Chapter 19 CHAPTER 19
YAEL
The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was a ceiling I didn’t recognize.
The second thing I saw was not my pillow but a navy-blue duvet that didn’t belong to me.
I bolted upright. My brain lagged a full five seconds before catching up.
This… wasn’t my room.
“What the actual fuck?” I whispered, eyes darting around. My heart pounded as flashes from last night came crashing in—Knox, his stupid teasing, me sitting beside him, and then—nothing.
Oh my God.
I ran both hands over my face. “Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.”
There was no way—no way in hell—
“Okay,” I muttered, standing so fast the blanket slid off. “Think, Yael. Think.”
I was still wearing my jeans and top from yesterday. That was good. Great. But—why the hell was I in someone else’s bed?
“Where am I?” I whispered again, spinning in circles like that would help.
Then it hit me. The faint scent of his cologne. That sharp, clean, arrogant smell that always made me want to punch something.
“Knox,” I breathed, and immediately facepalmed. “Of course. Of course it’s you.”
I started pacing. “Oh my God, this is bad. This is so bad. I’m going to kill him. I’m going to stab him. With a fork. Or a pen. Whatever I find first.”
My voice was rising. I didn’t care. I needed to leave. Now.
I stormed out of the room—and froze.
He was sleeping on the couch.
A duvet was thrown over his lower half, his hair messy, his jaw slack in that infuriatingly perfect way that made him look like sin wrapped in exhaustion. His bare shoulders peeked out, lean and defined, the kind of body sculpted from both genes and discipline.
For half a second, I just… looked.
Then I blinked hard. “Nope. Not doing this.”
I took a deep breath, walked up to him—and almost leaned in. Almost.
My brain short-circuited halfway through the act because… God, he looked peaceful. His lashes were long. His lips—
“Jesus Christ, Yael, stop being stupid,” I muttered and cleared my throat loudly.
Nothing.
“Wake up,” I said, louder this time.
Still nothing.
Fine. Plan B.
I kicked his leg.
He shot up with a startled yell. “Ow! What the hell?”
I jumped back, clutching my chest. “You—! You asshole! Why am I here?”
He rubbed his eyes, voice gravelly from sleep. “Good morning to you too.”
That voice. That stupid, deep morning voice that hit like espresso and a sin at once.
“Don’t good morning me,” I snapped, ignoring the way my stomach flipped. “Explain. Now.”
He blinked, still half-asleep. Then he stood—and my entire brain stopped functioning.
Because he was shirtless.
And covered in tattoos.
A black serpent coiled up his left arm, wrapping around lean muscle. Words inked across his ribs. Another design near his collarbone. His skin gleamed faintly in the soft morning light, every movement of his chest stupidly hypnotic.
I was staring. I knew I was staring.
And I couldn’t stop.
His lips curved slowly. “Like what you see?”
My face burned. “Put on a shirt!”
He grinned. “You didn’t complain last night.”
“What?” I choked. “What the hell does that mean—”
He laughed, low and lazy. “Relax, princess. You passed out. I brought you here. You were half-dead.”
I folded my arms tightly, pretending his words didn’t make my stomach twist again. “You couldn’t have left me in my dorm?”
“You were asleep,” he said simply. “And snoring.”
“I don’t snore.”
“You absolutely do.”
“Knox—”
He yawned, stretching, and for a horrifying second I caught another glimpse of the way his abs flexed.
“Stop stretching like a damn Calvin Klein model!” I shouted.
He smirked. “You looked first.”
I opened my mouth—then shut it.
Fine. He won this round.
“You’re unbelievable,” I muttered, storming back toward the bedroom to grab my phone—except I couldn’t find it.
I froze. “Where’s my phone?”
“Right here.”
I turned. He was leaning against the doorway, holding it up like a prize.
“Give it,” I snapped, walking toward him.
“Ask nicely.”
“Knox.”
He raised a brow. “That’s not nicely.”
I glared, stepping closer. “Give. It. To. Me.”
“Or what?”
My brain short-circuited again because he was close now, really close, and I could see the faint shadow of stubble on his jaw, smell the faint mix of soap and something darker.
“I’ll—”
I lunged for the phone.
He dodged easily, smirking, holding it up high. “You’re short.”
“I swear to God—”
I tried again, and somehow, in the chaos, I lost my balance.
One second, I was reaching for it.
The next, I was falling—straight into him.
“Whoa—”
He caught me, but the momentum pushed us both down onto the couch, and somehow I ended up sitting on his lap.
For a second, neither of us moved.
My breath hitched. His eyes locked on mine.
And then I felt it.
My brain screamed. My body froze.
Oh no.
Oh no no no.
I jumped up so fast the world spun. “You—! You—! You’re disgusting!”
He burst out laughing. “You literally fell on me!”
“Don’t talk to me!” I snatched the phone from his hand. “Ever again!”
“You’re welcome for saving your drunk ass last night!”
“I wasn’t drunk!”
“Sure you weren’t.”
“Knox!”
He only grinned wider, running a hand through his hair. “You’re cute when you’re mad, you know that?”
I glared so hard I could burn him alive. “Die.”
“Already halfway there, princess.”
I stomped toward the door.
“Hey,” he called behind me.
“What?” I snapped without turning.
“You’re welcome.”
I turned just long enough to shoot him the finger, and he laughed—deep and infuriatingly warm—before I slammed the door behind me.
