https://youtu.be/duBx5T9XNe4

(Author's note: If you wish to listen to Chapter 37 parts 1 and 2, please click the video. Thank you and enjoy!)

   Once in the bathroom, I take off my leather jacket and place it on the sink. Looking at the mirror I see my cheeks are cherry red. I turn on the faucet and I run my hand over the cold water. Using my hands as a cup, I fill the water to the top, and then I bend down and splash the cold water onto my hot face, so I can cool down. I stare back at the mirror and watch the water dripping down my face.

  "Quite a show you put on in class..." A girl's cold voice says behind me and I know that voice by now. Meg. Did she follow me to the bathroom? What's with everyone stocking me, lately? "You didn't come on Friday?" She asks.

  I turn around and give her a puzzled look.

 "The party. I knew you weren't going to show," she retorts. 

  Oh, she's talking about the party on Friday that I missed. I got so distracted all last week that I totally forgot about the party. I guess I kept my promise to Chris without even realizing it.

  "I actually got busy last week that I forgot," I tell her the truth.

  "Hmm, well if you say you forgot-" She glares at me in complete disbelief, then continues. "There's going to be another party tonight to celebrate finishing the finals. You should come. Unless you'll forget about this party too," she says with a wicked smile.

  I wish I could really punch her. Using every ounce of strength I plaster a smile- a fake smile. "It sounds like fun. Is the party going to be at the frat house?" I ask.

  She narrows her eyes and I think she's challenging me, but it only makes my fake smile increase. "Yes, and I can't wait to see you there, Sussianna," she smiles for a second, then it fades to a scowl when she turns to leave out of the bathroom. 

  She pauses at the door for a minute and says, "You're quite astonishing, especially those new clothes you're wearing."

  She seems sincere. Is that a compliment? I look down at my clothes and notice I do look different, it looks tighter on me, and on top of that my hair is down; I normally always wear it in a ponytail. Truthfully, these clothes are not new, they are the clothes that I hardly ever wear.

  I don't know what to say, so I utter, "Thank you."

  "It wasn't a compliment," she says cruelly.

  "I didn't think it was," I mutter and she steps out. I thought it was a compliment, but obviously, I was wrong.

  I grab my jacket and put it back on and return to class. Before the few minutes are up, I hope I can grab my bag and make a run for it before Chris can catch me, but my subconscious says, good luck with that. Shit, I should have grabbed my bag right away, but I am such an idiot to forget it.

  Without looking at Chris, I hurry to grab my bag and as fast as my legs can carry me I start to run towards the door.

  I hear a desk squeak and I have a feeling Chris is right behind me- I can feel his hot breath close to my neck. Fuck! Why is he always so much faster than me?

  I yelp as I'm grabbed around my waist and I'm tossed over Chris's shoulder. I hear everyone suddenly gasps, and whisper to one another. I look up and spot their faces full of shock.

  "Chris! Put me down, you're causing a scene!" I scream.

  "You're not running from me this time, Sussianna. We're going to talk if you like it or not," he rasps, his tone full of authority, making me feel like a child. Oh for goodness sake, he is making me look like a child in front of everyone because I'm over his shoulder like I am a little girl. This is horrifying!

  Still hoisted over his shoulder, he walks me out of the door to where we are outside, crossing the green lawn until we reach an alleyway, he stops, and the whole time I'm kicking and screaming for him to put me down.

   He places me on my feet, yanks my elbow, and shoves me to the wall. His lips smash to mine. Hmm, I taste his minty scent that I adore and miss so much. His hips push against my lower stomach, his raging arousal evident beneath the button fly of his black jeans. What? How's he turned on by being angry? Freaking insane man! Even so, if he's insane, I assume it's better than being tortured because he said he would punish me, maybe this is one of his punishments, and in spite of that, it's a good punishment, which I will welcome it. Yet still, I try and resist the intrusion of his tongue... Just a little bit, but it's no good. I can't resist him, I need to have him all over me. I knot my arms around his neck, accepting him willingly, immerse his invasion, and encounter his tongue, stroke for stroke.

  "Why do you make me so mad, Sussianna?" He moans into my mouth.

  "Because you make me mad," I fire back. I try to sound spiteful but it's more of a moan.

  "I make you mad. How?"

