Rowan

Chapter 8 | Rowan

"How many times do I have to tell you?"

Rowan put down her books and turned towards the exasperated voice. Emma and Leo were glaring at each other, as had been the case for the last half hour, and she was beginning to wonder if they even remembered that she was there.

"Are you sure you guys aren't siblings?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

Emma gave her an apologetic look as Leo stormed off. "Sorry, Rowan. He just really gets to me sometimes. He thinks he's going to get me to introduce him to Lacey Johnson. She's a bitch. Sometimes I just really wonder what the hell goes through his mind."

A startled laugh escaped Rowan's chest. "What?"

"Yeah. I'm telling you, there's something seriously wrong with that girl."

Still not quite clear on who the person in reference was, she shook her head.

"Hey, we should go into the city tonight!" Emma exclaimed. "They're playing that new romance film at the theatre, and Leo isn't going to want to go. It would give us a chance to hang out."

Rowan smiled guiltily. "Well...I actually have a date tonight."

Emma's eyes widened in shock. "What? With who? Just a few days ago you were single! Spill it, woman!" She swiveled in her chair, resting her arms on the back so she could face Rowan head on.

"Hold on! We're not together. It's just a date." She ignored the blonde girl's eye roll. "Anyways. We're going to dinner tonight."

"And? How did you meet this mystery man?"

"I met him at that cafe in town, and ended up drawing him in the park the other day. And then he asked me out."

Silence.

"Okay, that didn't sound quite right. We had time to talk a bit! We're not complete strangers."

Emma snorted. "Right. So you guys know each other's names at least, correct?"

Now it was Rowan's turn to roll her eyes. "I'm a little smarter than that."

The professor finally dismissed the class and everyone began to filter out of the room. Rowan pulled her jacket over her shoulders and her beanie down over her ears. It had been absolutely bitter that morning, and it wasn't likely to have warmed up.

Emma gave her a sidelong look as they left the university's main building. "I thought you just got over a bad breakup."

Pain shot through her chest, and it took her a moment to realize what it was. She was remembering him. It had been a while since she'd really thought about her ex, but the experience was no more pleasant than it had been to begin with.

A hand came to rest on her shoulder, and she looked up into the concerned blue eyes in front of her.

"It still hurts, doesn't it?" Emma asked gently.

She was silent for a moment. "It does."

"You trust this guy? He's not a rebound?" There was nothing in her tone but genuine concern, and Rowan couldn't help but smile a little.

"I trust him. It's just to get to know each other a little better."

"In that case, have fun. And don't forget-they're announcing the group project on Monday. Maybe we'll be put together!" she said.

Rowan grinned. "Here's to hoping."