The Bright Ones

23 | Cut by a knife

A few weeks had gone by and exams were finally upon us. Studying was none stop up until the end of them. We studied in the library, flipped flashcards at meals, read chapters we'd covered in between classes, quizzes each other at night. When my last exam was taken up I was immediately filled with dread even as a weight was lifted from my chest. Why must exams make me feel like throwing up my insides even when I'm most proud of myself?

My class was dismissed for Christmas break and we were all in the halls in less than a minute. I didn't need to look, I knew Will was next to me as we pushed through the swarm of schoolboys buzzing with the awaiting vacation. We made it to the courtyard and made a run for the dormitory.

Up the stairs and down the hall we burst into the room Will shared Dylan and Lawr. Dylan and Brodie were already in the room. Dylan was sitting at his desk hunched over a scrap of paper, furiously scribbling down whatever it is this time. Knowing Dylan—our hopeless romantic—it was some sad form of a love letter for the beautiful Sam. He had discarded his blazer, but his flexing muscles were still visible through the white dress shirt. Brodie was sitting on Dylan's bed on the bottom bunk, leaning against the wall, watching Dylan spill his heart into this letter. His pale skin had a shadow cast over it and his fiery red hair brushed against the wall funny.

Dylan made eye contact with either me or Will—I wasn't too sure—and shrugged looking bored. "A letter for his, Sammy," Brodie informed us almost mockingly.

Will let a deep laugh escape his crooked smile as he removed his reading glasses and placed them on his nightstand before discarding the rest of his belongings on his desk. He took a seat on his bed and gave the spot next to him a light pat. I looked at Brodie who had resumed watching Dylan with an emotionless face to Will. I wanted to sit with him, truly. But the thought of it made my stomach churn and my skin crawl. The temperature of the room would be unbearable if we made even the slightest contact. Plus, I would be all stiff and weird about it in front of the others.

The door clicking open got me out of my head. I took the entrance of Reeve and Lawr as my chance to place my things on Will's desk and take a seat on his desks chair. I couldn't make actual eye contact with him; I know he had watched me take the chair over the spot next to him and I could only imagine the hurt in his eyes. A quick glance at him sitting crisscross on his head confirmed the hurt I had suspected in his eyes, but with a hint of confusion.

Will was so patient with me and respected my space and process, but I think he thought it would be different behind closed doors with our friends.

I put on a smile as I dragged my eyes from his beautiful blue eyes. Reeve has taken the spot Will had attempted to give me and Lawr was climbing the ladder to his top bunk. "How were everyone's exams?" I asked, uncomfortable with the silence, even if it was only a few moments long.

"Fucking glad it's over," Brodie answers quickly, first to my surprise.

"I swear Mr. York didn't teach us anything that was on that exam in chemistry," Reeve sighs in Dylan's direction. There's a shift in the room as the focus is placed on Dylan—who lo and behold—hadn't stopped writing.

Brodie rolled his eyes and snatched the sheet from Dylan. "Hey!" Dylan's voice cracked as he lunged forward, knocking his chair backward in the action.

Brodie had a smug look on his face. He didn't even move a muscle when Dylan lunged for him. Brodie was on his knees leaning on the end of the bed with the piece of paper behind him. Dylan was standing now and they were dangerously close.

If it wasn't me I would have made a joke about them being so close to kissing and how overwhelming the sexual tension was, but I was me. And Dylan looked annoyed.