  "Because you didn't bother to even call or visit me," I say as I unwrap my arms from around his neck and step a little back. Oh gosh, I sound like a needy woman, but once I start talking I can't seem to shut my mouth. "It seems like you were using me and I didn't matter to you."

  His blue eyes are laced with concern. "Hold up. How am I using you?"

  "Like for this exam, then maybe..." I have no idea where this comes from, but I say it anyway. "You just want me for sex, and you want my virginity."

  He exhales. "Honestly Sussianna, if I really did want your virginity, don't you think I would have taken it when we were sailing?" He asks me, so thoughtlessly that I feel the tears falling down my face.

  Why the fuck am I even crying?

  "Sussianna, don't cry," he says as he brings his hand up, and uses his thumb to remove the tears from my cheek. "Look, I didn't want to make you cry. It's just... Fuck... I'm not very good at this, I usually don't do this- commenting shit. What I am trying to say is..." Spit it out, Chris. "I was trying to give you some space to think about what I was offering-"

  "To be just a sex object, right?" I ask by cutting him off.

  "No, not a sex object, and if I made you think that, then I am sorry. That's not what I was implying," he pierces his eyes shut for a second, lost in his confession, then opens them. His face straightens and he looks at me with disapproval. Only if I knew what he was thinking. "Now can you stop interrupting and let me finish?" he murmurs.

  I nod, lamely. If he's going to open up, I will keep quiet, even if I have to tape my mouth shut.

  "In fact, those days were quite difficult to stay away from you because I can't seem to stay away. Something about you..." His blue eyes scorch from under his lashes, mesmerizing and fatal. "You're different from other girls. I should be telling you to stay clear from me, but I can't. I want you, Sussianna. I never wanted anything as much as I want you."

  My heart stops and my blood is racing in my veins. He makes everything so much more difficult for me. He wants me is all I hear. Along with the thudding of my pulse that I can hear it humming in my ears, and surely he can hear it as well.

  "And the thought of anyone else having you; drives me crazy. I have never been the jealous type, but since I met you, I get enraged if anyone tries to have you..." He looks away into the shadows of the dark alleyway for a long moment, and I wonder where his thoughts are taking him. "Do you remember Lucas from the Auto Shop?" He asks.

  I nod because I can't seem to speak. I am in shock at him telling me all of this.

  "I got jealous when Lucas was looking and moving closer to you; I knew what he was doing. He was trying to hit on you and when he asked if you were seeing anyone that only made my hate fire build and build until I had to throw his ass out."

  Now I know the reason why Chris was acting strange and kicked Lucas out the door fast that day because he was jealous.

  "Then James." He meets my eyes, and they are raw as he recalls the past of James and him. I bite my lip down because I know I will start asking questions about what happened between them and why was he so angry that we had to leave in a hurry.

  He sighs. "I hate the mother-fucker most of all. I am sorry to say this but Camille does deserve better than him that's why I'm starting to like Camille-" He shrugs. "Sort of because I feel bad for her."

  No wonder he was being nice to her because he basically felt sorry for her. All this new information he's giving me is starting to make sense.

  "You wanted to know what happened at the restaurant."

  I nod, fiercely. 

  "He started talking about you..."

  About me? "Why?"

  "He was saying that he wanted to have you, especially in those jeans you were wearing. I got so pissed that I wanted to kill him, so we started yelling, well, technically I started to yell at him for his behavior saying, you have Camille, so why do you want Sussianna, and he said that a man can't just have one woman. Then I got so frustrated that I was already to slam his face on the concrete floor." I notice his hands ball into fists and I step back because I think he's going to hit something.

  Looking at my concerned expression, his face softens and he puts his hands in the pockets of his jeans. I can't speak.

  "Sussianna, you don't recognize how beautiful you are that every man wants you..." He pauses and looks down at his black sneakers, then back to meet my eyes again. "How much I want you. That's why I gave you time to think because I want you to say yes to me; to do this with me." 

  "You mean that stuff in your closet?" I ask.

  "No. Not exactly."

  "Not exactly? Then what Chris? You say you want me, but you don't do the girlfriend thing," I say and look away trying to fight back the tears. I know I want him to, but I don't want to become friends with benefits. If that's all he wants, then this is not going to work. I want more.

