was definitely right about that. Free stuff was great, but free drinks and food was even better!


    ¡°This is very true¡­ Alright, I''m in,¡± I agreed.


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    It was Friday evening, and I was trying to find something to wear to the party tonight. I didn''t want to over do it, since it wasn''t an event that called for a specific dress code. Besides, I had a good feeling that most of the students who attended Sutlow would not be spending their Friday night at a school function, even if that function was offering free refreshments.


    I guess Danny and I were just suckers. I decided I would wear something casual, jeans, sneakers, a plain t-shirt, and a hoodie to tie it all together. My hair was a mess, but I didn''t feel like doing it, so I just brushed it a little, and pulled it up into a messy ponytail. I checked myself out in the mirror, and I was satisfied with my appearance. I didn''t put on any makeup either, it wasn''t like I was expecting to flirt with anyone. I... already had someone on my mind, and so far, she was the only one.


    Once I was ready, I grabbed my school badge first, and stuffed it in my hoodie pocket. After that, I grabbed my dorm keys before leaving my room, and then I locked the door behind me. I met up with Danny outside of the school¡¯s gym, which was where the party was, and we walked in together.


    The music was loud, echoing throughout the huge space. On one side of the room were a few tables that had food and drinks placed on it, and on the other side of the room were games to play. The whole set up felt like a glorified child¡¯s birthday party. There were more students that showed up than I expected, but still not enough to fill the gym halfway.


    Danny and I decided to raid the refreshment tables before we made our next move. I was stuffing my face with cookies when I caught sight of a pair of great legs, and these legs were coupled with a sultry royal blue dress. I looked up slowly, ogling her body as I did, until I reached her face. I was in total shock¡­ Naomi¡­?!

 10. Weekend Fiasco (Naomi)

    I never expected to see Juliet last night, or for her to see me in a dress! Dressing up was Calinida¡¯s idea, she thought that maybe it would help with my self esteem, but I just felt like I was overdressed. Wearing dresses, makeup, and high heels was certainly not my scene, so a part of me knew that I was just appeasing my cousin¡­


    Calinida had convinced me to wear her dress, and tried to convince me to wear her heels that night as well, but I refused to wear the heels. Instead, I wore my own pair of black flats that I kept for special occasions. I didn''t think the dress was going to fit since my cousin was a few sizes smaller, but the material of the dress was stretchy. Once I put it on, I knew right away that it barely fit.


    The dress hugged my curves tightly, but Calinida swore that was a good thing. She told me I looked ¡°hella sexy¡±, but when I checked myself out in the mirror, all I saw was a girl trying to squeeze herself into a dress that was clearly too small for her. However, I went out of my comfort zone¡ªway out¡ªand wore her dress.


    It wasn''t only the two of us, a few of Calinida¡¯s new friends came along as well. Trish, Deedra, and Sloan; they were gorgeous! On top of that, I found out that they were supernatural beings, and their abilities were pretty awesome if I was being honest. Trish was a mage, Deedra was able to become invisible, and Sloan was a shifter like me and Calinida, but her animal was a cheetah¡ªa CHEETAH!


    Why had I agreed to go again? Oh yeah, trying to change my social habits, that seemed almost impossible to change! But it was too late now, the five of us were already headed for the university¡¯s gym. It was like my body was on autopilot. The five of us entered, there weren''t a lot of students there at all, and I had to admit, I was happy about that. However, Calinida and her friends were totally disappointed.


    ¡°I wore my new heels for nothing?!¡± Trish whined.


    ¡°I told you this would be a bust,¡± Sloan sighed.


    ¡°We can fix this! We HAVE to¡­! I didn''t wear this dress, just to take it back off!¡± Deedra exclaimed.


    "Just chill," my cousin told them. "Keep your heels and dresses on, ladies. I just got a text from Kev, the boys are on their way."


    The boys...?! Who were "the boys"?! At this point I was annoyed with Calinida. First, she doesn''t tell me we''re going with her friends, and now THIS! I hugged myself and looked around the room, seeing faces I didn''t recognize, until my eyes laid on a familiar face. She was standing by the food table, her cheeks were puffed out, and it seemed as if she was in mid-chew.


    Was that...Juliet¡­?! But who was that guy she was with? Could he be her...boyfriend...?! I mean it''s only been two weeks¡­! I shook my head, trying to clear my mind. It wasn''t any of my business, she and I weren''t even friends¡­ And yet, the idea of her being with someone else bothered me.


    I wanted to go over there, of course I wanted to, but it felt like my feet were glued to the floor. As we gazed at each other, it seemed like she also wanted to interact, and my heart pounded. Suddenly the lights dimmed, multi-colored spotlights started flashing from above, and the music got louder. Before I knew it, a steady flow of students came into the gym, including the boys Calinida had mentioned.


    Four guys came toward us, they were also gorgeous, like models, and Trish, Sloan, and Deedra squealed with joy. Everyone exchanged hugs, except for me, before they all started to mingle. Calinida turned to me.


    "Stay close, okay? The crowd is getting pretty big now," she told me, her voice loud so I could hear her over the music.


    I nodded. I tried to stay close to her, but once the mass of students started dancing, along with my cousin and her group of friends, I got moved around. I was bumped and shoved, until I ended up on the outside of the crowd. I couldn''t see my cousin or her friends anywhere! I gave up and decided to scan the room for Juliet. No luck either¡­ Had she left?


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    It was Saturday morning, and I woke up feeling moody. Last night was a total shit storm, if I was being completely honest. I decided to leave early after realizing I was too anxious to force my way through the mass of bodies in order to get back to Calinida. I also realized calling her wouldn''t work because of how loud the music was...after calling her twice.


    Today, I''d get to see my parents, and I was looking forward to some sense of normalcy, especially when this would be the last time I''d see them for a few months. Calinida and I started getting ready at the same time¡ªterrible idea! She took way too long in the shower, so halfway through my own shower, the water got cold. Then she took up most of the bathroom counter space with her makeup; good thing I was a low-maintenance-kind-of-girl.


    I decided to do my hair up in two ponytails, and let them hang low, reaching the bottom of my neck. I chose to dress in a pair of black jeans, a tank top, and a button down to add my own flare. I slid the long-sleeve shirt on and left it unbuttoned, then put on my sneakers. My cousin was fluffing up her hair as she came out of the bathroom.


    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    "Finally, I can brush my teeth!" I said.


    Calinida shrugged, "Hey, you can''t rush perfection, Lovebug."


    I rolled my eyes, and promptly went to brush my teeth. Just as I returned to our bedroom, both of our cell phones sounded. I picked mine up from the bed and saw that my dad had texted me.


    On our way. See you soon! ??


    It was already ten-forty-five, which meant they would probably get here after the "Welcome Back" events had started.


    "Mom said they''re on the way now, typical," Calinida said and clicked her tongue.


    "Yeah I know¡­my Dad said the same thing. It takes about an hour-and-a-half to drive to campus," I noted. "What should we do while we wait?"


    "No clue," she replied.


    I admit, I was surprised she didn''t offer to hang with her friends. Were her group of friends not going to the event?


    "No friends this time?" I asked.


    She gave me a weird look before averting her eyes.


    "Apparently, I''m the only one out of all of us who''s having their family visit today."


    That seemed pretty harsh¡­ Their parents didn''t care to see them? I couldn''t imagine a life where my parents didn''t want to be around me¡­


    "Speaking of my friends, what happened to you last night?" Calinida questioned. Now she was staring at me like I was some kind of suspect.


    "I told you, I went back to the room," I countered.


    "Yeah, but...why?! All you had to do was shove a little and you would have found us," she told me.


    I stared at her, and blinked a few times. Had she forgotten who she was talking to?


    "Ugh, fine! You''re right! That never would have happened," Calinida relented. "I just really wanted you to have a good time."


    "I know...it''s fine. I swear," I told her, trying to sound convincing. It didn''t work though.


    She sighed, "Well at least you went."


    We couldn''t think of anything to do, so we decided to just wait in the room. I had almost fallen asleep when my phone started ringing. I was startled, but quickly answered the call.


    "Hello?"


    "Hey! We''re here! All of us," my mom declared and laughed a little.


    "Oh! Okay! Cali and I will be right down!" I told her as I sat up abruptly.


    "Sounds good," my mom said and hung up.


    My cousin did fall asleep and I had to wake her. She jumped up from the bed, and had a look of terror on her face.


    "Oh no!" she exclaimed.


    I thought it was something serious, my heart was pounding.


    "What?! What is it?!"


    "My face¡ªdid I smudge my makeup?!"


    Relief washed over me, but I frowned at Calinida.


    "Just go look in the mirror! And hurry up!" I huffed.


    Thankfully, her makeup was fine, so we left the room, and I locked the door behind us. We made our way to the parking lot, where we were greeted by Calinida''s twin siblings. Each sibling latched onto her and I, and then the four of us went over to our parents.


    My cousins, my aunt, and my uncle shared a group hug, while I embraced my mom and dad. After everyone exchanged hugs, we all walked to the back of the university, where the sports fields were located. Everyone chatted along the way, and it was a bit awkward for me. I didn''t have friends, so there wasn''t much for me to talk about. But as always, my dad tried to make it easier on me.


    "Are you thinking about joining any clubs?" my dad asked me.


    "Yeah, hopefully," I answered. That was true, I hadn''t heard much about what kind of clubs Sutlow offered. Although, I hadn''t taken the time to do any research on them either.


    "I''m just hoping they have a decent selection of free food," he said with a big grin.


    I grinned back. Food was the one thing my entire family could bond over, and now I was hungry


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    Sutlow University really upped their game for today''s events. It was more attractive appearance wise, and the sports fields seemed to be completely filled with people. I noticed that there were a lot of vendors set up. Some were selling merchandise with the University''s logo on it, and some were set up with games, the kind of games you''d see at a small fair.


    The twins squealed with excitement as they looked around, and they quickly started nagging their parents to do multiple activities at once. My parents wanted to see the school merchandise that was being sold, they asked if I wanted to go with them, but I declined. I could tell they were hesitant about leaving me by myself, and I didn''t blame them, however Calinida stepped in.


    "We''ll just go see what clubs are offered," Calinida announced. She grabbed my wrist and started tugging me away.


    Just a few yards away were tons of tables, each with different flyers advertising a certain organization. Every table had two or three students behind it, and each student was doing their best to convince the freshman to join. I presumed the students behind the tables were upperclassmen. My cousin and I lingered around the tables, peeking at the flyers, but I didn''t see any club I was interested in.


    We bobbed and weaved through the crowd for a while, still not finding anything we were interested in, until I saw two tables that were side by side. One was a club for video games, which was a no brainer, I was definitely joining that, and the other club was for anime. I couldn''t draw to save my life, but I was a huge fan. I filled out the paperwork for the video gaming club, and then decided I wanted to join the anime club too. So, I started filling out the paperwork for that when I felt a tap on my shoulder.


    I turned to find a pink piece of paper in my face, and Calinida was squealing with excitement. I took it from her, and brought it away from my face so I could actually read it.


    "You''re joining a sorority?!" I implored.

 11. "Now, shall we go?" (Juliet)

    I had to admit, last night wasn''t too bad. Towards the end of the event, the whole gym was filled. I could tell that most of the students had definitely pre-gamed before coming. If the university staff had noticed, they didn''t say anything or kick them out.


    The food and snacks were okay, nothing special. Although, there were chocolate chip cookies, and I couldn''t pass those up because they''re my favorite. I really thought the whole night would be pretty boring but then I saw her¡ªNaomi. And she was wearing a dress! A sexy dress. Of course our eyes met while I was stuffing my face with cookies, but hot damn! She looked stunning!


    It was hard to fall asleep last night because I couldn''t get Naomi out of my head. It felt like I had just closed my eyes when my phone''s alarm started going off. I sat up quickly, still half-asleep, and shut off the alarm. Today was Saturday, and I set my alarm for nine this morning to make sure I was ready before my family got to campus.


    I got out of bed, gathered my shower things, and shuffled to the bathroom. I didn''t even put my hand on the doorknob before a loud shriek sounded from the other side of the door. Obviously it was Heather, and at first I thought she was hurt. I was ready to charge in, but then she began singing off-key.


    That was her...singing...?! Another loud shriek sounded through the door again, and I cringed. Yup, that was her singing voice, and it was hurting my ear drums. Wait! She was using the shower and I only had a limited amount of time! I realized. Shit! What was I going to do now?!


    Heather forced out another off-key note, and I rested my head against the bathroom door. This was going to be a pain in my ass.


    "Hey, Heather?"


    She stopped "singing" abruptly and went silent for a moment.


    "What do you want, Juliet?! Can''t you see I''m trying to shower?!" she snapped.


    Yes! I clearly knew you were taking a shower! My bleeding ears would be the proof!


    "Yeah¡­ I just wanted to know how much longer? I wanted to shower too¡­"


    "Ugh! Fine! Give me five minutes!"


    I decided to go sit on my bed to wait for Heather. I waited, and five minutes turned into ten...then ten turned into fifteen, and I was running out of time! I was pissed and anxious, and that was a bad combination! Finally I got impatient, and was about to go knock on the bathroom door when I heard her come out. She sauntered into our room with a smirk on her face.


    "Shower is all yours," Heather said.


    But why was she smirking? I wasn''t sure, but at this point I didn''t have time to care. I rushed into the bathroom, with my stuff squished in my arms, and shut the door behind me. I put my stuff on the back of the toilet, then turned my attention to the shower. Once I turned on the water, I put my hand underneath to check the temperature, and at that moment I knew exactly why Heather was smirking.


    That BITCH! She used all the hot water! I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs, but that would have only wasted the already shortened amount of time I had left! So instead I growled as I stepped into the ice cold water, and spent my entire shower muttering curse words. I was shivering a bit when I was done, but at least I smelled clean.


    I raced to dry off, to dry my hair, and to get dressed. By the time I checked my phone, I''d missed three text messages from Benjamin. In the last message he told me they were trying to find an open parking space. Shit, they were here! I said to myself as I hastily grabbed a pair of boots, and slipped them on.


    I didn''t have the time to style my hair properly, so I pulled it back into a messy bun before I got my phone, room keys, and school badge. I left the dorm room, and locked the door behind me before I sprinted downstairs. I started walking towards the parking lot when my phone began to ring.


    I pulled it out of my pants pocket and saw that my mom was calling, so I picked up quickly.


    "Hey, Mom!"


    You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    "Juliet, where are you?" she questioned. "We''re in the parking lot."


    "Okay, I''m coming now. I''m already walking, I''ll be there in five," I replied. She hung up, and I slipped my phone back into my pocket.


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    After I met up with my family, I found out my eldest brother Joseph couldn''t come because of work, so it was just my two older brothers and my parents. I gave all of them a hug, but I hugged my brother Benjamin the tightest; I missed him the most.


    "I don''t think I''ve seen you since Mom''s last birthday party," Samuel said.


    "Well whose fault is that? You should visit more," I retorted, then he and I exchanged smiles.


    Benjamin nudged me, getting my attention. "Let''s go see what the University has set up for us."


    I nodded, and then led my family to the sports fields. I wasn''t really into school spirit, not even in high school, so this would be the first time I''d actually been to this part of campus. However, I''d seen the campus map enough times to know where the fields were located.


    I was impressed with the vendors and activities that Sutlow had chosen for the day. Everything was brightly decorated in the school''s colors, and the music was classic 90s. The university even rented a bouncy-house for the younger kids. There were food tables under a designated tent, a big sign displayed the selection of foods, snacks, and drinks that were being offered.


    Then of course the school had vendors, some were promoting the school and had university merchandise for sale. Some were actually stations where classic carnival games could be played. The five of us walked around for a bit, taking in everything, but after what seemed like an hour, my mom decided she wanted a stuffed animal; the ones you have to win by playing one of the games.


    Samuel and my dad turned her request into a competition between the two of them, and bet on who could win her a prize first. Benjamin and I weren''t into the whole idea so we decided to go check out what clubs Sutlow had. All of us split up, with Benjamin and I going in the opposite direction.


    "I''m assuming those tables over there are for club sign ups," I told my brother, and pointed to an area where several tables were set up. From where I stood, I could see that each table had a big sign taped to the front that showcased the name of each club.


    "Any ideas on what club or clubs you want to join?" Benjamin asked.


    "I''m hoping they have some kind of art club," I replied.


    "Why am I not surprised," he said with a smirk.


    Before I could respond to his remark, I heard my cell phone chime. I pulled it out and checked the screen, seeing that Danny had texted me.


    Where are you?


    Instead of texting him back, I called him.


    "Hello?"


    "Hey, Danny," I greeted him.


    "Hey! So...where are you?"


    "My brother and I just got to the club sign up tables," I replied, "Where are you?"


    "Great, stay right there! I''m close to you, by the cotton candy machine."


    I looked up and scanned the field, looking for a cotton candy station. Just as I spotted the cotton candy machine, I also spotted Danny a few feet away, he was coming toward me holding two sticks with cotton candy on them. As he approached Benjamin and I he grinned.


    "Hey! I got us some...cotton...candy," Danny said, except he wasn''t looking at me, he was staring at my brother. Danny''s mouth dropped open a little as he continued to ogle Benjamin.


    "Um, thanks, but you only got two¡­" I told him.


    "It''s cool, we can share," Benjamin said then gestured toward himself and I.


    "Uh, y-yeah, sorry about that, I didn''t know you wouldn''t be alone," Danny muttered, and blushed a bit.


    "Right, so, Danny this is my older brother Benji, Benji this is my friend Danny," I retorted, realizing I didn''t even introduce them.


    "Nice to meet you," Benjamin stated, and stuck out his hand for Danny to shake.


    Danny shyly grabbed my brother''s hand and shook it. Was this really happening¡­? Was Danny attracted to MY big brother?! I didn''t even know Danny was into guys!


    "Likewise¡­" Danny said and bit his lip. They were still holding hands as Danny and Benjamin gazed at each other.


    "Okay, well, I was just going to check out the clubs, you plan on joining any?" I asked Danny, trying to change the awkward atmosphere.


    "Clubs?" Danny looked at me, half dazed. He was attracted to Benjamin!


    "Yeah, school clubs?"


    Danny blinked a few times, and he seemed to snap back to his normal self. He took his hand from my brother''s before he rubbed the back of his neck, and flashed a crooked grin.


    "Clubs! Yeah, I was thinking maybe the photography club, and the school has an art club I wanted to join too."


    "Look at that, Juju! They do have an art club!"


    "Juju" was a family nickname, a name my parents gave me when I was little; I couldn''t believe that Benjamin called me that in front of Danny!


    "Juju?" Danny questioned with a smirk.


    "I will kill you," I warned Danny, and squinted my eyes at him. Then I whipped my head around to glare at Benjamin. He shrunk back a little and held his hands up in surrender.


    "Sorry¡­" Benjamin uttered.


    "Now, shall we go?" I asked them.


    They both nodded silently, and let me lead the way over to the tables that were designated for club sign ups.

 12. The Burger Booth (Juliet)

    A week had gone by, and my daily life had become a routine: class, homework, eat, shower, sleep, and repeat. Since I signed up for the art club, and the anime club, club related activities had also been added to my schedule. I was glad that both club meeting times fit with my class setup. Anime club was Friday at six in the evening, and Art club was Wednesday evening at seven-thirty. This week both clubs were hosting their first meeting, so I was super excited.


