It was too late to get my car back at the college's parking lot.

So i'd let Karsen drop me off at home, I didn't care that he saw where I lived, or that my house was a simple relatively small two story house, I didn't care that he'd seen that it wasn't the best looking or that there wasn't any other cars in the driveway or that it was dark on the inside.

But thankfully he hadn't spoken to me about any of it.

He hadn't even spoke when he dropped me off, not even a goodbye which was actually a good thing.

I didn't want to hurt his feelings and not return it, so I was really okay with it.

I laid in bed most of the night, unable to fall asleep but not just from unease, also from how stuffy my nose seemed to be after all the walking in the rain.

I just kept checking on my mom throughout the night who was asleep whenever I walked past her door, walking up and down the stairs like a ghost.

The first time I went downstairs was to get a peach, the next time to watch tv and the third time to get a book from the stack of books stacked on a handmade shelve i'd made and painted myself almost two years ago.

I did this till it was 2am and was then coughing, that was when I went downstairs for the fourth time, just to go to the medicine cabinet that look like its on personal drug store.

I got the medicine and continued to take it, then I got back upstairs and fell asleep somehow, just a few hours before I had to get up and shower, ignoring my body and brain that told me to succumb to sleep the entire time.

The shower helped to get me awake, a little.

I also felt a little less sick as I ate some cereal and took my moms breakfast up to her room, leaving it beside her.

Then I went back downstairs and I sat down finishing some apple juice before I got a text from Karsen to come outside.

I got my jacket over the couch and tugged it on before getting my keys and locking the house door and crossing my arms over my chest as I made way to his car.

His extremely out of place car, not fitting in with my to the lower side of middle class neighborhood, especially since Karsen was probably some secretly rich boy.

But it wasn't surprising, he was a golden boy in my eyes, and Im sure to many others.

I opened the door and got in, looking to him on his phone before I looked away, out the window and to my moms bedroom window, hoping today she'd pick today to be the day life changes for her.

Something I always hoped for.

It was hypocritical to expect that because I didn't ever choose to change either, but I hoped so dearly all my life she was better than me.

Maybe she wasn't.

"Hey."

"Hello." I mumble, leaning my head on the window and counting the last bits of water over the side of it.

It must've been raining on his side of the world.

"Later, please remind me to pay you back for the stuff yesterday." I tell him.

"You don't have to."

I look to him, side eyeing him. "Just remind me."

"No."

I roll my eyes and look back to where i'd previously been looking. I didn't have it in me to argue with him today. If he really wanted to pay for it, he could.

"You hungry?"

I shake my head and then look ahead, noticing we were well on our way to the café which was on the way to the college anyway.

We were almost an hour early so it didn't matter, for a brief moment I wondered if he was awake early by choice or force from the anxiety, but I didn't ask.

I just hummed silently along to the music till we came to a stop, parked perfectly and he unbuckled his seatbelt.

I was just gonna wait in the car for him.

But that it until he did the same with my seatbelt, clicking it down and I rolled my eyes begrudgingly got up and out of the car.

I followed him through the parking lot. Again, this place wasn't ever busy, but today it was too early for it to be busy anyway.

He opened the door for him and I and I walked in, the warmth immediately enveloping around us as we walked further inside.

We walked to the front, deciding to order there rather than have the waiter come to us.

I eyed the plastic menu on the counter as he ordered his own stuff, which obviously included his usual shitty coffee. But what made my lips quirk up was the mention of the blue cookie after he ordered a bagel with cheese, eggs and bacon.

Then what made me glare was when he ordered me my usual order of tea and the red velvet cookie, exactly what I would have but didn't want him to get me.

I had no money on me right me, and it kinda pissed me off that he bought it without my ask. But a smaller part of me wanted to smile at the gesture.

I pushed that part far down. Telling it to fuck off.

The humane part of me cowered away and I was back to being a cold bitch as I walked away to the booth we always sat in, taking out my phone and playing the Pool game I downloaded recently to avoid any further social interaction, that is of course until he sat in front of me and started speaking.

