The looming deadline for the assignment was a heavy weight, and I couldn't let my personal frustration jeopardize twenty percent of my grade. I waited for two days, checking my phone more often than I'd like to admit, expecting a schedule or even a half-baked plan from him. Nothing.
He didn't even show up for today's lecture. Professor Hugh spent the entire hour laying out specific guidelines, stressing that this was a collaborative effort. "Any project that reflects the voice of only one student will earn a collective F," he warned.
Fuck! I cursed silently.
I pulled out my phone as soon as I left the hall. It wasn't lost on me that I was the one reaching out first, but this was about survival, not pride.
Tuesdays and Thursdays. 4:00 PM. Library aisle next to History. Don't be late.
I felt a wave of relief just having the words out of my system. I found a spot on the grass, leaning my back against the rough bark of an old oak tree, and tried to lose myself in my sketchbook. A few minutes later, Charlie skipped toward me and bumped my shoulder. She didn't say a word, just handed me a wrapped sandwich.
The first bite was heaven. Between the art studio and the psychology drama, I'd been skipping meals again, a habit Charlie noticed with motherly precision.
"So," she began, her eyes gleaming with that specific 'I have news' look. "You know what I heard from Edd?"
"What now?" I asked, though I already had a sinking feeling I knew who the subject was.
"Liam is out for the whole season from basketball. Suspended."
I paused, a piece of crust halfway to my mouth. "What happened?"
"Apparently, he was at a club and ran into a couple of players from the opposing team, the same ones who baited him during the game. It was two against one. They started mocking him, trying to get a rise out of him, and well... it worked. There was a fight. Liam didn't just win, he flattened them! They complained to their Dean, and since our Dean is old friends with theirs, the whole thing was swept under the rug to avoid a police report. The catch? Liam's off the team for the rest of the year."
I looked away, the sandwich suddenly feeling heavy in my hand. That explained the absence and his silence.
"That's not even the best part," Charlie leaned in closer, lowering her voice. "The word in the sorority houses is that Marissa is on the warpath. Rumor has it Liam is actually into someone, someone he's keeping a secret. Marissa is convinced he's seeing someone else and she's out for blood. She wants to find this girl and ruin her."
The sandwich felt like lead in my stomach now. My mind raced through the last two weeks,the stares, the texts, his haphazard parking. Could it be me? Or was I just another name on a list of girls he is using to distract himself?
I looked at the vibrant green of the campus lawn, but all I couldn't see the beauty. If it was me, this wouldn't just be "college drama." A scandal with someone like Liam Lincoln, especially with my mother and Mia already watching my every move, could blow up my entire future.
Charlie kept talking, her voice fading into a hum of background noise as my anxiety took the wheel. I was already a disappointment to the Carvers; I couldn't afford to be a headline too.