Temptations (#Wattys2017)

Four

Leaning against the car window, Saskia opened her eyes just long enough to impatiently scroll through her playlist, struggling to find a song she was in the mood to listen to. As expected, parting ways with her father was devoid of much loving emotion. His expression unreadable, he'd merely pulled her in for a half-hearted hug, promising he would see her soon and that it wouldn't be that bad. In response she had kept her replies short and cold, hoping that freezing him out would initiate some sort of caring concern. Though she was lucky to get any sort of hug at all, she realised.

Her father wasn't one for expressing feelings or showing affection, and as much as it pained her to admit—she did take after him a little in that respect. Unlike her mother, who had been so outwardly warm and friendly to every person she'd ever met—once even hugging a complete stranger in public, much to Saskia's embarrassment. The corners of her lips tugged upwards in a half smile, and she began to doze off again.

"We're almost there," the driver informed her loudly, his voice wrenching her from the soothing depths of sleep, head jerking back from the window. Her breath had formed a pattern of condensation on the glass. Saskia hoped she hadn't drooled anywhere. Glancing outside, she noticed they were ascending an extremely long, asphalt driveway lined with sycamore trees, the green leaves having been replenished following the end of winter. Darkness was falling as the sun began to set. A movement between the trees caught her eye and she leaned closer to the window. There was a figure standing still, appearing to be watching the car, unmoving. The figure was shadowed, the face completely obscured. Saskia blinked and when she looked again, it had disappeared. Unease crept up her spine, but she mentally yelled at herself to get a grip. It was probably just a student, messing around with the newcomer.

Up ahead, a massive ancient-looking building dominated the horizon, growing clearer as they drew closer. It did look beautiful, she admitted, annoyed with herself for thinking it. Eventually, the car trailed to a stop in front of the broad main doors, in a circular driveway surrounding an extravagent water fountain. Saskia trudged out of the car, noting that one of her legs had gone numb from being locked in the same position for the entire journey. She propped one hand on the sleek hood to keep from tumbling onto the gravel below, observing the driver unload her suitcase.

"Would you like any help getting your luggage inside?" he asked politely, watching her with a quizzical look on his face as she began rubbing her right leg furiously, trying to revive it. "No, I can manage," she insisted, a little gruffly. She chastised herself; she couldn't be a bitch to everyone just because she was mad at her father for sending her to this forsaken place.

"Thank you for offering," she added with a reluctant smile. The short, balding man nodded and got back into his car, swiftly pulling away. Saskia yelped as she lost the support she was using the hunk of metal for, and swung violently to catch her balance. Tilting her chin up whilst hoping no one saw, she snapped up the handle of her suitcase to tackle the set of steps that lead to the elegant front doors.

The foyer was sizable and airy, a huge glass skylight allowed tendrils of sunlight to land on a white marbled floor, which had wispy strands of black weaving through it. A sweeping staircase with black iron railings curved along the wall ahead, a small seating area located beneath it. Looking around for any signs of where she was supposed to go, she frustratedly blew away the strands of hair that had fallen into her face during her arduous struggle up the steps. At least some feeling had returned to her leg now.

"Hi, welcome to Willow Park! You're new here aren't you?" An overly pleasant voice sounded from her right.

"I'm Katie, I can show you where to get your room key!" A girl much smaller than her now stood in front, a huge smile on her plain face. Her light brown hair was drawn back in a ponytail, grey eyes shining bright as she eagerly awaited Saskia's response. Glancing around for signs of any other life, she realised it was accept the offer or wander around getting lost.

"Sure, show me the way..." she smiled, attempting to disguise the fact that she was still sulking.

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Having recieved her key, she followed the slightly worn map she had been given to find her room. Pausing in front of yet another grand staircase, she realised with a groan that it was on the top floor. How the hell was she going to get her suitcase all the way up there? There was no lift in sight. Of course there wouldn't be, this campus had to be hundreds of years old.

"Need any help?" A deep male voice startled her, causing her to drop the key as she jumped out of her skin. Swivelling around, Saskia locked gazes with a pair of molten brown eyes, belonging to the admittedly gorgeous guy in front of her. Her heart wavered as she casually assessed him. Dark blonde hair fell just above those eyes, styled short on the sides. He was tall, at least a full head taller than her, and his slim yet suitably muscled body was toned beneath the tight grey jersey he was wearing. He smiled, and bent down to retrieve her keys from the floor.

Snapping out of her trance Saskia replied innocently, "Seeing as you just scared me half to death, I think that's the least you could do," whilst looking up at him through her long lashes.

"Would you rather I watched you struggle all by yourself? I just don't have it in me to leave a damsel in distress," he smirked, making to grab the handle of her suitcase.

"I'm no damsel! And I'm not in distress," she retorted, smacking her hand down on top to prevent him from lifting it.

"Just watch. This is how it's done." Chuckling softly, he raised his hands in surrender and surveyed her with a smug look as she began to heave the suitcase up the first flight, pausing halfway to look at him with a triumphant expression. As she began to ascend the next half of the flight, she teetered backwards, threatening to fall all the way back down with the overly heavy suitcase following closely after. He nimbly dashed to her side, supporting her before she could fall.

"Are you in distress yet?" He murmured, his breath brushing the back of her neck. Ignoring the tingle shooting through her core, she admitted, "It does weigh a ton, in my defence."

Effortlessly lifting the case as if it weighed nothing, he turned back to her as they continued up the stairs.

"I'm Caleb, by the way. And who might you be?" He grinned.

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