Andy can't stop thinking about what she said.

And it burns her heart—the way she handled the situation. She isn't that rude. Especially to people she just met. She's nice. She says the right things. She's polite.

She runs a hand through her face. It kept her up all night. And this morning. All the way to her lectures and all the way to work.

She feels so bad.

After her shift, Andy grabs the box she made earlier that night for him, and sends a text to MJ—knowing if she texted Sabina instead, she'd ask questions. Can I borrow your car, please? :D

Her response comes fast. Keys are on my desk.

Got it, thank you!

Not a scratch, bub.

Andy smiles and sends her a kiss emoji.

Half an hour later and she finds herself standing outside Luke's door, praying that he isn't at home.

Rhysand opens it. He looks at her, and lets his gaze roam over her face, her neck, her body, and down to her hands, before saying, "He's not here."

If Andy's face is hot, she's blaming it on the weather. Even though the sun set hours ago. "I'm, uh—this isn't for Luke."

He only raises one eyebrow as he waits for her to explain.

Andy purses her lips and hands it to him. "It's for you. You like them, right?"

Rhysand keeps his dark eyes trained on hers. There's no other word to describe his stare other than intimidating. Andy's hands are shaking again. "Why?"

"I was rude yesterday," Andy explains quietly, forcing herself to meet his gaze. "I'm not usually that...brazen. I'm sorry."

"No wonder," Rhysand says slowly.

"Huh?"

"No wonder he treated you like shit." He takes the box and reaches around his jeans for his wallet. "I'm paying for this."

But Andy asks softly, "What does that mean? I'm—was I rude all the time? Had I been rude without realizing it? Is that why he doesn't like me anymore?"

Rhysand's hand stills. "Don't worry about that," he says through gritted teeth. "I'm moving out in a few days. I can't live with this shithead anymore."

"Stop cursing."

"What?"

"Stop cursing," Andy repeats, frowning. "Say 'jeepers' instead. Or 'motherchucker'. It works for me. Cursing isn't cool."

Rhysand's lips twitch, threatening to form into an amused smile. She hasn't seen him smile yet, she realizes. "Neither is shoving a lollipop into my mouth."

"Neither is smoking."

"I saved your life. Be grateful."

"Oh, right, thank you," Andy says, even as she covers her face with her hands. "That was embarrassing. But it would've been more embarrassing if you let me hit my head."

"Your face is too pretty for me to mess it up," he answers nonchalantly, pulling out a couple of bills from his wallet.

Andy's cheeks are flaming hot at the compliment. "I—"

"Here," Rhysand says gruffly, reaching forward to pull her towards him. Stunned, Andy goes, and she stumbles a little on her feet. Rhysand's other hand immediately slides to her waist to keep her steady.

The touch shocks her. It felt too intimate. She jumps out of his hold.

"Clumsy," Rhysand mutters. "Give me your palm."

"I don't want your money."

He stares at her. "Your palm."

His voice tells her he's not be argued with. Pouting, Andy holds it out. "You really don't need to."

He's careful not to touch her when he hands her the money. His eyes lock with hers once again. "You drove here?"

Andy shifts her weight from one foot to another. "Yes."

Rhysand nods. "Good."

"I better go," Andy says, backing up a few steps. "I'll see you around." She climbs down the staircase, keeping her hand on the railing in case she falls.

Andy doesn't know how she knows, but she feels Rhysand's gaze on her back as she walks to MJ's car.

It's only when she's driven away that she wishes she should've gotten Rhysand's number.

The thought makes her blush, and she slaps herself.

She hums a song all the way home.

*

Rhysand doesn't visit the bakeshop again. But Andy's disappointment doesn't last long, because after her last class on Friday, her eye catches the familiar black Jeep parked in the school's lot.

Rhysand isn't alone; the man standing next to him is thinner, but equally as tall, and is wearing a sky blue hoodie that drowns his figure. His hair, like Rhysand's, is a mess of shaded black, but his face looks younger—more boyish.

The unlit cigarette falling loosely between Rhysand's lips makes Andy frown, even as her pulse jumps at the sight of him. He hasn't noticed her yet.

Andy reaches inside her bag for another lollipop and unwraps it. She stalks towards them.

Rhysand's companion sees her first. His eyes widen.

Rhysand doesn't have time to pull away before Andy's snatching the cigarette off his mouth again and replacing it with another lollipop. He looks less surprised this time as he takes it out to say, "You have to stop doing that."

"These things will kill you," she tells him again. Then, she stretches her hand out to the man next to him and shoots him a bright smile. "Hi! I'm Andy."

The man grins back and shakes her hand. "Jenner Kane. I'm Rhys's new roommate."

"Ah. Nice to meet you," Andy says. Then turns back around to face Rhysand, who's staring at her intently while he sucks on the lollipop. "I haven't seen you since a few days ago. What're you doing here?"

"You have work?" he asks, taking out the lollipop again. He leans against his car and puts one hand inside his pocket.

"Not on Fridays and Sundays." Andy doesn't know why she says that. She doesn't know him that well. She doesn't even know his last name.

Rhysand seems to realize this as well, because he backtracks a bit. "If you're free," he starts slowly, "well, we were going out for dinner. My treat."

The offer startles her. She looks at Jenner. "Oh, um, I don't want to impose."

"The more the merrier, Andy," Rhysand's roommate says, still with that friendly smile on his face. "Besides, I've been wanting to meet you."