"You wanna work on the project today?"

Want to? No.

Have to? Probably.

"If you want to." I respond, looking up to him, "Its Friday."

He cusses softly at that and I smirk, elated that he has plans and when he sees my smirk before I drop it he glares playfully at me. "You're happy that we're not working today?"

I shrug, "Sorry about that."

He kicks my shoes with his under the table before he speaks, "What're you doing later today?"

I shrug, continuing to play with my game.

"You should come with me."

I look up to him. "Huh?"

"Theres a party before game season tonight."

I blink, "So?"

"So... why don't you come with me?"

My lips turn to a smile, and a laugh almost escapes past my lips, "No, no im fine, thanks."

He leans closer on the table, arms folded over and I ignore his arms and his stupid face.

"Why?"

"I have an ear condition, loud music doesn't work well with me."

His lips twitch up into a smile and I roll my eyes at how easy it was to get him to smile.

"Don't look at me like you're amused Karsen."

"You amuse me Adrienne."

I lean closer to him. "Im not trying to entertain you Karsen." I say almost bitterly but he doesn't seem to get it through his thick skull. "I think that's what makes you even better, Addy."

Uhm.

I don't know how exactly to respond to that.

So I don't.

"You're intolerable."

"Its one of my finer traits." He replies.

"Oh i've noticed, along with unbearable, excruciating, dreadful-" I list absolutely horrible attributes, but the longer I do, the more he smiles and his dimples indent into his cheeks.

"You're also an idiot."

"Harsh." He says, moving his hands over to his heart in a mock gesture of pain and I snort.

I move back from the table, leaning back against the leather seats, continuing to play my pool game, not speaking even when the waitress came up to our booth and placed everything down.

I waited for a little before I took the tea and sipped on it.

"Summer wants your number."

I nod, remembering that she'd asked me earlier yesterday when Karsen was doing his sexual activities in the locker room, "Oh yeah, you can give it to her."

"That easy?"

I snort, looking over to him, "I just dont like you Karsen."

He shrugs as he types something on his phone, "I kinda like being special anyway."

I roll my eyes at that till my phone beeps and I immediately see a message from Summer, my eyes widen at just how fast she was cause he had asked me the question like, a minute ago.

"She's a compulsive texter."

"Great." I say with a fake smile and he smirks back, taking a bit of his bagel as I take my cookie and break it in half, then another half, and bite into that piece.

: Did Karsen already ask you to come with us later? If he did, are you coming?

I can't help but feel a little flutter of something in my chest at the fact that she seemed to want me there too.

: Not coming, maybe next time.

Liar.

Liar.

Liar.

: Oh:( Okay yeah sure.

I was just about to put my phone away when it beeped again.

: Wanna go out tomorrow? I have a gallery openings tickets, my sister didn't wanna go with me so...

The ends of my lips tip up.

Gallery openings? Quite literally the best place to take me to.

: Time?

: Six thirty.

I look over to Karsen. "Are you gonna get drunk today?"

He looks to me, "Probably, im fucking nervous."

I raise a brow at that, "For?"

"The games." He takes a sip of his coffee and I eye him for a moment, eyeing the cup too. "If you have anxiety is all the caffeine you consume any good for you?"

I noticed he always drank something caffeinated when not drinking water, sometimes energy drinks but especially coffee.

"Nope." He says simply but doesn't continue to elaborate and it almost makes me want to question him more. Now I get why he questions me so much.

I don't pry. I know what its like not to want to be questioned.

I nod slowly at his vague answer.

"Why're you asking?"

"About?" I ask.

"If im gonna be drunk?"

"Summer wanted to go to some galleries opening, if we're not working on the project she asked me to go with her so..."

His eyes lighten almost, "Yeah, no you should go with." He urges me and I nod, biting on the skin of my cheek as I think about it.

I mean, one gallery opening won't hurt.

: Sure.