After (The After Series)

What? “What?”
“Hardin’s dad—”
“Yes, yes, I got that, but Hardin’s dad lives here? Why is Hardin here—I
thought he was British? If his dad lives here, why doesn’t he live with him?” I
flood Landon with questions before I can stop myself. He looks confused, but
less nervous than a moment ago.
“He’s from London; his dad and my mom live close to the campus, but Hardin
and his dad don’t have a good relationship. So please don’t mention any of this
to him. We already don’t like each other.”
I nod. “Sure, okay.” A thousand more questions come to my mind, but I stay
quiet as my friend goes back to talking about Dakota, his eyes brightening with
each word about her.
WHEN I GET BACK TO MY ROOM,
Steph isn’t back yet since her classes run
two hours past mine. I start to lay out my books and notes to get ready to study,
but decide to call Noah instead. He doesn’t pick up, and it really makes me wish
he was here with me at college. It would make things so much easier and
comfortable. We could be studying or watching a movie together right now.

---

Still, I know that I’m thinking about this because of my guilt about kissing
Hardin is consuming me—Noah is so sweet and he doesn’t deserve to be cheated
on. I am so lucky to have him in my life. He’s always there for me, and he
knows me better than anyone. We have known each other basically our whole
lives. When his parents moved in down the street, I was ecstatic to have
someone my age to hang out with, and the feeling only grew as I got to know
him and learned he was an old soul like me. We spent our time reading, watching
movies, and bringing life into the greenhouse behind my mother’s place. The
greenhouse has always been my safe haven; when my dad drank I would hide in
there and no one except Noah knew where to find me. The night my dad left was
a terrible night for me, and my mother refuses to speak of it, ever. Doing so
would shatter the perfect façade she has created for herself, but I still want to
talk about it sometimes. Even though I hated him for drinking so much, and for
pushing my mother around, I still felt the deep need to have a father. That night,
stowed away in the greenhouse while my dad screamed and went wild, I kept
hearing glasses shattering in the kitchen, and then, when it stopped, footsteps. I
was terrified my father was coming for me, but it was Noah. And I had never
been so relieved in all my life to see someone safe. From that day on we were
inseparable. Over the years, our friendship turned into more, and neither of us
has ever dated anyone else.
I text Noah that I love him and decide to take a catnap before I begin my
studies. I pull out my planner and check my work one more time, I can surely fit
in a twenty-minute nap.
Not even ten minutes into my nap, there’s a knock at the door. Figuring Steph
must have forgotten her key, I groggily pull the door open.
Of course it isn’t her. It’s Hardin.
“Steph isn’t back yet,” I say and walk back to my bed, leaving the door open
for him. I’m a little surprised he even bothered to knock, since I know Steph
gave him an extra key as backup for herself. I will have to talk to her about that.
“I can wait,” he says and plops down on Steph’s bed.
“Suit yourself.” I groan, ignoring his chuckle as I pull the blanket over my
body and close my eyes. Or rather, trying to ignore it. There is no way I am
going to be able to sleep knowing that Hardin is in my room, but I would rather
pretend-sleep than face the awkward, rude talk we are bound to have. I try to
ignore the sound of him gently tapping the headboard of her bed until my alarm
goes off.
“Going somewhere?” he asks and I roll my eyes even though he can’t see me.
“No, I was taking a twenty-minute nap,” I tell him and sit up.
“You set an alarm to make sure your nap is only twenty minutes?” he says,

---

amused.
“Yeah, I do. So what’s it to you, anyway?” I grab my books and lay them out
neatly, in order of my class schedule, and stack the notes for each class on top of
them.
“Are you OCD or something?”
“No, Hardin. Not everyone’s crazy because they just like things a certain way.
There’s nothing wrong with being organized,” I snap.
And he laughs, of course. I refuse to look at him, but out of the corner of my
eye, I can see him pushing up off the bed.