    Things between Naomi and I continued at a steady pace. For the past two Monday''s she and I shared notes during our whispered chat, as usual. We learned more little details about each other, like our birthdays, and our musical tastes. We even found out we have a common interest in video games, which was great!


    After class this past Monday, I mustered up enough courage to ask her if she wanted to exchange phone numbers. Honestly, it took a lot of encouragement on my end, but ultimately I got her digits! Her shyness was so cute to me, I swear. And I was beyond ecstatic for us to start texting.


    It was currently Tuesday afternoon, and I was sitting in Japanese class. Since I hadn''t gotten scores that were high enough in my foreign language class in high school during senior year, I had to take a foreign language in college for freshman year. I chose Japanese because it''s awesome, plain and simple. However, I had to admit that so far speaking the language was much easier than writing it!


    I did like my Japanese class though. The professor was easy to follow, and all of my classmates seemed nice enough. Although, there was this one kid, I could tell he was your typical jock, and all the other girls in class swooned all over him before, and after class. It was annoying, I admit. Yet, something about him drew me in too¡­almost like I was enchanted by him. I could smell the supernatural scent coming from him, I just didn''t know what his ability or abilities were.


    Class ended and I packed up my stuff. Just as I left the classroom, my cell phone started ringing. When I looked at the screen I saw that it was Danny, and I picked up right away.


    "Hey," I greeted him.


    "Yo! What are you doing right now?" he asked.


    "Just finished Japanese class. Why, what''s up?"


    "Let''s grab dinner."


    "Yeah, great. Where should I meet you?"


    "The Burger Booth, that place at the Dining Hall," Danny replied.


    I hadn''t tried a burger from there yet, so I was actually excited to go.


    "Awesome, see you soon then!" I said. We hung up and I decided to drop off my school things before heading to the Dining Hall. Heather was in our room with another girl, but this time the girl was sitting on Heather''s bed.


    They pretended like I wasn''t in the room at all, but I didn''t mind. At this point it was clear what kind of relationship Heather and I were going to have. She was an enemy, and I was cool with that, as long as she kept away from me and my stuff. Once I left my school bag on my bed, I left the room quickly, locking the door behind me, and headed for the Dining Hall.


    Of course Danny and I had hung out since Parent''s Weekend, but we didn''t talk about his behavior in front of my brothers. Yes, he acted like a fool in front of Samuel too! I had to admit, the whole thing was odd, but Danny and I hadn''t spoken about it at all, and I wanted answers.


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    After I entered the building, I made my way over to the Burger Booth. The Dining Hall happened to be packed, so it took me a little longer to get there, but once I did, I spotted Danny right away. He was sitting alone at a round table, reading a book. I walked over and sat down across from him.


    "Hey," I greeted.


    Danny put down his book, and smiled. "Sup?" He put the book in his backpack before giving me his full attention.


    "What are you going to get on your burger?" he asked.


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    We sat back down at the same table, I was surprised it was still vacant, and began eating. A few minutes had passed before I finally interrogated Danny about his interactions with my brothers.


    "So, about last weekend? Why were you being so weird?"


    Danny tensed briefly, but then he took a sip of his drink.


    He sighed. "I''m pathetically awkward around attractive men, okay?!" It was obvious his self confidence was a sore subject.


    "Hang on, attractive men?!" I implored. I was chewing when he answered and almost choked. I gulped down some of my drink, and then regained my composure. "First off, ew! That''s totally gross! And second, you like guys?!"


    Danny laughed. "Yeah, I''m into guys¡­ I''m also into girls¡­ I''m into a lot of things." He gave me a big grin before taking the final bite of his burger.


    "You can''t crush on my brothers," I told him, then ate the last of my food too.


    "I don''t have a crush on your brothers¡­!" he scoffed. "But they are hot as hell! Especially your brother Benji," Danny said and smirked.


    I made a gesture at him, as if I was going to vomit, but I was teasing and he knew it.


    "Bite me," he retorted.


    I smirked. Although I put on a front for Danny, I actually thought all of my brothers were attractive. I guess it was just in our gene pool, and I only hoped the attractive gene didn''t skip me. I mean, I thought I was pretty, or at least average. I could ask Danny''s opinion, but would he tell me the truth?


    "Danny¡­ Do you think I''m¡­ Do you think I''m attractive?" I asked hesitantly.


    His eyes widened and he blushed a little...but what did that mean¡­?!


    "Why would you ask me that?," he asked.


    "Just answer me!"


    "Fine¡­! I think you''re gorgeous, Juliet...and no I''m not just saying it because we''re friends. Ever since the day I met you, I''ve thought that..."


    His answer was sincere, and I was flattered. I could feel the corners of my mouth pull upward into a smile I couldn''t control.


    "Thank you," I replied.


    "You''re welcome¡­? And why did you want to know?"


    I shrugged.


    "Don''t tell me you''re worried about how attractive you are compared to tour brothers¡­"


    "Shut up¡­" I muttered.


    "What!?" He exclaimed with a big grin. "I was right!"


    I glared at him before picking up my trash and throwing it away in a nearby trash bin. I started walking towards the exit, knowingly leaving Danny behind. I could hear him calling after me, and then a few moments later he was by my side panting.


    "Not cool, Juliet."


    I stuck my tongue out at him before flashing him a smirk, and he nudged me playfully. After several minutes of us walking in silence, he spoke again.


    "So¡­what about you?"


    "What about me?" I questioned.


    "Are you into guys? Girls? Both? Neither?"

 13. Cody Burton (Naomi)

    It had been a week since my family had come to campus for "Welcome Back" weekend. Just as I thought, seeing them gave me a small vacation from my anxiety over my social life on campus. Despite knowing the rest of the semester was going to be a big hurdle for me, I was looking forward to the clubs that I had joined. The video game club would meet on Tuesday evenings, and the anime club met up on Friday evenings.


    Last night was the first meeting of the semester for the video game club, and I was anxious to meet the club members since introductions and I were like oil and water. However, once we started talking about actual video games, I was able to relax a bit. All of the club members were kind to me, which was something I wasn''t used to. I admit I actually enjoyed myself, and it sucked that our session only lasted an hour.


    Today was Wednesday, and the day went by pretty quickly. Though, I noticed that my homework load had gotten heavier, so I was currently in my room, working on it. It wasn''t due for a few days, but I refused to let my school work pile up and fall behind.


    "Did you even eat today?!" Calinida implored.


    I bit my lip guiltily. "Yeah..." Between classes, and trying to get homework done, all I managed to eat was an apple, and I drank a bottle of water. But if I told Calinida that, she''d probably throw a fit.


    "You''re a terrible liar, Lovebug. You need to eat something," she insisted. "You can''t get good grades if you''re sick."


    That was definitely true...


    "I can just eat that last cup of ramen from our stash," I told her.


    "No you can''t."


    I glanced over at my cousin, who was laying on her own bed with her laptop in front of her.


    "And why is that?"


    "Because it''s gone; I ate it," she retorted.


    "Fine¡­ I''ll have a frozen dinner¡ª"


    "Nope, they''re all gone too. You must have eaten the last one and don''t remember or something because the freezer in our minifridge is empty. We''ll have to go shopping, like tomorrow," she answered.


    I sighed. No more ramen, and no more frozen dinners, that meant I had to actually go get something from the Dining Hall before it closed. Unless, we ordered take out¡­ I checked my phone for the time, and there was only twenty minutes left before it would be too late for me to buy something at the Dining Hall. Could I make it? I pondered.


    "You think I could make it to the Dining Hall and cash out before closing?"


    I watched as my cousin peeked at the time on her laptop, and then she sneered.


    "Good luck! You know you won''t be the only student trying to get their crap at this time of night. All the stoners got the munchies," Calinida chuckled.


    Damn¡­she was right... Twenty minutes was pushing it.


    "Just come with me to the cafe. My friends just invited me, and the place sells food."


    The only thing I liked from her whole sentence was the word "food". And what cafe was open at nine o''clock at night?! It sounded sketchy to me.


    "A cafe that stays open this late?" I questioned.


    "Yeah I guess so," my cousin shrugged. "Don''t worry, I swear I won''t lose you this time."


    She grinned. I really didn''t want to be around Calinida''s friends again, but now, I was pretty hungry, and my hunger outweighed my social anxiety.


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    "You better not," I retorted.


    "I won''t, I promise!"


    "Fine," I relented.


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    After Calinida and I met up with her friends Sloan, Trish, and Deedra, we headed to the cafe. The car ride was awkward, which I expected. No one talked about a single thing I was interested in, so of course I just stayed quiet. Thankfully, the drive to the cafe wasn''t long, and before I knew it we were pulling into the parking lot. A white neon sign with the words "Lava Java Cafe" was on the front of the building.


    Once Trish parked the car and everyone got out, all that Calinida''s friends cared to talk about was who would be inside the cafe. As we passed by the cafe''s window, making our way inside, Calinida''s friends squealed.


    "What?! What is it?!" Calinida implored.


    "Oh my god! I think I see a few of the guys from the baseball team in there!" Deedra swooned.


    I watched as my cousin and her other two friends glanced through the window.


    "You''re right!" Trish gasped.


    "How do you even know what the guys from the baseball team look like?" Sloan questioned Deedra.


    "I tried out for the softball team here, which Was a success by the way," Deedra replied, then paused to flip her hair and smile. "Some of those same guys were there, and told me they played on the team."


    Calinida and her friends began to debate on where to sit. I wanted to sit towards the back, away from people, but they wanted to sit close to the guys from the baseball team, so guess where we ended up? Two tables down from them. We weren''t seated long before a waitress came over to us and handed out menus.


    Once we all ordered, the waitress collected our menus and walked off. We happened to be sitting close to the exit, so anytime someone came into the cafe we got a full view. While we waited for our drinks, another group of girls sauntered in. They were talking loudly and giggling before they headed in our direction. The girls stopped at the table where the guys from the baseball team were sitting, and started chatting with them.


    "Look at the way they''re throwing themselves at those guys," Deedra scoffed.


    "Calinida, isn''t that the president of Kappa Gamma Nu?!" Trish questioned, her voice low and her tone hysterical.


    "Yup," my cousin replied.


    The waitress returned with our drinks, and handed them out. I don''t do any coffee related drinks because it makes me more jittery, so I ordered hot chocolate.


    "Didn''t the two of you sign up to pledge for that sorority?" Sloan asked.


    "Yeah. We both start pledging next week," Calinida announced.


    "Congrats!" Sloan exclaimed.


    "I knew you two would be accepted," Deedra added with a wide grin.


    "Thank you," Trish replied and smiled.


    Calinida flashed a huge grin as well. "Thanks!"


    As I waited for my hot chocolate to cool, the sound of Calinida and her friends talking faded into the background, and this weird feeling came over me. Soon after I couldn''t help but stare over at the guys from the baseball team. I had to admit, none of them were ugly, however¡­ That sensation I felt, it seemed to draw my eyes to one particular guy¡­


    This boy had dark brown hair that was long enough to cover his eyes, and he had light skin. I ogled him as he talked to a girl with bright blonde hair. My heart pounded as I stared at his lips, imagining what his kiss would taste like. I slowly looked up from his mouth until I reached a pair of piercing hazel green orbs that were gazing back at me. I swallowed hard.


    "Who''s that?!" I blurted.


    Calinida and her friends giggled.


    "What''s so funny?" I questioned.


    "You''re practically drooling," Deedra retorted. Then everyone giggled again. I could feel my body overheat with embarrassment, reaching all the way to my ears.


    "Who could blame her!" Trish chimed in. "They''re sexy as hell!"


    Sloan and my cousin nodded in agreement.


    "Well, that one said his name was¡­" Deedra began, referring to the guy I was staring at, but then she paused to think before she spoke again. "Burton!"


    "Burton...?!" Calinida, Trish, and Sloan, implored at the same time.


    "Yeah, Burton. Cody Burton," Deedra affirmed.


    Cody Burton... I thought to myself¡­ Who are you?

 14. The Unexpected Number (Naomi)

    I expected today to be like any other Thursday, but it wasn''t. I mean it started out normal, I got up that morning around ten to get ready for my eleven o''clock French class, and made it on time. After class, I grabbed lunch from the Dining Hall, and brought it back to my room before eating. I usually had two hours to spare before my next class, which was Calculus, and today was no different.


    However, on my way to Calculus was when the unexpected happened¡­ I saw him! Cody Burton. The way he walked, the facial expression he was making, the way his hair blew in the wind, the way his lips looked¡ªeverything about him in that moment made my heart stop beating. I wasn''t sure if he saw me too, but he didn''t wave or say anything to me.


    My body seemed to be frozen in place as I continued to watch him walk away. Pull yourself together Naomi! I mentally screamed at myself. I shook my head, attempting to force my thoughts of Cody Burton out of my mind. I began rushing toward my class room, not even knowing what time it was, and by the time I got there, I found out that I was actually a couple minutes early.


    I had to admit, the entire time I was in class, all I could think about was him¡­ And part of me felt guilty about that. I was still undoubtedly attracted to Juliet...but Cody¡­ What was it about him that made me feel so...enchanted? It bugged me that I couldn''t understand my feelings, especially when I was allured by two different people right now.


    Once my class was over I headed straight to my dorm room since Calinida and I had to go grocery shopping. While I was on my way, my phone chimed, signaling a text. At the time, it didn''t cross my mind to stop and look at my phone, so instead I kept walking and looked at my phone. It was a text from my cousin, and I was just getting ready to read it when I bumped into something that was solid...and soft¡­? I looked up quickly, and a pair of hazel green eyes gazed back.


    "Are you okay?" a deep, yet sweet voice spoke.


    "Y-Yeah¡­" I uttered.


    "Hey, don''t I know you?" he asked.


    I shook my head. There was no way he could have remembered me from the cafe¡­


    "Yeah¡­ I''ve seen you before... Where was it¡­?" he furrowed his brows and stroked his chin for a moment. Suddenly, he snapped his fingers and smiled. "I got it! I saw you at that cafe downtown!"


    I blushed. How the hell did he remember who I was?! I was astonished.


    "I''m Cody Burton, by the way. It''s nice to meet you," he affirmed and stuck out his hand.


    I glanced down at his hand, then back up at his face. Cody was now sporting a charming smile, one that showed his teeth. I got butterflies immediately, but I forced myself to shake his hand anyway.


    "Naomi Warner¡­ Nice to meet you too," I replied.


    "Well, I have to get to class, but um, we should exchange numbers. My Frat is holding a big party soon. I can text you the details," Cody offered.


    This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    I swallowed hard. I couldn''t believe this guy¡­this unbelievably sexy guy¡­wanted my number. What was going on?! Without thinking twice, I pulled out my phone and tapped the screen. He took my phone from me, then put his phone in my hand. I realized quickly he wanted me to add my name and number to his contact list, so I did. We switched phones again, and I put mine back into my pocket.


    "I hope I''ll be seeing you soon, Naomi," he said and smiled.


    Cody walked away, leaving me flustered, and still very confused about our encounter.


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    Calinida and I were walking around the grocery store, shopping for our favorite things. Thankfully the grocery store wasn''t too far away from the school, so we were able to take the bus. However, taking the bus meant that we couldn''t buy too much because we still had to carry it back to our dorm. And that was going to suck majorly.


    "Next time, maybe one of your friends could give us a ride," I said.


    "I don''t want to seem like someone who is a moocher!" my cousin countered. Then she sighed. "But...you''re right, we need to use a car next time. Do you think one of our parents would let us borrow one of their cars for the year?"


    I shrugged. It was a big possibility that our parents would be okay with that. Calinida and I had proved to our parents time and time again how responsible we were, so there really wasn''t a reason for them to say no.


    "Yeah, I think they would," I replied.


    After buying as many groceries that we could, we waited for the bus. This was only our first time using the bus line in Sutlow, therefore we didn''t even know the schedule times. We waited for at least twenty minutes before a bus fully pulled up in front of us. Each of us carried four bags of groceries onto the bus, and then once we got back to campus, we carried those same bags all the way back to our dorm.


    By the time we got back, the both of us were breathing heavily. We took several minutes to relax and settle in before putting away the things that we had bought. I was sitting at my desk, getting ready to do some homework when my cousin spoke.


    "I was so focused on shopping I didn''t ask how your day was, Lovebug," Calinida said.


    Her question made me realize that I hadn''t stopped thinking about Cody Burton since I''d seen him earlier¡­ I usually never fawned over anyone, let alone someone I barely knew. Yet, I found myself oddly transfixed on him, despite the fact that he wasn''t even here!


    "I saw that guy again today¡­ Cody Burton," I told her.


    "You what?!" she asked in disbelief. "And you''re just telling me NOW?!"


    I bit my lip. "Yeah¡­ It was very weird¡­"


    "Weird?! Are you crazy?!" I heard some movement, and then suddenly my cousin jumped onto my bed. She was facing me with curious and excited eyes. "Well! Tell me what happened!"


    "I¡­ I saw him twice, and¡­ he wanted to exchange numbers¡ª"


    "You got Cody Burton''s number?!" Calinida gasped.


    I nodded.


    "Oh-my-gosh, I can''t wait to tell the girls!" she gushed.


    "No!" I blurted. "Why-Why would you tell them?!"


    "Because! You''re MY cousin, so therefore, I''m cool with Cody by association," Calinida affirmed with her arms folded over her chest. "And being associated with Cody helps with my reputation."


    I shook my head. Girls and their popularity, it never made sense to me, but Calinida was happy, so it made me happy too.


    "So let me get this straight, you''re using me now?" I questioned with a smirk.


    She grinned. "Don''t say it like that¡­! Anyway, what else did Cody say to you?"


    "That his Fraternity was throwing a party soon¡­"


    "Hey! I heard that around campus! I guess it''s a big thing here. Alpha Omicron Mu hosts a huge party every school year," she informed me. "Wait, did he invite you?!"


    "Sorta¡­he said he would text me the details at some point."


    "Naomi! Holy shit, girl! I think Cody''s into you!"


    I found myself smiling¡­ Why was I smiling¡­?! There was no way I could have this crush on Cody¡­ I mean, honestly he wasn''t even my type! A jock who had this playboy air about him? What was I thinking?! And then...thoughts of Juliet flooded my mind¡­ She and I had just exchanged numbers too. What about us? Was I just going to push her aside for this Cody Burton¡­?

 15. First Text Jitters (Juliet)

    I woke up to the sound of my alarm going off. I reached over to my desk, grabbed my cell phone off the charger, and shut it off. Then I noticed the text messages I got from Danny and my brother Benjamin. I answered Danny''s text first because he wanted to confirm that we were still on for lunch, and after that I replied to Benjaman, who just wanted to have a general chat.


    Today was Friday, and I was glad it was the weekend. I was looking forward to the first Anime club meeting this evening as well. I only had one class today, which was "African¨CAmerican History: From the Beginning", and that was around three in the afternoon. Since I knew my class was so late in the afternoon, I decided to stay awake past midnight last night and work on some sketches.


    Before I met Naomi, most of my sketches were of nature and animals. But now, I found myself sketching human faces instead, well...more like one particular face. Drawing Naomi had become a usual activity for me in the past few weeks, and I had really enjoyed it.


    I realized I was daydreaming about Naomi again when I should have been getting ready to have lunch with Danny. I yanked back my blanket and got out of bed, then I found something to wear. I decided I wanted to take a shower, but I had to be quick.


