**Chapter Fourteen**
A few days passed, and the party was happening tomorrow night. I still wasn’t excited about it and Julie expected me to wear that stupid dress. I wouldn’t, but it was nice that she thought it’ll happen. I planned to stick to my guns and blend in with the crowd. It was the only way I’d survive a whole party. Let alone my first one.
Everyone else was excited though. So much so they wouldn’t stop talking about it. College parties were supposed to be wild and exhilarating. All it did was induce nausea for me. I’m not a girl who likes to party and unfortunately all my friends did. It amazes me they even wanted to be my friend. We were so different, but that’s what made us drawn to each other.
Speaking of drawing to each other, we’ve all been hanging out in either of our dorms except for Juliana’s and Cam’s because we didn’t know their roommate situation. Today we were in Dillon and I’s dorm room with Dre and Drew. Juliana would be here any minute and Cameron was running behind because he was hanging out with his mystery girl, Kayla. Tomorrow we would get to meet her and I hope she was as great as Cameron made her out to be.
Back to the point. Ever since we hugged each other, it’s like we couldn’t stop. Every time we saw each other, we went in for a hug. It’s usually quick, but today it lingered on for a bit. I wasn’t complaining because having time to be this close to him is always great in my book. Resting my head on his chest made me feel a plethora of emotions. He did not know what he was doing to me.
Unfortunately, eyes were on us and I would have forgotten about them being in the room if it weren’t for Dillon speaking up.
“The hell is going on here?” She questioned as we let go of each other.
Drew rolled his eyes. “Friends can’t hug?” He asked.
“Yeah, but not as long as you guys were hugging,” Dre pointed out. I felt he knew something I didn’t.
I shrug, not seeing the problem. To me, Drew didn’t see me that way. “Um, it’s just a hug, no big deal,” I say nonchalantly. Dillon knew I was thinking the opposite.
She didn’t go into it, though. Instead, she smiled my way, knowing exactly how I was feeling. My journey to get over Drew was backfiring the more attention he showered on me. Maybe I’ve been getting in my head, but things could take a turn for the pair of us. Then again, Juliana is his entire world. I see the way he looks at her, and it’s not even comparable to the way he looks at me. I was in the friend zone and sadly, I would never get out.
On the bright side, there was an ace that I had waiting to come out of my back pocket. My phone vibrated once more as I looked to see who it was. The number was unknown to me. However, I had a sneaking suspicion as to who it was. Dillon egged me on to answer it, so I did and was pleased to hear a familiar voice.
Hitting the green button, I put it on speaker, which may have been a bad idea, but I did it anyway. “Hello?” I say through the microphone.
“Oh, you answered. I thought for sure I’d go to voicemail.” Keegan said, just as delighted as I was.
I giggled, feeling giddy inside. “Keegan, hi. I honestly didn’t think you’d call. It’s been quite some time since I’ve seen you.” I sat down at my desk as everyone looked on. That was when Juliana walked in.
He chuckled. “Sorry about that. I worked a few extra shifts because I wanted to take you somewhere nice.”
That made my heart race when he said that. He’s been working long hours just to have enough money to take me somewhere nice. Keegan seemed like he would be the real deal. I was happy to partake in anything to do with him. If it were going to get me my first serious boyfriend, I’m down for anything. Dillon and Juliana seemed excited for me, cheering me on in the corner.
I smile brightly at this news. “Awe, you didn’t have to do that,” I say.
“Of course, I did. You just give me a date.” He persisted. “I want to get to know you, Anna. I wasn’t kidding about that.”
I knew he wasn’t, but I’ve never had a guy so serious about me before. “Well, there’s a party happening tomorrow night. Sunday I’m free.”
That got his attention. “There’s a party? I hope I’m invited.” He said.
I giggle some more. “You should totally come. It’ll be more fun with you there.” I tried to flirt a little, but it sounded pathetic to me.
He didn’t turn me down, though. “Send me the details and I’ll be there, sweetheart.”
I can’t believe he called me sweetheart. “As long as you get some rest,” I conquer.
He agreed to my proposal and then we hung up the phone with each other. I did a light scream as I was happy he finally called me. I’ve been waiting for him to get back to me and he finally did. The excitement I felt made me eager to see him at this party. It also helped that the girls were just as excited as I was. Without them, I don’t think I could handle my emotions.
“Looks like Anna got herself a date,” Dre teased.
I rolled my eyes playfully. “It’s not a date. He’s just coming to the party.” I argue.
Juliana scoffed. “Then the next day it’ll be a date. You have to agree with that.” She says.
I smile again, agreeing with her. “I just can’t believe he wants to go out with me,” I say. “He’s like insanely hot.”
“Heaven on a stick,” Dillon added.
Laughing, I sat on my bed smiling uncontrollably. This was going to be the first guy that I talk to who was also interested in me back. It wouldn’t be like the Drew situation where everything was one-sided. This was my chance to try my hand at dating. It could be extremely well or seriously bad, but I’m hoping for anything. Keegan didn’t peg me to be a horrible guy. The way he talked to me showed me little glimpses of who he was. I couldn’t wait to get to know him better.
Through all my smiling, I glanced up to see Drew sitting on Dillon’s bed moping. His behavior was always strange, but I wasn’t about to keep letting him sit there with no energy. The minute I got on the phone with Keegan, his demeanor changed. The least he could do was to be happy for me. This was a big moment. I didn’t need any of Drew’s over-protectiveness getting in the way of something great.
So, I did what I did best, grabbed a pillow and chugged it at his face. He looked at me, surprised I did that. However, I was tired of looking at his face. It wasn’t the cheerful one
I was used to seeing it. It was his angry one that made me uncomfortable.
“What was that for?” He questioned with a light smile.
I crossed my arms. “Because you’re supposed to be happy for me and instead you’re moping.” I point out to him. “And the new rule is you’re not allowed to wear my beanie if you’re going to mope.”
His mouth dropped, but before he could say something, Juliana chimed in. I didn’t think his having my beanie would turn into such a big deal. We were only friends, and I honestly forgot he had it. The only reason I mentioned it was because I wanted to prove a point to him directly. Though Juliana is very possessive and everyone should have seen this coming.
Looking between us, Juliana looked at the beanie, getting a little flustered. “Why do you have her beanie on?” She questioned him.
Drew sat up, not looking for a fight. “Come on Juliana, it’s just a hat.” He tried to de-escalate the situation.
She wasn’t listening. “It’s another girl’s hat, Drew. It doesn’t belong to me.” She was furious.
“I-I can take it back,” I stuttered. I didn’t want to get in between this, but I felt like I owed it to him.
Juliana looked at me with death in her eyes for a moment, before completely switching up. Her anger was directed at me, but more so at Drew. I don’t know why she didn’t trust him, but it’s obvious she didn’t. If she knew some things he’s said to me, I probably wouldn’t trust him either. Though I wasn’t any better either. Feeding into the attention he gave me wouldn’t help the situation.
“Why do you have it, Drew?” She asked again, yelling this time.
Drew got up, rolling his eyes once more. “I’m not doing this with you today Julie, this shit is getting tiring!” This was the first time I heard Drew yell like that. It’s safe to say he was pissed.
Just as Drew was walking out, Cameron walked in. Juliana followed behind Drew, yelling many things at him. Cameron looked confused, as I’m sure he just came back from having a wonderful time. Their arguing was going to become a regular thing. The closer Drew and I got, the more Juliana didn’t like it. Being friends with Drew was a task and a half.