  "I know I don't do the girlfriend thing, but for you, I am willing to try..." He steps closer to me, grabs my chin, and turns it so I can look up at him. "I want you to be mine. No one else, but mine. I have thought this through very hard over and over again. I will do anything to have you. If you agree to do this with me, I am yours, and you're mine. I don't want anyone else but you. I will be devoted to you if you are willing to agree and be mine."

  His? My mouth just went dry. I am speechless. I have no words. Eventually, I find the courage to speak. "Why me?"

  He holds my face between his hands as he studies me and strokes his thumb over my cheek. His hands slide down the sides of my neck. I quiver as his hands continue softly moving to my shoulders and then he stops. His face drifts to my sides, his nose skimming across my face and down toward my neck. He rests with the side of his face pressed compassionately against my chest. He sighs. "Because you're different Sussianna. You seem like the only person that can relate to me- that understands me."

  But the truth is I don't really understand him; he always seems to confuse me.

  I couldn't think of anything, except that his forehead was on my chest. I assume listening to the throbbing of my heart, but I must be hurting his ears because I can feel my heart pounding at a fast rate. I miss his touch, it's so calming, so lovely, and just so comforting. Even though he makes me go ballistic, I miss him.

  I don't know how long we held each other without moving or without him touching me sexually, he just held me in his arms as I took in his minty scent. After some time he's the first to speak and releases me too soon. "Sussianna, I laid out my heart and told you everything that I felt. I have never told anyone that I wanted them, only you. In all of my twenty-eight years, I have never been open to anyone. You're the only one who knows more about me; not even my family knows what I am thinking or what's going on in my life."

  "You're twenty-eight?" I ask.

  He laughs. "From all of that, I just said, all you got was my age?"

  I stay silent waiting for him to answer me.

   He shakes his head with a half-smile. "Yes, I am twenty-eight. I started college a bit later than you did. But we'll talk about that another time."

  I nod mostly to myself as I pull out my phone from the bag to check the time. It's 2:39 pm. Shit, it's late. I have to get to work and I can't miss work again.

  "Your phone is cracked?" He asks, anxious now.

  "Yeah. I dropped it." Technically, I threw it because I was angry, but he doesn't need to know that. "Do you mind giving me a ride to work?"

  I know I have my bike here, but I'm already running late and if I rode my bike to work, I surely won't make it on time. Although deep down I just want to spend more time with him.

  "Of course," he smirks when he grabs my bag and my hand. I tell him the instructions to where my bike is and we hold hands until we reach my bike.

 He lets go of my hand and moves to where my bike is and unchains it. Never taking his eyes off me, he then starts to push my bike as we walk to his car.

  "At least you didn't carry me to your car," I tease.

  "Haha," he snorts. "Well, I could have, but I didn't feel like it... This time," he replies when he opens the door and gently shoves me into the passenger seat while giving me a wink.

  After he attaches my bike to the bike rack, our journey to Super Movies is silent, but for once I love the silence between us- it's peaceful. With Chris's driving and swerving in and out of traffic, it doesn't take very long to arrive. He pulls into the car parking lot, fast and carelessly. The whole time I was closing my eyes because in all truth I dislike how he drives because let's be honest he's a menace on the roads. I wonder who gave him a license?

   Will I ever get used to Chris driving?

  I take my time getting out of the car when Chris goes and unstraps my bike and removes it from the bike rack. He rolls my bike to the wire fence; fastens the chain onto the fence and clamps it with the lock.

  I thank him for giving me a ride and for him bringing my bike as well. He nods and I take that as my cue to head inside to work when I hear him call my name carefully, "Sussianna?"

  I turn around and see he's leaning over the roof of his car. "Yes?" I query.

  "Think about what I have said and please agree to be mine." With those few words, he slides into his car smoothly and drives off; leaving me to think in my own thoughts.

  I do want to be his, but do I want to get the chance of being hurt? Do I really want to agree on what's in that closet? Decisions. Decisions... Decisions that I have to face sooner or perhaps later. At this moment, I have no idea what I want. I sigh and head inside.

  Hey everyone. I do hope you enjoyed it, especially Chris's "opening-up speech."  Thank you so much for reading, voting, and all of your lovely comments. I appreciate all of you and I can't thank you enough to continue reading my novel.  Until next time everyone. Love ya guys!