    Once I was done, I got dressed and brushed my hair before styling it. I parted it down the middle, and pulled both sections of hair into buns that rested on my neck. I finished my look with a pair of black boots and I was all set.


    I put my phone, and badge in my purse before hanging it on my shoulder, then I left the room. I locked the door and made my way to the Dining Hall to meet up with Danny.


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    "Did you finish your homework for your African¨CAmerican History class? I know you said you were struggling with it last night," Danny said right before he took a bite of his taco.


    I shook my head and finished chewing before I answered. "Yup. Finished being the key word, I don''t know if any of it is right."


    He chuckled as he chewed the food in his mouth. While we continued to eat, Danny''s phone went off. He took it out of his pocket and a huge grin spread across his face. It made me curious.


    "Who is that?" I asked with my eyebrow raised.


    "Huh?"


    "I asked, who was it that just texted you¡­"


    "Oh!" Danny replied with an awkward chuckle. Then he got this mischievous look. "I will tell you who it is, but you have to do something first."


    "What?"


    "You have to text Naomi."


    At this point, Danny knew that I had this MAJOR crush on Naomi. He knew how much I wanted to get closer to her, and he knew that Naomi was also a supernatural being. Her and I had exchanged phone numbers a few days ago, but neither of us had texted the other yet.


    "Seriously? Forget it then, I don''t care that much about your stupid text¡­" I lied and frowned.


    Danny laughed. "You know you suck at lying."


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    I folded my arms across my chest and stuck my tongue out at him.


    "Fine. Whatever. I''ll text her!" I declared. My words sounded confident, but I was a ball of nerves. What if this whole time I was wasting my efforts¡­?!


    I pulled out my cell phone and scrolled through my contact list until I found Naomi''s number.


    "What do I say?" I asked.


    "What? Seriously?" Danny scoffed. "You could literally say anything, dude! Just start with a simple ''Hey''."


    I gave him the death glare for his sarcasm. Although he was right, there were plenty of things I could have texted her. I was just thinking too much. I kept it simple, like Danny suggested and typed out the word "Hey", then sent the message.


    Satisfied with my decision, I waited for her reply eagerly. I happened to look up at Danny, whose attention was back on his own phone, and once again he wore a goofy smile, like he was lost in his own little world.


    "You owe me an answer," I said as I tilted his phone downward with my finger.


    Danny''s grin faded into a grimace, and he bit his lip. Based on his expression, I became apprehensive about the person he was texting with.


    "Who is it, Danny?" I asked.


    "It''s¡­ It''s Benji¡­"


    I was confused. Benji? He never mentioned any Benji before now.


    "Please don''t be pissed! Your brother and I just clicked when he came to visit, and we¡ª"


    "My brother¡­?"


    Then reality seemed to hit me all at once. The "Benji" that Danny was talking about was MY Benji¡­! My big brother Benjamin!


    Danny cringed. "Y¨CYeah¡­"


    So many emotions washed over me at the same time, I wasn''t sure which emotion to act on. Part of me was weirded out but part of me found it kind of cute too. I knew what kind of man my brother was, and if I was being honest, I knew that he would do right by Danny. Although I''d only known Danny for a month, I got this sense of sincerity when I was around him. I felt that I could trust him, and If I could trust him, then I could trust him with Benjamin''s heart as well.


    "Juliet¡­?" Danny''s voice brought me out of my thoughts. "You''re mad at me¡­!"


    "Danny, I¡ª"


    "I''m so sorry! I really thought it would be cool if he and I were friends¡­ I didn''t mean to make you feel uncomfortable or make you upset," he rambled.


    "What I was going to say was, Danny, I think you and my brother being friends is great."


    I gave him a kind smile, and his face lit up with joy.


    "Really¡­?! I''m so relieved! And happy!" he said with a chuckle.


    As we started cleaning up our trash, my phone chimed. I checked my phone quickly, admittedly hoping it was Naomi l, and it was!


    Hey.


    I typed out "Hey" and then erased it¡­ Jeez, what was wrong with me?! I already said that! I thought to myself. I typed out something new before sending off the text.


    What''s up? How are you?


    I''m doing well, how are you? And not much. Currently relaxing before my class, and then later I have a club meeting.


    I was surprised that she said so much in her text. In person she was much less talkative. However, it made me feel good that she was even responding and I smiled.


    "It''s Naomi, isn''t it?!" Danny exclaimed.


    I glanced up at him and he was grinning.


    "Yeah, it''s her," I said. Then I texted her back.


    That''s good! I''m doing pretty well myself. I have class in a little while too and then I also have a club meeting this evening. Anime club.


    Anime club? At 6?


    That was odd...how did she know what time my meeting was? Maybe her meeting was at the same time or something.


    Yeah! How did you know??


    I''m in the same club ??


    She was in the same club?! Finding out this news made me grin uncontrollably. Not only was I excited for the club meeting, but now I felt a sense of exhilaration knowing I''d be seeing Naomi!

 16: Anime Club, Assemble! (Naomi)

    I sent a smiley face emoji to seem chill, but my stomach was lurching! I was in the same club that Juliet was in! Despite the fact that Cody had appeared in my life suddenly, I couldn''t deny that I still felt something about Juliet. I mean I must have, right? It gave me butterflies knowing I would see her more often from now on.


    How did I expect to concentrate in class after learning that both Juliet and I joined the Anime club?! All I could think about was her and pulling myself together in order to socialize with her. I threw myself backward on my bed, and my head landed on my pillow. Just thinking about interacting with Juliet made me feel like I was being weighed down by some invisible force. Having anxiety sucked.


    My phone dinged, letting me know I had another text message. I immediately thought it was Juliet and sat up quickly to check my phone. When I looked down at the screen, I was surprised to see that the message wasn''t from her¡­ It was from him, Cody. And there it was again, that feeling of suddenly being thrust into a...love triangle?! ME?!


    Hey Naomi, it''s Cody.


    I took a deep breath before typing out my reply.


    Hey!


    Hope you''re doing well. And I hope I''m not interrupting?


    I''m doing good, I hope you are too¡­ And no! You''re not interrupting.


    It was still so surreal to me that someone as popular and handsome as Cody would be giving me the time of day!


    Okay, cool! And I''m also doing very well, thanks for asking.


    Do you remember the party I had mentioned before?


    My heart skipped a beat at his question about the party. He still wanted me to go...?!


    Yeah, sure ?? What about it?


    I just wanted to let you know that it''s next weekend.


    I will text you again once it gets closer if you want. ??


    Just the idea of going to that house party made my skin crawl. I became even more anxious than I was before! I really didn''t want to disappoint Cody, but at the same time, I knew what kind of person I was. How was I supposed to survive a giant house party?! I could barely survive class!


    Yes, please lol great idea!


    See, in a text message, I could pretend that I was confident and excited. But in reality, my palms were sweating and my throat was dry.


    Sounds good! We''ll talk soon ??


    Why had I agreed to go to this party anyway?! I mean, what was I thinking?! Did I really believe that I could magically erase my mental health diagnosis before the party, or something?! It became too much to think about so instead, I got ready for class.


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    Class seemed to end quickly today, and I knew exactly why. I was sweating¡ªI HATE sweating¡ªand I couldn''t stop fidgeting around in my seat. Class ending only meant that the time for Anime club was getting closer! What if she wanted to talk to me¡­?! What was I saying, of course she''d want to talk to me!!


    This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    The real question was how was I going to handle the pressure?! I went back to my dorm and unpacked my school things. After that I began pacing, and I paced until Calinida startled me.


    "Lovebug, you''re pacing," she stated.


    "I have a club meeting tonight!"


    "So¡­?"


    "Juliet will be there!"


    "Who''s Ju¡ªwait! Is this girl your crush?!" my cousin exclaimed. She sat me down on my bed, then dropped her school bag and purse to the floor.


    "Yes, I guess you could say that¡­ I definitely have a thing for her, we just don''t know each other well."


    Calinida was grinning for a moment, but her expression became confused.


    "Hold up! What about Cody Burton! I mean, he''s such a hottie! You can''t deny that."


    "Ugh! I know! That''s exactly why I was pacing!" I grunted. I stood back up, but my cousin grabbed my wrist, and pulled me back down onto the bed.


    "Don''t start again," she said firmly. "So...you''re saying you like Juliet and Cody¡­?"


    "Not exactly¡ª"


    "O-M-G!" Calinida squealed. "This, this is so much to take in, it''s like a tv show¡ªno!" She gasped. "This is a soap opera!"


    Did my cousin really just call my current circumstance a soap opera?! I needed her for moral support, not humorous encouragement! I knew I''d have to deal with the feelings I had toward Juliet and Cody...eventually, however, I was more antsy about the club meeting tonight because that was happening very, very soon.


    "Cali!" I blurted. "I have a more important concern right now!"


    She just stared blankly.


    "I have to see Juliet at the club meeting, which means she will want to talk to me, like regular people usually do at social events, except I''m clearly NOT regular, as you know¡ª"


    "Woah, woah, slow down¡­ First of all, social anxiety is very common. Second, you don''t give yourself enough credit! Listen, change is uncomfortable, but I know what you''re capable of. I know you can do this."


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    The club meeting was going to be held in a smaller classroom, located in one of the Art buildings. I couldn''t stop thinking about my cousin''s big speech as I walked, and I groaned to myself. She had so much more confidence in me than I had in myself...this was how she set me up! Everytime she gave one of her inspirational speeches, I always felt like I had something to prove afterward!


    Before I knew it, I reached the "Art 3" building. I balled my hands into fists at my sides, and took a deep breath before going inside. The room number was three-hundred-thirty-one, which meant it was on the third floor. I decided to be lazy and use the elevator, I got on, then pressed the third floor button.


    As the elevator doors were closing, I looked down at the floor. I waited for the usual ding of the elevator, letting me know the doors were shut securely, but it never came. Instead I heard this soft thud and looked up to see someone''s hand in the middle of the doors. When they opened again, I froze instantly.


    "Naomi! Hey!" Juliet greeted me. "I didn''t expect to see you until we got to the meeting."


    I nodded in silence, still in shock, and unable to function like a normal person. The elevator ride seemed like it lasted for days¡­ The awkward quiet only amped up my edginess, but if I was being honest, the longer I stood next to her, the more at ease I became. Juliet gave off this aura of calmness and it drew me to her.


    "So, you excited for the first meeting? I''m sure it won''t be the best, though. I bet we''re doing some kind of ice breaker game," Juliet said.


    "Y-Yeah, you''re right. I wouldn''t be surprised if they make this meeting short," I replied.


    I¡­replied! I was able to form a real sentence! Maybe I could do this! Maybe Calinida was right, maybe I didn''t give myself enough credit. Or maybe, just maybe, Juliet was in her own category...

 17. A Dignified Pledge (Calinida)

    This week was rush week. I knew it wouldn''t be anything severely harsh or insanely dangerous, like you see in the movies, but I still didn''t know what to expect. Thankfully, Trish was pledging right alongside me, so I felt better knowing that I wouldn''t be alone. I was currently on my way to the Dining Hall to meet Trish for lunch. We decided to try the Asian cuisine place today, the Jade Leaf


    There were so many students in the Dining Hall, it took me a few minutes to even get over to the Jade Leaf, but as I got closer, I saw Trish standing off to the side.


    "Hey Trish!" I greeted her.


    "Hey girl, hey!" she replied.


    We hugged before getting into line to order our food.


    "How was class?" she asked.


    "It was alright, boring," I answered. "To be honest I didn''t really pay attention. All I can think about is the sorority house meeting later."


    Trish nodded, "I know, it has my stomach in knots. I''m surprised I have an appetite."


    I gave her a reassuring smile.


    "I''m nervous too, but we are going to get a bid. Trust me."


    The line moved pretty quickly, and we got to order our food. Our food was passed to us over the counter, we swiped our school cards at the register, and then we found a table to sit at. We ate together quietly for several minutes before Trish spoke again.


    "Calinida¡­ What if...what if only one of us gets a bid tonight?"


    I hadn''t thought of that¡­ I would be really upset if only one of us was invited to pledge, but I also would be happy for Trish if it was her. And I needed her to know that.


    "Trish, we''re both going to get a bid. I know it!"


    "But¡ª"


    "But," I interrupted her. "If only one of us were chosen, I would be bummed. And if you were chosen over me, I''d be super happy for you and would still support you in any way that I could."


    Trish smiled brightly at me. "Thank you, Cali¡­ And I would feel the same. I would be thrilled for you, but also very sad I couldn''t share the experience with you."


    Hearing that made me feel good.


    "Thanks, Trish."


    Trish and I threw away our trash and then left the Dining hall. I had two more classes and then an hour break before it was time to go to the sorority house. I took that hour to go back to my dorm room and try to relax.


    The hour flew by, like I expected, and I was headed out the door as my cousin was coming in.


    "Where are you going?" she asked.


    "The Kappa Gamma Nu house meeting."


    "Right! Good luck."


    "Thanks!"


    Naomi shut and locked the door behind me as I made my way down the hall.


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    Once we were done with the house meeting, Trish and I walked back to the bus stop. Thankfully it wasn''t too long we waited before the bus came, and we headed back to campus. Trish and I lived in different buildings, so we parted ways after reaching campus, and I went to my dorm. Naomi was doing homework, but she stopped when I came in.


    "Hey! How did the meeting go?"


    "Well, this whole week is ''rush week'' for Kappa Gamma Nu. So, I will be focused on doing my best to become a pledge."


    "Rush week?"


    "Yeah. Basically after the week is over, the higher ranked sorority members decide who they want to invite to join the organization this year," I explained. "Usually during rush week the candidates, like me and Trish, do things for the senior members, and based on how well we do these things, that determines if we are given a bid¡­"


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    "A bid?" my cousin questioned.


    "That''s the term that''s used for the invitation to join. It''s called a bid."


    "Ew. It sounds like you guys are cattle, or like¡ªa possession!


    I laughed, "You would make that connection."


    Naomi smiled. I started getting undressed so I could take a shower while my cousin continued to chat with me.


    "So what kinds of things do you have to do exactly?"


    "I''m not sure yet, it''s different for every organization. The president said she would have the secretary send out a text about the next step for us."


    "I hope it''s nothing crazy...or dangerous!"


    I shook my head. "Of course not! That''s against school policy. If anyone got caught or if someone told¡­ The sorority would be disbanded."


    "Well that''s good then¡­"


    Naomi seemed relieved and that made me smile.


    "Don''t worry Lovebug, whatever they throw at me, I''ll be ready."


    After taking a much needed hot shower, I got into my pajamas and climbed into bed. The next day, I had just left my morning class when my phone chimed. I looked at the screen and saw that I had gotten a text message from Bree Matts. Bree was the Kappa Gamma Nu secretary.


    Hello potential Kappas! It was really nice to meet everyone last night! If you are receiving this text, it means you have been chosen to take the next step! Please look out for another text within the next few days, letting you know when your interview is! P.S: I hope this gives you ladies an incentive to do your best; Alpha Omicron Mu is throwing their first BIG party of the year! And any girl who gets a bid, will be attending...


    Xoxo - Bree


    I was so thrilled about possibly going to the fraternity party that I was bursting at the seams! I had this intense urge to share my news with Naomi so I rushed back to the dorm right after class.


    She wasn''t in our room, which meant she was in class, but that gave me time to get ready for my next class. By the time she had gotten back I couldn''t sit still. Naomi must have noticed right away because she stared at me as soon as she came into the bedroom.


    "Why are you so excited?" Naomi asked as she took her headphone out of her ears.


    "How did you know I was excited?"


    She smiled. "Your body language¡­ You look like you''re ready to jump out of your seat."


    "Okay! You''re right! I''m over the moon!" I exclaimed. "I found out that I''ve been picked to advance as a candidate! AND I was also told that anyone who gets a bid for Kappa Gamma Nu, gets to attend a Frat party! It''s next weekend¡­ Actually, the fraternity who is hosting the party is Alpha Omicron Mu. The same fraternity Cody Burton is in¡­"


    My cousin''s cheeks turned red. She put her school stuff on her desk and started taking off her sneakers.


    "Congrats, Cali¡­"


    "What? What is it?! Why aren''t you thrilled for me?!"


    "I am!" she objected. "You know I am¡­ It''s just...I think that''s the party Cody invited me to¡­" Naomi replied.


    My jaw dropped open.


    "You...you talked with him¡­?!"


    "Yeah¡­ He texted me about it last week."


    "Wait, wait, wait¡­ So, Cody Burton invited you to a party...?!"


    She nodded.


    "Are you gonna go?!"


    "Go where?" she asked.


    "To the party!"


    "You know I''m not good with parties, Cali! There''s no point to even entertain the idea of me going!"


    After finding out that Cody had invited my cousin to one of the biggest parties of the semester, there was NO way I was going to let her get out of showing up!


    "But why?!" I protested. "Don''t you think Cody is cute?"


    "Well, yeah, but¡ª"


    "And, wouldn''t it be cool to hang out with him? Especially at one of the biggest social events of the semester."


    "I mean, I guess¡ª"


    Naomi didn''t look convinced, but I wasn''t giving up.


    "I will be there!"


    "You will¡­?"


    "Of course! Are you seriously doubting I''ll get into the sorority?! Well, thanks," I said playfully. My comment made her grin. "Besides, don''t you think it would hurt Cody''s feelings if you weren''t there?"


    "No! He probably has a million friends," she retorted.


    I put my hands on my hips and sucked my teeth. Although she was right, he probably did have a ton of friends, but still!


    "So?! He asked you personally! Come on! It will be fun! I will even do your makeup for you¡ª"


    "Makeup?! Oh no...no! Cali I can''t¡ªI just can''t!"


    "This debate is over, you''re going," I said firmly and crossed my arms in front of my chest.


    Naomi blinked a few times, as if she didn''t understand what I''d just said. I gave her a firm look, and she scowled.


    "Ugh! Fine!" she groaned. "But I''m not wearing a dress!"


    "Deal!" I agreed happily. Then I clapped my hands together excitedly. "This is going to be so cool!"

 18. Theres A First Time For Everything (Juliet)

    It was Friday night. Danny and I were watching a movie in his room since his roommate was out. I was laying on his bed, while he was sitting in a lounge chair he brought with him from home. About halfway through the movie he paused it, which made me look at him with a raised eyebrow.


    "What''s up?"


    "I wanted to ask you something," he replied.


    I waited for him to continue.


    "Well, my brother Dean¡ª"


    "Your brother Dean?!"


    "Yeah I have an older brother¡­"


    "Why am I just finding this out now?!"


    "Because he and I aren''t close, really¡­ I mean, we''re not estranged or anything¡­"


    "Well his Frat is throwing their first party of the year tomorrow night and I was gonna go but¡­ I didn''t want to go alone¡­"


    I smirked instantly, I couldn''t help myself.


    "Are you asking me to be your date to a party?"


    "Not in that way! I know that you''re gay, and so am I."


    So Danny was gay! I knew it! My suspicions were finally confirmed! Well partly, I still had to find out if Danny had a legitimate crush on my brother Benjamin.


    "Anyway, are you gonna tag along, or not?"


    "Absolutely! I would never pass up the chance to see my peers get wasted and make asses of themselves," I chuckled, and Danny laughed along with me.