My heart was pounding. My face was on fire.
And I hated—hated—that a small, traitorous part of me was still smiling.
The moment I stepped into my dorm, I shut the door, leaned on it, and screamed silently into the air.
My brain was still short-circuiting from that morning.
Knox. Shirtless. Tattoos. The sitting-on-him part.
I dropped my phone on the bed and groaned. “God, just bury me now.”
Of course, the universe had other plans—because my phone immediately started buzzing.
Maya calling.
I stared at it for a full second before answering. “What?”
Her voice was a full-on screech. “YAEL. WHERE. HAVE. YOU. BEEN?”
I winced, pulling the phone away.
“You’re going to burst my eardrum.”
“Don’t play with me, woman! Jordan and I saw your location last night and it disappeared! You better start explaining before I break into your dorm!”
My heart skipped. “Wait, you track me?”
“Yes! Safety first! Now talk.”
“Maya—”
“No, don’t ‘Maya’ me. I’m coming over. We’re coming over.”
Click.
The call ended before I could even protest.
I groaned again. “I can’t survive this.”
Ten minutes later, my door burst open like a hurricane had a face.
Maya. And Jordan.
Jordan looked half-asleep, clutching an iced coffee. Maya looked like she was running on chaos and gossip alone.
“Where is he?” Maya demanded.
“What—”
“Where’s Knox? You slept in his room!”
I choked on air. “I didn’t sleep with him!”
Jordan raised a brow, sipping her coffee. “That’s not what she said.”
I threw a pillow at her. “You’re supposed to be the calm one!”
Jordan dodged it easily, smirking. “I am calm. Just… intrigued.”
Maya gasped dramatically, throwing herself onto my bed. “You slept in the enemy’s bed!”
“Stop making it sound like a damn headline!” I shouted, grabbing another pillow and hitting her.
She squealed. “Admit it, Yael. He’s hot.”
“I’d rather die.”
Jordan hummed. “But you didn’t deny it.”
“MAYA!”
Jordan grinned. “That’s my name, actually.”
I glared at both of them. “You two are insane.”
Maya crossed her legs like she was about to host an interview. “Okay, serious talk. Details. Did he touch you?”
I gaped. “WHAT—No!”
I groaned, dropping onto the bed beside her. “I fell asleep while helping him with the gala stuff, okay? He carried me there because apparently, I was ‘half-dead.’ End of story.”
Jordan’s brows rose. “He carried you?”
Maya gasped again. “That’s—romantic.”
“It’s creepy,” I said flatly.
Jordan’s tone softened. “But he didn’t try anything?”
“No. He slept in the living room. I woke up, saw him shirtless, nearly died, kicked him, and ran out. End. Of. Story.”
Maya squealed again. “He was shirtless?”
“YES, MAYA!”
Jordan chuckled. “You seem traumatized.”
“Because I am! His abs had abs!”
Maya fell off the bed laughing. “Oh my God, I can’t breathe!”
I buried my face in my hands. “I hate both of you.”
“No, you love us,” Maya said between giggles.
Jordan nodded in mock seriousness. “You do.”
I groaned. “Can we not make this a thing?”
“Oh, it’s already a thing,” Maya said, unlocking her phone. “I’m literally naming our group chat right now.”
My phone pinged. A new chat appeared.
THE HOT MESS TRIO
I groaned. “You didn’t have to name it that.”
Jordan smirked. “She did.”
I rolled my eyes. “I need new friends.”
Maya ignored me, waving her phone. “Ooh, guys! There’s going to be a gala party announcement later tonight!”
I blinked. “Wait, what party?”
“Dean’s charity gala kickoff,” Maya said. “But guess what—there’s an after-party. Like a real one. The committee’s hosting it. Everyone’s invited.”
Jordan raised a brow. “So basically, the whole school.”
“Exactly!” Maya squealed, eyes sparkling. “We have to go!”
I stared at her. “Why would I go to a party thrown by Knox’s team?”
“Because it’s the party of the semester!”
Jordan shrugged. “Could be fun.”
“Maya, no.”
Maya clasped her hands. “Please? Pretty please?”
“No.”
She gasped dramatically. “Jordan, she said no.”
Jordan looked at me. “You know she’s not going to stop asking.”
“Exactly!” Maya grinned. “Yael, come on. It’ll be fun! You’ve been stressing too much. We’ll go, look hot, eat free food, and make Knox drool.”
I hesitated. “I don’t care about making him drool.”
Jordan smirked. “But you would look hot.”
Maya squealed again. “Yes! I’m going to my room to pick out outfits!”
I groaned. “Why am I friends with you again?”
“Because you secretly love us,” Maya sang as she ran out.
Jordan chuckled, setting down her coffee. “She’s chaos in heels.”
“Tell me about it.”
Jordan stretched. “I’ll grab my stuff too. Meet you later?”
“Yeah.”
“Cool.” She paused at the door, giving me a teasing look. “And Yael?”
“What now?”
“Next time, if you end up in his bed again—get proof. I want to see those tattoos.”
“JORDAN!”
She laughed, du
cking out before I could throw something at her.
I fell backward onto my bed, groaning into the pillow.
God. My friends were insane.
But as I stared up at the ceiling, I couldn’t help the small smile creeping onto my lips.
Because for the first time since I’d moved here, my life wasn’t… quiet.
It was loud. Chaotic. Unpredictable.
And I kind of liked it.