I'm woken up the next morning by a loud knock on the door.

"Bryce! Jordan! Have you seen Lexi?" Jasmine calls out from the hallway, sounding extremely worried.

"She was locked out of our room last night and now I don't know where she is," she then continues, knocking again.

Bryce is already awake, and is now just staring up blankly at the ceiling.

He's still holding me tight to his chest and it seems as if he has no intentions of letting me go. He's just staring blankly up at the ceiling as he plays with my hair, ignoring the situation at hand.

When he notices that I'm awake, he gives me a huge smile, kissing my forehead quickly.

"Good morning. How'd you sleep?" he asks me quietly, brushing some of my hair back from my face.

I give him a shy smile, shifting in bed so that my chin is resting on his chest, allowing me to look up at him.

"Good, thanks. Did you sleep at all?" I question in return, and he nods at me, just as there's another knock.

"Jesus," Jordan grumbles.

He groans as he reluctantly climbs out of bed, stretching his arms and back before heading to the door.

"I expected to be woken up by you guys screwing last night, and I was very happy that that didn't happen. I didn't consider that I would be woken up by a hunt for Lexi instead," he comments, twisting the lock and then pulling the door open.

Jasmine rushes into the room, looking frantic until she spots Bryce and I curled up under the covers.

She lets out a huge sigh of relief, taking a seat down on the other bed where she's soon joined by Jordan.

Bryce sits up, me still seated in his lap. His hands are on my waist and he rests his head on my shoulder, causing his breath to fan out against the skin of my neck.

"I'm so sorry, Lexi. I wasn't thinking. I didn't check my phone until this morning so I didn't see your messages," Jasmine apologizes, and I shake my head at her.

"No problem. Just make sure to get your own key today so that it doesn't happen again," I tell her, and she nods rapidly.

Her hair is a mess, and she looks like she barely slept at all last night as she stands back up.

Turning to Bryce and I, she says, "I should have known that you two would be together. You're basically inseparable."

She goes to open the door again, but before she steps away, she says, "I'll actually be in the room this time. See you in a bit."

As soon as she's gone, I look down to Bryce who is staring at me intently. His hair is a little ruffled and it reminds me that I myself probably don't look anywhere near my best.

"I look horrible, don't I? I probably have mascara smudged all under my eyes," I huff, but Bryce shakes his head at me, pulling his head away to look at me.

He lifts his hands to cup my face, tilting it up towards him.

"You look great, as always. And no, actually. Whichever mascara that is, you should definitely keep using it," he says, and I giggle at his answer.

I check the time on my phone, and when it reads 6:57AM, I remember that we have to be ready to leave for breakfast at the cafeteria by half past seven.

This is why I quickly stand up out of bed, grabbing my phone before turning to Bryce.

"I should probably go get ready for today. I'll see you soon," I say to him, and he frowns at me, standing up from the bed as well.

"Stay," he whines, taking my hands in his in an attempt to pull me back to him.

I shrug away, taking another step back from him.

I shake my head, making him frown, but he lets me walk out to the door.

"Bye Bryce," I say with a small smile, but he shakes his head at me as if he's just had a brilliant thought.

"Wait, let me walk you to your room. You technically shouldn't have slept in here last night and if any of the teachers are around, I don't want you to get in trouble," Bryce says, and without a fight I nod.

He gets a giddy smile on his face, reaching behind him and grabbing his room key from the desk before he places his hand on the small of my back, guiding me out of the door.

"I have to give this sweater back to you," I remind myself as Bryce and I walk down the stairs to my floor.

He momentarily hugs me close to his side as we pass a group of giggling girls skipping up the stairs.

"You can give it back to me later," he says just as we approach the door to Jasmine and I's room.

I knock, and Jasmine answers straight away, dressed in ripped jeans and a grey tank top.

"Hey!" she exclaims, leaving the door open wide as she disappears back into the room.

I give her a small wave before turning to Bryce, something coming over me that brings me to give him a hug.

