Chapter 17
Ellie's POV
"I'm so glad I caught you," Samantha said, slightly breathless. "I wanted to apologize for the awkwardness earlier. You know how these things can get blown out of proportion."
Jackson remained silent beside me, but I felt him tense slightly.
"It's fine," I said neutrally, wanting to end the conversation quickly. "We're actually heading somewhere, so—"
"Oh, I won't keep you," she interrupted, her gaze flicking to Jackson before returning to me. "I just wanted to make sure there are no hard feelings. After all, we'll be seeing a lot of each other now that Lucas and I are official."
There was something in her tone—a subtle warning or threat—that made my skin prickle.
"No hard feelings," I assured her, keeping my voice even. "I'm happy for you both."
Jackson stepped slightly forward, positioning himself subtly between Samantha and me. "If that's all, we really should be going. We have reservations."
Samantha's smile faltered momentarily. "Of course. I wouldn't want to make you late." She looked at me with exaggerated sympathy. "Ellie always hated being late to things. Such a stickler for time, aren't you?"
"Goodbye, Samantha," Jackson said firmly, his tone leaving no room for further conversation.
She blinked, clearly not used to being dismissed so directly, before turning and walking away with a forced smile.
Once she was out of earshot, I let out a breath I didn't realize I'd been holding.
"About what you said earlier," I began hesitantly, "at the Arena. About wanting to court me... that was just to help me out of the situation with Lucas, right?"
Jackson studied me for a moment, his expression thoughtful. "What would you like it to be?"
The question caught me off guard. I opened my mouth, then closed it again, unsure how to respond. Dating a human came with complications I wasn't prepared to navigate—the secrets, the necessary distance, the inevitable heartbreak when they discovered what I was.
Noticing my hesitation, Jackson's expression softened. "If you're not interested in dating anyone right now, then yes, it was just a convenient story to help diffuse the tension."
I felt an unexpected twinge of disappointment at his words, which confused me even more.
"Let's start with friendship," he suggested gently. "No pressure, no expectations. You don't need to overthink this, Ellie. Just remember one thing: I won't hurt you."
Something in the way he said it—with such quiet certainty—made me believe him. My shoulders relaxed slightly. He was right; I had been overthinking everything for so long. Being constantly on guard, watching every word, controlling every reaction—it was exhausting.
"Would you like to walk to the restaurant?" he asked, changing the subject. "It's not far, and the path through the old maple grove is quite beautiful this time of year."
I nodded, finding myself genuinely wanting to spend more time with him. Despite not knowing exactly who—or what—he was, there was something undeniably calming about his presence. For the first time in years, I felt like I could almost... breathe.
"I'd like that," I replied, falling into step beside him as we headed toward the maple grove, leaving the campus and its complications temporarily behind.
As we walked beneath the canopy of orange and red leaves, Jackson pointed to a particularly ancient maple tree.
"That one's my favorite," he said. "The groundskeeper told me it's over two hundred years old—older than the university itself."
"It's beautiful," I agreed, admiring its massive trunk and sprawling branches.
"I sit under it sometimes when I need to think," he continued. "One time, I fell asleep while studying and woke up to find a family of squirrels had stolen my granola bar and arranged the wrapper artistically around me. I like to think they were trying to frame me for littering."
I burst out laughing at the unexpected story. "Did you have witnesses to prove your innocence?"
"Only the squirrels, and they all pleaded the Fifth," he replied with perfect deadpan delivery.
"You sound more like a law student than a med student," I said, still chuckling.
Jackson placed a hand over his heart, feigning shock. "Wait, you didn't know? I'm double-majoring in law and medicine. I'm preparing to both diagnose illnesses and sue them for trespassing in human bodies."
I snorted with laughter. "Is that so?"
"I'm frankly shocked you didn't know this," he continued, his expression comically serious. "I thought I was famous enough that every girl on campus had memorized my class schedule, blood type, and favorite breakfast cereal."
"Oh really? And what is the great Jackson Wilson's favorite cereal?" I challenged.
"Lucky Charms," he answered without hesitation. "But I only eat the marshmallows. The actual cereal bits I feed to my army of squirrel minions. It's how I maintain their loyalty."
I couldn't stop laughing. "You're ridiculous!"
"Ridiculously charming, you mean," he corrected with a wink that somehow managed to be both goofy and endearing rather than arrogant.
I laughed again, surprised by his sense of humor. As we continued walking, he pointed out various spots on campus with similar anecdotes—the bench where a professor had once delivered an entire lecture to a group of confused tourists thinking they were his students, the fountain where the chemistry club had accidentally created foam that took three days to clean up.
"And see that window on the third floor?" he asked, pointing to the science building. "That's where I accidentally set off the emergency sprinkler system while trying to impress my biochemistry professor with an unauthorized experiment."
"You didn't!" I gasped, grinning.
"I did. Ruined an entire semester's worth of research papers. I had to personally apologize to every student and professor affected." He shook his head ruefully. "Not my finest moment."
"I can't believe people think you're this cold, unapproachable person," I said, wiping tears of laughter from my eyes. "The 'ice-cold Jackson Wilson' is actually a disaster-prone dork."
His smile was warm but somewhat reserved. "I'm selective about who gets to see that side of me."
"Lucky me, then," I replied without thinking.
He glanced at me, something unreadable flickering in his eyes. "Yes," he said softly. "Lucky me."