Chapter 6
By the time I got home, I was exhausted. It had been a long day. I flopped down onto my bed and sighed.
The image of Ryan with that blonde girl kept playing in my head. It made me so angry.
Why was I feeling this way? I mean, he wasn't my boyfriend and I knew he was a playboy so why did seeing him with her affect me so much?
I hated feeling like this. Like some love-sick teenager.
It was stupid.
I needed to get over him. But how could I do that when all I wanted was to be near him? All I wanted was to have his lips on mine again or feel his touch.
Fuck! Why did I let myself fall for him? He was just a jerk. A jerk who used girls for his own pleasure.
I shouldn't have even considered kissing him. That was a mistake.
" Liam." I heard Jason call my name and soon enough he was hovering over me, looking concerned.
"Hey." I answered and sat up.
Jason sat down next to me. I knew he could sense that something was wrong.
"Are you okay?" he asked. he moved closer to me and stared at my face. "Your eyes are swollen. Have you been crying?"
I shook my head. There's no way in hell I would tell Jason that I was crying because of his brother, Ryan.
"Nothing." I sniffed. "I just had a bad day."
"Really, Liam? I'm your best friend. You can tell me anything. What happened?"
I knew Jason would worry so I had to come up with something fast.
"It's just the classes." I lied.
Jason stared at me and raised his eyebrow. Then he pointed to the shirt I was wearing.
"Who gave you this shirt?" he asked.
I blushed, remembering Brandon and his muscular body.
"A guy in class. His name is Brandon." I replied.
Jason looked at me curiously.
" Brandon? Is he the one that hurt you?" He asked again.
I shook my head immediately.
"No. He didn't hurt me. I fell down in the cafe and stained my shirt. He was actually so kind and sweet and he offered me his shirt." I explained.
I found myself smiling as I talked about Brandon. My mind drifted back to his shirtless body. Those chiseled abs and those broad shoulders. He was so sexy and athletic.
"Do you like him?" Jason blurted out all of a sudden.
I couldn't help but laugh.
"No."
I paused for a second.
"I mean, he is really cute. But I barely know him." I added.
Jason giggled and nudged me with her elbow. "He sounds nice. You should go out with him."
"Are you kidding? I just met him today. And besides, I don't even know if he is interested in me. Plus, there's the whole 'I've never been on a date' thing." I replied.
"How will you ever go out on a date, if you don't talk to guys. You're always in your books and dresses like a nerd." Jason pointed out.
"Maybe." I said.
I thought about his words. Maybe he was right. All I ever did was study. Maybe I should try and go out more. Maybe if I spent more time socializing, then maybe I wouldn't feel so alone.
Maybe if I had other guys I talked to, I wouldn't be obsessing over Ryan like a foolish little boy.
"So, are you going to keep the shirt?" Jason asked, bringing my attention back to him.
"No, of course not. I'm gonna return it tomorrow at 8pm at Onyx dorm." I replied.
"Ooohhhhh.... It's a date." Jason wiggled his eyebrows.
I rolled my eyes at her.
"It's not a date. It's just a meeting. To return his shirt. That's all."
Jason chuckled and stood up. he straightened his shirt and ruffled his hair for a while..
"I saw Ryan today." I heard Jason say as he made his way towards the door.
I froze.
"What?" I asked.
"Ryan. My brother." He said again.
"Yeah. I know."
I didn't want to seem too eager to hear what Jason had to say about his brother. I didn't want to raise any suspicions. Especially since he had specifically warned to stay far away from his brother.
"Oh yeah. Anyway, he was with this blonde chick. I don't know... Ughh. You know, he can be such an ass. I told him not to flirt with anybody this semester, so there would be less drama. But no. He just had to go against my wishes and fuck a new person. Every single day." Jason huffed.
My stomach turned at his words.
I swallowed hard, trying to hide the fact that his words were hurting me. So the girl was one of his fuck-girls. His play things. His many conquests.
Did the kiss even mean anything to Ryan? Or was I it just me who thought about it.