    After the movie I went back to my dorm. Danny insisted on walking me back, which was super sweet of him. I made him promise to let me know that he made it safely back to his room, and he did. Soon after I got undressed, and put on my pajamas, I heard my phone chime. It was a text from Danny, telling me he was safe.


    Thankfully Heather was out, probably partying, and I was happy about that. Her presence alone annoyed me. I put my phone on charge, and left it on my desk before climbing into bed. I fell asleep thinking about the party and what it was going to be like¡­ I also thought about Naomi¡­ If only I could invite her to go.


    The next day Danny texted me to ask if I would eat lunch with him and I agreed to go. We met up and decided on sandwiches so we could eat them outside. We figured it would be the least messiest food choice. We found a bench and sat down together. Both of us began unrolling the wrapper to our sandwiches when Danny spoke.


    "What are you wearing tonight? That is if you''re still going¡­?"


    His brown eyes smoldered. Clearly he thought I was going to change my mind.


    "Stop that, I told you I was going."


    Danny smiled, "Good." Then he took a bite of his sandwich. He chewed a little before speaking again. "So what are you wearing?"


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    I finished chewing my own food before answering him.


    "I have no idea. Jeans and a tee?"


    Danny nodded. "Going comfortable, good idea."


    "What are you wearing?" I questioned.


    "Dark blue jeans, a gray button up, and probably some sneakers¡­"


    "A button up?! This party isn''t fancy is it?"


    "No, I just don''t want to hear Dean''s mouth about my usual attire¡­ It would totally kill my vibe."


    I laughed, and after that we ate the rest of our lunch in a peaceful silence. Once we were done, we went our separate ways. There were hours before the party, so I decided to get some homework done. I got through a few assignments before I needed to take a break. I stretched, then got up from my desk and laid down on my bed.


    I fell asleep thinking about her¡­as I did most nights. I should have texted Naomi today but¡­ She made me so nervous! Every time I thought to text her or even if I thought about her in general, I got sweaty and my heart raced. But something had to give if I ever wanted Naomi and I to be closer!


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    It was Saturday evening and I was putting together an outfit. I tried calling Danny a couple times to see if he''d come to my dorm to help me, but he didn''t answer! I''d finally found something I wanted to wear. I chose my coral colored sleeveless shirt that had the word "dope" in aqua colored letters printed on the front of it, and my pair of black skinny jeans, the ones with the rips in the thighs and knees.


    I took the shirt from the closet and hung it on the back of my desk chair, then I took the jeans out from my dresser, and laid them out on my bed. I was about to get dressed when my phone started ringing. I grabbed it from my desk, saw Danny''s name on the screen and answered the call.


    "Danny!"


    "Sorry, sorry! I was trying to get us some treats for tonight¡­"


    "Treats¡­? What do you mean?" I questioned.


    "You''ll see when I get there," he said curtly.


    "You''re on your way? Good, I need help with my outfit¡­ That''s why I''ve been calling you!"


    "Okay, okay! I''m coming! See you soon!"


    "See you soon."


    We both hung up, and I tossed my phone back onto my bed. I figured I could get dressed in my shirt and skinny jeans while I waited for Danny, but I still needed his advice for the final touches. Several minutes later I heard a knock at my door, it had to be Danny. I rushed over to answer, opening the door, and he was standing in the hall.


    "Finally!"


    "Yeah sorry, I had to get¡ª" Danny paused and stepped past me into my dorm. He was being suspicious and I had no clue why.


    I shut the door and followed him to my room and he shut the door behind us.


    "You''re roommate isn''t here, is she?" he asked.


    "No¡­ Why?"


    "The treats I mentioned¡­" Danny grinned. He took out a small sized sandwich bag with green pieces inside of it.


    He had...pot...!? Danny had brought weed onto school grounds, and then came to my room with it!


    "Danny!" I scolded in a loud whisper. "What the hell?!"


    "Chill out¡­ I promise you won''t get in trouble. You have no idea how many kids smoke in their rooms. We won''t be doing that," he told me.


    "Smoke it?! Since when do you smoke weed?! Where did you get it from anyway?!"


    "I know people," he replied with a smirk. "And I started smoking my senior year of high school, I just don''t do it all the time."


    I couldn''t believe that Danny was into smoking pot. I was so shocked! Though, if I was being honest with myself, marijuana was a drug I was willing to try, but I was too nervous to do it. Danny took something else out from his pocket, it was a small cardboard wrapper that had white papers inside.


    "What are those?" I inquired.


    "Someone is sheltered," Danny retorted and smiled. "They''re called ''rolling papers''."


    "Oh¡­ So what are you going to do?"


    Danny chuckled. "I''m rolling us some joints!"

 19. Faded (Danny)

    I rolled us enough joints to last the rest of the night, and put them all in a separate sandwich bag that I had brought along with me. I wasn''t sure Juliet would smoke as much as I had planned to, but I wanted to be prepared just in case.


    After helping Juliet with her outfit, we made our way out into the hall. Juliet locked up her dorm room before we headed downstairs and outside. I waited until we reached the parking lot, which took ten minutes to get to, and pulled out the bag of joints.


    "Hey!" Juliet hissed and scanned the parking lot quickly. She glared at me with panicked eyes.


    "Calm down, calm down¡­" I replied. "It''s fine. It''s windy enough tonight that the smell will be carried away from us."


    Juliet bit her lip as she glanced around the parking lot again.


    "You trust me, right?"


    I could tell she was thinking about an answer. Part of me was hurt because she didn''t say yes right away, but at the same time, I also knew how hard it was to trust someone¡­ I knew all too well¡­ However, Juliet and I had become so close over the last several weeks.


    "Yeah! Of course I do!" she answered.


    I nodded, "So trust that I won''t let you get in any trouble."


    She nodded.


    "Okay, good...because my parents would kill me!"


    I took out a lighter from my pants pocket and lit the joint. I inhaled slowly, letting the smoke fill my lungs. This would be the first time I had ever been to a Frat party too...and it wasn''t just any Frat party. It was a party thrown by the fraternity my older brother was in.


    I held out the joint for Juliet to take, and she took it hesitantly.


    "Don''t inhale too fast," I warned her. "You''re a newbie after all."


    She nodded and put the joint to her lips. I watched as she inhaled, but she inhaled way too much for her very first hit; smoke came out her nose.


    "Too much!" I exclaimed.


    She started hacking as I took the joint back. I patted her on the back gently, trying to help, but I only made it worse! Her eyes began to water and she clutched at her chest. I felt awful! After several minutes Juliet was finally able to regain her composure. I ended up letting the joint blow out because I was so concerned for her. She glanced up at me with beet-red eyes.


    "J-Juliet? Are you okay?"


    "I''m...good," she replied, her voice a little slow-paced.


    I grinned. She was definitely high!


    "You don''t need anymore right now," I chuckled. "I will finish this."


    "I can hit it one more time!" she protested.


    "Oh, so now you know the terminology?"


    She smirked. "Just spark it."


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    By the time we got to the Dean''s house, Juliet could barely keep her eyes open, and she thought every single thing was hilarious. It made me happy that she was enjoying her first high. As we walked to the front door, I could hear loud hip-hop music. It was booming; there was no way anyone would hear me knocking.


    "I''ll be right back!" I shouted above the music.


    "What?! Where are you going?!"


    I walked through the door and opened it from the inside so Juliet could get in. An understanding grin spread across her face and she came into the house. The house was already pretty crowded so I made sure to hold onto Juliet''s hand as we made our way through the house.


    "Damn, you could get lost in here! Even without all the bodies," Juliet commented.


    "Yeah, tell me about it¡­ I''ve only been here one other time and I did get lost," I retorted.


    We found ourselves in the kitchen, which wasn''t as crowded as the rest of the house. We happened to be by a window and I glanced out of it, seeing the backyard. There were a bunch of people in the pool and hanging out around it. There was trash all over the grass though; Dean and his house mates had a lot of cleaning to do tomorrow.


    I turned to Juliet and she was sort of bopping along to the music. I suddenly felt my phone vibrate in my pocket, and I took it out to see why. I''d missed two texts from Dean. I texted him back, letting him know that I was in the kitchen, and several minutes later I saw him come into the room. He pushed his way through everyone in the kitchen until he reached Juliet and I.


    "Hey, little brother!" he greeted me, shouting over the music. He looked at Juliet and checked her out quickly before giving me a smirk. "Please tell me this hottie has turned you!"


    "Turned me?! Really?!" I shouted back, my tone was flat.


    My brother laughed.


    "Well, who is this?! Aren''t you going to introduce us?!"


    "This is Juliet, my friend!"


    "I see¡­!" he said and faced Juliet again. "It''s nice to meet you Juliet! You look great tonight!"


    Dean was flirting hard with her and I had to admit, it brought me joy knowing he was wasting his time. I folded my arms across my chest and smirked to myself.


    "Can I get you something to drink?! Vodka?! Beer?!" he asked her.


    "I''m good!" Juliet replied curtly.


    "I''ve got to know, are you single?!"


    I knew that was coming, but I wanted to watch him crash and burn. And Juliet seemed to know exactly what I was thinking.


    "Oh, yeah! I''m single! I''m also a lesbian!"


    I couldn''t hold back from laughing after her remark, her blatant sarcasm was hilarious. My brother glared at me and punched my arm.


    "Ow!"


    "You''re a dick!" he told me. Then he looked back at Juliet and his expression became apologetic. "I hope you enjoy the party!"


    "Thanks!" she replied.


    Dean frowned at me before making his way back through the mass of guests. Juliet exchanged smirks before we burst into laughter. After a few minutes we were able to regain our composure.


    "Did you really want some beer?!" I questioned her.


    "Um¡­" she trailed off.


    I felt bad at that moment. First smoking, and now this, I didn''t want to pressure her¡­ I also felt afraid, afraid that she wouldn''t like me after knowing that I did those things...


    "Nevermind! I''m¡ªI''m sorry Juliet! If you want to stop being friends¡­ I get it! I should have told you that I was into smoking and drinking¡­!"


    Her eyes widened. "Woah, what?! Danny! I''m not judging! And I don''t have a problem telling anyone no, including you! Besides, we''re in college!" She smiled. "We''re cool! I''m not your mom! But to answer your question, yeah I''ll have a beer! Why the hell not?!"


    I was relieved. It made me feel so much better knowing that Juliet and I were good. I smiled back at her.


    "Okay! Let''s try and find the kegs! Hopefully there''s beer left!"


    She nodded. I took her hand and guided her out of the kitchen. We bobbed and weaved past people, finally making it to what looked like a den. I could see a few kegs sitting in a corner, so I headed over to them. The kegs were actually sitting on two tables, and numerous solo cups were stacked beside them. I hoped the beer tasted decent.

 20. Cody Burton Is A Vampire...?! (Juliet)

    Danny grabbed two cups, and filled each of them with beer from one of the kegs on the table. He handed me one of the cups.


    "Don''t ever put your drink down, and don''t ever take a drink from anyone random!" he told me over the music. "It could be drugged."


    He had a good point there. I nodded in understanding, and then Danny held his cup out for a toast, I presumed. I tapped my cup against his before we both took a sip of beer. I''d never had beer before, just a bit of wine at dinner with my parents'' permission. The beer was bubbly, like a caffeinated soda...and the flavor was a bit tart. I scrunched up my face, a response that seemed to happen without my control, and glanced at Danny.


    He didn''t seem to have a problem with his drink at all, though he has had beer before. He must have seen my expression because he chuckled.


    "What''s wrong?! You don''t like it?!" he asked.


    "It''s okay, I guess!" I told him and shrugged.


    "Do you want something else?! Like something stronger?!"


    "No! I''m good!"


    I knew it was my first college party, but I was already high, I didn''t feel like I needed anything stronger than beer. I didn''t want to end up so wasted that I couldn''t remember what happened the next day.


    After a few more sips of beer, it didn''t taste as pungent and I could already enjoy it more. That one cup turned into three, and before I knew it, Danny and I were dancing along with everyone else. I was lost in the music, swaying my body to the rhythm, when suddenly a chorus of people started shouting the word "chug" repeatedly.


    Despite the music being so loud, the group of chanters was even louder somehow. The noise caught everyone''s attention, including Danny and I. And at the same time I happened to spot someone familiar¡­ That hair, that body¡­it was Naomi! But it was hard to keep track of her in the mass of bodies.


    All of my senses were screaming at me to go over there and confess my feelings. Before I could think about it any longer, I lost sight of her! She disappeared into the crowd and I felt deflated. I felt a tug on my hand and turned to see it was Danny.


    "Follow me!" he said, shouting over the music.


    He guided me through the house, never letting go of my hand, until we ended up in the backyard. It wasn''t as packed as it was earlier. Danny and I made our way to a vacant spot on the grass, and then he sat down. I followed suit.


    "Not as loud out here," he pointed out as he took the bag of joints from his pocket. He took a joint from the bag before putting the bag back in his pocket.


    "Yeah¡­"


    I was totally distracted. This party was huge, there was no way I would see Naomi twice¡­


    "What''s wrong?" Danny asked as he lit the end of the joint.


    I looked down at the grass before pulling some out of the ground. I felt the dirt and blades of grass in my palm, it was soft and cool.


    "I saw her," I muttered.


    "Saw who?"


    "Her¡­"


    "Naomi?!"


    I looked at Danny, who was shocked. He pushed his glasses up his nose before offering me the joint. I thought about it for a brief moment, and took it. I inhaled long and slow, feeling the smoke hit my lungs. I didn''t cough as much as I did earlier though, and I was grateful for that.


    "Yeah, she''s here," I told him as I exhaled.


    "Well, we gotta go find her then! It''s the perfect night for a first kiss," Danny coaxed.


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    "There''s no way we''re going to find her in there," I countered. I took two more puffs of the joint before I gave it back to him.


    Danny looked how I felt: defeated.


    "Damn, I''m sorry Juliet¡­ Maybe you will see her again tonight, it''s still early."


    I appreciated him trying to cheer me up, truly I did. But I knew deep down, realistically, there was no hope in seeing Naomi again tonight. I wasn''t sure how long Danny and I stayed out in the backyard, I guess however long it took us to smoke two joints.


    I felt amazing! The alcohol was hitting me, and the weed was hitting me all at once. My body felt like it was floating on air, and I was loving it! Danny and I went back inside, and found a small space by the stairway. I got into dancing again, but it seemed like the house had gotten even more crowded, so it was harder to move around.


    In fact, I felt this abrupt shove out of nowhere. Someone had run into me! I scanned my surroundings hurriedly, and caught sight of a guy rushing up the stairs. He was towing a girl along with him, and she seemed totally¡­ I knew that girl! That was¡ªNaomi?! Seeing her sobered me up real quick!


    Initially, I was hurt, I won''t lie...I really thought that she and I had a spark, a connection we could nurture¡­ But I guess I was wrong. As I watched them go upstairs I noticed that the guy Noami was with looked familiar. He was in one of my classes, a jock...Cody B¡ªsomething...a guy who was more popular than me? More attractive than me?


    The more I stared, the more I also observed that Naomi looked like she could barely stand on her own. And immediately my heart sank...What the hell was Cody up to anyway¡­? Despite knowing that Naomi probably felt nothing toward me, I wasn''t going to let anything bad happen to her!


    I hated that I had to take my eyes away from them, but I had to make sure Danny came with me, in case I needed backup. I spun around, and got Danny''s attention.


    "We have to go, now!"


    "Go where?!" he questioned.


    But I grabbed his arm and took off up the stairs, pulling him along. There wasn''t enough time to give him a detailed explanation. By the time we got to the second floor Cody and Naomi were nowhere in sight. I growled in frustration. How were we going to find them?! I thought frantically, trying to come up with an idea until¡­ Yes!


    "Danny! Naomi is in one of these bedrooms with a guy named Cody!" I told him, a bit out of breath still.


    "What?!" he questioned, confusion clear on his face. "Wait, Cody? His name sounds familiar...I think he is in Dean''s Frat."


    Of course he was.


    "Juliet, you say they''re in a room together¡­ Maybe Naomi and Cody are¡ª"


    "No!" I blurted.


    Danny bit his lip.


    "I''ll explain later. We have to find her, something is wrong!"


    "How?! How are we going to find her?"


    "I''ll sniff her out," I told him. I''d been around Naomi enough to know her smell by now.


    I started sniffing around the hallway, rushing from door to door. Finally I got a wift of her scent, it was faint, but it was definitely hers. It was probably being dulled by Cody''s smell.


    "This room! It''s this one!"


    "Are you sure?!"


    I sniffed again...I was sure.


    "Yes," I nodded.


    "What now?!" Danny implored.


    I banged on the door and waited.


    "Go away!" a male voice called out.


    We exchanged glances, and before we could discuss our next step, Danny passed through the door by using his power.


    "D-Danny!" I panicked.


    Suddenly, there were loud noises coming from behind the door, and I heard scuffling.


    "Danny¡­" I murmured to myself. I rammed my shoulder into the door and it didn''t budge. I raised my voice to a shout. "Danny!"


    I heard more scuffling, and then glass breaking.


    "Juliet!" Danny called out.


    Now I was pissed. Cody first goes after the girl I liked, and then he goes after my best friend?! I needed to get in that bedroom, and I knew there was only one way I was getting through the door. I allowed my emotions to fuel my power until I transformed.


    I backed up some, giving myself a little space. I readied myself, tensing my muscles, and then I sprung forward, using all of my strength. I aimed my front paws at the middle of the door, where I thought it might be the weakest. The door and I slammed down onto the floor with a loud crash!


    I took in the scene before me. Naomi was laying on the bed, dazed, while Cody had Danny pinned against a wall. Danny''s nose was bleeding, and anger coursed through me. Both of them stopped short when they saw me, well saw my animal form¡­ I growled possessively at Cody and his eyes grew as big as saucers.


    "W-Wolf!" Cody yelped, and let go of Danny.

 21. Numb (Naomi)

    It was Sunday today¡­ My body was heavy, and I felt numb. I stayed in bed, not doing homework, not playing video games...not even eating. All I could think about...no, more like dwell on, was what happened last night... I covered my head with my blanket and curled up into a ball.


    Last night. My cousin and her friends had boys to dance with. I was the awkward ninth wheel when Cody finally popped up. I had to admit I felt special, I mean who wouldn''t? This popular, athletic guy was actually interested in someone like me! But my gut never stopped me...never gave any alarms that I was being naive.


    I should have been smarter. And maybe that''s what hurts more¡­ that I was the stupid one for honestly thinking that he was interested in me. How could I not sense something was off with Cody...?! He is supernatural and yet, I sensed absolutely nothing¡­! Was I really that blinded by the crush I had on him? Was it because Cody just seemed so nice, so...kind? At what point did I let him have control over the situation? Over me¡­?


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    I stayed true to my word, and refused to wear a dress. However, Calinida begged me to let her do my makeup, so... I gave in on that. I ended up wearing a semi-casual top with off-the-shoulder sleeves, black leggings, and flats. It wasn''t the sexiest attire, but it accented my curves.


    "Please try to have a good time, Naomi!" Calinida told me, yelling over the music.


    Her, her friends, and I had just gotten to the Frat house. We made our way through the crowd until we found a table with cups and bottles of alcohol on it. There was also a couple of kegs of beer right behind the table. Calinida''s friend Sloan got five cups and passed them out to us. I wasn''t interested in getting wasted so I opted to fill my cup with beer.