"Thank you so much for last night," I sigh, and he gives me a quick squeeze, responding, "Anytime. I need to shave and get changed but then can I meet you back here?"

I nod a him, pulling back.

"What do you mean? You aren't going to grow a full beard?" I joke, and Bryce pinches me lightly in the arm, smiling at me before turning on his heel and walking away.

"Only if you're into it!" he calls out after himself and I laugh, stepping into my room and shutting the door.

I find Jasmine sitting at her desk which she has managed to transform into a personal vanity, drawing a wing of liner onto her eyelids. She's focused and doesn't acknowledge me until she stands up from her seat, dropping the thin tube of liner onto the surface and grabbing her phone and room key.

"I'm going to meet up with Ryan. You're good here, yeah?" Jasmine asks me just as she's about to step out of the room, and I nod to her.

With that permission, she leaves, blowing me a kiss on her way out.

I take a seat on my bed, pulling my bag up onto my lap. I rummage around through my folded clothing until I select a casual white dress that I think makes sense to wear today, also grabbing a pair of tights.

I tug Bryce's sweatshirt off over my head, folding it and setting it down beside me before stripping off the rest of my clothes, changing into today's outfit instead. I slip my feet into a pair of black ballet flats before running a brush through my hair, ridding it of all the tangles.

Grabbing my makeup and toiletry bags, I head for the bathroom. I quickly wash my face and brush my teeth before applying some simple makeup, now a little happier with how I look.

I decide to throw my hair up into a ponytail which I'm sure Bryce will appreciate.

When I head back to my room I clasp my cherry blossom necklace around my neck, tugging on a denim jacket before grabbing my phone.

I glance at the time again and am super pleased to see that it's only 7:14, meaning that I was able to get read in record time.

Double checking that I have everything I need for the day, I'm about to head out of the room before there's a knock at the door.

I find Bryce standing in the doorway, a smile on his face.

He's wearing a white long-sleeved shirt that's sheer enough to still display the faint outlines of his tattoos, and I notice that he seems to have combed his hair a different way or something.

The moment he sees me, his eyes go wide. He blinks a couple times before letting out a breath, leaning against the doorway.

"You look fantastic," he compliments, and I avoid eye contact as I step around him, shutting the door behind me.

He suddenly rests one of his hands above my head on the closed door, trapping me there even as I'm trying to walk away from him.

"Thanks," I say meekly, and he momentarily bites his lip.

He looks so good when he does that. So, so good.

"Hey guys! I didn't realize your room was next to mine, Lexi," someone chirps, and we both look to our side to find Camila stepping out of the room neighbouring mine.

Bryce is still essentially pinning me to the wall, so he takes a step back

Bryce gives her a small smile, and it causes her mood to falter a little bit, as if she expected him to be more happy to see her.

For some reason though, he isn't, and instead he reaches for my hand, gripping it tightly.

Camila glances to our intertwined fingers, then back up to us. Bryce's expression is stern and he looks a little peeved.

"I didn't realize that you two were—" Camila starts before quickly cutting herself off. "Never mind. I'll see you guys around," she finishes, before turning away from us.

Bryce nods to her as she walks off, and he tries to drag me to follow after her but I stand my ground.

"Why are you being so weird? What was that about?" I ask, tugging on his hand to get him to stay in place.

When he looks down at me, his eyes meet mine, and I see an internal struggle there. He blinks for a moment, but then lets out a heavy breath, dropping my hand.

"Nothing. I'm fine," is all he says to me, before taking a couple of steps down the hallway without me.

"Hurry up," he then says. "We're going to be late for breakfast."

He's been so open and sweet with me lately that it's extremely off-putting to witness him acting this way. It's annoys me to no end, feeling like a massive step backwards for us.

Nonetheless, I follow him quietly down the hall and stairs until we meet up with the rest of the students. Our friends wave us over as soon as we step into the threshold, and Bryce refuses to say anything to me as we join them.

He instead engages in a conversation with my brother as we walk over to the cafeteria. He's quiet as we fill our trays with food and take our seats too, not to mention that he also eats in total silence.