Damn! I'm such a fool.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Jason asked again. He stared at me intensely.
"Yeah." I nodded immediately. "I'm fine. I promise."
"Alright then. Later. I'm going out to buy some food."
After Jason left, I curled up under the covers and closed my eyes.
All I wanted was to forget about today.... and even the day before.
I wanted to forget about Ryan... the blonde girl. The last night kiss.
"Ahhhhhhhh!!!' I yelled like a fool. Why did Ryan affect me so much?
It wasn't fair. He shouldn't have this power over me.
I hated it. I hated him.
But most importantly, I hated myself for falling for him. I was smarter than this. I was top of my class. Why was I acting like this over a boy?
Why did my body get excited excited anytime I thought of Ryan. It was weird.
If I didn't know better, I would say Ryan was like a drug which had affected my body.
No matter what I did, I couldn't stop thinking about him.
His face, lips, eyes, hands flashed in my mind everytime.
God! This is so bad.
How could I still be thinking about Ryan, after the way he humiliated me in the coffee shop?
He was so addictive. I needed to stop thinking about him.
The next day went by quicker than I expected.
Classes, praticals, tests. They all passed in a blur.
I couldn't concentrate.
No matter how hard I tried, the only thing that came to my mind was Brandon and Ryan.
See Ryan had asked for me to meet him by 8pm at the same spot we kissed passionately. While, on the other hand, Brandon was expecting me to return his shirt by 8pm.
This was crazy.
Ryan or Brandon?
The hot sexy playboy, who would obviously break my heart into a million pieces.
Or the nice, polite, nerdy guy, who might not have been interested in me.
What was I gonna do?
My brain was literally short-circuiting.
If I choose Ryan, I might get some explanation about what happened in the cafe. Maybe it was all a misunderstanding....
......or maybe I was just a dumb little guy who for some reason wanted to believe that Ryan cared about me. And in reality, he's actually a playboy who doesn't give two ficks about me.
Or should I choose Brandon?
I didn't know anything about him other than the fact that he was polite enough to lend me his shirt.
Brandon could possibly turn out to be the nicest guy ever. I might try to ask him out like Jason suggested.....
...... or he may not actually be interested in me. In fact, he could end up being straight.
Both of them could be straight. That thought made me chuckle. I was such an idiot.
"Ughhh." I said to myself. I had gotten home from class, taken a shower and changed. It was 6pm.
I still had an hour and so before deciding who to meet.
I paced around my room, trying to figure out what to do. I was so nervous.
"What are you doing, Liam?" Jason asked.
I jumped up, startled.
"Oh hey. I'm just thinking." I replied.
"About what?" he asked.
I hesitated. There was no way I could tell Jason, I was thinking about choosing between meeting up with Ryan or Brandon.
Ryan was his brother!
"Uhh.... I... I..." I stuttered.
"Aren't you supposed to return Brandon's shirt today by 8pm? Why don't we go together?" He asked.
"What?" I replied.
"I'm heading off to Vertex dorm to see Cole and I thought since it was close to Onyx, we could go together. And you can return his shirt while I see Cole.
Shit!
I thought. If I agreed to this. That means I won't be able to meet up with Ryan.
I was torn.
Did I really want to see Ryan, or was I just curious to know what he had to say.
On the other hand, maybe it was better if I didn't go.
Ryan was a jerk and it was better I stayed away from him.
"Sure, Jason. We can go together." I agreed.
Jason smiled
"Awesome. Let's go."
We got ready and left the apartment.
We walked through the campus until we reached Vertex.
Jason waved me goodbye as he walked into the building, while I continued towards Onyx.
It was already 7:30pm and the sun was beginning to set. The sky was turning orange and pink.
The walk to Onyx didn't take long. I got to the front door desk and asked for Brandon Knight's room number.
The clerk pointed me towards the 2nd floor.
Room 301.
I took the elevator and soon found myself standing outside his door.
I took a deep breath before knocking.
The door opened.
And there he was....
Ryan!!!!!!
What the hell was Ryan doing in Brandon's room?