    I had finished my whole cup when the others decided to refill their cups with more alcohol. I did my best to stay as close to my cousin as possible, but there were so many people! People who were...sweating! It was so packed I could smell everyone''s musty armpits. I almost vomited the beer I just drank. My whole night was going to suck, I just knew it.


    Suddenly, a thought crossed my mind¡­ Where was Cody anyway? Hadn''t he been the one who invited me to this stupid Frat party? I figured I''d check my phone to see if I missed a notification from him, and...nothing! He hadn''t called, texted, nothing! If I was being honest, I was annoyed and disappointed, and a little pissed at myself for thinking that Cody would really be into me.


    Just when I was ready to just say "forget it", a familiar face came into view. His familiar face...it was Cody! He approached me and gave me a hug. Honestly it was weird, but I hugged him back.


    "I''m so glad you came!"  he shouted over the music.


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    "Thanks for inviting me!" I told him politely.


    Calinida must have noticed him because then she also greeted him. Of course after realizing who my cousin was talking to, her friends also joined in, greeting Cody with flirtatious smiles.


    "Hey, ladies! Looking great!" Cody told them. He flashed a toothy grin, showing his canines¡­ Until then, I never realized how sharp his canine teeth actually were¡­ "So, I hope you don''t mind if I take this sexy one off your hands?!" He gestured to me.


    My whole body became feverish in an instant and I tried to hide my face a little.


    "No! Just make sure she''s back by midnight!" my cousin teased playfully and gave Cody a wink.


    He nodded before grabbing my hand, and tugged me away from Calinida and her friends.


    "I see you already had something to drink?" Cody asked, leaning closer so he could talk at a lower volume. I nodded. "Did you want another?"


    "No, I''m fine, thanks¡­" I answered. I also got close enough so that my voice was at a lower volume.


    He pulled back just enough to flash me that smile of his. My heart skipped a heart. As I gazed at him, his hazel green eyes seemed to burn...and they burned bright. Something about the way he was staring at me, it made me feel like I was the only girl at the party. Cody leaned in once more and spoke.


    "Then...should we go to my room?"


    His voice was deep and alluring, before I could even process my thoughts, I answered him.


    "Sure."


    But why were we going to his room? That was a stupid question, I knew exactly why, or at least, I thought I knew¡­ Cody was trying to seduce me. He wanted me in his bed¡­? None of it made sense, and yet I followed him without hesitation¡­


    Once we were in his room, everything came to light. He locked the door behind us and faced me, his eyes smoldering again, but this time, my whole body seemed to be affected by his gaze¡­. At first I thought it was because of the one beer I drank, however I realized quickly that the beer had nothing to do with it.


    Cody Burton had lost all sense of sweetness and kindness in that moment. The way he carried himself was totally different...Last night when I was alone in Cody''s room, he gave off an aura that made me shiver, and I became nervous. But for some reason, my feet seemed to be glued to the floor.


    I watched as he got closer. He was licking his lips and gazing deeply at the hollow of my throat.


    "C-Cody? Are you okay?"


    That''s what I wanted to ask, but no words would come out of my mouth.


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    Cody Burton was a vampire. And he tried to make a meal out of me. Vampires had this ability called "manipulation", an ability that renders their victims submissive. I couldn''t move or talk last night because Cody was using his powers against me; it felt like I was a puppet.


    I should have never given Cody my number! I should have known that even him engaging with me was too good to be true¡­ Now here I was, laying in my bed crying my eyes out. Another wave of emotion hit me and tears fell from my eyes. I wasn''t sure how long I was crying, but after a while my phone chimed.


    I sniffled as I slinked out from under the covers to reach my phone. It was sitting on my desk. When I saw the screen, I admit I was surprised to see that I''d gotten a new text. But I was even more shocked over who the text was from

 22. Our Confession (Naomi)

    Today was Monday, another week had begun, and I was feeling a bit jaded. Though, the text I''d gotten yesterday was surprisingly uplifting. I thought for sure that after what happened Saturday night, Juliet would see me differently¡­she''d see me as a freak¡­but instead she invited me to lunch. And despite the fact that I still wasn''t feeling like myself fully, I wanted to see her.


    Honestly, I hadn''t even thanked her for what she and her friend had done for me¡­ I was really sad for the rest of the weekend so I didn''t want to talk to anyone, not even my cousin. So, I agreed to having lunch because I wanted to thank Juliet in person¡ªI needed to.


    I was a bit slow getting ready for class, but I managed to make it there right as the professor started the lecture. Seeing Juliet sitting in the audience made my heart race¡­she really was beautiful. I got this giddy feeling as I made my way over to where she was sitting. She saved a seat for me, like usual, and I sat down beside her.


    "I got here before you?" she whispered. Then she flashed me a playful grin.


    "Pay attention to the lecture," I whispered back, and smirked.


    Once class was finished, the two of us took our time putting our supplies in our bags.


    "I hope it''s okay that we have lunch now," Juliet said.


    I nodded. "Yeah, I''m free now."


    "Great. What do you want to eat?"


    That was a good question, and honestly I didn''t eat much over the weekend. I didn''t realize how hungry I was until Juliet brought up food.


    "Definitely pizza."


    We left the lecture hall and made our way to the Dining Hall. It was a bit awkward, of course I couldn''t find anything to talk about and Juliet seemed to be lost in another world. Part of me was starting to get anxious until Juliet finally spoke.


    "Are you okay?"


    I was shocked that she asked me that. In hindsight it made sense, but at that moment it felt sudden.


    "Yeah, sure¡­ Why?"


    "I don''t mean right now¡­ I mean, are you okay, Naomi?" she questioned and gazed at me.


    Her blue eyes were so serious. She made me feel like she already knew my answer, but she wanted me to say it out loud anyway. I looked forward, no longer able to face her. I wasn''t okay¡­and I wasn''t sure when I would be.


    "What happened with Cody¡­ Don''t let him get in your head. He''s a total dick! Has he talked to you since?!"


    I shook my head.


    "Good¡­ I know I''ve apologized before but, I''m so sorry that happened¡ª"


    "Thank you Juliet¡­thank you and please tell your friend Danny thank you too¡­"


    Juliet touched my arm gently and we both stopped walking. We just gazed at each other in silence for several seconds.


    "You''re better than Cody, Naomi¡­ Better in all ways. Please, don''t use him as an example of true affection¡­ How he treated you, it''s disgusting, and someone will treat you better."


    Someone? I thought to myself. The way she said that¡­it was almost like she knew something I didn''t.


    "How do you know? How do you know someone is out there for me? I never had a relationship before, so¡­ I don''t even know if I''m relationship material¡­!"


    I didn''t mean to ramble, but I guess my insecurities had crept up on me.


    "Naomi¡­ Of course you''re relationship material! You''re amazing! You''re very smart, you have this personality that lights up a room! You are kind, and you''re confident in what you want in life!"


    I was stunned. Juliet was being so sweet¡­


    "I am?"


    "Yes! And¡­and¡­" she paused and bit her lip. "You''re the most beautiful girl I''ve ever laid eyes on¡­"


    The way she looked at me¡­there was a shift in the atmosphere. Juliet was no longer just being nice to me, her words were sincere. Did she actually like me? Had she had feelings for me this whole time¡­? And if so, why hadn''t she told me?


    "Juliet¡­"


    "Listen, I know that you are still hurting¡­but I just had to get it off my chest. It''s been weeks and I¡­" Juliet ran her hands through her long hair.


    "I like you too, Juliet." The words left my lips without hesitation. In fact, I didn''t even have to think about it¡­I always liked her deep down, and now without Cody as a distraction, my feelings for Juliet came back full circle. Like I was hit with a train. "I think you''re gorgeous¡­inside and out. And when we are together I feel¡­I feel more alive," I admitted.


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    Her bright blue eyes were wide with surprise.


    "So¡­ We like each other¡­?"


    I bit my lip and thought briefly about what had just happened. Despite how low I was feeling because of Cody, I knew deep in my heart that I still really liked Juliet. This was my true chance, and I wasn''t going to let it pass because of stupid Cody Burton! It wasn''t fair to myself.


    I nodded. "Yeah, I guess so¡­ If you couldn''t tell by now, I''m not the most outgoing person¡ª"


    "Oh, yeah, I''ve noticed," Juliet cut in with a big smile.


    I felt my cheeks burn.


    "Well¡­Admitting to you that I do want more than friendship with you took a lot¡­"


    "I''m so glad that you did though, and I''m so happy that¡­that we can explore what we feel¡­!"


    I gazed at her, in all her natural beauty. She wasn''t wearing any makeup, and her hair was a bit messy, but she was breathtaking. It made me wonder how I could even focus on Cody, when I had someone so amazing right in front of me!


    "I''m really happy too."


    We exchanged cute, but awkward smiles, and laughed. We finally made it to the Dining Hall and got something to eat. Lunch was mostly quiet, but the air between us was overtly different. We seemed to be leaning toward each other as we ate, we stole glances at each other, and sometimes when our eyes met, all we could do was smile at each other. I just couldn''t wait to see how things would unfold now.


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    After my school day was done, I made myself comfortable in my room and started homework. To be honest I was a little behind because I didn''t do any of my work over the weekend like I''d usually do, but I could catch up easily. Just had to stay¡­ *chime chime*


    My cell phone went off and I looked at the screen. It was Juliet. Of course I broke into a grin and texted her back quickly. I put my phone down on the bed next to me, right as Calinida came into our bedroom. When I looked at her fully, she looked exhausted.


    "Jeez, long day?" I asked, actually feeling bad for her.


    "Oh, God, yes¡­ Tell me again why I pledged?"


    Before I could answer her, she spun around and stared at me in shock. I thought something was wrong!


    "What! What is it?!"


    "You¡ªYou''re speaking! Does that mean you''re feeling better?!"


    Right. I hadn''t spoken to her since Saturday. Calinida had no idea what had happened¡­but it was time that I told her. I smiled at her for a moment, but then I became somber.


    "Yeah¡­ Cali¡­ There''s something I want to tell you."


    She dropped her stuff on the floor and sat down beside me. She was eager to hear what I had to say, but I was worried how she would react after hearing about Saturday.


    "Is it about Saturday? Because I really want to know!"


    I nodded and bit my lip.


    "Naomi, what happened? The last time I saw you Saturday night, some girl and some guy were hauling you out of the Frat house!"


    I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly before I told her the truth. After telling the whole story from beginning to end, she was mortified.


    "So¡­that girl who was helping you was Juliet? And that other guy was Juliet''s friend Danny¡­?"


    I nodded.


    "And¡­ Cody Burton is a psychopathic vampire who attempted to drink your blood¡­?!" Calinida asked angrily.


    I nodded again.


    "That asshole!" she shouted. "How dare he?! I mean¡ª" Calinida paused to scoff before continuing. "Who does he think he is?!" My cousin crossed her arms over her chest and scowled.


    "Yeah, I know¡­"


    "Jeez, Lovebug! I wish I''d known that was going on! I''m so thankful Juliet was there for you¡­ I''m so sorry¡­"


    Looking at her, I could see the guilt all over her face. That''s the last thing I wanted: my cousin to feel like this was her fault.


    "Don''t you even think about it¡­! You didn''t know and therefore could have done nothing anyway! Please, please don''t blame yourself, Cali."


    She bit in her bottom lip and averted her eyes. "I should have been there for you, Naomi!" she objected.


    "It''s really okay, Cali," I told her and placed a hand on her shoulder.


    "Do you forgive me?"


    Her eyes glistened as she looked at me. I flashed a tender smile.


    "Of course I do¡­ I love you Calinida. Thanks for being the greatest cousin anyone could ask for.."


    With those words her sadness became joy and she embraced me tightly.


    "I love you too, Naomi." We pulled apart and she frowned.


    "What''s wrong now?!"


    "Oh nothing¡­ Just plotting Cody''s death."


    We both burst into laughter and I felt so much better. Cody Burton was no longer on my radar, and never would be again!


    "By the way, I figured you''d be happy to know that I told Juliet I liked her¡­"


    Calinida gasped. "You did what?! Well?! What did she say?!"


    "Actually, she confessed to me first¡­"


    "Oh, really?" Calinida questioned in disbelief. After a moment, she smirked. "So are you two dating now?"


    "What? No! Damn, we just told each other that we liked each other¡­"


    "Okay, true, fine¡­. My bad," she shrugged.


    I shook my head playfully and my cousin stuck her tongue out at me teasingly. I was glad that Calinida knew about what had happened on Saturday night. It brought me this sense of peace. As for Juliet and I, we had taken a huge step today by confessing our feelings to each other. And frankly, I couldn''t wait to see our relationship grow!

 23. At The Fountain (Juliet)

    Over the next four days Naomi and I spent more time together. We would hang out and just talk about everything going on in our lives. We even chatted about the animal forms we shifted into.


    At first, she thought I was a wolf because on Saturday night she wasn''t exactly in the right state of mind. I would have thought the same thing. I had to explain to her that my family and I were Alaskan Malamutes. In return, Naomi told me that her family could shapeshift into red foxes, which I thought was really dope.


    Today we decided to meet up because we wanted to find a place on campus or nearby campus where we could shift without nosey bystanders. So currently, we were hanging outside by a small fountain that was located in between two dorm buildings, looking at our phones.


    Naomi was researching locations close to campus as possible places for us to go, while I was looking at a map of the campus.


    "We''ve already been to every place on this map! There''s no good spot for us to transform peacefully," I said in frustration.


    "Same here," Naomi replied. "The few good locations I came across are kind of far, like we''d have to take the bus¡­ And who feels like doing that?"


    "Not me!" I chimed in, and huffed. We were sitting on the grass right in front of the base of the fountain. The structure was high enough that I could lean back, and I did. I was annoyed.


    She looked back at me and smiled.


    "What?"


    "What about right here? At this fountain? I think if we came later at night, it could work!" she stated.


    I thought about it for a moment, and she was right. This area would practically be deserted after nine. I sat up and grinned.


    "I''m sold! This is our special spot!"


    The way she looked at me caused me to become a bit flustered.


    "Our special spot?"


    Her cheeks turned pink and she averted her eyes. The wind caused a few of her curls to blow across her face. Without thinking I tucked her hair behind her ear. She glanced up at me and I bit my lip. I knew that she was still shy, regardless of the fact that we''d become so much closer.


    "Too much?" I asked innocently.


    She giggled, "No¡­ It''s fine."


    I flashed her a bright smile and she smiled back.


    "So¡­when should we come back to our spot?"


    "How about tonight? We can even make it into a thing, like you could sleep in my room. My annoying roommate will be with her boyfriend all weekend," I said.


    She bit her lip, but her eyes smoldered.


    "Yeah, I''d really like that, Juliet¡­"


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    Later that day, around eight, Naomi came to my dorm with a small carry bag. I let her in and showed her to my room. I told her she could keep her bag on my desk chair, since I wouldn''t be using it for the next two days.


    "Where is your roommate?" she asked.


    I shrugged and plopped down onto my bed. "Don''t know, don''t care."


    "Oof, she''s that bad?"


    "She''s worse!" I countered.


    "Why don''t you go to the housing office and see if you can find another roommate? Sometimes you can switch dorms."


    "Tried that. You have to have a ''substantial reason for why your roommate isn''t suitable''," I told her, using air quotations with my fingers. "That''s what the housing manager said. And Heather hasn''t done anything considered substantial."


    "That''s bullshit!"


    "Yeah I know, so I just ignore her and she ignores me. It works for the most part."


    Naomi awkwardly stood in the middle of the room, and I found myself cracking a smile.


    "You know you can come sit down¡­" I told her.


    "Duh, of course," she replied quickly and clumsily sat down beside me. She blushed.


    I started laughing, and she joined in after a moment.


    "Don''t tell me you''re nervous. There''s nothing to be nervous about."


    I lied to her confidently. I was nervous as hell, but I didn''t want her to know that.


    "Juliet, I know you''re nervous too¡­"


    I was surprised, surprised that she was bold enough to call me out.


    "Who wouldn''t be nervous about a situation like this?"


    She was totally right. I became flustered and tried to change the subject.


    "So¡­what did you want to do after we got back from our spot? Should we watch a movie?"


    "Sure, we can. What type of movie?"


    "Anything but romance," I stated. "I''m sorry, but I''ll fall asleep."


    Naomi chuckled. "Okay, then maybe something more fast paced¡­ How about action?"


    "We could do that. I''m super into fighting flicks¡­"


    "I''m more into the drama thriller kind of action. Well¡­what is your favorite movie genre?"


    "My favorite genre is horror," I admitted.


    "Horror it is," she declared.


    I hoped that she was actually into horror films and not just being nice about it. Though, if she did get scared during the movie, it would be the perfect opportunity for me to make a move¡­nothing too extreme. Maybe she''d let me hold her hand or let me wrap an arm around her. Until she said otherwise, I planned on taking small steps with the romance.


    We chose to take up time by going to the Dining hall to eat dinner. By the time we were finished the sun was finally starting to set, but we still had about an hour before it was completely dark out. As we were leaving the Dining Hall, I got a phone call from Danny.


    "Hey!" I greeted him. I listened to what he had to say. "Yeah sure, we''re headed back to my dorm room¡­" I paused again to hear his response. "I''m with Naomi¡­" He spoke one more time before we hung up. "Yup. See you there!"


    Naomi looked at me expectantly.


    "That was Danny! He''s going to meet us at my room. I hope that''s okay?"


    "Of course! I''m actually eager to meet him officially," she told me.


    "Cool." I said with a smile.


    Danny met us outside of my dorm building, and then the three of us headed up to my room.


    "Naomi, this is Danny, Danny this is¡ª" I stated.


    "NAOMI!" Danny chimed. He hugged her and she laughed. "Oh! I hope it''s okay that I hugged you¡­"


    Danny blushed a little as he bit his lip.


    "No, no, it''s fine. I think anyone who did what you did for me last weekend definitely deserves a hug," Naomi replied with a big smile.


    I was really glad to see that my best friend and my crush were getting along.


    "So, what are you two doing for the night?" Danny asked.

 24. My Playful Little Fox (Juliet)

    I explained to Danny that Naomi and I were having a sleepover; we planned to watch movies and just chill for the night. However, I didn''t mention to him that Naomi and I were going to that fountain. After establishing that the fountain and the area around it was just for us, I was choosing to keep it private. I''ll admit it was a little odd not telling Danny, but I wanted to be respectful of Naomi and we hadn''t discussed telling anyone."


    "Oh, I see," Danny said with a smirk.


    Naomi''s not stupid, she caught on to his implication instantly. She bit her lip coyly as we looked at each other. I hurriedly slapped Danny''s arm, making him wince.


    "Yes! It''s just two girls watching movies and sleeping together!"


    Danny held back a laugh. Of course I''d say something like that at a time like this! I screamed at myself.


    "I mean, sleeping in the same bed! Not sleeping together!" I blurted quickly, correcting myself.


    Danny burst into a fit of laughter, holding his sides like the laughing caused him pain, and to my surprise, I heard the sound of Naomi''s giggling.


    I wasn''t sure if I was embarrassed, unimpressed or if I wanted to laugh along with them, but in response to their behavior I just put my hand to my forehead and sighed.


    "Naomi and I will get along just fine. She gets it," Danny said with a smirk.


    "Ha, ha, ha¡­ Very funny." I said sarcastically. Then I turned to Naomi with a groan. "Don''t encourage him¡­!"