What does that mean? Andy scrunches her nose and opens her mouth to ask, but Rhysand beats her to it. "If you're not free, we'll be on our way."

"Dinner sounds good," she answers eagerly. "If you're sure it's okay."

"Hop in," Rhysand says, opening the passenger door for her.

It's a little high, but Andy keeps a firm grasp on the door's handle as she hoists herself up. Rhysand stays behind her until she's seated and closes the door, and then she realizes with a jolt she's wearing a dress.

A hot flush rises to her neck. Did Rhysand...?

No, she tells herself, and shakes her head. She pushes that humiliating thought out of her head as the two males jump in. Rhysand pulls out of the parking lot, and they're on their way.

At dinner, Rhysand doesn't say much.

He's quiet most of the time they're eating (they've opted for pizza and drinks, nothing fancy), but Jenner and Andy fill the air with their conversation. Jenner is easy to talk to, Andy realizes. He's nice, smart, and funny, and he's interested in her—he asks a lot of questions.

Rhysand doesn't say much, but Andy notices that he's listening. He's watching her when she talks, and laughs, and he's listening to her.

Andy finds out Jenner is much older than her, and he's a graduate from Ardenton College who majored in computer science. Rhysand doesn't talk about himself, but Jenner tells her he's older, too, and that he's not from around here—he graduated a few years ago, and now he's a music producer.

"Anything of yours that I've listened to?" Andy asks as she sips her juice. She's curious.

"No," is Rhysand's curt reply. He doesn't meet her eyes.

"Oh," she murmurs quietly. Then turns to Jenner. "How did you two meet?"

"He came here for work, and then met my cousin. They were a thing," he answers, smiling sheepishly. "I hated him."

"Feeling was mutual, shithead."

Andy frowns at him again. Rhysand stares back at her evenly.

Jenner flicks his roommate at the back of his ear. Rhysand doesn't even flinch—just rolls his eyes. "Then he went back home, they tried long distance, but she screwed him over. And the rest is history."

Andy cocks her head to the side. "Why...didn't you live together immediately, then?"

"I was waiting for my old roommate to move out," Jenner tells her, shrugging. "So I hooked Rhys up with a guy I knew for a few months."

It seems like Jenner knows about Luke and Andy, but he doesn't elaborate. Andy doesn't dwell too much on the subject, either. "What were you doing in my school?"

To her surprise, Rhysand chokes out a cough.

Jenner grins wolfishly and claps his friend's back. "Rhys told me you were a freshman."

"Oh," she says, blinking.

"Yep," Jenner replies. "Which is cool, don't get me wrong. Cool, cool, cool."

"Shut up," Rhysand snaps at him, then he pushes his chair back and stands. His eyes find Andy's. "I have your sweater."

Andy's eyebrows draw together. "Huh?"

"You left one at their old place," Jenner answers for him, standing up as well. "Come on. His new place is nicer."

Andy's not sure if coming with them to their home is the right thing to do. She doesn't know them well enough to hang out with them in private.

Rhysand seems to notice her reluctance, so he says, "I'll drive you home and drop your sweater off another day."

Jenner apologizes for his straightforwardness. "Next time, Andy," he says with a sincere smile. "I'm sorry for being blunt. Didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

"It's fine," Andy whispers, grabbing her jacket and bag. "Thank you for the offer."

They all leave the pizza place together, and Rhysand opens the passenger door for her again.

This time, Andy looks at him. "Um, it's okay, I can close it. Thank you."

Rhysand's face is blank as he searches her eyes, but he doesn't argue and rounds the car to head for the driver's seat.

Andy's heart slows down as she settles on her seat.

They drop her off first at her dorm building. Before she leaves the car, Jenner leans forward and says, "I'm so happy I met you, Andy. You're sweet. We should hang out again soon."

"You too," Andy says in response, smiling at him. "I would like that very much, I really enjoyed your company. Goodnight."

Jenner hollers the greeting back as she jumps out of the vehicle, smoothing out her dress with her hands.

She's about to turn around to give them a wave, and to thank Rhysand for the ride, but he's gone from his seat and already standing beside her. "I'll walk you," he says lowly, shoving his hands inside his pockets after shutting the passenger door closed.

"You don't need—"

Rhysand gives her a look.

"Okay," Andy whispers, taking a step forward.

It's cold, and it's quiet, and she can hear his breathing beside her. Andy swallows the lump in her throat. "Thank you for dinner."

Rhysand only grunts his response, keeping his eyes on the ground.

"And the ride. You didn't have to. Oh, and for keeping my sweater."

They reach the front door. "I'll drop it off sometime this week," Rhysand says, turning to her, "if that's okay with you."

"Yes, thank you. Oh, here's my number." Andy tears a piece of paper from her notepad and scribbles on it quickly. "I might be in class or work, but when you're here, I'll let my roommates know."

Rhysand takes the paper without a word when she's done.

"Stop smoking, okay? I'll see you soon! Thank you for dinner again. And the ride."

"Go inside," Rhysand drawls, tipping his chin towards the door.

"I'll stock up on my lollipops," Andy says as a goodbye, grinning at him. Then she gives him a wave and enters the building.

Rhysand stands there until she's inside the elevator.

He and Jenner only drive away when she's inside her dorm room, and she can see the vehicle driving back onto the main road from the window.

*

i'm officially uploading every friday, so please stay tuned!

what fo you guys think so far? please let me know in the comments, i love reading them, they make my day c:

also, what is your favorite dessert? mine are cheesecakes!