I know she means well but I’m so uncomfortable with this situation, I can’t get over it. I have to go.
“You’re having fun, I get it. You really like Brad.” I lower my voice, as if I’m afraid the two guys are going to bust into the ladies’ room at any minute. Ridiculous. “But Tad … he’s not my type.”
Kari raises a brow. “Why not?”
“Well, for one thing, he called me an uptight virgin.” I return the gesture, raising both of my brows back at her.
Kari sighs, shaking her head. “You know, he might have a point.”
My jaw drops. Say what?
“Hear me out.” She holds her hands up, like she knows I’m about to tear into her. “You really do need to loosen up, Chelsea. I know you’re kind of socially awkward, and that all has to do with the age difference and you graduating school and coming to college so early. But Tad is kind of right. You really are an uptight virgin.”
Holy crap. I can’t believe Kari is saying this to me. “Thanks a lot,” I mutter, crossing my arms in front of my chest. My heart hurts, my mind tumbling over what they both said. Again and again.
Uptight virgin.
Am I really that uptight? Do people look at me and immediately think virgin? Probably. I guess that’s better than thinking I’m a big nerd.
I slump my shoulders in defeat. It’s not that much better. I am the quintessential nerdy virgin. They should make a movie about me. I even have the titillating angle of my dad being in prison for fraud. At the very least, I’m a Lifetime movie waiting to happen.
“Hey.” She grabs hold of my shoulders and crushes me to her, giving me a hug. I don’t uncross my arms, just stand there awkwardly while she holds me close. “I’m not trying to hurt your feelings. You’ve been at this college for the last two years and you haven’t done anything wild or rebellious. But now I’m here to help you break out of your shell so you can have a little fun for once in your life. You deserve it, Chelsea. You’ve been pretending to live your life. Now you actually need to go out and do it. Find a hot guy and make out with him.”
Not with a creeper named Tad who calls me rude names. “This isn’t working out with Tad. I want to go home.”
Kari withdraws from me, her expression forlorn. “You can’t just leave me here alone.”
Guilt swamps me. When Kari and I moved in together, we made a vow never to leave the other alone at parties, on campus … anywhere. “I was kind of hoping you would go home with me.”
Can’t she see what she’s doing? She broke up with her boyfriend from high school when they moved here and he realized there was more to this world than just him and Kari. And now she’s running into the arms of another guy who’s probably only going to use her? I don’t get it.
Sometimes I feel like I’m the only logical person on this entire campus, I swear.
“Are you serious? It’s barely midnight! God.” She glances around the tiled bathroom, as if she’d rather look anywhere else but at me. “Come on, Chelsea. I really like Brad and I really think he likes me. I’m not going to call this night over so early when there’s still so much that can—happen. I don’t want to leave.”
So she leaves me no choice. “Fine. I am leaving. I’ll let you explain what happened to Tad.” I storm out of the bathroom, not even bothering to look back when I hear Kari yelling after me. Pushing my way through the crowded bar area, I break free, moving down the short hall that spills out into the front lobby of the restaurant. The dining area is to my right and it’s mostly empty, since it’s a Monday night.
Doesn’t matter what night it is in a college town, though. The bar is always in full swing.
I push open the front door, walking out into the cold fall night. I didn’t bring a coat of any kind and the air seeps through the lace of my borrowed top with quick speed, chilling me to the bone. A shiver passes over me and I glance around, wondering how the heck I am going to get home.
Normally, Kari and I would walk even though we live kind of far. Stupid, I know, but hey, we’re safer together than alone, right? Considering I am alone, no way am I walking tonight. Calling a cab would be pricey and I’d probably have to wait a while, but I don’t really have a choice.
Pulling out my cell, I start scrolling online, looking for a taxi service, when I hear someone call my name. I glance over my shoulder to see it’s Tad.
Great.
“Hey.” He approaches me, his expression full of—worry? I must be seeing things. “Are you okay?”
I offer him a weak smile and a weaker excuse. “I’m fine, really. Just … tired.”
“Um, sorry for what I said earlier.” He shuffles his feet, dropping his head so he can stare at the ground. “It was a total jerk thing to do.”
“Yeah. It’s okay.” I want to smack myself for saying it’s okay when it so isn’t.
“So you’re leaving?”
I nod and glance down at my phone again. I really need to call a taxi so I can get away from Tad. He may be acting nice now, but I don’t trust him.
I don’t really trust anyone.
“I can take you home,” he offers.
My head snaps up and I study him. He looks sincere, but there’s something about his eyes … they’re too dark, too hard. A little mean-looking. It would save me megabucks if I rode home with him so I didn’t have to pay for a taxi, but I don’t want to take any chances. Something about Tad makes me uneasy. This guy has ulterior motives written all over him.