    Naomi gave me the most adorable look of innocence, and I was like putty in her hands. Danny regained his composure and pushed his glasses up his nose.


    "Sorry! I couldn''t resist!" he voiced. "Anyways, when did you guys want to start your movie marathon?"


    She and I happened to look at each other at the same time, both of us knowing we still planned to go out and shapeshift before we watched movies.


    "A little later," I replied. "You have plans for the night?"


    "I hate to say it, but homework. I''m behind in my language class."


    "Danny, you better get your shit together. Finals are coming up."


    "Yeah, I know¡­thanks mom," he retorted with a half grin. "I guess I should go now then. Sorry our time was so short, maybe we can get together again tomorrow? The three of us¡­"


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    "Sure," I agreed. Then I looked at Naomi for her answer.


    She nodded eagerly. "That would be cool!"


    "Nice! Okay then, you two have fun while I''ll be drowning in homework¡­ Night!"


    "Night."


    "Night!" Naomi said.


    I walked Danny to the door and he gave me a mischievous look. He put up the "peace" sign with his fingers, placed them to his mouth, and started flicking his tongue between them. My ears burned immediately and I wanted to punch him! Instead, I shut the door in his face.


    I went back to my room, still a bit embarrassed by Danny''s gesture. Of course I''d fantasized about Naomi before¡­but I knew there was no way that she was ready for sex. We hadn''t even kissed yet! But I wanted to¡­I wanted to be intimate with her, I just didn''t want her to feel pressured or rushed. My thoughts were interrupted by Naomi''s voice.


    "Danny seems really cool, I like him!"


    "He''s alright, I guess," I said playfully. Then I became serious. "I''m really glad I met him, honestly."


    Naomi smiled, and I smiled back.


    "So, are we going to the fountain now?" I asked.


    Her smile got bigger and she stood up. "I''m so ready for this!"


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    After getting to the fountain, the moon was already up. Its reflection in the still water was beautiful. I guess after a certain time the fountain was turned off by the groundskeeper, stopping the streams of water it produced.


    "It''s so quiet out here," Naomi said.


    "Yeah... I guess you don''t realize how much background noise goes on during the day."


    Naomi shuddered a little and tugged on her hoodie, I assumed to keep herself warm.


    "Are you cold? We can go back if you want¡­"


    "No, I''m okay... Let''s just shift, then I''ll be even better," she replied.


    I nodded. After several seconds neither of us started transforming. I was confused, was she waiting for me to go first?


    "Should I¡­ change first?" I questioned.


    Naomi chuckled. "Oh, I''m sorry! I wasn''t sure what we were doing. I''ll go, I don''t mind."


    And as soon as the words left her lips, her eyes started glowing. Her transformation lasted less than a minute. She shrunk, and her clothes became bright reddish-orange colored fur. Her black ears twitched and she swung her black tail playfully. She was absolutely breathtaking¡­! The way her fur seemed to outshine the moonlight was just incredible!


    She sat down on the grass and gazed up at me expectantly. Now it was my turn. I wasn''t sure why I felt so nervous, shapeshifting was natural for our kind. To be honest, it had been a while since I last shifted and I missed the feeling of it. I cleared my mind and willed my body to transform. I knew my eyes were glowing as I started to shrink down.


    My clothes felt like spandex for a few seconds until my fur sprouted. My hands and feet became paws, and I could feel the earth underneath them. I wagged my tail briefly before approaching Naomi. Even in her fox form, I could tell she was smiling. She circled me then crouched down in front of me. She hopped around, and made this funny noise as she swung her tail.


    Was she trying to tell me she wanted to play? She came closer, stood up on her hind legs and put her front paws on top of my back. Before I knew it, I felt my ear being tugged. I barked playfully and she made that same noise again. She took off sprinting, and without hesitation I followed.

 25. The Sleepover (Naomi)

    I wasn''t sure how long we played out by the fountain, but we had so much fun! By the time we shifted back to our human forms, it was close to eleven o''clock. We walked back to Juliet''s dorm with our arms looped together. We chatted and laughed the whole way back.


    Juliet was majestic in her animal form¡­ Under the light from the stars and moon, it almost looked as if her white fur was glowing. It was so magical, and I don''t mean that as a pun¡­ I felt cheesy thinking about it all, but honestly, I didn''t care! Juliet made me feel romantic, she made me feel like I was special.


    When we got back to her dorm room, Juliet set up her laptop, and hooked it up to her TV via HDMI cord. Then she found the horror section on Hulu.


    "You don''t mind if I shower first, do you? I''ll leave the water on once I''m done."


    "Sure, no problem."


    "Sweet. Hey, while I''m showering, you can pick a movie," she suggested.


    "Good idea. I''ll start looking."


    She took out some pajamas, and a towel from her dresser before going to the bathroom. I went over to the bag I brought with me, unpacked my shower stuff, and put it on the bed. I figured a nice hot shower would be nice.


    Next, I started browsing through the movies, taking time to read each synopsis. Most of them sounded cheesy, and it seemed like I wasn''t going to find anything interesting. Just as I came across a movie that had a decent description, I heard Juliet come out of the bathroom.


    I smelled so many aromas when she came into the room; her natural scent, the scent of her shampoo, and the scent of her body wash all mixed together¡­ It made my heart race.


    "All done," she said as she dried her hair with her towel. "I left the water running in case you wanted to shower too. I''m sure you feel gross. I know I did."


    After she was done, her hair still wasn''t fully dry, and¡­she looked even more exotic with her hair damp like that! My palms started to sweat and I could feel butterflies in my stomach. I knew it was only my anxiety kicking in, but for the first time, I actually liked it! There was something seriously alluring about Juliet, something that I wanted to embrace. I wanted to be around her all the time.


    I guess I hadn''t realized just how long I was staring because her voice brought me back to the present.


    "Naomi? Are you¡­gonna shower?"


    "Y-Yeah! I''m going to shower. Thanks." I said clumsily.


    I carried all of my things, including my pajamas into the bathroom. I got undressed, then stepped into the tub. I admit it wasn''t long before I got lost in my thoughts¡­ Dirty thoughts¡­ While I stood under the water, all I could focus on was what Juliet looked like under her clothes¡­ And moments later my hands ended up between my thighs.


    I knew it was the worst time to be doing something like that, but I needed to. After I finished, I quickly washed my body and my hair. I turned off the water, then got out to dry off. I put on my pants and t-shirt, grabbed the rest of my shower supplies, and grabbed my towel before leaving the bathroom.


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    "Where should I hang my towel?"


    "I''ll just hang it next to mine for now."


    She took the wet towel and hung it over her door beside her own.


    "Oh, and I picked a movie since you didn''t," she said whimsically. She smirked and I grinned back.


    "Yeah, I couldn''t decide¡­"


    I was still embarrassed by the fact that I touched myself while Juliet was only a few feet away! I could feel my cheeks burn and I tried to hide my face by putting my stuff back into my bag as slowly as possible.


    "Should we turn off the lights?" Juliet asked.


    "Turn off the lights¡­?"


    "Yeah¡­ You aren''t scared, are you?" she teased playfully.


    "What? No, I''m not scared," I stated. And I wasn''t. I was nervous! What if she wanted to hold hands, or cuddle, or¡­kiss! What if she tried to kiss me?!


    "Lights off then," she declared.


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    So the next day, I was woken up by the sound of someone yelling out in the hall. The walls in the dorms were so damn thin. I opened my eyes to the sight of a peacefully sleeping Juliet. We were face to face, and my heart started racing,


    Last night we ended up falling asleep after watching two movies. I admit it was difficult for me to stay calm at first, laying next to her under one blanket only made my heart beat in overdrive. But once I finally was able to settle down, my eyes felt heavy and I fell asleep.


    I guess at some point during the night we turned toward each other. At that moment the urge to pee hit me, and I frowned. I really didn''t want to wake Juliet up, but I had to get out of bed. I carefully uncovered myself, then slowly made my way off of the bed.


    I was feeling pretty proud of myself. Then suddenly someone yelled again in the hallway, and I cringed. I turned around to see if it woke Juliet up, and it did. She sat up halfway and yawned. I sighed to myself.


    "Hey," she said sleepily. "Going to the bathroom?"


    I nodded. "Be right back."


    I went to the bathroom, washed my hands and face, then went back to the bedroom. By then Juliet was sitting up all the way with her legs crossed indian-style.


    "How did you sleep?" Juliet asked. "And sorry if I hogged the blankets." She bit her lip.


    "No, no! You were fine! Everything was fine¡­"


    "Oh good. You didn''t have any nightmares did you?" She questioned. Her tone was playful.


    I rolled my eyes. "No. I slept like a baby," I told her, and put my hands on my hips.


    She laughed and she stood up. We were inches apart; I dropped my arms to my sides. My heart stopped, my palms began to sweat, and my tongue went dry. She was just so close to me¡­! How could she be so calm?! Was she faking it?! Was she pretending to be calm on the outside, but was truly freaking out on the inside?! Because I was clearly losing it!


    Juliet smiled. My heart melted and I got this urge to hug her, but I was too nervous to actually do it.


    "I had a great time last night. We should definitely do it again," she said.


    I seemed to be unable to form coherent sentences, so I decided to nod.


    "And¡­ Um¡­" she trailed off. She finally walked around me, giving us distance. "I¡­was wondering if¡­"


    When I turned around to face her, she had her back to me. I guess she was nervous? Until now, she never acted shy like this¡­ Juliet spun around and gazed at me.


    "Would you go on a date with me?" she blurted.

 26. Hearts In Overdrive (Naomi)

    I was stunned. So stunned my jaw dropped. Did Juliet just ask me out?! All of a sudden my legs felt like jelly, and I was so flustered that my entire body became feverish! Even my ears were burning a little!


    Yes! My answer was "yes" without a doubt, but no sound came out of my mouth.


    "I''m¡­I''m sorry, is it too soon? Am I moving too fast? Just forget I said anything¡­" Juliet rambled.


    I was going to lose my chance to go on a date with Juliet because of my social anxiety! I refused to let that happen!


    "Yes!" I exclaimed. Actually, it was more like I practically yelled at her. I bir on my bottom lip anxiously. I felt like a fool¡­


    "R-Really? You wanna¡­go on a date with me?"


    Did Juliet not realize how amazing she was? I mean, on what planet would anyone decline to go on a date with her?! A grin slowly spread across her face as she seemed to process what just happened.


    "Yeah¡­I''d love to go on a date with you," I told her, then bit my lip shyly. And I''d meant it. Going on a date with Juliet was going to make me a nervous wreck, but my heart was settled on going.


    "Is tonight good?"


    "Tonight?!" I implored.


    "We can wait! We can totally wait¡ª"


    "Tonight is fine," I cut in. "Tonight is¡­great."


    Being around Juliet was like a drug¡­but not in an obsessive way¡­at least, I didn''t think so. She made me feel good about myself, just by being herself. I somehow felt lucky to have her attention, and it''s different from Cody. Getting his attention was like winning an award. Having the attention and being wanted by Juliet was like¡­an oasis of happiness. An oasis that felt eternal.


    I never thought I''d ask this question, but Juliet was important to me, and I wanted to impress her. "What¡­ What should I wear?"


    She was surprised at first, but then her expression changed, and it seemed like she was thinking.


    "That''s a good question¡­ Nothing too fancy! Just wear something casual, I guess," she answered.


    Casual?! What did that mean?! Did that mean jeans and a nice top? Or did that mean like some slacks with a fancy top?! But wait¡ªJuliet said not fancy! I almost went into a panic attack, but then I remembered I knew the best person to ask for clothing advice! In fact, she was my cousin!


    I nodded.


    "Sounds good¡­ Where should we meet? What time should we meet?"


    She grinned, "The fountain? Let''s say seven?"


    I smiled back.


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    "The fountain at seven. I''ll be there."


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    After getting back to my dorm room, I put away the stuff that I''d brought with me. Calinida wasn''t there so I assumed she was out with her friends or doing something for her sorority. I pulled out my phone clumsily, still jittery from the anxiety I was feeling about going on an actual date with Juliet, then dialed Calinida''s number.


    She picked up after a few rings.


    "Hey Love Bug!"


    "Cali! I need your help!" I blurted out.


    "What?! What is it?! Are you okay?! Are you hurt?!"


    I realized that my cousin mistook the hysteria in my voice as me being afraid.


    "No, I''m sorry, I''m fine¡­ Well, sorta¡­"


    "Sorta?! Do I need to come back to our dorm?"


    "No, no¡­" I told her. Which was a total lie! She needed to come back to help me put together an outfit!


    "You don''t sound convincing at all."


    "Okay, so, Juliet asked me out on a date¡ª" I managed to say before Calinida shrieked in my ear.


    "A date?!" she gasped. "And let me guess! You need my help choosing something to wear?! Yes, of course I''ll help you!"


    "Thank you," I replied.


    "And you said I didn''t need to come back, pfft," she said whimsically.


    It took about fifteen minutes before my cousin came bursting through the door. She was clearly excited about my request. Calinida started rummaging through her clothes and mine, in attempts to dress me up for tonight.


    After trying on several outfits, I decided on one. And Calinida highly approved of it. I was wearing a red blouse that had lace on the top half and there was a bow near the hem. My leggings were made of faux leather and hugged my legs. To be honest, I actually felt pretty hot! Dare I say, sexy even! The leggings really accented my curves, and the blouse showed off my hour-glass figure.


    Calinida did my make up and my hair for me to finish off my look. And I decided to wear a pair of black boots.


    "Naomi¡­You look incredible!"


    I blushed.


    "You''re just saying that¡­"


    "No, really! You look gorgeous!" she exclaimed. Calinida paused briefly, then talked again. "I mean, you''re gorgeous regardless, but right now you look¡­amazing!"


    "Thank you, and thanks for all your help," I said with a grateful smile.


    "It was my pleasure! Please text me when you can! And I want details later tonight!"


    I chuckled and nodded. "Okay, okay. I will."


    It was close to seven by then, so I got ready to go. I grabbed everything I needed before hugging my cousin and leaving our room. I was so nervous that I began sweating pretty hard! I did my best to calm myself down because I didn''t want to sweat so badly that I started to stink!


    As I made my way to the fountain I kept reminding myself to take slow, deep breaths. I didn''t realize I was walking so fast until I could see the fountain a few feet away. Damn! I was here already?! The nerves I''d just settled spiked again, and I thought I was going to go into full panic mode.


    The closer I got to the fountain, the easier it was to see that someone was standing on the other side of it. It had to be Juliet¡­ As I walked over to her, she noticed me, and she gave me a big smile.


    Seeing her put my heart into overdrive¡­

 27. The Glass Dream (Naomi)

    I mean, Juliet made my heart race on a normal day, but after I saw how she looked tonight¡­ I was worried my heart would beat right out of my chest! If this was "casual" for her, I could only imagine how gorgeous she looked for a formal event!


    She had on a cream colored dress that was sleeveless and flowed down to her knees. There was a thin piece of material attached at the top that tied around her neck, and near her chest was an open space, showing off her cleavage. Finally, she wore her hair down tonight, it looked silkier than ever, and it glowed under the moonlight.


    "Are you ready?" she asked.


    I nodded. I admit, I was still speechless.


    "I figured we could take an Uber to the restaurant."


    I nodded again, still unable to form words.


    Juliet giggled and looped her arm with mine. "Let''s wait in the parking lot," she said.


    We walked back through campus, reaching the parking lot minutes later. Juliet tried to make conversation, but I was just a hot mess! I was overcome with nervousness and barely said a word! But thankfully, we weren''t waiting too long before our Uber showed up.


    We got in the car and the driver drove off. Juliet never told me what we were doing tonight or where we were going, and I was very curious. I guess I didn''t realize how curious about it I was until now; I was so caught up in my nerves.


    "Where are we going?" I asked.


    "So you can talk! I thought for a moment you lost your voice," she teased playfully.


    I smiled coyly. Before I knew it, I felt my cheeks burn as well¡­ I was blushing!


    "S-Sorry I''ve been so quiet¡­"


    "It''s fine¡­I get it, you''re nervous. So am I¡­"


    "Really?"


    She nodded.


    "You don''t seem nervous at all!" I blurted.


    She laughed. "I''m nervous¡­ It''s just that I''m pretty good with pushing through it."


    I wanted to know more about the experience behind her statement, but I didn''t push it.


    "So, where are we going?"


    "Oh, right. We''re going to a restaurant."


    I raised an eyebrow.


    "You''ll see when we get there," she told me and grinned.


    The drive wasn''t too long, but it was long enough to make my anxiety spike again. There was so much going on in my head: what restaurant were we going to?! Was it fancy and expensive?! And also, did she expect me to show affection at all tonight?! Were we¡­ Were we going to have our first kiss¡­?!


    I hadn''t realized how long I''d been in my own mind until the car stopped. I looked out the window and to my utter surprise we were at The Glass Dream! Of course she''d choose a place like this! To be honest, I was afraid that she would! This restaurant was upscale, and I''d never been to it before, but I heard that it was spectacular.


    We got out of the car and entered the restaurant. We walked up to a podium, where a woman stood behind it.


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    "Hello, ladies. How are you doing this evening? Do you have a reservation?"


    "Hi, we''re doing great, thanks," Juliet replied. "And no we don''t have a reservation."


    I was super relieved she took the lead.


    "Alright, that''s no problem," the host said. "Will it be a table for two, then?"


    Juliet smiled. "Yes, please."


    The host nodded, and grabbed two menus from behind the podium before coming around to stand in front of us.


    "You can follow me."


    The host seated us, then placed the menus down on the table in front of us.


    "Thank you so much," Juliet said.


    "Thanks," I muttered.


    "No problem. Your server for the night will be back to take your order in a moment. Enjoy."


    The young woman walked off before we could thank her again. I had to admit, I was grateful, I really didn''t feel like socializing with anyone besides Juliet.


    "So tell me, what are you in the mood for?"


    What was I in the mood for?!


    "Anything that you''re like, craving to eat?"


    Oh¡­food! She meant¡­food¡­


    "Um, well¡­ I guess not really. Anything¡ª" I began, but Juliet chimed in with me at the end of my sentence.


    "Other than the campus food," we said at the same time.


    We paused briefly before laughing together. And it was a genuine laugh on my part! Even in this room full of people, somehow Juliet was able to make me feel comfortable. She always had this way of easing my anxiety, without even trying!


    "I''m thinking maybe a nice fish meal¡­" she started to say then stopped and her eyes lit up. "Ooh! Steak!"


    I chuckled, she was so cute. After looking over the menu I lost all sense of humor¡­the prices! This place was more than expensive, it was a place priced for the Gods!


    "J-Juliet¡­ I can''t afford this!" I stammered.


    She looked up from the menu and our gazes met.


    "Naomi, I asked you out on a date¡­ Don''t worry about any prices. Just order what you want, seriously. I''ve got it covered."


    I was stunned. She had it covered¡­? What kind of jobs did her parents have?! She giggled.


    "Yeah I know what you''re thinking¡­ But don''t worry. I get an allowance from my parents. My dad is a doctor and my mom is a lawyer¡­"


    Her tone changed at the end, like she was deflated. Maybe her parents were a sore subject¡­ Still, I didn''t like that she seemed upset.


    "What is it? Is something wrong? I mean, it''s really cool that your parents are in those fields," I said.