I decided to sit next to him despite all of this, and I nudged him in the arm right before I took a bite of my food. His reaction wasn't great as now he's glaring at me, one eyebrow raised.

I don't miss how he's drumming his fingers against the top of his thigh either.

"What do you want?" he snaps, and I nearly jump back in my seat at his rudeness.

"Seriously? Why are you so moody today? I know that you think you're going through a lot and I get that this whole trip is probably stressing you out about college, but you need to realize that all of us are freaking out inside too, Bryce!" I suddenly blurt out, shifting away on the bench we're seated on so that I can get a better look at his face.

I had no clue that all of that was pent up inside of me.

His expression shifts, and he looks almost guilty now.

"Is everything okay?" Jordan cuts in, and Bryce turns to him to nod his head.

Jordan looks confused and continues to examine our exchange, even as Bryce places his hand on my knee under the table, out of Jordan's line of vision.

I look down to where he's touching me, and he moves closer to me on the bench.

He lowers his face down to my ear, then whispering, "You'll have to forgive me, darling, but I'm having a hard time thinking straight when you're around. I'm well aware that you're just as anxious as I am."

I huff at him. "That still doesn't answer my question," I retort, and Bryce nods knowingly.

"My emotions are a fucking mess right now. I really am sorry, but I'm afraid that none of this will be resolved until the college situation is," he tells me, and I place my hand over his, where it's still resting on my leg.

"I'm sure Columbia will accept you, Bryce. You're a legacy, and you're incredibly intelligent and capable on your own too," I reassure him for the millionth time, and he grips my knee a little harder.

"It's not just that, Blossom. I really want you to go to Juilliard, too," Bryce says shyly, and I've never seen him this nervous over something so small.

It takes me a minute to think about what he's said to develop an answer, my heart beating too darn fast.

"Don't worry about my life, Bryce. Focus on what's more important; yourself," I tell him, and he's immediately shaking his head at me.

"No, Blossom. You don't get it. I really need you to . . . Dammit, it is important, because . . . Fuck, why does the universe hate me," he begins to ramble, and I give his hand a squeeze.

"You can tell me what you're thinking, Bryce. I won't judge," I promise him, but he pulls his hand away from me.

"It's best if I just don't. I'm not sure I can tell you anyway," Bryce says, seemingly frustrated with himself.

He stares at the food on his plate and I find myself doing the same, oblivious to the fact that Jordan, Jasmine, and Charlie all seem to be watching us closely.

"I'm never going to understand you guys," Jasmine comments as she eats another forkful of scrambled eggs, and my brother wraps his arm around her shoulder, pulling her a little closer to him as a way to keep her quiet.

Bryce squints at the trio in front of us. Then, he turns specifically to Jasmine and my brother, quipping, "And I will never understand how you two spent the night screwing in a college dorm room that doesn't even belong to you."

Jordan nearly spits out the orange juice that he had just taken a sip of. Jasmine glances down to her lap and Charlie's face goes bright red.

"Who told you that?" he asks nervously, and Bryce snorts, taking a bite of toast off of his plate.

I take a sip of water as I watch Bryce chew and swallow slowly before he looks back to my brother.

"I'm not an idiot, Charles," is Bryce's only answer, and Charlie looks away, towards a shy Jasmine.

I'm having a hard time comprehending the fact that a conversation about my brother's sex life is occurring on a school field trip while I'm seated directly across the table.

I guess that I shouldn't rule anything out of the picture now that Bryce is around.

After we've all finished eating, miraculously avoiding Bryce making any other intrusive comments, we follow the rest of the students into a building a few minutes of a walk away.

We're all crammed into a hallway before we're sectioned off into groups, then guided into classrooms for essentially mock classes. We were told that it was meant to give us a closer look into a day in the life of a university student, but most kids goofed off the whole time.

I found Bryce staring at me for the duration of the class, watching all of my movements closely.

He seemed to find something very intriguing about my face because it kept him occupied, only looking away when Jordan tapped him on the shoulder to ask him a question.

