Total pages in book: 139
Estimated words: 133655 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 668(@200wpm)___ 535(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 133655 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 668(@200wpm)___ 535(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
“Ace, what’s your next class?”
He smiles sheepishly. “Psychology 201.”
“Ace! Are you in…are you in all my classes?” I ask, outrage making the pitch of my voice much, much higher than normal.
He winces. “I’m guessing from the way you said that, that’s a bad thing?”
“Ace!”
“Yes. I…yes. I’m in all your classes. But you’re my best friend, Lia. And I want to get better at being a student, and you’re the best student I know. It felt like the best place to start—the best of both worlds, you know? Are you mad?”
“Yes!” I snap.
“I’m sorry!” he apologizes, reaching out for my hand that I jerk back.
“Really. I didn’t think it’d be a big deal, but I can see now I should have considered the extra strain on you. But I promise I won’t make you babysit me. Swear. I’m gonna handle this shit on my own for the most part.”
I sigh. His face is so earnest, so Ace. It’s hard to stay mad at him. I don’t know if my brain chemicals are just used to getting over it quickly after this many years of our rule or what, but it is what it is.
I love him, for better or worse. He’s my bestie.
With one more deep heave of air, I reach out for his shoulders and pull him into a hug. He returns the gesture, wrapping his arms around my back and tucking his face into my neck. I soak in the comfort of him for a long second before pulling back.
“I just have one question.”
“Yeah?”
“The tweezers, I can get. The slip ‘n slide, even. But why in the fresh hell do you have a turkey baster in your backpack?”
“It’s all for later. Me and some other sophomores decided on an innocent little slip ‘n slide event by the new fountain on the pedestrian court to welcome some of the more interesting freshman. I was obviously going to tell you about it. I just didn’t get a chance. The turkey baster was the best way I could think to surreptitiously steal some water from the fountain to wet the slide.”
“The group of more interesting freshman you’re referring to wouldn’t happen to include Finn’s twin brothers, would it?”
He smirks. “I don’t know. Trav and Jack are pretty interesting.”
“What am I gonna do with you, Ace?” I ask, mystified. “Finn’s liable to cut your throat if you get them in trouble.”
He smiles and slings an arm around my shoulders. “Aw, that’s so sweet of you to worry about me, but Finn loves me too much to really hurt me. At least, not without ample warning time so I can run to Central America first. Now, come on. Walk with me to our next class, bestie.”
Ace in all my classes.
Ace involving Finn’s brothers in pranks before they’ve had a single grade submitted.
Ace with a turkey baster in his backpack.
It’s literally the first day of class, and Ace is already turning Dickson University upside down.
God help me. God help us all.
Thursday, Aug 14
Ace
My Great Big Plan to win Julia’s love is still in motion and still going great. My only complaint is that I really thought it’d go quicker.
Living across the hall and having access to her in all her classes has proven unbelievably useful in lessening her time with Drewbacca and increasing her time with me, and after a week and a half of working my ass off to prove I’ll be more than dead weight to drag around on her schedule, Julia has warmed up to studying together too.
Things are moving along—but my heart is not what you’d call patient. I want the endgame now. I want forehead kisses and real fucking kisses and cutesy fucking nicknames and hand-holding and eating spaghetti noodles like we’re Lady and the Tramp and being the person she thinks about when she sees a cute baby.
So… I’ve hatched a new idea. A genius-level acceleration tactic that came to me, oh, twenty-seven minutes ago.
See, being across the hall is fine, but being across the pillow? That’s where the real progress happens. And in order to stay in her apartment, something has to go horribly wrong with mine.
Cut to: fire. Real fire. In a real trash can. Currently real-burning in my real apartment.
Fire licks in the trash can, burning the papers I torched just moments ago, and black smoke starts to billow from it and fill my living room. Shit. Fire is, like, intense. I mean, I’ve been around fire before since Gunnar is my brother, but I’ve never been the one in charge of the actual fire and this thing is feeling very…impulsive.
When the flames start to threaten to move their way out of the trash can and toward the carpet, I bolt across the hall to Julia’s door, knocking frantically. She moves around inside, but every second feels like a lifetime as the fire I set in my apartment burns unattended.