    "Yeah, I guess¡­ It''s just¡­ Because they do have such esteemed careers, I have a lot of pressure on my shoulders," she muttered, and laughed wryly.


    "Juliet¡­ You can tell me," I assured her.


    She sighed.


    "I''m the youngest, and the only daughter. I''ve always had so much pressure put on me¡­ So many expectations of who I''m supposed to be, and who I will become," she rambled. "It''s so tiring, and so much stress, on top of the stress of school itself!"


    She stopped talking, and we gazed at each other. I could see tears welling up in her eyes and it pulled at my heart¡­ But she sniffled, dabbed at her eyes with her fingers and laughed softly.


    "I refuse to ruin my makeup¡­"


    Her statement made me smile.


    "So¡­ I dumped on you, now it''s your turn."


    I panicked. Her and I were so much more alike than I thought. Just thinking about my own inner struggles of family pressure and personal insecurity took my anxiety to its max! But to tell her¡­out loud?


    "Naomi?"


    Hearing my name brought me back to the present. Juliet seemed to notice my change in demeanor.


    "We don''t have to talk about it, okay?"


    I shook my head. "No¡­ I want to tell you."


    Before I could speak again, our server came.


    "Hello, I''m Beth. I''ll be your server for the night. Can I get you anything to drink?"

 28. Her Diamond Eyes (Naomi)

    "Yes, please. That would be great," Juliet replied. "I''ll take a sprite, no ice."


    Beth took out a small notepad, and a pen from a pocket in the apron she was wearing. She wrote down Juliet''s request, then looked at me expectantly.


    "Right, um¡­ I''ll have a sweet tea, please."


    Beth wrote it down. "With lemon or without lemon?"


    "Oh¡­ With."


    Beth smiled.


    "Are you two ready to order yet?"


    We both shook our heads at the same time.


    "No problem. I''ll go ahead and get your drinks for you. You two ladies take your time looking at the menu."


    Beth smiled again before walking off.


    Juliet sighed deeply, "I still haven''t decided!"


    I looked over the appetizer section quickly, and chose something for us.


    "We should do the spinach, and artichoke dip, with the homemade corn chips," I told her.


    "Yeah!" she said eagerly. "That sounds yummy! What is that? Like an appetizer?"


    I nodded.


    "Cool. That''s settled¡­ But what about dinner?"


    "What if we¡­each pick something we both like and share it?"


    The words left my lips so smoothly, I was shocked at myself! Where did this boost of confidence come from?! Maybe it was the fact that I felt closer to Juliet knowing that we both shared familial pressures. I wasn''t sure, but I liked the feeling.


    She nodded eagerly. "Okay! That sounds fun!"


    I smiled. We both focused on picking something out, although, telling her about my home life was still on my mind. After Beth came back with our drinks, we continued to look over the menu. I finally decided on something basic: chicken parm. Juliet decided on a fish meal that came with seasoned rice and another side of her choosing.


    We flagged Beth down and told her what we wanted. She said she put the order in, so now we just had to wait. I took that chance to speak to Juliet about my own insecurities with my family¡­


    "Juliet?"


    "Yeah?"


    "I just wanted you to know that¡­ I wanted to tell you¡­ I¡­" I muttered.


    She was watching me closely.


    "I told you, Naomi¡­we don''t have to¡ª"


    "But I want to! I¡­ I want you to know me as deeply as I want to know you," I told her. "That will only happen if I talk to you, so¡­" She waited patiently for me to continue. I took a deep breath. "I have always felt like I''m in my cousin''s shadow."


    Juliet''s eyes were full of emotion as she listened to me.


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    "For my entire life I saw Calinida as prettier than me, and of course she''s always been thinner than me. She was always so popular in our schools growing up and I barely had any friends. I think I had one friend, and she ended up moving away! Even the teachers at school


    We fell silent, waiting on our food, and we stayed like that for several moments before she spoke.


    "I''m really happy that you said yes."


    I gazed at her.


    "To this date¡­ I¡­ Since the first time I met you, I wanted this. To be in your life as more than a friend."


    I was speechless, and she giggled softly.


    "I''m being weird, right?"


    I shook my head, "No, not at all."


    She looked at me curiously.


    "I felt the same way¡ªI mean, I still do. I know I''m awkward, but¡­ Being here with you, like this¡­ I''m really happy too," I admitted. My heart was racing so fast that I thought I was going to pass out.


    She grinned from ear to ear and laid her arm across the table, extending her hand out toward me¡­ She¡­she wanted to hold my hand¡­? I slowly moved to grab hold of her hand, but before I could reach it, the server came back with our food.


    We shared everything! We ate together gingerly, enjoying the meal, but more so enjoying each other''s company. Every now and then between taking bites of food, the two of us would exchange glances.


    Once we got back to campus, we both decided to end our night at the fountain¡­ Our special spot. We walked hand in hand, chatting about how the food at the restaurant tasted. Her hands were warm and seemed to fit with mine perfectly. I loved being with Juliet.


    "Naomi¡­I¡­ I want you to know that you really do look breathtaking tonight."


    My heart melted. "Th-Thank you, Juliet¡­ That was sweet¡­" I told her. Then I swallowed hard. "But you, you are the star tonight."


    We stood in front of each other at the fountain. It was late now, so the water pumps were already turned off by maintenance. But the moon reflected off of the water that was left inside the bottom of the fountain, and it was beautiful.


    "I had an amazing time," she said and smiled.


    I smiled back. "I did too."


    "Please text me when you get to your room so I know you''re safe."


    "Definitely. You''ll do the same?"


    She nodded.


    "Well¡­"


    "Well¡­" I repeated and bit my lip.


    I focused on her, looking deeply into her diamond colored eyes. I got lost so easily in them, making me feel like my soul had been snatched from my body. She stepped closer to me, leaving inches between us. I found myself wanting to touch her, so I brushed my fingers across her cheek, causing her to blush. But then I let my hand linger on her face, cupping it gently.


    I wanted to kiss her. Yet, I couldn''t make the first move! My anxiety had me frozen in place, despite my spiking desire.


    "Juliet, I¡ª"


    But she cut me off with a kiss. Our lips were pressed together, molded perfectly. Her lips were so soft and puffy, I loved it. My heart was beating fast and slow at the same time! I wasn''t sure how long our kiss actually lasted, but it felt like forever, and I never wanted it to end.


    When we pulled away from each other, we were both flushed. We gazed into each other''s eyes briefly before grins spread on both of our faces.


    "I''m sorry¡­I interrupted your sentence¡­" Juliet said, and then giggled.


    I laughed along with her. "It''s fine."


    "Are you sure?"


    "Yeah. What I was going to say was about kissing you," I admitted.


    "Oh¡­" she replied and smiled coyly. Then she spoke again. "Don''t forget to text me, okay?"


    I nodded, "Mhm."


    And I watched as she walked away. My first date was one of the best nights of my life! It was all I could think about, until I got back to my room. Of course I texted Juliet right away, and she texted me back within seconds. Honestly, I couldn''t stop smiling; I was smiling so big my cheeks started to hurt.


    Even after getting ready for bed and laying down, my mind was still racing with thoughts of Juliet. Her and I were girlfriends¡­! I had a girlfriend, and she wasn''t any plain Jane! I had the most gorgeous, the most intelligent, and the sweetest girlfriend! I had Juliet, and she was everything.

 29. Official Girlfriends (Juliet)

    "So how is your girlfriend today?" Danny asked me.


    It had been several weeks since Naomi and I became official. During that time, Naomi and I had gone on a few more dates off campus, and each one was better than the last! Things were going very well with our relationship, and I was able to balance having a girlfriend with school and Danny. Danny had been very supportive and I was grateful that I had a best friend who was so understanding.


    The only other people who knew about Naomi were my brothers. I could have told my parents, but it would have been pointless¡­ They knew I was a lesbian, they just chose to ignore that part of me, like it didn''t exist. It hurt that they hadn''t accepted that part of me, but I really hoped that one day they would. Currently, Danny and I were just hanging out in my room.


    "My girlfriend is doing just fine, thanks."


    "Good," he said with a smile.


    "In fact we have a study date tonight."


    "A study date?"


    "We are going to study, Danny."


    He rolled his eyes. "You two are so prude," he said.


    Danny took a bag of chips out of his bag, opened it and started munching on them.


    "We aren''t prude! We have a test in Physics that we need to study for!"


    "Your professor is giving you guys a test?! So close to final exams?!"


    I nodded, and flashed him a look of disapproval.


    "That''s total bullshit!" he complained.


    "I know, right?! Leave it to my Physics professor to make my life just a little more shitty."


    "Yeah, you definitely need to study for that!"


    I glared at him, "What''s that supposed to mean¡­?! I''m actually pretty good at Physics!"


    He burst out laughing, and after a moment I couldn''t help but laugh along with him.


    "I didn''t mean it like that, I swear!" Danny claimed.


    "Yeah, okay," I scoffed playfully.


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    Later that night I headed over to Naomi''s dorm room. I''d been to her room a few times now so I knew exactly where I was going. I couldn''t wait to see her! I mean, of course I just saw her yesterday, but I loved being around her! And when we were apart, I had to admit I did miss her.


    Once I got to her building, I went up to the floor she lived on, then knocked on the door to her dorm. Seconds later the door opened, revealing a girl I didn''t know. Although, the more I looked at her the more I noticed how much she looked like Naomi. Same facial features, but this girl''s eyes were a darker brown.


    "You must be Juliet!" the girl exclaimed. "Come in!" She stepped aside gingerly and I went in. This girl had to be Naomi''s cousin.


    I went straight to Naomi''s bedroom, and she was sitting at her desk. When she saw me, her eyes lit up, making my heart soar.


    "Hey, Juliet!" she greeted me.


    "Hey!"


    She stood up and reached out to hug me, and I welcomed it, hugging her back tightly.


    After we pulled away Naomi spoke again. "Oh! By the way, this is Calinida, my cousin!"


    "Oh! It''s nice to finally meet you," I told her.


    "It''s so great to meet you too! I''ve heard tons about you," Calinida replied.


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    "Oh yeah?" I asked. I glanced over at Naomi and her cheeks were a little pink from blushing. "I hope it was all good things."


    "Definitely."


    I set my bag down on Naomi''s bed, then sat down beside it.


    "Are you studying with us?" I asked.


    "Nah. Actually, I''m on my way out now," Calinida replied. "Gonna chill with some friends. You two enjoy though."


    "Enjoy studying?" Naomi questioned, her tone sarcastic.


    "You know what I mean," Calinida scoffed, then flashed Naomi a smirk. "Anyways, I''ll see you later tonight."


    Naomi nodded.


    Calinida turned to me and spoke. "I hope to see you again soon, Juliet."


    "Same! Have a good night," I told her.


    Naomi''s cousin grabbed some things from her side of the room before bolting out the door.


    "Your cousin seems really cool. And you were right, she is pretty."


    "Told you." Naomi said flatly.


    I got up and went over to her. I hugged her from behind, and kissed her cheek.


    "I didn''t say she was prettier than you."


    Naomi whipped her head around and narrowed her eyes at me. Because she was sitting down in her desk chair still, our faces were very close.


    "Yeah right," she protested. "You''re definitely lying¡­ You don''t have to lie just because we''re girlfriends."


    "No way! I''m being completely honest!" I said defensively.


    She blushed and her eyes widened.


    "Really¡­?"


    "Duh! You''re gorgeous! I wish you could see yourself the way I see you."


    She smiled and gave me a quick peck on the lips.


    "You''re sweet," she told me.


    I smiled back. "So are you."


    I went back over to my bag and started unpacking it.


    "Now, should we start studying?" I asked.


    Naomi groaned.


    "I guess!" she huffed.


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    I wasn''t sure how long we''d been studying for, but I needed a break.


    "Naomi! I can''t do this anymore!" I groaned. "My eyes are going crossed and I''m hungry!"


    She laughed. "You sound like a toddler."


    "Then feed me!" I said, using a baby-like voice.


    "Food? Or snacks?"


    She stood up and waited for my reply. I was laying on the bed, and sat up quickly.


    "That''s a hard decision," I admitted. "What do you want?"


    "I honestly wasn''t thinking about food¡­but now," she said and gave me a look.


    "Sorry! I''m not a robot like you are," I told her and smirked.


    "Robot, huh? Fine. I''ll just eat some nuts and bolts while you starve to death," she teased.


    I got off the bed and went over to her. "Don''t you dare!"


    "What you gonna do about it?" she challenged me.


    As soon as those words left her mouth I started tickling her. She burst into laughter and tried to escape me! I chased her around the room, and the two of us were laughing loudly. We found ourselves on the floor and somehow now I was the one being tickled. When Naomi finally stopped she pinned my hands to the floor above my head.


    "No more!" she said breathlessly. She was still grinning.


    "Okay, okay, you win," I relented and stuck my tongue out at her. "But I''m still hungry."


    She chuckled, "You''re too cute, I swear."


    Then she let my hands go and sat next to me. I sat up and our eyes met. I kissed her again, but this time it was longer than a peck. When I pulled away she wasn''t smiling, so I thought something was wrong, but before I could say anything her lips were pressed against mine.


    Our kiss became heated very quickly, and before I knew it we were making out. Our tongues battled for dominance. Naomi wrapped her arms around my neck and we toppled over, with me laying on top of her.


    I moved so that I was in between her legs as we continued to make out wildly. It was unexpected, but she tugged my hair, causing me to moan in her mouth. I was so turned on that I wanted more. I groped her breasts, making her arch her back a little, and moan.


    She grabbed my butt and squeezed it, turning me on even more. Things were getting intense, and I was flustered. She moved her hands under my shirt, then started playing with my breasts. It felt really good¡­ She was wearing pj pants so it was easier for me to slip my hand down them. I rubbed her center over her underwear, feeling just how wet she was.


    But I wanted to feel her underneath her clothes¡­ And I wanted her to feel me too¡­ I pulled away, needing some air, but also because we needed to make a decision. As a couple, were we ready to go all the way? Naomi and I hadn''t talked about sex, or our sexual preferences yet¡­


    "Wait¡­" I breathed.


    "What''s wrong?" she asked breathlessly.


    "Nothing''s wrong¡­it''s just¡­ We haven''t talked about this¡­"


    "About what?"


    "S-Sex¡­ I¡­ I''ve had other girlfriends but I''m¡­I''m still¡­" I trailed off.


    "I''m a virgin too¡­" she confessed.

 30. Reeses Pieces (Naomi)

    It had been one week since the night Juliet and I studied together. That night we''d been sexually intimate with each other. We didn''t have actual sex, but we were pretty close to it! A couple days after that event, her and I talked about what each other wanted, in terms of how our first sexual encounter would go. But I had no idea when it was going to happen!


    I was too anxious to text or call Juliet and just ask her when it was going to happen. I also felt weird about planning a day for us to have sex. I wanted the act to come natural, but at the same time, not knowing when it would happen was driving me insane!


    I was currently playing video games, trying to get sex, and Juliet off my mind. I hadn''t told Calinida about what happened with Juliet yet, I was too embarrassed too. However, I needed advice so, I had to fess up to her, one way or another. My cousin wasn''t in our room, but I knew she''d be back soon, and that''s when I would tell her.


    About an hour had passed before Calinida came through the door. She was on the phone, so I waited for her to finish. I wasn''t sure how long I waited, but it felt like forever! The anticipation was a nightmare! Finally, she hung up, and as soon as she turned around to look at me, I spoke.


    "We almost had sex!" I blurted.


    "Huh? ''We'', who?!"


    "Who else, Cali?! Me and Juliet!


    "What?! Almost?! Why almost?" my cousin implored.


    "Because! I''ve never had sex before! And she''s never had sex before!"


    "Damn¡­ Well, what happened?" she questioned.


    "She stopped us¡­and then we talked about it¡­ Now I have no idea when we''re gonna do it! It''s been a week since we''ve gotten that intimate¡­"


    "Wait, so do you think she doesn''t want to do it with you anymore?"


    Juliet had made it perfectly clear during our conversation last week that she definitely wanted us to lose our virginity to each other. And that''s absolutely what I wanted too¡­


    "No, she certainly wants to, I just don''t know when! You know my anxiety doesn''t allow for situations like this!"


    My cousin chuckled. "Yeah I know, but for the most part, sex isn''t planned."


    "Yes, Cali, I know," I said harshly. I realized right away that my tone wasn''t nice. "I''m sorry¡­ I''m just freaking out over here."


    "I know, so, apology accepted," my cousin said curtly. "Now, I get that you are nervous about when it happens, but you won''t feel nervous in the moment when it''s happening. Especially if this is something your heart really wants."


    My eyes widened. At that moment it occurred to me that maybe my cousin wasn''t a virgin anymore! Her words sounded so sincere, like she knew from experience.


    "Wait¡­Cali, are you a virgin?"


    She shook her head. "No, and as far as you know, I lost my virginity in college."


    I gasped.


    "Yeah, it was probably stupid of me to give my virginity up so young, but the person I did it with was so sweet."


    "Charlie?!" I exclaimed in disbelief.


    "Yup, Charlie," she said with a grin.


    I was in shock, but I still had no solution to my anxiety issue.


    "But back to you, you just have to feel out the mood. You''ll know when it''s about to happen," my cousin told me.


    Her and I talked for a while about relationships, and on having sex with your partner for the first time. She admitted she obviously had a totally different take on sex being that her first time was with a male, but she was very helpful with the emotional aspect of it.


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    A couple days had passed since Calinida and I had our big talk¡­ And Juliet had invited me over that night to have a sleepover. She explained that her roommate, Heather, would be with her boyfriend all weekend.


    Juliet and I had sleepovers plenty of times until now, but this was going to be different! I just knew it! The last sleepover we had was prior to almost having sex, but now that sex was something we were both looking forward to¡­ Was it going to happen tonight?!


    Currently, I was packing for the night, and my cousin happened to be in our room.


    "Whenever you start freaking out, just text me!" she insisted.


    "Good plan, only how am I supposed to text you when our lips are locked together?!" I countered.


    Calinida''s expression fell flat. "Ugh! Right! Okay, okay, just breathe through it, and remember that it''s your first time, so there''s no mistakes."


    I gave her a small smile. I really did appreciate that she was trying to be supportive.


    "Thanks, Cali."


    After I finished packing my overnight bag, Calinida gave me a big encouraging hug before I left our dorm. The entire walk over to Juliet''s I was panicking. I had to consciously remind myself to take deep breaths, and before I knew it, I was at Juliet''s building.


    I went inside, went upstairs to her floor, and knocked on her door. She opened it right away, and gave me a giant grin.


    "Naomi! Yay!"


    I went into her room and she shut the door behind me.


    "Hey, Juliet." I said and put my bag down on her bed.


    When I turned around to face her, she startled me with a peck to the lips. It gave me butterflies. Then of course the butterflies turned to nerves that jabbed at my insides! Was that supposed to be a signal?! Did she want to have sex right now?!


    "I got us snacks today! Danny and I went to the grocery store!" she said excitedly.


    Okay, that was a no¡­ If she wanted to have sex, we wouldn''t be talking about snacks, right?


    "Awesome, what did you buy?" I asked, after finding my voice.


    She grabbed a grocery bag from the floor by her closet, and brought it to me.


    "I got chips, and french onion dip! I got us candy too! Skittles, and Starburst¡­" she trailed off as she rummaged through the bag. "Oh! And I got us Reese''s Pieces!"