After we were dismissed for the afternoon until dinner time, I texted Malcolm asking if he was free at all this afternoon. He responded right away, telling me that he didn't have another class until three, so we could meet up at the coffee shop on campus.

That's what got me seated in this comfortable armchair, sipping slowly on a cup of tea as I listen to my friend rant about his roommate.

"He showed up with his girlfriend at four in the morning! That's so rude of him. We had a deal that we wouldn't be in and out of the room super later at night and he doesn't obey any of the rules," Malcom huffs, and I give him a small, amused smile.

"How interesting," I comment, and he narrows his eyes at me.

"Of course you don't understand. You'll get what I'm talking about when you have a roommate next year. Actually, you'll probably move in with your boyfriend, so that won't be an issue," he teases me, and I stare down into my drink.

I sigh. "Not going to happen, seeing as he's being super closed-off today. I spent the night in his room last night, and now he's acting funny. I like him a lot, and I just wish that whatever is happening between us wouldn't be so confusing," I tell Malcolm, and he chuckles at me.

I've gotten past the point of explaining that Bryce isn't my boyfriend. I don't know how we ended up here, but it's happened.

"Where is he right now? You should go talk to him," Malcolm advises me, but I smile ironically at how much easier those words are to say than to go through with.

"Unfortunately, he doesn't like to talk about his feelings much. I think he would much rather sit in silence. Besides, I have no clue where he is," I answer, and Malcolm grins at me.

"Did he make a move last night? Because if not, he's probably feeling like shit and wishing that he did something sooner," Malcolm tells me, but I shake my head at him.

The door to the cafe opens suddenly, sounding a small bell. The quaint place isn't extremely crowded by any means, but there are still a few other people taking up all of the tables.

This is why Malcolm and I watch the newcomers as they order their drinks, then looking around to try and find a table.

Unable to find a free table, Malcom decides to wave them both over to join us.

"I was wondering where you were, Lex," Jordan comments as he sits down at the seat to my right.

I give him a wave before turning to Bryce, who's left to sit down next to Malcolm and across from Jordan.

"Malcolm and I were just trying to catch up as much as we can seeing as we probably won't see each other again before we leave," I answer Jordan, and his eyes dart between Malcolm and I.

Jordan grins at me. He then turns to look at Bryce, and I do the same.

Needless to say, Bryce looks annoyed.

He's avoiding looking at me.

His head is turned to the side, staring away from Jordan, Malcolm, and I.

I would rather not try and force Bryce to speak to me in front of other people, so I pull out my phone, sending him a text message.

I hear Bryce's phone buzz in his pocket, and he's quick to pull out the device.

When he reads the message, he look straight at me and shakes his head.

Perfect. Just perfect.

I bite my lip, writing him another message.

When he reads this message, he lets out an annoyed huff that confuses both Jordan and Malcolm.

"Will you just leave me alone? You're so

pushy," Bryce retorts, and I feel myself gasp aloud.

"You don't mean that," I say quietly, trying to convince myself.

Bryce's reaction isn't great as he stands up from his seat, taking a step around the tables and towards me.

He kneels down in front of me, and my eyes widen.

He's very intimidating right now, and I feel scared that he's about to lash out at me.

"How can you be so sure? You only seem to look for the best in people. Haven't you ever considered that not everyone has a good side? Not everybody in the world is nice, Blossom," Bryce whispers, and I stand up from my seat.

He gets up from the ground now, and he's back to towering over me.

"You can't possibly be talking about yourself, though. You're very nice, whether you'd like to admit it to yourself or not," I claim, and Bryce laughs out loud.

Jordan clears his throat from behind me.

"Can you guys please not do this right now? You're causing a scene," Jordan practically begs, and Bryce looks over me and down to him.

With a nod of his head, Bryce walks out of the cafe just as quickly as he came in the first place, taking his coffee with him.

I feel my knees go a little weak, which is why I'm quick to sit back down in my seat.

I feel Jordan's hand on my shoulder and when I turn to him I feel tears building behind my eyes.

Damn Bryce and his ability to toy with my feelings so much.