    I loved how excited she was, it made her look like a little kid, which was adorable! I gave her a big smile and she smiled back.


    "It''s gonna be a good night," Juliet affirmed and winked at me.


    My heart stopped! She never winked before! Was that like¡ªa special wink?! Was she trying to hint that she wanted to have sex tonight?! My thoughts were my biggest trigger to my anxiety, and it was driving me up a wall!


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    I spent a portion of the night trying to distinguish between Juliet being Juliet, or if she was initiating an intimate encounter. But most of the time, I was just overanalyzing every little thing she did! It was exhausting! After a while, I gave up.


    We were watching a movie when she pulled me closer to her, wanting to cuddle. I snuggled up to her, taking in her familiar strawberry scent, and the scent of her body soap. She was so warm and soft, I found myself wanting to caress more of her body. And so I did¡­I ran my hand up and down her side, feeling her skin under my fingertips.


    Juliet kissed my forehead, then my nose, and finally my lips, but the kiss was different¡­ She kissed me longingly and desperately, like that would be the last time we ever kissed again... I kissed her back just as passionately, and she rested her hands on each side of my neck.


    The both of us let out quiet moans as we made out. Our heated kissing turned into groping and caressing each other, until eventually we were dry humping. Juliet positioned herself so that she was straddling me while I was laying down on my back.


    I grabbed her butt, one of my hands on each cheek, making her giggle. When she finally pulled away, we were both panting.


    "Are we doing this?" she asked breathlessly.


    I knew exactly what she meant¡­


    I nodded. "I want to¡­ Do¡­do you?"


    She grinned, "Absolutely."


    It was happening¡­! We were going to make love! I was going to lose my virginity tonight and¡­I was very pleased with my choice. There was no one else in the world that I would have rather given my virtue to other than Juliet. I¡ªI loved her!


    "I love you, Juliet¡­" I breathed. The words slipped out before I could stop them!


    Her eyes widened for a moment, but then she gave me a sweet kiss. "I love you too."


    My heart fluttered, and I cupped the sides of her neck with my hands before pulling her into a heartfelt kiss. It wasn''t long before our kiss became steamy once again, and before I knew we were tearing each other''s clothes off!

 31. Breakfast In Bed (Juliet)

    Two weeks had passed since Naomi and I started having sex, and we loved it! Any time when we were alone, we''d make love, and it was always a fervent experience! Adding sex to our relationship only made us fall faster for each other. We even skipped class a few times just to have sex!


    It had also been two weeks since Naomi and I said "I love you" to each other¡­ I was so shocked to hear her say it that day, but my heart was full! When I said it back to her, I truly meant it¡­I loved Naomi and I never wanted us to break up.


    Last night, Naomi happened to sleep over, and currently we were¡­having an amazing morning!


    "Juliet¡­! Shit¡­!" Naomi moaned loudly.


    I loved to hear the noises of pleasure she made, but I loved the fact that I was the one who made her make those sounds even more! And her taste was indescribable, and I had to admit it was borderline addicting.


    It was probably irresponsible of us to get intimate like this so close to Naomi having to go to class¡ªit was definitely irresponsible¡ªbut like I said¡­we couldn''t get enough of each other!


    My arms were snaked around Naomi''s thighs so that my hands were resting on the inside of them. I dug lightly into her skin as I continued to go down on her. She whimpered in pleasure as she buried her fingers in my hair, then tugged a little.


    Her action only turned me on more, and I moaned inside. She quivered and tried to pull away from me.


    "J-Juliet, I have class¡­" she breathed. "I''m not even dressed yet!"


    I lifted my head up, "I know¡­but you won''t be going anywhere until you''ve cum."


    "Juliet!"


    "Guess you better hurry¡­" I told her and smirked.


    I started licking again, sticking my tongue in as deep as it could go. Naomi let out a loud mewl in pleasure. After a few minutes, she was soaking wet. I stopped licking, and started sucking her swollen bud as I slipped two fingers inside.


    I thrusted deep and fast, making Naomi cry out in pleasure. She was so loud, I knew for sure someone heard her, but I didn''t care. I was lost in euphoria. I sucked harder on her bud, it was so puffy, and I slipped a third finger inside.


    Naomi''s body trembled against my hand; I thrusted as hard and as deep as I could. Soon after I felt her walls clench around my fingers, and I knew she was almost at her limit. I stopped sucking and sat my head up.


    "You''re going to be late," I said breathlessly.


    But Naomi couldn''t speak, she was too busy writhing around with pleasure. I was very wet myself¡­I wanted Naomi to please me too, but I knew we were running out of time.


    "Cum for me Naomi," I commanded.


    "Juliet! Juliet!" she shouted.


    I licked her swollen bud a few times, going in circles with my tongue, then she climaxed. Her body shook as she rode out her high, and she released so much it dripped down to my arm.


    "Good girl," I said with a sultry tone. I pulled my fingers out slowly, pleasing her more, and she moaned softly.


    I sat up fully, sitting on my knees and looked down at her. Naomi was spent, her face was flushed, and she was still trying to catch her breath. I wiped my mouth with a part of my t-shirt and grinned.


    "You should get dressed now."


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    "Shut up¡­" she replied. "I''m not even sure I can walk right now."


    I giggled. "At least you''re satisfied and relaxed!"


    "True."


    Naomi sat up and kissed me.


    "I''m sorry I can''t return the favor right now."


    "It''s fine, you''ll just make up for it tonight," I declared.


    She smiled, "Oh yeah? Says who?"


    I kissed her tenderly, and as I pulled back, I bit on the bottom of her lip softly.


    "Me."


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    I ended up meeting with Danny for lunch, and we decided to get something on campus. We were at the Dining Hall discussing what we were going to eat.


    "What are you ordering?" he asked.


    "Pizza, definitely pizza," I replied.


    "Same!"


    We got into the line at A Slice Of Italy. It wasn''t too long so I was happy about that.


    "What kind are you getting? I''m thinking veggie for me¡­" Danny said.


    At the same time I opened my mouth to answer him, something caught my eye. It was another student sitting across the way, talking and laughing with a few other guys. He looked too familiar¡­it took a second for my brain to process, but I figured out why I recognized him!


    He wasn''t wearing any baseball garb, and his hair was different! But it was definitely Cody Burton! I hadn''t see him in weeks, since that night at the Frat party¡­! My mouth dropped open!


    That¡ªThat slimeball! Douchebag! A no good son of a bit¡ª!


    "Juliet? What is it?" Danny asked curiously. His voice brought me out of my thoughts.


    "Cody!" I hissed.


    "Where?!"


    Danny whipped his head around, scanning the area for him.


    "There¡­" I said and growled quietly. I narrowed my eyes at Cody, and Danny followed my line of sight. "I still want to claw his eyes out!"


    "I know¡­ That asshole," he replied. "Dean told me that the Frat voted him out, and that he got kicked off the baseball team because of what happened with Naomi that night¡­"


    "Wait, you told your brother?!"


    "Damn right! Cody Burton is a loser! Of course I told Dean, and Dean took care of it."


    We glared at Cody as he continued having his little group get together. I loathed him, but at the same time, Naomi is the one who came out on top. Knowing that she was safe and much much happier than before was all that I wanted, so I was satisfied. In the end, I felt like Cody Burton got everything he deserved, and bad karma would continue to follow him.


    After Danny and I ordered, we waited for our plates and drinks. Once our names were called by an employee, we grabbed our stuff and searched for an empty table to sit at. It seemed like forever, but we finally found one, and took our seats. I guess we both were starving because our pizza was gone in minutes!


    "What are your plans for tonight?" Danny asked. "Oh wait, I know the answer to that already¡­"


    He winked at me.


    "Yes, I''m gonna be hanging out with Naomi."


    "And¡­?"


    "And what?" I asked as I took a sip of my sweet tea.


    "Why won''t you tell me?!" he whined.


    I rolled my eyes and chuckled.


    "Because it''s private!" I retorted.


    Danny had been asking for me for days to tell him about my sex life! One would think I should have been mad, or grossed out, or both, but instead I found it more amusing.


    "Oh come on!" he frowned. "At least tell me a little!"


    "Why do you want to know so badly?" I questioned.


    Until now, I hadn''t asked him that question. Any time he brought up that subject I shut him down instantly,


    "Do I really need to answer that? I mean, yeah we''re best friends, but I''m still a guy at the end of the day¡­"


    "A-K-A a perv?" I teased playfully.


    "Fine, yes! I''m a perv! Now tell me!"


    "Nope," I said with a smirk, and sipped on my drink.

 32. The Finals (Naomi)

    My first semester was finally coming to an end, and I couldn''t wait to go home! However, there were also finals, and end of the semester projects due, which was going to be HELL! Thankfully, only one of my class professors wanted a final project, and the others were preparing for final exams.


    Besides going home and finals, the other thing that was stuck in my mind was that I wouldn''t be seeing Juliet for two weeks! I''d gotten so used to being able to see whenever I wanted that I was spoiled now! Being away from here was the only downside to the holiday break.


    I was stressed about Juliet, so stressed that I couldn''t focus on studying for finals. And not being able to focus on something that important in relation to school, was a trigger on its own! I was anxious to the max! It was finals week now, and I hadn''t studied for anything!


    Up until now, I wasn''t slacking off, I mean not really! Maybe I had slacked off a little, but I never imagined I''d be brain dead at a time like this! The finals counted the most toward my semester grades! I had been so busy hanging out and having sex with Juliet that I just¡­ I forgot about my priorities.


    It was difficult to admit¡­but I had to take a break from her, despite not wanting to. And when I say "take a break" I only mean until finals are done. I would never end my relationship with Juliet because I loved her. I truly did and that scared me, but at the same time I wanted to embrace my feelings.


    The first step was figuring out how I was going to tell her. I was honestly worried that as soon as I was face to face with her, I wouldn''t be able to go through with it. Seeing those blue eyes of hers made me melt.


    I immediately thought about Calinida; I needed advice and she was the perfect person, as usual. My cousin wasn''t in our dorm at the moment, so I called her cell phone. She answered after a few rings.


    "Hey, Lovebug! Sorry it took me so long to answer, doing a project. What''s up?"


    "Cali! I need advice!"


    "On what?"


    Despite my frantic tone, my cousin stayed totally calm.


    "If I don''t take a break from hanging out with Juliet, I''m going to fail my tests!" I rambled. "How do I tell her we need time apart?!"


    Calinida sighed into the phone.


    "Naomi, I have to be honest, your situation is tough. My initial thought is to just be honest, but I also know that honesty can hurt some people''s feelings¡­"


    I was crushed.


    "You''re no help at all!" I blurted out.


    "Sorry! I don''t know what else to say! I mean, you can''t lie to her, and you can''t just not talk to her, so what else is there?!"


    I hated that my cousin was absolutely right. I sighed.


    "I''ll see you tonight¡­" I told her, completely deflated.


    Calinida apologized again before hanging up the phone. I held my cell phone in my hands, totally distracted by my pain in the ass situation. I had to decide if I was going to face Juliet in person, or over the phone.


    I paced back and forth for a while, trying to make up my mind. Finally, I decided that I would talk to her in person. It would be stupid of me to try and have such a serious conversation over the phone. I texted Juliet to let her know I was coming over, then I got dressed and headed to her dorm.


    Once I got to her door, I knocked a few times. When Juliet opened the door for me, she wore a big smile on her face. Seeing how happy she was made me feel even worse! She must have noticed my facial expression because her smile faded quickly.


    "Are you okay? Did something happen?" she asked.


    "Not exactly¡­" I muttered and walked past her.


    Juliet shut the door before coming over to stand in front of me.


    "Tell me¡­" she said.


    I bit my lip. "We should take a break¡­"


    "A break?"


    I gave her a small nod.


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    ¡°What? But why?¡± Juliet asked.


    "Well¡­" I began. I hesitated before speaking again. "I can''t focus on studying, and I don''t want to fail the finals!"


    ¡°So I¡¯m just a distraction to you?"


    My heart stopped. I knew this was going to be an epic FAIL on my part.


    "No!" I blurted quickly. "No, that''s not what I mean¡­ Of course you''re more than just a distraction! But I can''t afford to tank the exams..."


    ¡°So I¡¯m a hindrance?! I hinder your ability to study!¡±


    How could I fix this?! I could barely keep my thoughts straight, and the conversation was going in the completely wrong direction!


    "I guess¡ª"


    Juliet was in tears. ¡°Fine! If I¡¯m such a hindrance to you, then you won¡¯t ever have to see me again¡­¡±


    This was not how I wanted this to go! My heart was breaking! I gently grabbed both of her arms.


    "Wh-What?! No! It''s just¡ª! I just need a little time¡­until finals are done! I thought¡­I thought you''d understand¡­"


    She backed away from me.


    ¡°You make it sound like I¡¯m holding you back¡­! That I wouldn¡¯t respect your boundaries during exams¡­!"


    My emotions were spiraling, and I felt the tears well up in my eyes.


    "Juliet¡­ I never meant to hurt you¡­I''m sorry I suck with talking! I don''t want us to break up¡­! I couldn''t take it!"


    ¡°Then maybe you should get your shit together and realize the kind of person I am¡­ Please just¡­just leave¡­¡±


    I was shocked! She wanted me to¡­leave?!


    "But Juliet!"


    ¡°Just go¡­ You hurt me and I don¡¯t want to talk to you anymore right now¡­ I¡¯d never hold you back, Naomi¡­ And I¡¯m hurt that you thought that about me¡­that I¡¯m a distraction and a burden to you. So please¡­go¡­¡±


    I was at a loss for words. I felt like my heart had been ripped from my chest. Something in me snapped and I got pissed.


    "Fine! I''ll be the bad guy! Sorry that I want to pass my first semester in college! Sorry that I can''t handle studying and spending time with you! I''m sorry!" I shouted.


    Her eyes were wide with surprise. I stormed out of her room without looking back, and went back to my own dorm.


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    Four days had passed, and I still hadn''t been in contact with Juliet¡­ The argument we had was intense, and on top of that, it was the first time that we''d ever argued! In fact, four days ago was the first time we even got mad at each other!


    So many things ran through my head, and yet, pride is what kept me from reaching out to Juliet first. I did my best to keep my emotions at bay because I still had to study! I was convinced that my plan to take some time off from Juliet only backfired because now I was utterly emotional, and still couldn''t concentrate on studying!


    It was early afternoon, and at the moment I was taking a break from attempting to study. I was lying on my bed, staring up at the ceiling trying not to cry¡­but a few tears rolled down my cheeks. A moment later my phone started ringing; when I looked at the screen my heart stopped.


    I answered quickly, so quickly I almost dropped my phone!


    "Hello?!"


    "Hey, Naomi¡­"


    Her melodic voice was full of anguish.


    "Juliet! H-Hey! How¡­how have you been?"


    "Naomi, I¡­"


    Her pause was short, but my heart was in overdrive! I was so nervous and anxious about what she''d say!


    "I really miss you! And I''m so sorry for everything! Please, I¡ª! I just need to see you!"


    More tears fell from my eyes, but they were happy tears.


    "I miss you too!" I blurted. "Yes, please! Let''s meet right now!"


    Juliet chuckled softly into the phone.


    "I''m outside your door¡­"


    I looked at the door briefly before jumping off my bed and rushing over to it. I opened it, and sure enough she was standing there¡­ Her hair was down, and her eyes were glistening. She looked as ethereal as ever, taking my breath away.


    She hung up her phone, then I hung up mine before she embraced me tightly. She had her arms wrapped around my neck, and I felt hot liquid on my neck¡­she was crying! I hugged her back, squeezing her with all my might, and buried my face in the crook of her neck.


    "I love you, and I''m so sorry," I told her.


    We pulled away and she smiled.


    "I love you too, Naomi. So much."


    We spent the rest of the day talking about our feelings and the argument. We ended up coming up with a schedule for us so that we could still visit with each other, but also get studying time in. And it worked out perfectly!


    I typically didn''t like to use that word¡­''perfect''...because nothing was perfect, was it? But it truly felt like it, it felt like my life was on the verge of perfection. Everything that I''d gone through the past few months brought me here, to this very moment.


    And I had never been happier!

 Epilogue

    I was very happy to know that I''d officially and successfully made it through my first semester at Sutlow University! I couldn''t stop thinking about it. I passed all of my exams, and did well on my final project! I had to admit, I was pretty damn proud of myself!


    On top of that, I felt like the experiences I had, made me stronger. In the midst of my failed attempts at a social life, somehow I managed to break out of my shell just enough to meet some new people, and make a couple friends.


    Which leads to the next thing I couldn''t keep my mind off of¡­I definitely missed Juliet! Don''t get me wrong, I was very happy to be home with my parents and family, but boy did my heart ache for her.


    Unfortunately, I had to wait until January to see Juliet again, but during the holiday break we video chatted every day. Of course it wasn''t the same; I could touch her or kiss her¡­but I guess it was the best alternative.


    My parents couldn''t stop gushing about the fact that I was dating someone. I played it off like it was embarrassing, but deep down I was extremely grateful to know that they accepted me for who I was, and that they supported me! They were also super proud of all that I accomplished over the past few months, including my final grades!


    Life honestly felt like it couldn''t get any better! Even with my anxiety, I felt more relaxed than before, and Juliet was like the yin to my yang. Being her girlfriend just felt right in every way. I was happy, and it was genuine! I wanted to hold onto that feeling for as long as I could, and I''d planned to.


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    First day back on campus.


    I was anxious, of course, but also eager! I couldn''t wait to start the new semester, with a new set of classes. And obviously I was super excited to see my girlfriend again!


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    Calinida and I had moved our stuff from home back into our cozy dorm room, with the help of our family. After they left, my cousin and I went back to our bedroom to finish unpacking. It really felt like we came back to campus with so much more stuff than we left with¡­


    While I was making my bed, my phone went off, signaling that I had a new text message. I grabbed my phone off of my desk and looked at the screen¡­my heart fluttered when I saw who the text was from.


    Hey! I just got settled¡­ Do you want to hang out?! ??


    I couldn''t type out my reply fast enough; my thumbs buzzed across the screen!


    Definitely!!! ????


    She replied seconds later.


    At the fountain?


    I grinned. I should have guessed that she''d suggest meeting there. I replied right away.


    Yup! See you soon!


    I put on my sneakers as quickly as I could, grabbed my phone, my keys, and my school I.D. card.


    "Where are you going?" Calinida asked.


    I opened my mouth to respond, but she cut me off.


    "Wait, let me guess¡­you''re going to see Juliet, right?"


    I nodded excitedly, causing my cousin to laugh.


    "See you later then," she told me.


    "Later!" I called out to her as I dashed out the door.


    I practically ran to the fountain¡­our special spot. When I got there, Juliet was nowhere to be seen¡­I was probably a bit early. After a few minutes, I saw her walking toward me. My heart stopped and my stomach had butterflies.


    "Naomi!" she exclaimed as she got closer. Then she smiled from ear-to-ear.


    "Juliet!"


    We embraced each other, holding on tightly. She caressed my upper back as I buried my face in her neck. Once we pulled apart, we shared a passionate kiss, and then pressed our foreheads together.


    "I''m so happy to see," I told her.


    "I''m happy to see you too."


    We sat down on the cement edge of the fountain, and held hands.


    "You ready for our second semester?" she asked.


    "Yup. I think so," I replied. "I''m as ready as I''ll ever be."